Use of PR contracts more than doubled under Bush, report finds
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Raising new questions about the full extent of the use of covert propaganda by the Bush Administration, Democratic lawmakers released a report today showing that contracting with public relations firms has doubled under the Bush Administration. The lawmakers also introduced legislation intended to eliminate the use of covert propaganda by the federal government. Rep. George Miller, the Chairman of the Democratic Policy Committee, was one of the lawmakers to request the report and sponsor the legislation.
“The Bush Administration has unfortunately chosen to make deception its trademark. That is bad enough. But even worse, it is now clear that the Administration has consistently misused taxpayer dollars to mislead the public and undermine our democracy,” said Miller.
The report, prepared by the Democratic staff of the House Government Reform Committee at the request of several top House Democrats, shows that the Bush Administration spent $88 million on contracts with major public relations agencies in 2004, up from $39 million in 2000, the last year of the Clinton Administration.
From 2001 to 2004, the Bush Administration spent over $250 million on contracts with major PR firms. Miller noted that, while some PR contracts are appropriate – for example, when they educate the public about health or consumer risks – the Bush Administration has repeatedly signed contracts with PR firms that include the illegal and unethical use of covert propaganda.
To put a stop to covert propaganda, Miller today cosponsored a bill introduced by Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT) that would increase Congressional oversight of the federal government’s contracts with PR firms, require that advertisements and all public communications paid for by the federal government prominently indicate their federal funding source, and make permanent the U.S. code prohibitions against publicity and propaganda. Violations could be subject to administrative or criminal penalties.
“The Bush Administration is clearly trying to distort the public’s understanding of major policy issues by paying media commentators to talk about them. And of course, when Administration officials get caught, no one is held accountable. Our bill will force the Administration to take responsibility.”
The other lawmakers who requested the report were Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi, Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer, and Reps. Henry Waxman, John Dingell, David Obey, Charles Rangel, Louise Slaughter, Bennie Thompson, and DeLauro.
Earlier this month, USA Today revealed that the Bush Administration had paid a conservative commentator $241,000 to promote the President’s No Child Left Behind law. And in two separate reports, the Government Accountability Office determined that the Bush Administration’s use of “video news releases,” taped segments distributed to local television stations to promote drug and health policies, was illegal.
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