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FreedomWorks is a conservative and libertarian advocacy group based in Washington D.C., United States. FreedomWorks trains volunteers, assists in campaigns, and encourages them to mobilize, interacting with both fellow citizens and their political representatives. It is widely associated with the Tea Party movement.〔〔 ==History== FreedomWorks originated from a conservative political group founded by David H. Koch and Charles Koch called Citizens for a Sound Economy, which in 2004 split into Americans for Prosperity, led by President Nancy Pfotenhauer, and a remainder group which merged with Empower America and was renamed FreedomWorks, led by President and CEO Matt Kibbe. Dick Armey, Jack Kemp and C. Boyden Gray served as co-chairmen of the new organization with Bill Bennett focusing on school choice as a Senior Fellow. Empower America had been founded in 1993 by Bennett, former Secretary of HUD Jack Kemp, former Ambassador Jeane J. Kirkpatrick, and former Representative Vin Weber. In December 2006, Steve Forbes joined the FreedomWorks board of directors.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Board of Directors )〕 The ‘FreedomWorks’ name was derived from a common Armey saying: “Freedom works. Freedom is good policy and good politics.” On August 14, 2009, after Armey's leadership of FreedomWorks became a problem to his employer, the lobbying and legal firm of DLA Piper, Armey was forced to resign from his job at DLA Piper. DLA Piper chairman Francis Burch responded that the firm serves clients “… who support enactment of effective health care reform this year and encourages responsible national debate." Armey disagreed with FreedomWorks president Matt Kibbe's use of FreedomWorks staff for the research and promotion of Kibbe's book ''Hostile Takeover'', which according to Armey put FreedomWorks’s tax-exempt status in jeopardy. Armey has stated, “what bothered me most … was that () was asking me to lie, and it was a lie that I thought brought the organization in harm’s way”. On November 30, 2012, Armey resigned as chairman of FreedomWorks. Armey told ''Mother Jones'', "The top management team of FreedomWorks was taking a direction I thought was unproductive, and I thought it was time to move on with my life." Armey stipulated that FreedomWorks was to immediately remove his name, image, or signature "from all its letters, print media, postings, web sites, videos, testimonials, endorsements, fund raising materials, and social media." Armey claimed that the split was caused by President and CEO Matt Kibbe's use of FreedomWorks' resources to write a book, ''Hostile Takeover'', which he personally profited from and which he asked Armey and the board to later acknowledge was written without significant resources from FreedomWorks; Kibbe alleged that the split was a result of competing visions for the direction of the organization. The Associated Press reported that in September 2012, Armey agreed to resign by November 2012 in exchange for $8 million in consulting fees paid in annual $400,000 installments, funded by board member Richard J. Stephenson. Shortly following the split between FreedomWorks and Dick Armey, FreedomWorks again faced public controversy over the creation of a video featuring a panda fellating Hillary Clinton. The video was filmed with two female FreedomWorks employees in costume, one in a panda suit and one wearing a Hillary mask. Adam Brandon is the current CEO.〔 Matt Kibbe is the current president and former CEO. Kibbe's wife, Terry, is a fundraiser for FreedomWorks. FreedomWorks is an associate member of the State Policy Network, a U.S. national network of free-market oriented think tanks.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=Directory SPN Members )〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア(Wikipedia)』 ■ウィキペディアで「FreedomWorks」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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