Founder(s) | Howard Rich, Tom Coburn [1] and Bill Wilson [2] |
---|---|
Established | 1996 |
Mission | "Americans for Limited Government is dedicated to restoring the constitutional, limited powers of government at the federal, state, and local level. ALG does this by fighting to reduce the size and scope of government, protecting individuals rights, promoting federalism, and rolling back the tyranny of the administrative state. This will put America first, foster free enterprise, and restore the rule of law." |
President | Rick Manning |
Address | 10332 Main Street, Box 326 Fairfax, VA 22030 |
Location | Fairfax , Virginia , |
Website | Official website |
Americans for Limited Government(ALG) is a conservative 501(c)(4) non-profit organization "dedicated to restoring the constitutional, limited powers of government at the federal, state, and local level... by fighting to reduce the size and scope of government, protecting individuals rights, promoting federalism, and rolling back the tyranny of the administrative state." ALG is focused on "fiscal responsibility, regulatory reform, transparency and shedding light on overlooked issues that impact people's lives." [3]
The Koch-founded and supported 501(c)3 Donors Trust contributes to ALG. [4]
In recent years, ALG's primary focus has been on the restoration of Congress’ Article I power of the purse, and supporting de-funding efforts to halt what it views as overreaching administrative state actions by the executive branch. In 2016, ALG supported the "Consolidated Appropriations Amendments of 2016" by U.S. Rep. Ken Buck (R-Colo.), which the group said would "begin the process of restoring Congress’ rightful, constitutional powers." [5] [6]
One of the more prominent de-funding efforts supported by ALG was the successful de-funding in fiscal years 2015 and 2016 of the United States Department of Commerce's transition of U.S. oversight of the Internet domain name system. [7] ALG supported Republican congressional efforts [8] to prohibit the National Telecommunications and Information Administration from using any funds to carry out any transition control of the Internet's domain name system functions to the private ICANN.
U.S. Rep. Sean Duffy (R-Wis.) authored the amendment [9] to the Department of Commerce appropriations bill that denied funding to the administration to perform the transition. The amendment passed 229 to 178 on May 30, 2014. [10] The provision was then retained in the fiscal year 2015 omnibus spending bill, [11] the fiscal year 2015 continuing resolution, [12] and then again in the fiscal year 2016 omnibus spending bill, [13] effectively delaying implementation of the transition until September 30, 2016.
On May 24, 2016, ALG's President, Rick Manning, testified before the United States Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation in opposition to the transition of U.S. oversight of the Internet's domain name system. [14]
ALG's Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests [15] directed at NTIA were featured in The Wall Street Journal by L. Gordon Crovitz in 2014 and 2016, and exposed what the group contended was a lack of agency analysis showing legal authority by the government to complete the transition [16] prior to the transition's announcement on March 14, 2014, and what the group said was a lack of antitrust analysis performed by NTIA [17] prior to the agency's Internet domain name system transition approval to ICANN on June 9, 2016.
Another successful de-funding effort supported by ALG was against the Housing and Urban Development’s "Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing." [18] According to the rule, published in the Federal Register, "This final rule, and Assessment Tools and guidance to be issued, will assist recipients of Federal funding to use that funding and, if necessary, adjust their land use and zoning laws in accordance with their existing legal obligation to affirmatively further fair housing," [19] in ALG's view nationalizing local zoning decisions from approximately 1,200 cities and counties [20] that receive community development block grants. [21] ALG was a strong advocate against the regulation and came out in support [22] of U.S. Rep. Paul Gosar's (R-Ariz.) amendment [23] [24] which passed the House Transportation and HUD Appropriations bill in 2014. [25] and 2015. [26]
ALG led conservative opposition to the 12-nation Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal, [27] [28] which was ultimately never approved by Congress and was later rescinded by President Donald Trump in January 2017. [29] [30] ALG launched http://stopbadtradedeals.org to promote the campaign.
