The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) has been in the news lately. The Guardian Newspaper managed to get hold of a trove of ALEC documents that have helped to cast more light on the activities of the secretive, corporate-funded group that has sponsored tight relationships with state legislators in order to push preferred rightwing policies. ALEC has gone so far as to actually  author “model” legislation it then presents to tame legislators so that they can file it under their own names.

Among the documents the Guardian exposed was, tellingly, a loyalty oath intended for ALEC-recruited representatives in state government. As the Kansas City Star‘s Barbara Shelly describes it:

One of the most interesting documents is a proposed job description for the legislators designated to head up their state delegations. Along with striving to increase membership in ALEC by 10 percent a year and informing the group of all public information requests that include ALEC documents, it was proposed that state chairs take a loyalty oath: “I will act with care and loyalty and put the interests of the organization first.

What? These are elected officials. They are to put the interests of their states and constituents first. Apparently at some level people realized that, because the draft job description was never adopted. But the very suggestion demonstrates ALEC’s eagerness to control these lawmakers.

Shelly goes on to observe that several lawmakers in both Kansas and Missouri are active ALEC collaborators. And, in Missouri at least, one can conjecture with a fair degree of confidence that few state pols known to be complicit with ALEC would have had any qualms about signing a loyalty oath. Even if they balked at the bald statement of priorities in the pledge, most of our Missouri ALEC-ites seem to be spiritually in sync with its intention. When it comes to ALEC and Missouri Republicans, it’s a love match, no pre-nup needed.

Take for instance, Missouri GOP State Senator Ed Emery, the state chairman for ALEC in Missouri. He is, to put it bluntly, upfront about the role that ALEC plays in Missouri government:

… In the world of term-limits, an association like ALEC is invaluable in assisting state legislators by assembling the private and public expertise that can effectively identify and clarify even the most complex issues.

In other words, poorly informed legislators can chillax and let corporate dogsbody ALEC do all the heavy lifting. ALEC surely has the best interests of Missourians at heart after all, no self-interest there.

Of course, ALEC doesn’t stop at doing the legislator’s work for him or her – they’re quite willing to pay for the privilege. Just ask House speaker Tim Jones who, according to blogger Randy Turner, received a total of $2,672.58 from ALEC in 2013 2012. Turner also observes that while other members of the  legislature likely received gifts from ALEC, they managed to keep them under wraps. Writing about reports filed by lobbyists in the wake of the 2012 ALEC convention in Salt Lake City, Turner notes:

Not one Democrat and only a handful of Missouri Republicans attended the national American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) meeting in Salt Lake City, Utah, in July, but Missouri Ethics Commission documents that went online Saturday indicate that state lobbyists are crediting most of their expenses to the entire General Assembly.

By doing so, the expenses are not credited to any particular legislator, though those attending the convention may have received as much as hundreds of dollars worth of gifts from lobbyists representing special interests that are trying to curry the favor of the legislators.

The fact that lobbyists and pols alike try to hide the possible quid pro quo says it all. That legislators’ ALEC ties aren’t a statewide scandal would be incomprehensible in a sane political climate. Surely folks who rant and scream about how a moderate health care reform represents a horrific incursion of big government into individual life ought to be up in arms when they learn that state government is being abandoned – maybe even sold – to corporations looking only to enhance their bottom lines.

 

Missouri’s Attorney General Chris Koster is the lead signatory  of a letter signed by 47 AGs in other states that asks Congress to make a small change – two words – in a federal statute that exempts online services such as Backpage.com from any liability for the material posted on their sites. This provision of the 1996 law have been called into question in the wake of recent court rulings holding that state efforts to target online ads that offer minors for sex conflict with the federal law. According to Koster the changes are necessary because when:

… corporations are knowingly generating revenue from what is widely or universally viewed as criminal conduct, the (federal law) should not stand as a shield for corporate revenues.

Koster and his AG pals are on the side of God and family values here, right? Who could fault them for going after human trafficking, particularly when it involves minors? Republicans who, publicly at least, asiduously curry favor with the sexually repressive religious right ought to really like this initiative. If the fact that Democrats like Koster are behind it is a downer for the more avidly partisan of the GOPers, we could at least expect them to hold their peace on the topic.

