November 9, 2021

By Jeanine Molloff

   I live in Missouri, and our Attorney General has filed numerous frivolous lawsuits limiting the authority of local municipalities and their health departments regarding public health directives. Our Attorney General is a Republican named Eric Schmitt, who is coincidentally running for the US Senate seat being vacated by Roy Blunt. This detail is relevant as it underscores how AG Schmitt actively panders to the ignorant anti-vaxx, anti-mask lynch mob.

   One last thing, Schmitt wasn’t elected to his position.  He was appointed by Trump acolyte, ALEC member, (and fellow anti-masker) Governor Mike Parson. All of this points to a state where ignorance and science denial run rampant. Missouri is among the bottom rung states regarding COVID vaccination rates and public masking guidelines.  Ardent GOP anti-maskers in the state legislature routinely violate any social distancing or masking requests from democrats, even those who are immuno-compromised. Governor Parson himself refused to mask and came down with COVID, yet Parson adamantly refuses to implement any mask mandate. This is where Attorney General Eric Schmitt enters the picture, his campaign of conservative resentment and enabling ignorance held up in proud public display.

   Schmitt recently filed yet another frivolous lawsuit. This one is a class action suit against school districts that implement mask mandates on all adults and children. It is a ‘reverse class action’ and names Columbia Public Schools, The Board of Education, board members and the Superintendent as defendants. Schmitt claimed that,

 “Forcing schoolchildren to mask all day in school flies in the face of science, especially given children’s low risk of severe illness and death and their low risk of transmission

He added “We filed this suit [today] because we fundamentally don’t believe in forced masking, rather that parents and families should have the power to make decisions on masks, based on science and facts.”

The fact that children under age 12 couldn’t access the COVID vaccine at the time this lawsuit was filed, is irrelevant to Schmitt. He claims the right to endanger your own child, (and others), belongs to the parents. The scientific fact that children aged 9 to 19 can be effective COVID carriers, possibly bringing a death sentence to the adults in their lives, falls on deaf ears. Study confirms kids as spreaders of COVID-19 and emerging variants – Harvard Gazette It was all about appeasing conservatives.

Schmitt ended his news release with the following statement, “I am committed to fighting back against this kind of government overreach. Americans are free people, not subjects.” Missouri Attorney General Files Class Action Lawsuit Against School Districts Forcing Masks on Kids (mo.gov)

Schmitt wasn’t being ironic. He regards government overreach as the realm of democrats, progressives and others who reject the GOP. When the GOP steals power, that is not ‘overreach,’ and Schmitt disregards the blatant hypocrisy of his own stance. Schmitt also conveniently omitted the origin of this lawsuit, namely that the major talking points derive from various ‘model’ bills offered up by the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC).

 There are too many wrong claims in Schmitt’s own statement to debunk here. Suffice to say that the ACTUAL science of airborne pathogens demands that we mask in public until herd immunity has been reached via immunization. It is a particularly smarmy and cynical abuse of his office to use our children as political pawns for his own political aspirations. Masking has been the accepted protocol for any airborne pathogen for decades, but that fact won’t stop Eric Schmitt.

The lawsuit has been extended to cover the population centers of St. Louis and Kansas City. Again, from the AG’s own website, "The suit incorporates three counts:

Count One: Declaration that the mask mandates are unreasonable, arbitrary, and capricious

Count Two: Declaration that the mask mandate is subject to § 67.265 and expires without the Board of Education authorizations

Count Three: Declaration that the mask mandate is unlawful as to schoolchildren”
The full complaint can be found here: https://ago.mo.gov/docs/default-source/press-releases/2021-08-24---columbia-schools-petition-file-ready.pdf?sfvrsn=b365e116_2

Missouri Attorney General Files Class Action Lawsuit Against School Districts Forcing Masks on Kids (mo.gov)

   Again, it is no small coincidence that this lawsuit eerily resembles so many others across the country which actively attack our public health systems, specifically tailored for the COVID pandemic. MedPage Today, quoted a report issued by the National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO), on this disturbing trend where GOP office holders are restricting any protective public health measures during this pandemic which has taken over 700,000 American lives.