In 2013, ALG joined with over 100 civil liberties groups including the Electronic Frontier Foundation and the American Civil Liberties Union to oppose mass surveillance by the National Security Agency (NSA) in the wake of whistle blower Edward Snowden's publication of classified information revealing domestic telecommunications companies collecting the phone records of American citizens. [31] [32] ALG supported an amendment by U.S. Rep. Justin Amash (R-Mich.) [33] that would have de-funded domestic surveillance to collect communications data, per the legislation, "if such things do not pertain to a person who is the subject of an investigation." [34]
ALG has also supported efforts to de-fund the Corporation for Public Broadcasting including PBS and NPR, [35] and various energy and environmental regulations. [36]
On April 20, 2016, House Speaker Paul Ryan directly cited ALG as one of the conservative groups supporting the Puerto Rico Oversight, Management, and Economic Stability Act (PROMESA), [37] and quoted ALG President Rick Manning as saying "The United States finds itself in a difficult position in relation to the Puerto Rican debt crisis. Speaker Paul Ryan, House Natural Resources Committee Chairman Rob Bishop and Financial Services Subcommittee Chairman Sean Duffy have put together a thoughtful approach to protect the U.S. taxpayers by imposing a tested mechanism for getting the territory's finances under control and by creating a controlled environment for restructuring Puerto Rico's unsustainable $72 billion of debt that will keep taxpayers off the hook.” [37]
In 2008, ALG opposed financial bailouts of banks that bet poorly on U.S. housing, including the passage of the Troubled Asset Relief Program [38] and in 2010, efforts by the United States Federal Reserve to purchase back some $1.25 trillion of mortgage-backed securities from banks all over the world, including more than $440 billion that was given to foreign banks. [39] [40] [41]
In 2009, ALG opposed passage of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act [42] and in 2010, opposed the Dodd-Frank financial legislation, including its creation of the so-called "orderly liquidation fund" the group warned would be used to bail out banks and the Office of Financial Research that the group charged invaded individual privacy of financial transactions. [43] [44]
In 2009, ALG developed the database used by TaxDayTeaParty.com that enabled users to organize tea parties in their local communities on April 15, 2009. [45]
In 2009 and 2010, ALG opposed legislation providing $154 billion to state and local governments, [46] calling it a "bailout [of] the public sector unions in bankrupt states like California and New York." [47]
In 2011, ALG supported efforts by congressional Republicans to leverage the vote on the debt ceiling in exchange for a constitutional amendment to cut, cap, and balance the federal budget. [48]
In 2011 and 2012, ALG opposed the use of U.S. funds at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to bail out Greece, Ireland and Portugal, which were caught in the European sovereign debt crisis, [49] [50] [51] and urged Congress to roll back the 2009 expansion of the IMF including the $100 billion New Arrangements to Borrow, supporting legislation offered by U.S. Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA). [52] In 2016, ALG opposed another $56.7 billion expansion of the IMF that was included in the fiscal year 2016 omnibus spending bill. [53] [54]
In 2013, ALG supported efforts to condition passage of the fiscal year 2014 continuing resolution on de-funding the health care law that led to a brief, partial shutdown of federal government functions. [55]
ALG's impact can be seen through multiple media outlets. On February 16, 2017, CQ Roll Call published an article focused on ALG's position on U.S. trade policy. [56] The Wall Street Journal's front-page story on March 10, 2016, titled "Free Trade Loses Political Favor" [57] directly quoted ALG President Rick Manning and cited a poll commissioned by ALG and performed by Pat Caddell on voter attitudes towards trade. [58] [59] [60]
Prior to announcing his run for President, in a radio spot sponsored by ALG, Donald Trump came out in opposition to legislation providing trade promotion authority to negotiate the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). [61]
Since Trump took office, ALG has participated in White House meetings, providing advice on a variety of issues such as proposed changes to the health care law, the debt ceiling and U.S. trade policy. [62]
Additionally, Fox News published an opinion piece in which ALG came out as a supporter of President Trump's budget plan [63] that cuts non-defense discretionary spending by more than $50 billion.