Well, if that is what you think, you’d be wrong. To start with, the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) has the AGs’ initiative in their sights. Add in lots of the state-level GOPers who are well-compensated ALEC groupies and you’ve got a good picture of who Koster and his colleagues are up against. These folks are already preparing their counter offensive:

The [ALEC] task force drafted a resolution for adoption by state legislators urging Congress to reject the attorneys general’s request. It could be ratified by the association’s executive board as soon as October.

It’ll be interesting to see if the strongly ALEC-attuned GOPers in the Missouri legislature brings this model resolution or something similar to the floor next session. If they do, don’t say I didn’t warn you it was coming.

What is it that ALEC and its minions object to about efforts to protect sexually exploited children? Most obviously, of course, ALEC is notable for its resentment of any government intrusion into corporate mores unless it takes the form of taxpayer subsidies, tax credits, etc. The specific objections in this case are that regulating the sex ads would pssibly be ineffective, and would impose a unnecessary burden on businesses because it could “force startup companies to keep track of thousands of specific state laws and could lead to government intrusion into other Internet areas.” This, in turn, ALEC claims, would stifle investment in Internet businesses and slow growth in a developing economic sector.

First of all, thousands of state laws? Seems like an awful lot of legislation on one topic – human trafficking – to come out of fifty states. And do you think folks who might turn a profit on an online business wouldn’t invest because the owners might have to do due diligence in regard to relevant regulations? Don’t businesses that function across state lines have to do this type of thing all the time? It does seem credible that folks might not be inclined to invest in operations that derive profit from what Koster described as “criminal conduct” if it put them in the cross-hairs of the law, but isn’t that as it should be? It all seems a little far-fetched to me. But that’s just the way I think. Who knows.

What I really wonder about is how GOP legislators who go along with ALEC on this issue are going to square support for tools that assist in the sexual exploitation of minors with their insistence on trying to regulate women’s reproductive health down to the nth degree, or their rabidly moralistic response to issues of LGBT equality. If they are so worried about female promiscuity and gay sex how can they give the okay to abuse kids in the name of the free market? Will their family values base understand?  

A brief but important comment published by Robert Reich at Salon (h/t Daily Kos):

Suppose a small group of extremely wealthy people sought to systematically destroy the U.S. government by (1) finding and bankrolling new candidates pledged to shrinking and dismembering it; (2) intimidating or bribing many current senators and representatives to block all proposed legislation, prevent the appointment of presidential nominees, eliminate funds to implement and enforce laws, and threaten to default on the nation’s debt; (3) taking over state governments in order to redistrict, gerrymander, require voter IDs, purge voter rolls, and otherwise suppress the votes of the majority in federal elections; (4) running a vast PR campaign designed to convince the American public of certain big lies, such as climate change is a hoax, and (5) buying up the media so the public cannot know the truth.

Would you call this treason?

If not, what would you call it?

And what would you do about it?

Strong words. But maybe not too much so – simply consider these tidbits of recent Missouri political news:

1. First comes the Missouri GOP pols’ contribution to the effort to gum up the implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). As we noted yesterday, Senator Roy Blunt is prominently engaged in Republican efforts to sabotage the ACA, with shrill support from various Missouri House members like Rep. Vicky Hartzler (R-4). The congressional chorus is backed up by an advertising campaign, chock full of blatant lies, and funded by the Koch brothers. Together the one percenters and their congressional GOP lackeys, including our Missouri guys, are attempting to launch a mini coup d’etat:

Instead of trying to make the law of the land work, instead of doing the hard job of governance – like seriously considering a recent business-backed bill that would’ve tweaked the employer mandate – they’ve chosen the path of partisan sabotage. They continue to attack the law […], behaving as if it’s still 2009 (when the cry of “death panels!” led the league in lying). Worse yet, they’re actively working to prevent the public from learning more about what the law actually says.

2. At the state level, The Turner Report published a revealing report authored by State Representative Ed Emery (R-31) in which he discusses the role of the corporate-funded American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) in Missouri government:

Missouri has a representation on each of the [ALEC] task forces, and our involvement ensures that Missouri’s interests and perspectives are a part of every deliberation. Federalism makes each state a laboratory, and ALEC involvement provides Missouri state government the best opportunity to develop effective government policies and avoid harmful ones. I hope you approve.

