a few times a year alec gathers together lawmakers corporate c.e.o.'s and lobbyists all together in the same high end resort hotel ballrooms to present to the elected officials model legislation written by the lawyers of alec and voted on by the corporations if the corporations approve that legislation and gets carried back to the state legislatures or even the u.s. congress by the obedient lawmakers in attendance who submit it is new laws and it's long been speculated because he identified laws keep popping up in state after state that republican lawmakers who attend alec conferences are taking their orders directly from alec and therefore legislation dealing with everything from voter id laws to harsher prison sentences for drug offenders to dismantling e.p.a. regulations have their roots in alec now we have some proof in florida republican public and state representative rachel bergen introduced legislation in the state in the state house back in november of last year to reduce corporate taxes something that's right in alex wheel house she got a bit

so here is state representative bergen who was handed legislation written by corporate interests at alec to reduce their own taxes and she turns around introduces that legislation into the florida state house with no changes as if it was their own idea the week language still in the top her office discovered the screw up they withdrew the legislation really quickly and reintroduced it without the alec mission statement. it was too late the group common cause sought and blew the whistle you know it's becoming increasingly clear what's going on in our country now that the supreme court has given corporations personhood rights and said that money is speech through super pacs and think tanks like alec we elect representatives and they represent corporations so i say why hide it from now on our lawmakers should just be honest with us take cue from representative bergen in florida. i mean i've been pushing for to make members of congress wear nascar patches in their suits like nascar drivers so that we know of corporations are sponsoring them for years but i think they should also put a new he

not only just in a place like in new hampshire now now they have a veto proof majority so you have alec lobbyist what are really running some states now played on the flip side of that is of course it's harder to sort of influence and change entrenched behaviors here in washington it's sometimes a little bit easier on the state level do you think that because these occupy wall street protests are local perhaps this renewed attention on alec and corporate interests sort of over undue influence in politics could that perhaps. cause any sort of change in behavior i mean maybe if local citizens says see if their lawmakers look at that corporations and see these protests on their very own local streets maybe that sort of wake people up and how do you that is dying out. i think that's fair you know alec is not only a state organization and may change many ties in congress a lot of times when i've been a lobbyist can get something passed in congress built their turn towards alec for help on this thing or so i guess it works both ways betting said also many powerful alec state legislators are g

alec is this we're group it's going to run for a couple of decades pretty much nobody knew about it until they got exposed largely by i think the center for american progress leaf on this research be they have these twice in your means where corporations pay tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars to sit next to state legislators state senators and state representatives who pay anywhere from twenty five to one hundred bucks a membership dues and they're funded ninety percent of their total funding comes from corporations corporate trade groups and corporate foundations they sit around and come up with model legislation which the legislators and well over ninety percent republican take back to their states and inner duce everything from the arizona anti immigration law to that was constantia union laws to the you know the . people at the voter rolls the laws that disenfranchised people seems to me that this is alec is the poster child for corrupt corporate influence in our government there's no times to do so of about this i don't think this is any worse than what the national confe

who is a long time supporter and i think that probably a lot of viewers might not be familiar with alec even though they've been around from one nine hundred seventy three that's when they were founded and that's because there is an almost complete media blackout on this organization i did a little bit of looking into this and over the year over two thousand and eleven alec only showed up in the new york times a total of seven times just for to sort of you know gauge that against something else i did a search for charlie sheen because it seemed like the biggest story story of two thousand and eleven you should have been the new york times over five hundred times so that just gives you an idea of how. significant the blackout is and as far as corporate news goes the networks a.b.c. c.b.s. and n.b.c. you have to go back to two thousand and one that was the last time alec showed up network news yeah the unfortunate world that we live in where charlie sheen is the one makes it into the new york times all the time i really fear is jobs here you know your thoughts on this leave the h.s. repor

