KRAFT kicks loose from ALEC

Following Pepsi last January, and Coke yesterday, Kraft has joined the so-far single file parade leaving ALEC, the American Legislative Exchange Council, the special interest group that writes legislation in secret, benefiting the corporate and wealthy individual members at the expense of tax payers.  That legislation is then handed to the Republican and Tea Party members of the legislature for passage, because of the corrupt links between the two groups.
Now that the brighter light is shining on ALEC, they are no longer able to operate beneath the radar of public notice.  Without all of their secrecy, they are less able to function.  Meanwhile it is not in the interest of corporate brands to be linked to such corrupt self-interest and the waging of culture war on such a large part of the American public by such a small part.
It is a little soon to call this the kind of rats-leaving-a-sinking-ship exodus similar to the departure of nearly all of Rush Limbaugh's advertisers, but we can hope and work to make that so, followed by a similar parade of ALEC legislators leaving our state houses and senates across the country.

 First one leaves,

then another,

then another.

Making a sharp U-turn in policy and funding.

Making a break to run for the exits.

Who, who, who will be the next to go?  

From the LA Times:

Coca-Cola, Kraft leave conservative ALEC after boycott launched

Within hours of advocacy group Color of Change launching a boycott against Coca-Cola for its participation on ALEC’s Private Enterprise Board, the soft drink giant issued a statement saying that it had “elected to discontinue its membership.”

But the company blamed ALEC’s support of “discriminatory food and beverage taxes” instead of “issues that have no direct bearing on our business.”

“We have a long-standing policy of only taking positions on issues that impact our company and industry,”Coca-Cola said.
Kraft followed late Thursday, saying in a statement that it has “made the decision not to renew” its ALEC membership, which is expiring. The company was opaque in its reasoning, citing “limited resources” and saying that its involvement with ALEC “has been strictly limited to discussions about economic growth and development, transportation and tax policy.”
Still, the withdrawals pleased ALEC detractors, which includes the Center for Media and Democracy. The liberal-leaning nonprofit said it had launched a protest campaign in tandem with Color of Change opposing what it said were ALEC’s efforts to deny climate change, undermine public schools and encourage laws that would require voters to present various forms of identification before voting.
Critics of the policies, which have already been implemented in several states, say that they are more likely to shut out minorities, the poor, the elderly and even college students.
Draft legislation from ALEC has also helped fan the debate over “stand your ground” laws, which have played a central role in the February shooting of unarmed Florida teen Trayvon Martin by neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman.
Color of Change, an African American advocacy group co-founded by James Rucker and Van Jones, issued a statement saying that the group would direct its sights at other companies associated with ALEC.
Other members of ALEC’s Enterprise Board include executives from Wal-Mart, Johnson & Johnson, Kraft Foods, Pfizer, AT&T, UPS and ExxonMobil.