ALEC brings corporate lobbyists and state legislators together (on ALEC’s dime) and has been behind much of the slew of anti-worker, anti-union, anti-teacher, anti-tax and pro-privatization initiatives produced by Missouri’s legislators this session, at times even providing model legislation for our legislators to crib from. Emery may not be the brightest light in the room, but he is at least open about the role of the usually secretive organization and its influence buying operation – which may, of course, be exactly because he isn’t the brightest light in the room.

3. The Turner Report also noted the $1.2 million dollars Rex Sinquefield contributed to a group dedicated to overturning Governor Jay Nixon’s veto of legislation passed this session that would have cut Missouri’s corporate taxes almost to nothing, decimating the revenue stream that ensures government functioning. This donation joins Sinquefield’s other very sizeable donations to groups that support his anti-tax, pro-educational privatization goals. Just this summer, Sinquefield has already put down almost two million dollars to bolster the down payment he’s already paid out in his effort to purchase the state.

And bear in mind that these examples are the result of twenty minutes cursory searching. One can only imagine the length of this piece were I to try to be comprehensive. What is clear is that when Reich paints a picture of politicians doing the bidding of the very wealthy for the benefit of the very wealthy, selling out government to do what is best for corporations and at the behest of rich ideologues, and sabotaging laws that these rich poobahs don’t like, Missouri’s GOP political class could have provided the model.

My question: Are we sending traitors to Washington D.C. and Jefferson City, or just borderline felons? And along with Robert Reich, I wonder what we’re going to do about it.

 

Friday evening about 250 people gathered at the Ethical Society of St. Louis to hear Bob Edgar, President of Common Cause, and a panel of local political activists discuss the role that the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) is playing in our national and state politics. The program, sponsored by the Missouri Progressive Action Group (MOPAG) and the Ethical Society and moderated by KWMU’s Don Marsh, consisted of a general presentation by Mr. Edgar, followed by presentations from a panel consisting of:

Denise Lieberman, Senior Attorney, Advancement Project;

Chris Gunther, President Missouri Naional Education Association;

Byron Clemons, Regional VP, Amrican Federation of Teachers, AFL-CIO;

John Hickey, Executive Director, Sierra Club Missouri Chapter;

David Cook, President, Local 655 United Food and Commercial workers.

Mr. Edgar’s presentation was filmed by Progress Missouri and video (3 prts.) can be viewed by following the links below:

Bob Edgar of Common Cause on the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) Part 1.wmv

Bob Edgar of Common Cause on the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) Part 2.wmv

Bob Edgar of Common Cause on the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) Part 3.wmv  

HIGHLIGHTS:

Bob Edgar established the theme of the presentation, which was the pernicious influence of corporate money on the American political system. He noted that, in the wake of the Supreme Court’s Citizen United Decision, we are increasingly moving towards a plutocratic system of government to the detriment of our democracy. ALEC is one of the important mechanisms for furthering this evolution. Simply-put, it is a corporate-funded organization which brings corporations and state legislators(mostly, but not entirely, Republicans) together to write model legislation that favors corporate goals. (See this Progress Missouri resource for more information on ALEC.)

Edgar emphasized the fact that ALEC identifies itself as a charity for IRS purposes although, based on a cache of over 4,000 documents that Common Cause has obtained, their activities are, by almost any definition, lobbying. However, by claiming 501(c)(3) charitable status, corporations that contribute to ALEC are able to write-off their donations on their taxes. Edgar and his wife have filed a legal suit to force the IRS to investigate ALEC’s right to claim charitable status. Details, including a whistleblower letter from Common Cause to the IRS and other information about money in today’s politics are available on the Common Cause Website.

Memorable Quote: Edgar quoted his wife, a former operating room nurse, on the Citizens United decision which implies that corporations count the same as people in terms of privileged speech “… I’ll believe that coporations are people when they get colonoscopies.”

Panelists: The five panelists brought the impact of ALEC home to Missouri. They talked about what ALEC, through [the actions of ALEC-afiliated state legislators], has been trying to do to Missourians in the areas of vote suppression, education, the environment, and union busting.