alec has played a role in union-busting bills in ohio, wisconsin, and indiana. joining us now is tim dickenson. thanks for joining us. >> good to be with you. >> is the republican control over the legislature just going to bulldoze these bills through? >> the republicans have a really dominating majority in the legislature in arizona. it's hard to see how this gets stopped. but going after police and fighters and teachers, they are going to have a lot of foot solders on the ground that will raise a stink about this. it's hard to see just playing the numbers how this will get stopped in the legislature. >> if unions focus a lot of money fighting these bills in arizona, i suppose it is going to help president obama in the sense that democrats are just -- and it's hard to see how the majority of american would be against that. >> it is happening in arizona that obama is wanting to put a republicans on the defense there. he is hoping to make them spend money to keep that a red state. so this is i think going to be a bad development for firefighters in phoenix but pe

we've told you all about the secretive corporate funded group called alec.n to promote their far right agenda and then get lawmakers in states around the country to present the bills as their own. it's been effective, and it's an effective way to pass similar right wing laws, different states from anti-abortion to pro-guns. well it was only a matter of time, but someone finally got caught. florida state representative rachel burgon introduced an anti-tax bill last fall but she forgot to remove alec's mission statement from the top of the bill which she had apparently copied word for word from alec's model bill. common cause reports that the very next day, she took that bill down and put up the new bill with a new number without the alec header. i guess she was hoping that nobody would notice here what they were doing. but let me give you some advice, representative. you were elected by your constituents. you answer to them and not a corporate-backed right wing group. you are not cheating on homework. you are cheating on americans. next time, hand in your own

the media coverage of today's protest actions is this shady organization that's known by the acronym alec i want to play you a quick sound bite that sort of tries to explain what this is and we'll talk about it. the american legislative exchange council or alec is an extreme right wing membership organization comprised of state legislators and powerful multinational corporations including the corrections corporation of america so who are these guys and talk more broadly about the symbolism of groups like this and their role in u.s. politics. well there's a trade organization comprised of some of the largest companies in america and what they basically act as is more or less word to shadow government they set up legislation to be distributed to corrupt lawmakers across the country so that you see this seem entirely worker anti consumer bills coming up in state after state the basic fact is some of these corrupt politicians believe in outsourcing so much they outsource their own stupid ideas and it's not a democracy if it doesn't matter who i vote for are going to get the same special inter

we know about alec the right-wing group that concocts laws.produce these templates and individual lawmakers aller to them slightly and introduce them as their own bills. unfortunately sometimes being a vessel through which billionaires do their dirty work does not require significant intelligence. it would reduce taxes in florida because she forgot about audit them slightly and introduce them as your own. her bill read quote: i said it before and i'll say it again, the main defense democracies lies in the stupidity of those who would destroy democracy like the >>i'm a political junkie. >>this show is my fix. wanna know the difference between a trader and an elite trader? it's this... the etrade pro platform. finds top performing stocks -- in three clicks. quickly scans the market for new trading ideas. got it? get it. good. introducing new etrade pro elite. planned parenthood. anna talked to a conservative and it got a little contentious. drama, when we return. >>> they have questioned his heritage birthplace religion citizenship, income avera

we know about alec the right-wing group that concocts laws.hey produce these templates and individual lawmakers aller to them slightly and introduce them as their own bills. unfortunately sometimes being a vessel through which billionaires do their dirty work does not require significant intelligence. it would reduce taxes in florida because she forgot about audit them slightly and introduce them as your own. her bill read, quote: i said it before and i'll say it again the main defense democracies lies in the stupidity of those who would destroy democracy like the representative from florida. today's worse person in the world! >>i'm a political junkie. >>this show is my fix. [ male announcer ] succeeding in today's market requires decisive action. i go to e-trade and tap into the power of revolutionary mobile apps to trade wherever. whenever. life isn't fully experienced sitting idly by. neither is investing. [ birds chirping ] >>> they have questioned his heritage, birthplace religion citizenship, income average, they have debated his middle

than alec guinness did. >> yeah, there's an iron to george. there's a bit of a sadist. >> rose: a sadist? >> he's complex because there's. it's like that afterburners. he knows when the to shift and this sort of... when i met le carre, i was looking far voice for him and i found in the john. >> rose: you found the voice in john le carre. >> but he sort of sits as i do in the film. he sits sort of slightly back. slightly off the right angle. and people open up and that's one of the... that's a great skill. that's the great skill of smiley. he can get people to... he can get people to talk. and when he needs to, that side of him that's a little crueler he does what i used to call the tickle. he just tickles people. it's like if you're with someone who's passive aggressive. they put you on the back foot. they discombobulate you. because you can't put your finger on it. you think "i think i've just been insulted but i'm not sure." and that's the sort of great ability that smiley has. and then there's equally the mass kis because stays... >> rose:

. >> susie: joining us now with more analysis about today's market action: alec young, global market strategist at s&p capital i.q. important is the milestone. i know you're with s&p, but looking at the dow, is this milestone important? >> the major milestones with the dow or s&p are always encouraging to investors. on the outside, given the roller coaster ride the investors had to endure over the years, it's a positive from a psychological point of view. what we're really focused on with the s&p cap is what are the driver tac got us to this point, and can they continue. >> susie: one of the things interesting also about this cross to 13,000 is is happened without the individual investor. in fact, most of the individual investors have been pouring their money into bonds, and avoiding stocks. do you think that's going to change, especially now that we see all the headlines about dow 13,000? >> well, certainly, i think the reason the public is still very reticent about the stock market is you can't blame them. there's been unprecedented volatility in 2008, and then again last year. so

end. >> susie: thank you for coming on tonight. >> my pleasure. >> susie: we've been talking with alec young, global equity strategist at s&p capital i.q. >> reporter: still ahead, i'm erika miller in new york. gold is now trading at a higher price than platinum. i'll tell you what that means for the economy. >> tom: from lower taxes to cheaper gasoline, we've all heard these promises from presidential candidates before. if you think candidates will promise anything to get elected, you probably have lots of company. but the research shows you a wrong. caaign promises tter, and politicians try to keetheir word. darren gersh tonight on how much stock you should put in the promises you're hearing this election year. >> reporter: when you hear a campaign promise this year, you're really hearing a fight being settled. on one side, there are the campaign policy guys, and they want the candidate to do the right thing. they live for wonky details. on the other side are the political people, and they want their guy to win. doug holtz-eakin was an economic advisor to john mccain, and he's seen i

koch brothers who diverted enormous amounts of their billions of dollars to right wing causes like alec the tea party and oil industry anti climate change pseudo science they themselves have operated under the radar of the mainstream media despite being some of the most influential operatives in the republican party so while we look back on what grassroots activism is capable of in wisconsin the silent war continues whether it's radical anti immigration laws and arab zona alabama and tennessee or requiring the unemployed to take drug tests in florida or selling off state owned prisons to for profit corporations like c.c.a. in ohio and a half a dozen other states there are still a lot of troubling events unfolding all across america. so let's not think of the uprising in wisconsin as a victory let's think of it as a stepping stone we still have a hell of a lot more work to do from coast to coast to protect the middle class from this relentless and very expensive assault from republican politicians and the one percent. who are funding them so get involved in your state and join forces wit

see, i only found the game -- [ laughter ] i only found the game because of alec baldwin. off a flight to play it? yeah. >> right, it must be awesome. so i downloaded it. and now i can't stop playing it. and i did play my whole flight. >> jimmy: it's addictive. >> it's on the wi-fi. yeah. >> jimmy: who do you play? like, your co-stars? >> i play -- no, i play my -- my friends, my friends from on the show, but -- >> jimmy: are you good at it? >> i'm -- i'm decent. >> jimmy: yeah. >> i'm decent. but there are some people who are really excellent. i actually think one of my girlfriend's cheating. because i found that there's an app that you can cheat with. 'cause i'll play, like, cat or basket. >> jimmy: yeah. >> simple picnics. simple words. >> jimmy: yeah. >> and then she'll play words that i can't pronounce. >> jimmy: yeah. >> with, like, an "x" for 100,000 points. >> jimmy: ah! i hate those words. >> i'm like there's no -- there's no -- you're smart, but you're not that smart. >> jimmy: yeah. [ light laughter ] >> there's -- there's no way you know coeval. which, apparent

