--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: One was the American Legislative Exchange…" description: "\"“One was the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), a group aimed at waging conservative fights in every state legislature in the country. From ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/31c/jane-mayer-1031_charles_one-was-the-american-legislative-exchang_2044495.jpg" --- # One was the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC)… ![“One was the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), a group aimed at waging conservative fights in every state legislature in the country. From 1973 until 1983, the Scaife and Mellon family trusts donated half a million dollars to ALEC, constituting most of its budget. “ALEC is well on its…” quote by Jane Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/31c/jane-mayer-1031_charles_one-was-the-american-legislative-exchang_2044495.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/31c/jane-mayer-1031_charles_one-was-the-american-legislative-exchang_2044495.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/31c/jane-mayer-1031_charles_one-was-the-american-legislative-exchang_2044495.jpg) > ““One was the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), a group aimed at waging conservative fights in every state legislature in the country. From 1973 until 1983, the Scaife and Mellon family trusts donated half a million dollars to ALEC, constituting most of its budget. “ALEC is well on its way to fulfilling the dream of those who started the organization,” a Weyrich aide wrote to Scaife’s top adviser in 1976, “thanks wholly to your confidence and the tremendous generosity of the Scaife Family Charitable Trusts.”” [Jane Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-mayer/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. ALEC’s influence grew through wealthy donors, shaping state legislation to reflect conservative agendas. **In simple terms:** Money fuels political influence via ALEC. Key Takeaway Recognize hidden funding sources. Themes politics money influence Mood investigative critical Type analysis expository When to use this quote - state legislatures - grassroots lobbying - lawmaking Key Concepts campaign finance policy shaping Questions to Reflect On - What mechanisms can increase transparency in political funding? - How does ALEC’s model affect local governance? A Different Perspective Donor influence can be opaque and hard to trace. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet ## Related quotes > [ This year \[2016\] we're seeing a really strange upending \[of the party\]. The money was coming from these super-wealthy donors who were really on… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-mayer/this-year-2016-we-re-seeing-a-really-strange-upending-of-the-party/) [Jane Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-mayer/) > [“the Olin Foundation provided crucial start-up funds for the Federalist Society, a powerful organization for conservative law students founded in 1982.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-mayer/the-olin-foundation-provided-crucial-start-up-funds-for-the/) [Jane Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-mayer/) > [ They \[the Kochs\] want free trade and cheap labour. They own the second-largest private company in America, which is a huge multinational corporation. So… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-mayer/they-the-kochs-want-free-trade-and-cheap-labour-they-own-the-second/) [Jane Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-mayer/) > [“To this end, the Kochs waged a long and remarkable battle of ideas. They subsidized networks of seemingly unconnected think tanks and academic programs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-mayer/to-this-end-the-kochs-waged-a-long-and-remarkable-battle-of-ideas/) [Jane Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-mayer/) > [“Olin Foundation made a key $25,000 investment of its own in an unknown writer named Charles Murray, funding a grant at the Manhattan Institute…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-mayer/olin-foundation-made-a-key-25-000-investment-of-its-own-in-an-unknown/) [Jane Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-mayer/) > [“it’s a major accomplishment for sponsors like the Kochs that they’ve turned corporate self-interest into a movement among people on the streets.” While”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-mayer/it-s-a-major-accomplishment-for-sponsors-like-the-kochs-that-they-ve/) [Jane Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-mayer/) > [“The next morning, readers of The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal opened their papers to see a full-page ad paid for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-mayer/the-next-morning-readers-of-the-new-york-times-and-the-wall-street/) [Jane Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-mayer/) > [“it was the first time a major corporation used a tax-exempt nonprofit as a front group or, as he put it, “a cutout to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-mayer/it-was-the-first-time-a-major-corporation-used-a-tax-exempt-nonprofit/) [Jane Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-mayer/) > [“This faction hoped to use their wealth to advance a strain of conservative libertarian politics that was so far out on the political fringe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-mayer/this-faction-hoped-to-use-their-wealth-to-advance-a-strain-of/) [Jane Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-mayer/) > [So you've got these regular, middle-class voters who don't hate the government as much as the Kochs do. They're Republicans, but they still want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-mayer/so-you-ve-got-these-regular-middle-class-voters-who-don-t-hate-the/) [Jane Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-mayer/) > [“Charles’s aim, he said, was to tear the government out “at the root.