Conservatives join together to defend free speech from threat they see in the Harris-Walz agenda
More than a dozen conservative leaders have coalesced in opposition to what they say is the Harris-Walz ticket’s agenda of “unconstitutional violations” of free speech.
The leaders and groups they represent have endorsed a letter outlining the threat they say Vice President Kamala Harris and her running mate pose, citing actions Ms. Harris and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz have taken in their political careers.
In particular, the letter points to Ms. Harris’ crusade as California attorney general to force conservative nonprofit groups such as Americans for Prosperity to produce donor lists. The effort landed her on the losing end of a Supreme Court decision that upheld the group’s First Amendment rights.
The letter, which was exclusively obtained by The Washington Times, was signed by leaders of 16 conservative nonprofits and advocacy groups. It was titled “Statement of principles opposing weaponization of nonprofit donor lists.”
The letter affirmed the signatories’ support of the Supreme Court decision nearly a decade ago in Americans for Prosperity Foundation v. Bonta. The justices found that Ms. Harris’ demands and public disclosure online of more than 1,400 confidential donor tax forms violated the First Amendment.
“We, the undersigned conservatives, stand united against unconstitutional violations of privacy and free speech perpetrated by Vice President Kamala Harris and Governor Tim Walz throughout their respective political careers against Americans who speak out in favor of conservative principles,” it said. “We reject efforts to silence speech and weaponize the government against conservative advocacy groups and their donors.”
The Harris campaign did not respond to a request for comment.
The letter’s signatories included Lawson R. Bader, president of DonorsTrust; former Ohio Treasurer J. Kenneth Blackwell; Wendy Damron, president of the Palmetto Promise Institute; Brian Hawkins, senior director of external affairs for People United for Privacy; Jenny Beth Martin, honorary chairman of the Tea Party Patriots Action; Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform; and Kris Ullman, president of Eagle Forum.
They said Ms. Harris and Mr. Walz have used “government power to silence conservatives” and warned it foreshadowed what a Harris-Walz administration would do.
Other incidents cited in the letter included:
• As vice president, Ms. Harris cast the tie-breaking vote in the Senate to pass the Inflation Reduction Act, leading to the hiring of thousands of IRS agents.
• In her time as California attorney general, she allegedly launched a politically motivated investigation and prosecution of David Daleiden.
In 2015, Mr. Daleiden of the Center for Medical Progress and a colleague went undercover at the National Abortion Federation’s commercial trade show and took video of Planned Parenthood executives handling body parts of aborted fetuses.
At the time, Ms. Harris was running for the Senate and was endorsed by Planned Parenthood.
Mr. Daleiden’s legal saga has been ongoing for the last nine years. He faces eight felony charges and possible jail time in California for making the videos without getting the executives’ permission. He is also charged with using a fake driver’s license to enter Planned Parenthood’s office under false pretenses.
• As Minnesota governor, Mr. Walz signed a sweeping elections bill that included stiffer regulation of political ads that require nonprofits in the state that engage in political speech to disclose donors.
• Mr. Walz also established a hotline during the COVID-19 pandemic for people to report violations of social distancing rules, which the letter likened to “mechanisms established by Communist governments” to “place ’enemies of the state’ on a government watchlist.”
The letter said these actions by Mr. Harris and Mr. Walz demonstrate their propensity for turning the government against its citizens.
“All Americans have the right to freely support ideas and causes they believe in without fear of retribution, harassment, and intimidation from a weaponized government or radical activists,” the letter said. “We call for protecting privacy in charitable giving by committing to and upholding the principles of freedom of association, nonprofit donor privacy, and freedom of speech.”