WASHINGTON — With the mood on Capitol Hill rapidly turning against ACORN, all six members of Arkansas' congressional delegation voted last week to deny federal funding to the communityorganizing group that began nearly four decades ago as an advocate for the poor in Arkansas.
The House passed a broad measure - co-sponsored by Rep. John Boozman, the state's only Republican member - that would ban any federal funding for the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now.
The Senate, meanwhile, approved two measures that would prevent ACORN from receiving money from specific agencies.
"The problem that many people in Congress have had is that there's been lots of smoke, and when there's that much smoke, there's generally some fire," said Boozman, who called for a special prosecutor to examine the organization. "We're starting to see the fire evolve now."
Launched in Little Rock in 1970, ACORN has evolved into a nationwide, liberal group that has long drawn the ire of Republicans. But that criticism became bipartisan last week with the disclosure of videos showing ACORN employees in Baltimore, New York, Washington and San Bernardino, Calif., offering advice about operating a prostitution ring.
The grainy videos hit television and the Internet ear-lier this month and created a furor. By last week, both congressional chambers were gearing up for action.
On Monday, the Senate voted 83-7 to cut off funding ACORN would be eligible for through the departments of Transportation and Housing and Urban Development. Thursday, it voted 85-11 to bar ACORN from receiving Interior Department funding.
On Tuesday, House Minority Leader John Boehner of Ohio introduced the DefundACORN Act, which had 152 co-sponsors, including Boozman. On Thursday, the House passed the measure by a 345-75 margin as an amendmentto legislation involving student loans.
That vote signaled a sudden shift in the Democratic support ACORN has traditionally enjoyed, with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California agreeing that groups receiving federal funds should be subject to "tough scrutiny."
"They put us in a position where we have no choice but to take away the funding," Rep. Marion Berry said, walking through the Capitol rotunda moments after Thursday's vote. "They've not left us much room. Even if you wanted to be friendly, we can't use tax dollars for that."
But Republicans in the House want to go further.
"I think there's a group of us that are almost prepared to shut the place down if we don't get a vote, in the sense of delaying tactics and things like that. This is a great example of what the American people are sick about," said Boozman, whose mention of ACORN during a town-hall meeting Friday in Bella Vistawas greeted with a chorus of boos.
Boehner put his weight directly behind that effort. On Friday, he called for an up-or-down vote on ACORN funding, threatening to use parliamentary procedures to force a vote as a stand-alone issue, rather than as amendments to other bills, if one is not scheduled soon.
ACORN does not receive funding directly from the federal government, through its annual budgeting process. Rather, it receives money by applying for it through competitive grants.
Boehner's staff has compiled data showing that ACORN has received more than $53 million in federal grant funding since 1994, including a $100,000 grant for Arkansas ACORN fair housing on Feb. 19, 1998.
Other federal agencies are also re-examining their ties to ACORN. Earlier this month, the Census Bureau severed its relationship, saying the group would not be among those involved with the 2010 Census. And the IRS issued a statement that it is conducting a "thorough review" of its relationship with ACORN, which offers tax-preparation services.
In addition, other members of Congress have echoed Boozman in calling for the Justice Department and the FBI to investigate the matter. The district attorney in Brooklyn, N.Y., is conducting a criminal investigation, while the attorneys general of New York and California are looking into the matter.
Rep. Mike Ross said in a statement that he was "appalled and deeply troubled" by the actions of the ACORN employees and endorsed those investigations.
"I also support the ongoing efforts of both state and federal law enforcement agencies to investigate these very serious claims and to hold those found guilty of any wrongdoing responsible for their actions," he said.
On its Web site, ACORN touts itself as "the nation'slargest grassroots community organization," claiming its membership includes more than 400,000 low- and moderate-income families organized into more than 1,200 neighborhood chapters in 41 states and the District of Columbia.
The organization began in Little Rock, with founder Wade Rathke, a college dropout and anti-war activist, moving from Massachusetts. Here's how ACORN's Web site describes those early days:
"When Rathke arrived in Little Rock in 1970, he began a campaign to help welfare recipients attain their basic needs - clothing and furniture. This drive, inspired by a clause in the Arkansas welfare laws, began the effort to create and sustain a social justice movement that would grow to become the Arkansas Community Organizations for Reform Now- ACORN."
But news stories from the time offer a different perspective. The clause in the welfare law was designed to provide assistance "to replace needed household equipment" in emergency situations such as fires, accidents and "other disasters," according to an Arkansas Gazette article of Aug. 25, 1970.
Rathke's recruits didn't appear to qualify.
