Wednesday, two left-wing blogs posted confidential information supposedly obtained from the Heartland Institute, a free-market, non-profit think tank with a particular focus on battling global warming hysteria. They posted supposed donor information, inside financials, and even a “confidential memo” on the Institute’s climate strategy – which is a “complete fake,” according to a statement from The Heartland Institute.
The way they got the information was blatantly illegal. Somebody on the left side of the aisle registered an email address with the name of someone on Heartland’s Board of Directors, and then emailed a member of the administrative staff at the Institute asking that information be sent. The administrator complied, whereupon the fraudulent email account was deleted, and the information was blasted out to enemies of the Institute.
I spoke with Heartland’s Director of Communications, Jim Lakely, today. Lakely informed me that the supposed “confidential memo” laying out the “Heartland Climate Strategy” was created out of whole cloth – it was not created by anyone at The Heartland Institute, or anyone associated with them. It specifically cites the Koch brothers, for example, as a way to try to discredit the agenda of the Institute.
“When we find out who did this – and we will find out – they will absolutely need a lawyer,” Lakely said. “This act of deception and fraud exposes, again, the hatred those on the left have for anyone with a different point of view. They aren’t interested in open debate, which Heartland has always welcomed. They want to destroy their opponents – and will steal and lie to achieve that end with not the slightest moral pang.
“But it’s not going to work – not on The Heartland Institute,” Lakely said. “We’ve just begun to fight back. And those who committed and perpetuated this malicious act are going to soon realize they’ve make a very big mistake.”
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