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-mayer/charles-s-aim-he-said-was-to-tear-the-government-out-at-the-root/) [Jane Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-mayer/) > [“To “earn the respect and good feeling” of those whose support they needed, Fink went on to explain during his talk, the Kochs would…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-mayer/to-earn-the-respect-and-good-feeling-of-those-whose-support-they/) [Jane Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-mayer/) > [“On top of these programs, the foundation doled out $8 million to more than a hundred John M. Olin faculty fellows. These funds enabled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-mayer/on-top-of-these-programs-the-foundation-doled-out-8-million-to-more/) [Jane Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-mayer/) > [“Afterward, the Constitutional Accountability Center, a watchdog group, revealed that the judges in the majority had previously attended one of the all-expenses-paid legal seminars…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-mayer/afterward-the-constitutional-accountability-center-a-watchdog-group/) [Jane Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-mayer/) > [ I would argue that there's been a backlash this year \[2016\]. They \[the Kochs\] pushed the \[Republican\] party too far right. The other thing… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-mayer/i-would-argue-that-there-s-been-a-backlash-this-year-2016-they-the/) [Jane Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-mayer/) ## More by Jane Mayer > [“David Brock, a conservative apostate who became a liberal activist, described the Heritage Foundation, where he was a young fellow, as almost completely under…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-mayer/david-brock-a-conservative-apostate-who-became-a-liberal-activist/) [Jane Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-mayer/) > [“The early think tank was not a spy operation, but it was funded by wealthy men who had no objections to using pretexts and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-mayer/the-early-think-tank-was-not-a-spy-operation-but-it-was-funded-by/) [Jane Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-mayer/) > [“Americans for Prosperity annoyed some of the Tea Partiers,” recalls the libertarian blogger Ralph Benko. “These people drove up, opened the door, put T-shirts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-mayer/americans-for-prosperity-annoyed-some-of-the-tea-partiers-recalls-the/) [Jane Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-mayer/) > [“When Barack Obama took office, the fossil fuel industry was not only eager to preserve its perks but also more militant in its opposition…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-mayer/when-barack-obama-took-office-the-fossil-fuel-industry-was-not-only/) [Jane Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-mayer/) > [If you have an informed electorate, it makes great choices.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-mayer/if-you-have-an-informed-electorate-it-makes-great-choices/) [Jane Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-mayer/) > [ One of the oddities of this election is the man that \[Donald\] Trump chose as his vice-president, Mike Pence, is one of the Kochs'… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-mayer/one-of-the-oddities-of-this-election-is-the-man-that-donald-trump/) [Jane Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-mayer/) > [“The candidates promised to cut taxes for those in the highest brackets, preserve Wall Street loopholes, tolerate the off-shoring of manufacturing jobs and profits,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-mayer/the-candidates-promised-to-cut-taxes-for-those-in-the-highest/) [Jane Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-mayer/) > [“Amway in fact was structured to avoid federal taxes.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-mayer/amway-in-fact-was-structured-to-avoid-federal-taxes/) [Jane Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-mayer/) > [“radicals in Congress refused to back down, bringing virtually the entire federal government to a halt for sixteen days in October, leaving the country…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-mayer/radicals-in-congress-refused-to-back-down-bringing-virtually-the/) [Jane Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-mayer/) > [What I write about is how much influence it's had in things like state legislatures and governorships and congressional races. The other thing that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-mayer/what-i-write-about-is-how-much-influence-it-s-had-in-things-like/) [Jane Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-mayer/) > [“Two months into their tenure, Republicans on the House Energy and Commerce Committee also led a crusade against alternative, renewable energy programs. They successfully…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-mayer/two-months-into-their-tenure-republicans-on-the-house-energy-and/) [Jane Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-mayer/) > [ \[The Kochs\] they hate big government. