The Economic Freedom Fund (EFF) is a 527 group started in 2006 by

Bob J. Perry Bobby Jack Perry, known as Bob J. Perry (October 30, 1932 – April 13, 2013), was a Houston, Texas homebuilder, owner of Perry Homes, and major contributor to a number of politically oriented 527 groups, such as the Swift Vets and POWs for Truth a ...

, with a $5 million donation. Only one person is officially associated with the group: Charles H. Bell Jr., a lawyer from

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the ...

, who is the general counsel for the California Republican Party, and the Republican National Lawyers Association's vice president for the election education advisory council. The $5 million initial donation makes the EFF one of the top ten 527 groups in the

2006 election The following elections occurred in the year 2006. * Elections in 2006 * Electoral calendar 2006 * 2006 Acehnese regional election * 2006 American Samoan legislative election * 2006 Bahraini parliamentary election * 2006 Costa Rican presidential ...

cycle in terms of receipts. EFF says its aim is to "educate the public concerning issues related to the preservation of

economic freedom Economic freedom, or economic liberty, is the ability of people of a society to take economic actions. This is a term used in economic and policy debates as well as in the philosophy of economics. One approach to economic freedom comes from the ...

, the promotion of economic growth and prosperity for the people of the United States of America."

Focus of efforts

All of EFF's campaign ads to date attack Democratic candidates. So far the attacks have been on: * John Barrow (D-GA) * Leonard Boswell (D-IA) * Baron Hill (challenger in Indiana's 9th District) * Jim Marshall (D-GA) * Alan Mollohan (D-WV) *

Darlene Hooley Darlene Kay Olson Hooley (born April 4, 1939) is an American politician and former Democratic member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Oregon who represented the state's . A high school teacher by profession, she served as a city counc ...

(D-OR)

Push polls

Indiana

In September 2006, the group may have violated a 1988

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th ...

law that bars companies from placing a prerecorded, automated call to a person unless a real person, in a live conversation, first speaks and gets permission to play the recorded portion of the call. The calls were in support of incumbent Representative Mike Sodrel, and were a classic push poll, designed to smear Sodrel's opponent, Baron Hill, while appearing to be a legitimate survey.Paul Kiel
"Shadowy 527 Behind Calls Hitting Democrats in Several States"
, TPMMuckracker.com, September 14, 2006 After at least seven complaints were made to the state attorney general's office, the campaign notified the office that they had halted the calls. The Indiana law allows for a penalty of up to $5,000 per violation (per call made, not per complaint). In late September, FreeEats.com, the northern Virginia company that makes automated political phone calls, filed a lawsuit in federal court in Indianapolis, asking that the court direct the Indiana attorney general to stop enforcing the state law. The company argued that the state law violated free speech rights under the United States and Indiana constitutions, and that the ban was an unconstitutional restraint on interstate commerce. Indiana attorney general Steve Carter sued the EFF earlier in September, in Brown County Circuit Court after receiving 12 consumer complaints about the calls. The state's lawsuit seeks injunctions to stop them and fines of $5,000 for each violation. A hearing in the case is set for September 27.Deanna Martin
"Virginia company sues Ind. over automated phone call ban"
, ''Associated Press'', September 22, 2006

Other states

The group apparently used the same "push poll" approach in races in

Iowa Iowa () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wiscon ...

and

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to t ...

in September 2006.

References

{{Reflist, 30em

External links