For Immediate Release: August 24, 2010
Contact: Peggy Venable, 512-476-5905 or 512-423-2947

Ben Streusand, Texas Advisory Board Chairman for Americans for Prosperity (AFP), responds to President Obama’s comments criticizing AFP’s grassroots origins and its funding:

“President Obama’s comments at a Democratic party fundraiser August 9th, in Austin were decidedly unpresidential and showed a disturbing contempt for citizens who simply have a different vision for our country than that of the President.

“AFP’s legal, ethical, and honorable activities, such as demonstrations against Obamacare, opposition to the American Recovery Act (stimulus), and sponsorship of the statewide event held in Austin, the Defending the American Dream® Summit on July 4th, have helped educate people on these issues and contributed to a vital discourse on these critical issues. This kind of debate and expression is a crucial part of the functioning of a free society and a strong democracy.

“The President’s attack, as well as a recent article in THE NEW YORKER, by Jane Mayer, is a barely-veiled attempt to discredit our group and our members, who are simply exercising their right to disagree with the policies coming out of this administration.

“Our decisions to engage in public policy debates are governed by our primary mission, which is to advocate in support of free market policies and solutions. One must ask whether it is really the role of the President of the United States to attempt to chill free speech, simply because that speech happens to disagree with his own views.

“Our national membership consists of 1.2 million members, of which 74,000 reside in the state of Texas. To imagine that any corporation could control our agenda is ludicrous. The only positive aspect of this unfortunate incident is that we must be having some impact on the administrations policies to warrant the President’s attempt to discredit us.”