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-mayer/the-kochs-they-hate-big-government/) [Jane Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-mayer/) > [“Rob Reich, a professor of political science at Stanford University and co-director of the Stanford Center for Philanthropy and Civil Society, explains that private…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-mayer/rob-reich-a-professor-of-political-science-at-stanford-university-and/) [Jane Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-mayer/) > [“During the previous eight years of Republican rule, this conservative corporate elite had consolidated its power, amassing enormous sway over the U.S. government’s regulatory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-mayer/during-the-previous-eight-years-of-republican-rule-this-conservative/) [Jane Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-mayer/) > [“Noble again chose Larry McCarthy, the veteran media consultant who was known for his ability to distill a complicated subject into a simple, potent,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-mayer/noble-again-chose-larry-mccarthy-the-veteran-media-consultant-who-was/) [Jane Mayer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-mayer/) [Explore all 305 Jane Mayer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-mayer/) ## More Charles quotes > [I have never been in, nor have I had any strong particular desire to be in, what is termed a costume drama, but I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-freeman/i-have-never-been-in-nor-have-i-had-any-strong-particular-desire-to/) [Martin Freeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-freeman/) > [I don't think I've met anyone with a stronger work ethic than Ray Charles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clint-eastwood/i-don-t-think-i-ve-met-anyone-with-a-stronger-work-ethic-than-ray/) [Clint Eastwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clint-eastwood/) > [I learnt a lot from the directors with whom I have worked like Sudhir Mishra in 'Daas Dev,' Prawaal Raman in 'Main Aur Charles.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richa-chadha/i-learnt-a-lot-from-the-directors-with-whom-i-have-worked-like-sudhir/) [Richa Chadha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richa-chadha/) > [I probably should've listened to Michael a year ago when he said that Charles will never win a championship because he doesn't show any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scottie-pippen/i-probably-should-ve-listened-to-michael-a-year-ago-when-he-said-that/) [Scottie Pippen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scottie-pippen/) > [“One of the things I learned with Charles," said Gray carefully, "was that finding someone like you does not necessarily mean that either of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lionel-shriver/one-of-the-things-i-learned-with-charles-said-gray-carefully-was-that/) [Lionel Shriver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lionel-shriver/) > [Prince Charles was a lot wittier than I thought he'd be, and passionate about the environment and architecture.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kris-marshall/prince-charles-was-a-lot-wittier-than-i-thought-he-d-be-and/) [Kris Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kris-marshall/) > [ “I was never a watering pot before I met Charles," he \[Tris\] sobbed. "It's all his fault." "You never cared before you met Charles,"… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rowan-speedwell/i-was-never-a-watering-pot-before-i-met-charles-he-tris-sobbed-it-s/) [Rowan Speedwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rowan-speedwell/) > [I stumbled upon Charles White purely by chance while looking through a book 'Great Negroes, Past and Present' in the library at Forty-Ninth Street…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerry-james-marshall/i-stumbled-upon-charles-white-purely-by-chance-while-looking-through/) [Kerry James Marshall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kerry-james-marshall/) > [What it means is that some of Charles' press secretaries have been better than others as some of the Queen's press secretaries have been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-holden/what-it-means-is-that-some-of-charles-press-secretaries-have-been/) [Anthony Holden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-holden/) > [Charles was most comfortable by himself or, if that wasn't possible, with his pack in the wild. Talking for hours in a crowded auditorium…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-briggs/charles-was-most-comfortable-by-himself-or-if-that-wasn-t-possible/) [Patricia Briggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-briggs/) > [“previously been reported. For all three, the association with the Koch brothers' network is likely to provide kindling for their opponents, who have already…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/previously-been-reported-for-all-three-the-association-with-the-koch/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Beauclaire, for his part, sank back in the soft material of the couch as if the thought that it would impede him should he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-briggs/beauclaire-for-his-part-sank-back-in-the-soft-material-of-the-couch/) [Patricia Briggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-briggs/) > [Charles is Charles. Wale is Wale. It's two separate entities that have nothing to do with each other and probably will never have anything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wale/charles-is-charles-wale-is-wale-it-s-two-separate-entities-that-have/) [Wale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wale/) > [Congratulations to Prince Charles for banning foie gras from all his functions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/congratulations-to-prince-charles-for-banning-foie-gras-from-all-his/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“Grace commanded the second pew, her whole family jammed together, the six of them sour yet insistent, like the richest people flying coach, while…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-gilbert/grace-commanded-the-second-pew-her-whole-family-jammed-together-the/) [David Gilbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-gilbert/) Browse all 326 Charles quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“One was the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), a group aimed at waging conservative fights in every state legislature in the country. 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