The House Republicans will launch a probe into environmental NGOs based on a right-wing rumor that foreign powers are using nonprofits to influence U.S. policy, according to a report. A PR firm that works for the fossil fuel industry has been pushing that rumor for years.
Kevin McCarthy said in a post that he would use his leadership in Congress to investigate environmental NGOs who collaborated with Russia and China. The chair of the House Natural Resources, Bruce Westerman, launched a probe into the World Resources Institute in order to investigate the idea of environmental NGOs collaborating with foreign governments.
According to a press release, Chinese officials try to control environmental information and news stories in order to counter the country's status as the world's largest polluter. The Committee is examining the role that the World Resources Institute plays in aiding China's perception management efforts with respect to pollution control and its international standing on environmental issues that may be detrimental to the US.
If there is evidence the Chinese government is funding their actions, we have to go after them. I don't care who they are.
McCarthy and Westerman are interested in this topic as a result of a series of letters sent by GOP politicians to green groups.
There are concerns that American progressive advocacy groups may be promoting U.S. government policies to the benefit of the Chinese Communist Party. Russian President Vladimir Putin funds certain environmental non-governmental organizations around the world to create fear among other nations, according to a letter sent in March.
There are allegations and investigations that come from the real world. The Washington Post tied the original rumor to the Environmental Policy Alliance, which started pushing it in 2015. The Environmental Policy Alliance is run by a PR firm known as The Berman Group, which has a long history of providing astroturfing services to corporations. Richard Berman, the firm's founder, was dubbed "Dr. evil" by 60 Minutes in 2011.
The Berman Group has a lot of ties to the fossil fuel industry and has used front groups to attack anti-fracking groups and make videos attacking the EPA and regulations meant to lower air pollution. Berman told fossil fuel executives that they should use dirty tactics to fight against environmental groups.
According to the New York Times, Berman said that the war was an endless one. You have to plan for it. Berman and his colleague spoke about how the firm dug into the personal lives of the leaders of groups like the Sierra Club and the Natural Resources Defense Council in an attempt to find dirt to publicize.
People always ask me how I know I won't be seen as a supporter of what you're doing. The meeting had Berman speak in the past. All of this stuff is run through nonprofits that don't have to reveal donors. There is no one else to know. People don't know who our supporters are.
It seems that all the money spent on spreading rumors about green groups is starting to pay off. Great to know that taxpayer dollars are being used to investigate a claim.
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