GOP Operative On Census-Like Mailing: “Duping People Is The Point”

The Republican National Committee put out a mailing that is intended to dupe recipients into believing it’s the US Census, but is actually a fund-raising letter.

Calling itself the “Congressional District Census,” the letter comes in an envelope starkly printed with the words, “DO NOT DESTROY OFFICIAL DOCUMENT” and describes itself, on the outside of the envelope, as a “census document.”

“Strengthening our party for the 2010 elections is going to take a massive grass-roots effort all across America,” Steele writes in a letter that blends official-sounding language, partisan calls to arms, and requests for between $25 and $500. “That is why I have authorized a census to be conducted for every congressional district in the country.”

The director of the Census Bureau’s regional office in Kansas City, Dennis Johnson, has complained, and concerns have been raised by the ranking Republican on the House subcommittee that oversees the census, North Carolina’s Patrick McHenry.

“Of course, duping people is the point. … That’s one of the reasons why it works so well,” said one Republican operative familiar with the program, who said it’s among the RNC’s most lucrative fundraising initiatives. “They will likely mail millions this year [with] incredible targeting.”

Nice. The Republican Party bragging about deception.

By: Alan

Alan Colmes is the publisher of Liberaland.