NACCHO explained further.

“In recent months, at least 15 state legislatures have passed or are considering measures to limit severely the legal authority of public health agencies, and other states may consider such legislation in the future, hindering the ability of health departments to do their jobs and putting wide swaths of the public at risk.” Proposed Limits on Public Health Authority: Dangerous for Public Health (naccho.org)

   The GOP has sponsored the following wholesale dangerous actions:

·        Prohibiting any public mask requirements, including when either COVID or active tuberculosis is suspected or confirmed. This has been proposed in North Dakota.

·        Prohibiting any business closures as a measure to prevent super-spreader venues. This has already happened in Kansas. The governor has been stripped of power regarding any public health emergency.

·        Banning any quarantine under any conditions. Montana has implemented a new law which does just that. Without the ability to quarantine those who may have been infected or exposed, stopping outbreaks will be impossible. This is especially true for COVID as a person could be asymptomatic and therefore spread the disease.

·        Blocking universities and state hospitals from implementing vaccination mandates for both employees and students. Arizona has such a law which forbids any vaccine mandate, (except for K-12 schools).  The Arizona law mandates criminal penalties for violating this ban.

·        Granting sole unilateral power to state legislatures regarding public health actions. This has happened in Missouri, where the state legislature must approve any public health action such as mask mandates that extend beyond 21 days, if authorized and implemented by a local municipality. The governor can issue public health orders for no more than 30 days before requiring the approval of the state legislature. It also forbids local governments the right to demand vaccination status in order to access public services. (Source: Governor Parson Signs HB 271 Regarding Local Public Health Orders and Vaccine Passports | Governor Michael L. Parson (mo.gov)  Parson Signs Law Limiting Power Of Local Officials To Issue Emergency Health Orders | STLPR (stlpublicradio.org)  Similar limitations on public health orders were passed by the Ohio legislature, via an override vote of the governor’s veto.  States Are Passing Laws That Threaten Public Health, Report Finds | MedPage Today

   None of these actions are homegrown, though republican politicians have falsely claimed authorship. These actions hail from a group called ALEC or the American Legislative Exchange Council and are articulated in a model bill authored by ALEC, titled the Emergency Power Limitation Act. Emergency Power Limitation Act - American Legislative Exchange Council (alec.org)

   In fact, NACCHO stated in their report that these ‘types’ of bills “appear to be coordinated, in part, [by] the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC).” The NACCHO report added the following statement.

  “ALEC is advocating a slate of policy initiatives and model bills crafted to limit the authority of public health agencies and weaken their ability to protect the public’s health...Many of the bills that have been, or will be considered, in a majority of states are based on ALEC’s model acts,” adding that “in some cases, the legislation uses language that is almost verbatim to ALEC’s model bill.” Proposed Limits on Public Health Authority: Dangerous for Public Health (naccho.org)

   The reporter for MedPage, Joyce Frieden, contacted ALEC for their side of the story. The ALEC spokesman made the following claim.

“The NACCHO report is incorrect in its assertion. ALEC does not have model bills or any public policy initiatives crafted to limit the authority of public health agencies.” The unnamed ALEC spokesman added that “In fact, ALEC has no public health model policy of any sort on COVID-19. As a 501(c)(3), we don’t advocate policy. We have, however, empowered legislators with fact-based CDC information, discussions on vaccine safety and touchless travel innovations.”

This spokesman then gave a link to ALEC’s model policy database. https://www.alec.org/model-policy, without realizing that he unwittingly exposed ALEC’s lies. If ALEC has no role in advocating policy, why would they maintain a model policy database? States Are Passing Laws That Threaten Public Health, Report Finds | MedPage Today

ALEC’s major role in Astroturf events protesting public health measures like masking....