The economy of Ecuador is the eighth largest in Latin America and the 69th largest in the world by total GDP. Ecuador's economy is based on the export of oil, bananas, shrimp, gold, other primary agricultural products and money transfers from Ecuadorian emigrants employed abroad. In 2017, remittances constituted 2.7% of country's GDP. The total trade amounted to 98% of the Ecuador's GDP in 2017.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is an international financial institution, headquartered in Washington, D.C., consisting of 190 countries. Its stated mission is "working to foster global monetary cooperation, secure financial stability, facilitate international trade, promote high employment and sustainable economic growth, and reduce poverty around the world." Formed in 1944, started on 27 December 1945, at the Bretton Woods Conference primarily by the ideas of Harry Dexter White and John Maynard Keynes, it came into formal existence in 1945 with 29 member countries and the goal of reconstructing the international monetary system. It now plays a central role in the management of balance of payments difficulties and international financial crises. Countries contribute funds to a pool through a quota system from which countries experiencing balance of payments problems can borrow money. As of 2016, the fund had XDR 477 billion.
In the United States, a continuing resolution is a type of appropriations legislation. An appropriations bill is a bill that appropriates money to specific federal government departments, agencies, and programs. The money provides funding for operations, personnel, equipment, and activities. Regular appropriations bills are passed annually, with the funding they provide covering one fiscal year. The fiscal year is the accounting period of the federal government, which runs from October 1 to September 30 of the following year. When Congress and the president fail to agree on and pass one or more of the regular appropriations bills, a continuing resolution can be passed instead. A continuing resolution continues the pre-existing appropriations at the same levels as the previous fiscal year for a set amount of time. Continuing resolutions typically provide funding at a rate or formula based on the previous year's funding. The funding extends until a specific date or regular appropriations bills are passed, whichever comes first. There can be some changes to some of the accounts in a continuing resolution. The continuing resolution takes the form of a joint resolution, and may provide bridging funding for existing federal programs at current, reduced, or expanded levels.
Ann Leila Kirkpatrick is an American politician and retired attorney serving as the United States representative from Arizona's 2nd congressional district since 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, she represented Arizona's 1st congressional district from 2009 to 2011 and again from 2013 to 2017. Kirkpatrick was a member of the Arizona House of Representatives from 2005 to 2007.
The Rohrabacher–Farr amendment is legislation first introduced by U.S. Rep. Maurice Hinchey in 2001, prohibiting the Justice Department from spending funds to interfere with the implementation of state medical cannabis laws. It passed the House in May 2014 after six previously failed attempts, becoming law in December 2014 as part of an omnibus spending bill. The passage of the amendment was the first time either chamber of Congress had voted to protect medical cannabis patients, and is viewed as a historic victory for cannabis reform advocates at the federal level. The amendment does not change the legal status of cannabis, however, and must be renewed each fiscal year in order to remain in effect.
Erik Philip Paulsen is an American politician who represented Minnesota's 3rd congressional district in the United States House of Representatives from 2009 to 2019. A member of the Republican Party, he served in the Minnesota House of Representatives from 1995 to 2009 and as majority leader from 2003 to 2007. He lost his 2018 reelection bid to Democrat Dean Phillips.
Kevin Wayne Yoder is an American lawyer and politician who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives for Kansas's 3rd congressional district from 2011 to 2019. A Republican, Yoder was the Kansas State Representative for the 20th district from 2003 to 2011. In his 2018 reelection bid, he was defeated by Democrat Sharice Davids by a nine percent margin.
Paul Anthony Gosar is an American politician and former dentist who has served as the U.S. representative for Arizona's 4th congressional district since 2013. A Republican, he was elected in 2010 to represent the neighboring 1st congressional district until redistricting. Gosar's support of conspiracy theories and alleged ties to the Proud Boys, Oath Keepers, and Holocaust deniers have sparked controversy.
