Another Sin Of Omission By The Tribune-Review Editorial Board.

It's funny what the Tribune-Review editorial board leaves out when it publishes something.  It's almost as if the braintrust doesn't want you to know something it knows.

Finding it, however, rewrites their entire blurb.

Take a look at this from today:

Among accomplishments made by the Trump administration in its first “100 days” that likely won't make the evening news are regulatory reforms, which to date have saved taxpayers more than $86 billion.

That's the conclusion of a new report by the American Action Forum, a policy institute, which lists various Obama administration regulations that President Trump and Congress have either repealed or delayed, The Hill newspaper reports.

Now, I could have taken a look at Trump's "accomplishments" in his first 100 days, but that's been done:

• Factcheck
• Politifact  
• Washington Post 

No, I want to dig into what the Editorial Board describes (on purpose) as simply "a policy institute".

What is the "American Action Forum" and what does it do?  From it's own web page:

Since its 2009 founding, AAF has proudly led the center-right policy debate on fiscal policy, health care, tax reform, immigration, technology & innovation, regulatory policy and many more pressing issue areas. Its work is routinely referenced by center-right leaders who understand that government has an important but limited role in protecting freedoms, promoting a vibrant private sector, and serving US citizens more effectively.

The American Action Forum is an independent, nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization, and it is not affiliated with or controlled by any political group. Its focus is to educate the public about the complex policy choices now facing the country, and explain as cogently and forcefully as possible why solutions grounded in the center-right values that have guided the country thus far still represent the best way forward for America’s future. It will stay neutral in elections, and by and large will leave its sister organization, the American Action Network, to engage in any appropriate direct legislative advocacy in support of the policy proposals it discusses. Like the Network, the Forum welcomes policy ideas consistent with its center-right values from any source, regardless of party affiliation, and aims to make its educational materials available to members of the public of all political stripes.

And that "sister organization" the American Action Network? Well, my friends, it has a website as well:

The American Action Network is a 501(c)(4) ‘action tank’ that will create, encourage and promote center-right policies based on the principles of freedom, limited government, American exceptionalism, and strong national security. The American Action Network’s primary goal is to put our center-right ideas into action by engaging the hearts and minds of the American people and spurring them into active participation in our democracy.

Huh.  It's interesting that there's not even a hint of any of this in the three words ("a policy institute") the editorial board chose to describe the American Action Forum.

After reading the above descriptions, ask yourself what's the chance that this new report by the AAF would be anything other than a set of "center right ideas"?  Then you should ask yourself why the Tribune-Review editorial board didn't feel you should know that.  Why they didn't want you to know that it was a conservative report from a conservative think tank linked to a conservative "action tank."

Happy Sunday!