Facebook founder, Mark Zuckerberg, dove into the world of political activism last year by launching the pro-amnesty group FWD.us. Investing millions of his own personal fortune, Zuckerberg joined dozens of other leaders in the tech industry who have a vested interest in suppressing wages for tech workers through increased legal immigration and granting legalization and work permits to millions of illegal aliens.
FWD.us is clear in its goal: it supports the "comprehensive immigration reform" bill passed by the Senate in June of 2013 and is willing to spend millions of dollars to make it the law of the land. In doing so, the organization has created two subsidiaries - Americans for a Conservative Direction and Council for American Job Growth - to provide political support for Members of Congress who risk reelection through their support for amnesty and mass immigration.
According to its website:
FWD.us is an organization started by key leaders in the tech community to promote policies to keep the United States and its citizens competitive in a global economy—including comprehensive immigration reform and education reform.
Another page on the FWD.us website titled "The Movement" expresses the organization's support for a path to citizenship for more than 11 million illegal aliens.
We have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to pass meaningful immigration reform and fix our broken system. And we're not alone. There is a broad coalition of over 400 organizations across the United States fighting for immigration.
By working together to build a grassroots movement in support of immigration reform, we can create a pathway to citizenship, establish a streamlined process for admitting future workers and secure our borders.
Because of FWD.us's stated commitment to increasing the flow of foreign workers and a path to citizenship for most illegal aliens, it's safe to assume that any Member of Congress who benefits from ads produced and paid for by FWD.us also supports these two principles.
Americans for a Conservative Direction
Americans for a Conservative Direction was founded to provide political cover for Republicans who support legalization for illegal aliens and massive increases in legal immigration. The group is led by former Mississippi governor Haley Barbour who helped put together recommendations for the Bipartisan Policy Center that support both amnesty and increased immigration. He's joined by Sally Bradshaw (a former Jeb Bush advisor and amnesty advocate), Joel Kaplan (VP of US Public Policy for Facebook), and Dan Senor (former advisor to VP candidate Paul Ryan). The group has produced three ads that attempt to provide cover for pro-amnesty Republicans - Rep. Renee Ellmers (NC-2), Rep. Mike Coffman (CO-6), and Rep. Paul Ryan (WI-1).
In March 2014, Americans for a Conservative Direction placed the following ad in an attempt to defend Rep. Ellmers after a contentious debate over immigration on Laura Ingraham's national radio program. The ad buy was for at least $150,000.
In July 2013, Americans for a Conservative Direction placed the following ad on behalf of Rep. Coffman. Coffman, who represents the district formerly held by immigration-reduction champion Tom Tancredo, expressed support last summer for legalizing and granting work permits to illegal aliens but held back on support of a path to citizenship. The ad buy was for $175,000.
In August 2013, Americans for a Conservative Direction launched an ad campaign for Rep. Ryan. The ad was a counter to ads placed by the Federation for American Immigration Reform that criticized Ryan for his pro-amnesty views. The ad buy was for $350,000.
During the Senate's debate of S.744 in the spring of 2013, Americans for a Conservative Direction also made a seven figure ad buy defending Gang of Eight Republicans Lindsey Graham and Marco Rubio. The Lindsey Graham ad was a response to an ad campaign by NumbersUSA in South Carolina.
Council for American Job Growth
The Council for American Job Growth is another organization started and funded by FWD.us to provide cover for Democrats in swing states who support legalization for illegal aliens and increases in legal immigration. The group is headed by Todd Schulte who served as Chief of Staff at Priorities USA Action - the Super PAC that supported the reelection efforts of Pres. Obama. Also serving on the Board are former Congressman Scott Murphy (NY-20) and Alida Garcia who served as the Deputy Latino Vote Director for Pres. Obama's 2012 campaign. Pres. Obama, of course, has aggressively pushed for legalization and work permits for illegal aliens and increases in legal immigration.
During the Senate debate in the spring of 2013, Council for American Job Growth produced and ran ads for Sen. Mark Begich of Alaska, Sen. Kay Hagan of North Carolina, and Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia. Both Senators Begich and Hagan face tough reelections in 2014, and all three represent states that voted for Mitt Romney in the 2012 presidential elections. The ads focused less on immigration, and instead on the Senators' support for more conservative issues to promote job growth. Ironically, Facebook came under heat from liberal groups because the ads expressed support for such causes as the Keystone XL oil pipeline and ANWR oil drilling.
Sen. Mark Begich (D-AK)
Sen. Kay Hagan (D-NC)
Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV)
