Chamber Uses Google Ads To Fight "Liberal Left-Wing Extremist Groups"

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First Posted: 10-27-09 10:34 AM   |   Updated: 10-27-09 11:54 AM

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The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is firing back at its critics, and it's turning to Google for an assist.

The massive business lobby, under siege from the White House for opposing various efforts to reform the nation's health care and regulatory system, has made a tactical Google ad purchase to raise money and disseminate its message.

Type in "Chamber of Commerce" into the search engine and the first result you get is: "US Chamber Fights Back."

Click on that link and you're directed to a new site with the title, "Help Stop Attacks on the U.S. Chamber," that solicits financial donations.

"Liberal left-wing extremist groups and their leftist allies continue their attacks on us -- because we are fighting for YOU!," the site reads. "Don't let them muzzle us. Stand up for free speech by making a contribution below."

The playing-the-victim website, combined with the Google ad purchase, is just one stage in a broader effort the Chamber is undertaking to combat its critics. The group also sued the performance artist troupe, the Yes Men, for hoisting a prank press conference, in which they pretended to be Chamber officials announcing a new, sensible approach to climate change.

The Chamber has also adopted a more aggressive media presence: dispatching its executive vice president of government affairs, Bruce Josten, to appear on "Fox News Sunday" and having its CEO Tom Donohue do a 75 minutes sit-down interview with Politico.

UPDATE: This is not, it should be noted, the first time a group or individual has used Google ads to capitalize off of a round of bad press. Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin made a strategic ad purchase of her own, right around the time that she resigned from office. As Google spokesman Galen Panger explains:

Rapid-response is a classic use-case of Google AdWords. It only takes a few minutes to put up an ad online, so you can get your message in front of a national audience at the moment they're searching for your group or issue. When people click on the ad, you can then give them an option to participate, whether through signing a petition or donating.


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The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is firing back at its critics, and it's turning to Google for an assist. The massive business lobby, under siege from the White House for opposing various efforts to ref...
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is firing back at its critics, and it's turning to Google for an assist. The massive business lobby, under siege from the White House for opposing various efforts to ref...
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- New coveark I'm a Fan of coveark 32 fans permalink
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They are a feather under the nose of the people....­........pl­uck em

    Reply    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 01:14 PM on 10/27/2009
- New jde I'm a Fan of jde 43 fans permalink
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Genius.

Not only do they want to rip YOU off, but they want YOU to pay for your own fleecing by giving them donations.

And people will send money.

    Reply    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 01:08 PM on 10/27/2009
- New sposton I'm a Fan of sposton 142 fans permalink
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Standing up for the American people is political extremism and standing up for the kleptocratic corporation is freedom loving patriotism! ;-)

    Reply    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 12:54 PM on 10/27/2009
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Be sure to click their ad so you can check out this bunch of hypo. kritts. Holy gee, they're all up in arms about health care reform, as watered down as it is. AND BOY, do they want your money! Every click on their ad costs them a penny or two, and it's worth it just to go see their rage. I believe all the reputable companies have left their ranks or stepped down from their BoD, and all they've got left is the ancient fossils who are refusing to recognize climate change, may they all drown when the water levels rise and penetrate, heh, their mansions. Suddenly. Without warning.

    Reply    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 12:51 PM on 10/27/2009
- New larmarch5 I'm a Fan of larmarch5 35 fans permalink
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and take their survey. I have an "alternate universe" email address for these types.

    Reply    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 12:58 PM on 10/27/2009
- New rekk I'm a Fan of rekk 7 fans permalink

There are plenty of businesses that have been sh*t on all over by the government's pandering to multi-billion dollar businesses. And I'm talking LONG BEFORE TARP came along. I bet these 'extremists' are just business people wishing they had a free market.

    Reply    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 12:39 PM on 10/27/2009
- New Ken Maddox I'm a Fan of Ken Maddox 79 fans permalink
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A free market only caters to, and is controlled by, multi-billion dollar businesses. The end result of a completely free market is that all business will tend to be concentrated into a few mega-businesses. At the time that only mega-businesses are allowed to be, then the free market is no longer free or a market.
To see an example of this in real life, one only has to study what happened last year when Wall Street did its little melt down. That was a free market in action, and it is not a pretty sight.
Too big to fail is too dangerous to be allowed to exist. Corporations must be limited in size, scope, and share of market, thus by being limited they can remain free. Sounds like a paradox, but it really isn't.

    Reply    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 12:57 PM on 10/27/2009
- New MajorKong I'm a Fan of MajorKong 357 fans permalink
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Note -

"Liberal Left Wing Extremist" = "Anybody left of Ayn Rand"

    Reply    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 12:31 PM on 10/27/2009
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"Slightly to the left of Attila the Hun" might be more appropriate.

    Reply    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 12:38 PM on 10/27/2009
- New Indon I'm a Fan of Indon 3 fans permalink

I don't know about that. Ayn Rand might well be more conservative than Attilla the Hun.