alec -- this shot ties it up. 15th of the season. take the lead.shirts he would return in the third. rangers applying the pressure. a short hand at goal. the caps lose to the rangers, 3- 2. the ice is over for us. but just to be sure, jon collins as the seven-day -- has the seven- >> red was the color at st. agnes, red dress saturday, the sunday before valentine's day to bring attention to heart disease. it is most common among african- american and hispanic women. they gave useful tips for how to live a heart-healthy lifestyle. as we follow whitney houston's death, catch "dateline" coming up at 7:00. one last check on the cold temperature? >> the wind goes down and the temperatures go up. 43 tomorrow, not as windy, plenty of sun. a disturbance on tuesday. neither one looks like a big deal. a bigger storm on thursday or friday, a rainmaker. >> nightly news is next. we will see you back here at 11:00. >> follow wbal on wbaltv.com and stay connected with facebook and stay connected with facebook and [ male announcer ] for our families... our neighbor

. >> sean: invite alec baldwin?ll them to call your show and leave me alone. >> sean: great book. thank you, sir for being with us. >> my mie pleasure, thanks to fox, god bless you. >> media mash is up next. also, president obama's contraceptive mandate. we're getting reports that the president was warned months ago of potential backlash by some in his inner circle. they sounded the alarm. why didn't he listen? we'll get to that and more straight ahead. with less chronic osteoarthritis pain. imagine living your life with less chronic low back pain. imagine you, with less pain. cymbalta can help. cymbalta is fda-approved to manage chronic musculoskeletal pain. one non-narcotic pill a day, every day, can help reduce this pain. tell your doctor right away if your mood worsens, you have unusual changes in mood or behavior or thoughts of suicide. antidepressants can increase these in children, teens, and young adults. cymbalta is not approved for children under 18. people taking maois or thioridazine or with uncontrolled

>> not quite as good as alec baldwin the other day but not bad.hat is it like being the father to one half of the most famous couple arguably in the history of mankind? >> you mean my daughter? angelina. yes. lovely girl. >> do you find it a bit surreal? is it weird to see how famous she's become? >> it's a very unusual thing. of course she's my daughter and we've gotten back on track together. >> it's been a rocky road. >> famously. it's wonderful to be with her. you know, we have so much in common besides our love for each other. all this stuff in the business is great. i feel like i'm so happy. americans believe they should be in charge of their own future. how they'll live tomorrow. for more than 116 years, ameriprise financial has worked for their clients' futures. helping millions of americans retire on their terms. when they want. where they want. doing what they want. ameriprise. the strength of a leader in retirement planning. the heart of 10,000 advisors working with you one-to-one. together for your future. ♪ you'd do that for me? reall

>> not quite as good as alec baldwin the other day but not bad. it like being the father to one half of the most famous couple arguably in the history of mankind? >> you mean my daughter? angelina. yes. lovely girl. >> do you find it a bit surreal? is it weird to see how famous she's become? >> it's a very unusual thing. of course she's my daughter and we've gotten back on track together. >> it's been a rocky road. >> famously. it's wonderful to be with her. you know, we have so much in common besides our love for each other. all this stuff in the business is great. i feel like i'm so happy. advice, but i think the best advice that i gave her was by my own example to try to keep your feet on the ground. she's very good with people and if people come to her, she's very welcoming and very loving and i think that helps her and she has people around her hopefully that are honest with her and she has a wonderful sense of humor so she probably has people that can tease her a bit. >> are you a better dad now, do you think? unfair thing to infer? >> i thi

not quite as good as alec baldwin yesterday. he went -- good afternoon. but not bad. being the father to one of -- one half of the most famous couple in the history of the world. is it weird to see how famous she has become? >> it is an unusual thing. of course she's my daughter. you know, things are -- we've gotten back on track together. >> it has been a rocky road, isn't it? >> famously and it's wonderful to be with her. we have so much in common besides our love for each other. all of the stuff of the business it's great. >> the kind of advice you can give. when you have a daughter who is misslile thing in your arm and becomes an incredibly famous actress what is the most sensible advice that you, as a former oscar winner can give her? >> well, yoon uniu know, i did best i could to try to give her advice. the best advice i gave her is by my example to try to keep your feet on the ground. she's very good with people. she's not cowed by the celebrity. if people come up to her she is welcoming and loving and i think that helps her and she has people around her, hopef