Rodney Lee Davis is an American Republican politician who has been the U.S. representative for Illinois's 13th congressional district since 2013.
The Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2014 refers to appropriations bills introduced during the 113th United States Congress. There are two different versions: H.R. 2609 in the House of Representatives and S. 1245 in the Senate. The bill was later incorporated as Division D of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2014, which was enacted in January 2014.
Andrew Steven Biggs is an American attorney and politician who represents Arizona's 5th congressional district in the United States House of Representatives.
The Military Construction and Veterans Affairs and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2015 is a bill that would make appropriations for fiscal year 2015 for military construction and the United States Department of Veterans Affairs. The bill is considered one of the two easiest appropriations bills to pass each year. The total amount appropriated by the introduced version of the bill is $71.5 billion, approximately $1.8 billion less than fiscal year 2014 due to a decrease in the need for military construction.
The Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2015 is an appropriations bill that would fund the United States Department of Commerce, the United States Department of Justice, and various related agencies. Those agencies included the Office of Science and Technology Policy, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the National Science Foundation (NSF), the Commission on Civil Rights, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the International Trade Commission, the Legal Services Corporation, the Marine Mammal Commission, the Office of the United States Trade Representative, and the State Justice Institute. The total amount of money appropriated in the bill was $51.2 billion, approximately $400 million less than fiscal year 2014.
Every year, the United States Congress is responsible for writing, passing, reconciling, and submitting to the President of the United States a series of appropriations bills that appropriate money to specific federal government departments, agencies, and programs for their use to operate in the subsequent fiscal year. The money provides funding for operations, personnel, equipment, and activities. In 2014, Congress was responsible for passing the appropriations bills that would fund the federal government in fiscal year 2015, which runs from October 1, 2014 to September 30, 2015.
The Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act, 2015 is an appropriations bill for fiscal year 2015 that would provide funding for the United States Department of the Treasury, as we all as the United States federal courts, the Executive Office of the President of the United States, and Washington, D.C.
Warren Earl Davidson is an American politician and former military officer serving as the U.S. representative for Ohio's 8th congressional district since 2016. The district, which was once represented by House Speaker John Boehner, includes a swath of suburban and exurban territory between Cincinnati and Dayton. Before entering politics, he was an officer in United States Army special operations and led his family's manufacturing business. Davidson is a member of the Republican Party.
The Trump wall, commonly referred to as "The Wall", is an expansion of the Mexico–United States barrier that started during the U.S. presidency of Donald Trump. Throughout his 2016 presidential campaign, Trump called for the construction of a border wall. He said that, if elected, he would "build the wall and make Mexico pay for it". Then-Mexican president Enrique Peña Nieto rejected Trump's claim that Mexico would pay for the wall; all construction in fact relied exclusively on U.S. funding.
The 2017 United States federal budget is the United States federal budget for fiscal year 2017, which lasted from October 1, 2016 to September 30, 2017. President Barack Obama submitted a budget proposal to the 114th Congress on February 9, 2016. The 2017 fiscal year overlaps the end of the Obama administration and the beginning of the Trump administration.
The United States federal budget for fiscal year 2020 ran from October 1, 2019 to September 30, 2020. The government was initially funded through a series of two temporary continuing resolutions. The final funding package was passed as two consolidated spending bills in December 2019, the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2020 and the Further Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2020. A series of supplemental appropriations bills were passed beginning in March 2020 in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Coronavirus Preparedness and Response Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2020 is an act of Congress enacted on March 6, 2020. The legislation provided emergency supplemental appropriations of $8.3 billion in fiscal year 2020 to combat the spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and counter the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States. The legislation passed the House 415–2 on March 4 and the Senate 96–1 on March 5, 2020. The legislation received broad bipartisan support.