The Huns raped, pillaged, and generally maruauded across eurasia, but that was just something they did. Ayn Rand would've raped, pillaged, and marauded your village while simultaneously convincing you that it was a good thing.

    Reply    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 01:04 PM on 10/27/2009
- New Gatormouth I'm a Fan of Gatormouth 23 fans permalink
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Our Chamber of Commerce is channeling Italy's 1939 Chamber of Fasci and Corporations. They shouldn't start name calling.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chamber_of_fasci_and_corporations

    Reply    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 12:31 PM on 10/27/2009
- New rekk I'm a Fan of rekk 7 fans permalink

What liberal "left-wing extremists" would they be talking about? I've seen bombings, murders, assaults and shootings all perpetrated on behalf of right-wing extremists. I've seen 'Christian' demagoguery in the government attempting to hide rampant corporate crony-ism and now they're claiming victim to discredit some very justifiable criticism. Moral of the story, Conservatives FEAR criticism turning away their 'sheeple'. Better to call them 'extremists' before they get to the criticism to discredit them.

    Reply    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 12:31 PM on 10/27/2009
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Their use of catchphrases and slogans to attack everyone but themselves is telling. They got nothing. So they're going for visceral reaction. Let's hope they get it in the form of Americans turning against their Old Boys' Club en masse.

    Reply    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 12:41 PM on 10/27/2009
- New wisewomcat I'm a Fan of wisewomcat 2 fans permalink
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Make sure you click on it the ad. It costs money for every click.

    Reply    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 12:28 PM on 10/27/2009
- New jimme I'm a Fan of jimme 7 fans permalink

I've always considered myself a middle of the road type of guy but after seeing what's on the right I can't help but veer to the left. So I guess I'm a leftist now but the name the commerce calls us, "liberal left-wing extremists"sounds so much more important,don'tchya think ?

    Reply    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 12:21 PM on 10/27/2009
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'Liberal left wing extremists' oh no the bunny in the cave is going to attack. Who are they trying to con, the Chamber is the real extremist.
Now they trying to raise money from people to protect those people with even more money so they don't have to pay their fair share, or participate in global climate change, are they that broke? So glad this rock was lifted.

    Reply    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 12:18 PM on 10/27/2009
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That was funny. I keep seeing Monty Python's killer rabbit.

    Reply    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 12:43 PM on 10/27/2009

Keep up the pressure, they're acting like we might have them on the ropes! I'm not a multinational, I'm a real person and the COC has no interest in me except as food!

    Reply    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 12:17 PM on 10/27/2009
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Chamber of Commerce:

Progressives hate us for our freedoms!
You know our freedoms as in our pro stance on things like free markets in the financial sector; our desire to maintain unregulated private health insurance companies allowed to determine coverage status on a whim and without a conscience; our total poo.pooing the noise on climate impact from our beloved polluting businesses; our freedom to let every business send every job overseas for a quick buck no matter the devastation to the country's working class; and our stance paying fat bonuses to executives that nearly bankrupted the country and wiped out your 401K plans even though those companies have not repaid their bailout and TARP funds.

Come on America we are fighting for you and we are fighting for the right kind of freedom!

In all seriousness, the Chamber's final shreds of ethical and responsible ideals departed them as big name companies resigned and walked out (that extreme action says a ton) on the irresponsible Chamber of Commerce including: Pacific Gas & Electric, PNM Resources, Apple, Levi Strauss, and Exelon, and NY's Mohawk Paper,
Of the remaining members, Nike stepped down from the board in outrage over their climate nonsense, while both GE and Johnson&Johnson expressed extreme frustration with Chamber's views. Now the Chamber is launching a PR campaign rather than adjust and modernize their views choosing instead to attack progressives for shedding light on this backward, regressive, well funded cabal of characters working against the common American.

    Reply    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 12:15 PM on 10/27/2009
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"Liberal left-wing extremist groups and their leftist allies continue their attacks on us -- because we are fighting for YOU!"?

Who do they mean by "YOU"? Of course Halliburton, Perini, IBM, Ford, Exxon, Chevron, Citibank, Goldman Sachs, BofA, Wells Fargo, Boeing..."­artificial persons" posing as individuals.

I see.

    Reply    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 12:15 PM on 10/27/2009
- Indon I'm a Fan of Indon 3 fans permalink

Of course the Chamber of Commerce is going to rely on advertisements. Commerce in the US relies on advertisements.

They're doing what they know best - duping people into buying something they wouldn't otherwise buy.

    Reply    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 12:08 PM on 10/27/2009
- New BigDogMom I'm a Fan of BigDogMom 78 fans permalink
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Just like the ad they have here on H P? Bit ironic....but then again, A H will take anyones money....

    Reply    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 12:28 PM on 10/27/2009
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Money is money. Get it while you can.

    Reply    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 12:45 PM on 10/27/2009
- New Indon I'm a Fan of Indon 3 fans permalink

Google selects their ad placement based on relevance, and the site uses Google Ads.

That ad happens to be really relevant right here.

    Reply    Favorite    Flag as abusive Posted 12:57 PM on 10/27/2009
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