The news coverage described an early instance of ACORN busing people to protest sites, a tactic former Gov. Mike Huckabee described Friday as one of the organization's hallmarks. While Rathke said that 50 people were aboard the bus when it arrived at the county Welfare Department in North Little Rock for a protest, reporters counted only 18 adults and three children.
Len E. Blaylock, state welfare director at the time, said the group had been misinformed about funds available for emergency purposes. Blaylock said at the time that he told Rathke he was eager to work together.
"However, the kind ofirresponsible information today's demonstration was based upon can do nothing but build false hopes for people totally dependent on others for their existence," Blaylock said. "I can't understand why someone concerned about the poor would do this to them. It seems a cruel and heartless way to 'help' someone."
Rathke, who lived in Little Rock for several years in the 1970s before moving the group's headquarters to New Orleans, stepped down in 2008 as ACORN's chief after it was disclosed that nearly $1 million had been embezzled by Rathke's brother, Dale Rathke.
ACORN treated the incident as an internal matter, kept Dale Rathke on the payroll, and did not disclose the situation to its board of directors for nearly a decade, opting instead for a restitution agreement. A whistleblower eventually revealed the details and the Rathkes were forced out. Wade Rathke remains involved with ACORN's international activities.
ACORN also has been the target of voter-fraud charges, including during last year's presidential campaign.
Huckabee, speaking to reporters Friday at the Values Voter Summit in Washington, recalled his own dealings with the group in Arkansas.
Huckabee recounted a "bizarre" incident at the Holiday Inn near the airport when two buses filled with ACORN members marched into the building and surrounded the podium where he was appearing.
"My ongoing relationship with them essentially was that most of the time it was, as I called them, a rent-amob," he said. "The leaders knew they were going to go round up some people, stick them on a bus, put some signs in their hands, and tell them to scream and chant some slogans.
"But if you sat down and said, 'Excuse me, tell exactlywhat policy you're here to protest,' they didn't have a clue." When it comes to ACORN, Huckabee said, "Congress ought to defund every last bit of it."
Members of the Arkansas delegation agree, but they differ over whether ACORN should be temporarily or permanently banned from receiving federal funds.
"It's time, if nothing else, to send ACORN a signal that if they are going to expect to receive any federal money for anything - there may be appropriate roles for them to play - but if they're going to receive any federal money for anything they need to clean up their act," said Sen. Mark Pryor.
But both Pryor and Sen. Blanche Lincoln tempered their remarks, noting that the Senate measures only ban funding for one year and emphasizing that the Arkansas chapter has not been implicated in the current scandal.
"I don't think that's giving them their day in court," Lincoln said. "I think there are bad apples in everybody's cart. By and large, the ACORN in Arkansas has been very respectful of rules. They're an advocacy group that is there on behalf of lowincome people, particularly in the housing issues."
Neither would go so far as to call for permanently ending all federal funding to the organization, with Pryor saying he would give ACORN "the benefit of the doubt."
Rep. Vic Snyder issued a similar statement, saying his meetings with Arkansas ACORN members have been"a worthwhile contribution to the discussion of the numerous challenges facing low-income Arkansans."
But he voted for the amendment because "there have been some shameful incidents nationally that have led to a complete loss of confidence in the national ACORN organization and its ability to responsibly manage personnel and funds."
For Boozman, the issue of public accountability for public funding is critical.
"Most people would agree that if you're accepting that kind of public funding that you should be willing to basically let people come in and look at your ... books," he said. "That has not been the case at all with this particular group."
That's a charge that has plagued the group from its earliest days, even before the embezzlement case.
In its early days, ACORN barred news reporters from its board meetings and declined to answer questions about its funding.
While Wade Rathke said reporters could be allowed at the discretion of members, he said they would be barred from discussions of "internal business," including finances.
"That's certainly none of the press' business," Rathke said, according to the Aug. 12, 1974, issue of the Arkansas Democrat.
While the furor surrounding ACORN may have pushed its funding to the forefront, Berry said Congress would be more closely scrutinizing all funding requests as a result of the economic climate.
"From now on, money's going to be awful hard to get," said Berry, a member of the House Appropriations Committee. "I'm talking about money for really good stuff. It's going to get harder and harder."
Boozman agreed, saying that public concern he has heard stems not just from ACORN's activities, but from questions about federal funds in general.
"The public concern is not just this entity, this organization," Boozman said, "but the government is spending a lot of money and there's a lot of concern that it's not always being spent in the public interest. And as a result, they're starting to question, very appropriately, where's the common sense in this."
Front Section, Pages 1, 11 on 09/20/2009