   ALEC hasn’t limited their involvement to crafting model bills during the pandemic. They’ve joined forces with other groups who led the Astroturf protests against vaccines and masking. These groups are funded with ‘dark money.’ ALEC joined FreedomWorks and various other conservative groups to create the Save Our Country Coalition, whose alleged goal was “to educate and inform elected officials and policymakers at all levels of government in an effort to bring about a quick, safe and responsible reopening of US society.” https://www.freedomworks.org/content/conservative-groups-launch-save-our-country-coalition

Save Our Country Coalition incited protests which became COVID super-spreader events....

   The Save Our Country Coalition was one of the parties responsible for inciting protests against any public health measures, especially the issue of required masking in public.  These protest events became COVID super-spreader events. ALEC leadership can’t claim innocence considering their CEO Lisa Nelson happily joined the “Save Our Country” coalition, which was chaired by Art Laffer, (not coincidentally ALEC’s economic guru), as they pushed to “reopen US society and preserve the American way of life.” The Save Our Country coalition is funded by the conservative Bradley Foundation. https://www.exposedbycmd.org/2020/07/14/bradley-foundation-bankrolled-right-wing-reopen-effort-despite-rising-coronavirus-cases/

But joining the ‘coalition of duplicitous dunces’ wasn’t enough for ALEC. In 2020, they orchestrated a letter to Trump and multiple state leaders demanding they reopen the economy, in direct defiance of medical advice. https://www.alec.org/article/empower-states-to-safely-open-the-economy/

ALEC held webinars with then Vice-President Pence, Education Secretary DeVos, Labor Secretary Eugene Scalia and other decision makers pushing this premature reopening of the economy, as COVID took the lives of so many Americans. https://www.exposedbycmd.org/2020/04/30/alec-leading-right-wing-campaign-to-reopen-the-economy-despite-covid-19/

Ironically, ALEC didn’t appear to believe their own press regarding their wholesale COVID denial, because they soon crafted and fast-tracked a model bill that “would limit liability for businesses following health and safety regulations or guidelines designed to protect employees and customers against the virus,” https://www.alec.org/model-policy-liability-protection-for-employers-in-a-declared-disaster-or-public-emergency-act/, as reported by ALEC staffer Ronnie Lampard to Bloomberg Law. https://news.bloomberglaw.com/daily-labor-report/red-states-to-get-blueprint-on-limiting-business-virus-liability

The ultimate legislative Trojan Horses—ALEC’s ‘model’ bills pushed during pandemic...

   ALEC does nothing by accident. Every move they orchestrate presents with a blandly benign outer wrapper disguising their dangerously malignant intent. And the next two model bills are no exception to this deception, namely the Emergency Power Reform Act, https://www.alec.org/model-policy/emergency-power-reform-act/ and the Expedited Suspension and Legislative Repeal of Harmful Rules Act. https://www.alec.org/model-policy/expedited-suspension-and-legislative-repeal-of-harmful-rules-act/ These two bills represent ALEC’s version of the ultimate Trojan Horse.

   Both model bills have a common denominator, namely they strip governors of their emergency powers and simultaneously transfer that power to GOP controlled state legislatures.

   So, why does ALEC love handing more power to state legislatures. According to Molly Jackman, writing for Brookings, ALEC has focused their energy on increasing influence in—state legislatures, and it has been a dangerously effective political strategy. ALEC’s Influence over Lawmaking in State Legislatures (brookings.edu) We don’t have to look any further than the flurry of voter suppression bills crafted by ALEC which became law in multiple GOP controlled states, to find evidence of the strategy’s efficacy. ALEC Members Lead Voter Suppression Efforts in 2020 Battleground States - EXPOSEDbyCMD Bluntly put, ALEC pushed this action because it transfers power to state legislatures where ALEC collectively pulls the GOP puppet strings. This cynical calculation strengthens ALEC and their corporate sponsors, since their strongest power base lies in those same state legislatures. ALEC has cultivated those relationships for decades now and has become the dominant power in those legislatures. ALEC’s Influence over Lawmaking in State Legislatures (brookings.edu)

   So, let's look at these two model bills spawned by ALEC in the middle of the pandemic. One last thing, these two bills (among others), were presented during their 2020 Conference, which, (ironically), they held virtually, due to COVID-19 concerns.

