Renting the right-wing industrial complex

I’ve written before about what I call the right-wing industrial complex.

That is, the network of lucrative business deals — speaking tours, books, radio shows, think-tank berths, etc. — available to conservatives who toe the Right’s line.

My concern is that the strict requirements for dogmatic (and even ultra) conservative positions skews the Republican Party’s political approach.

What satisfies the RWIC doesn’t necessarily resonate with voters…

The lure of big $$$s also gives prominent politicians such as Sarah Palin a disincentive to stick with the thorny, complex and less-well compensated business of rebuilding the GOP.

Now Politico has broken a story that takes this trend one giant step further.

The on-line political journal has uncovered evidence of a conservative group literally trying to sell its political influence to the highest bidder.

The American Conservative Union asked FedEx for a check for $2 million to $3 million in return for the group’s endorsement in a bitter legislative dispute, then flipped and sided with UPS after FedEx refused to pay.

The ACU describes itself as the nation’s oldest lobbying group devoted to conservative principles.
But the term “lobbying” here may be a bit misleading.

ACU isn’t your typical K-Street corporate shop.

It is one of the leading right-of-center idea and agenda generators in Washington. Its board includes movement luminaries such as Grover Norquist and the organization hosts the influential CPAC conference.

Here again from Politico:

The conservative group’s remarkable demand — black-and-white proof of the longtime Washington practice known as “pay for play” — was contained in a private letter to FedEx that was provided to POLITICO.