The Emergency Power Reform Act....Emergency Power Limitation Act - American Legislative Exchange Council (alec.org)

    This bill specifically places a limit on any emergency powers granted to a governor or any state official, by establishing arbitrary timelines for any emergency irrespective of the facts on the ground. Timelines can only be extended with the state legislature’s approval. It does allow for NONBINDING recommendations and guidelines which are as useful to legitimate lawmakers--as grey matter is to Donald Trump. It is a transfer of power from the governor and any relevant professional agencies—to state legislatures—period. This agenda has been particularly deadly during the COVID-19 pandemic as it hamstrung the medical community. Frankly, during COVID, this act could be thought of as state legislatures practicing medicine without a license, as the attorneys and businessmen who dominate legislatures render what should be—public health decisions.

   And now for the single ‘model’ bill crafted by ALEC which could dismantle any regulations on corporate forces and the billionaire class—the Expedited Suspension and Legislative Repeal of Harmful Rules Act.

Expedited Suspension and Legislative Repeal of Harmful Rules Act....

   The Expedited Suspension and Legislative Repeal of Harmful Rules Act grants state legislatures the power to dismantle government regulations and legally passed laws, at will, arbitrarily. https://www.alec.org/model-policy/expedited-suspension-and-legislative-repeal-of-harmful-rules-act/  This single ‘model’ bill represents the keystone to ALEC’s attack on representative government. This bill would grant legislators the power to ‘suspend’ rules during official emergencies for various obtuse reasons, such as being “obsolete”, “overly burdensome”, or “no longer enforced.” Those vague descriptors obviously leave a lot of room for prejudiced discretion. ALEC Exploits Pandemic to Push Right-Wing Policy Goals at Annual Meeting | PR Watch This act could unilaterally be used to casually set aside any environmental, labor, and/or health regulations. In short, the Expedited Suspension and Legislative Repeal of Harmful Rules Act, illegally grants state legislatures the power to toss any laws their corporate masters find ‘burdensome.’

Conclusion...

   By now, it’s painfully clear that ALEC has been inciting a rogue government takeover by dark money groups and corporate forces for some time, and like most cowards, they aimed for the ethically challenged, ‘low-hanging fruit”, namely GOP-controlled state legislatures. The ‘model’ bills authored by ALEC staffers bear no resemblance to legitimate ‘rule of law,’ rather they set the stage for dictatorial autocrats readying themselves for the final stages of corporate takeover. Unfortunately, the democratic party of President Biden has shown themselves to be too cowardly to challenge groups like ALEC seeking to actively dismantle democracy itself. Progressives nationwide must come together and fight alongside activists like Cori Bush, AOC, Katie Porter and others, to fight for an actual democracy, or we are surely lost.

To quote American theologian, Reinhold Neibuhr,

“Man’s capacity for justice makes democracy possible, but Man’s inclination to injustice, makes democracy necessary.” Reinhold Niebuhr - Oxford Reference

Apparently, the attorneys of ALEC, their GOP collaborators, and the Vichy cowards of the DNC--never got the memo. 

Jeanine Molloff is an online journalist who has published with Buzzflash, OpEdNews, Huffington Post, UK Progressive, Eurasia Review, Truthout and others. She produces the Sunday show on Progressive News Network, in addition to the Environmental Justice Report, available on blogtalkradio. She is the author of a novel titled The Silent Culling. In another life, she was a Speech/Language Pathologist in the St. Louis Public Schools for 30 years.