Denice Lieberman talked about the ALEC inspired laws that are intended to suppress voting rights for certain constituencies such as African-Americans, young voters, and poorer elderly, who all tend to vote Democratic in large numbers. In Missouri one such bill is HB 2109, put forward by GOP Rep. Shane Schoeller (who is, incidentally, a Republican candidate for Secretary of State – the office responsible for oversight of state elections) which, in the words of a St. Louis Post-Dispatch editorial writer, was “horrendous for a variety of reasons.” Schoeller, who says his constituents are worried about voter fraud, was unable to point to even one example of such fraud. Lieberman’s Advancement Project was able to squelch a ballot initiative aimed at amending the state constitution to restrict voting rights, which was also advanced by Schoeller, because, after bring suit, they were able to convince a judge that the language of the summary was patently dishonest. (Video of Leiberman’s presentation)

Chris Gunther had a big assignment detailing the numerous attacks on public education that have been launched in Missouri. She explained that one of ALEC’s ideological goals is to privatize public eduction and eliminate teacher’s unions; hence the numerous attacks on teachers and public schools that we witnessed this year, most of them emanating from ALEC affiliated legislators (More on ALEC and public education here). Attacks have ranged from efforts to widen the role of charters, allow “non-profits” to sponsor charters, eliminate teacher tenure, and introduce merit pay based on standardized test results. These proposals serve ideological, not educational ends since there is, as Gunther noted, large bodies of research that shows that they do not work to improve education. (Video of Gunther’s presentation.)

Byron Clemons also spoke to the efforts of ALEC inspired legislators to undermine public schools in Missouri (some names, Jane Cunningham, for example, evoked hisses from the audience). He also widened the scope to include Rex Sinquefield, who works hand-in-hand with those inspired by ALEC to gut our public educational system in the name of “reform.” He noted that Sinquefiled had tried to achieve some of the same goals in other cities such as Chicago, but settled to do his mischief in Missouri where he must have been gratified to find that he could buy “a whole bunch of Missouri legislators” for the price of one Chicago alderman. (Video of Clemens presenation.)

John Hickey drilled down into one particular piece of anti-environmental legislation, HCR 49,  in order to look at the type of strategies that are being put into play.  HCR 49 is simply a non-binding resolution that, according to the official summary, “calls on Congress to disapprove the EPA’s Mercury and Air Toxics Standards regulation and ensure that the EPA replaces it with a sensible regulation.” What’s such a big deal about a non-binding resolution, Hickey asked,  that it could inspire action on the part of ALEC and their proxies in a state legislature? The point of the resolution, however, becomes clearer, he explained when one considers the fact that sometime next week it is expected that that the U.S. Senate will vote on a resolution that would void the EPA’s Mercury and Air Toxics Standards and keep the EPA from ever re-issuing such safeguards.

And guess what endangered Democratic Senator might be influenced by such a ho
me-state resolution? If you say Claire McCaskill, you’d be right on the money. Remember that Missouri’s Ameren is one of the dirtiest coal-burning producers of electricity in the nation (high mercury emissions) – and the lesson we can take from Hickey’s analysis is that the big money men behind ALEC have thought it all through carefully and have already bought the pawns they need to carry out their strategies.

David Cook talked mostly about the prevalence of ALEC-written right-to-work laws that have been popping up with regularity in Missouri. He colorfully likened right-to-work to his right to join an industrial executive’s fancy, private club without paying dues. In essence right-to-work comes down to a question of fairness. Everyone reaps the benefits of the union; everybody should have to pay for it. It also has pragmatic aspects, since wages are universally driven downwards in right-to-work states – which is one of the reasons why corporations like ALEC find them so appealing, of course.

Cook also referred to the spate of corporations that have recently left ALEC after its began to receive public attention. He cautioned the audience against thinking that all of these organizations have renounced ALEC’s goals; he contended that they just want to avoid the bad PR that association with ALEC might currently bring them. (Video of Cook’s presentation.)

Edited slightly for clarity and links have been added to videos of panaelists’ presentations.

Go to this website and see your friend Vicky listed as an ALEC alum.  Also my own Blaine Leutkemeyer and Kansas City’s Sam Graves.  These are all people who sucked at the teat of ALEC’s cash cows and are now paying their dues.  It’s much worse than fighting the light bulb thing.  They literally want to destroy our country – one mine, one drill rig, one poisoned farmfield at a time.

I read with interest an article posted on the West County Dems listserv about how counties in Wisconsin are expanding their use of prisoners to do the work that county employees used to do.  This is just one more example of the success of the American Legislative Exchange Council and other ultra conservative extremist groups in dismantling everything “public” in our country.  The prison system was one of the first public institutions to be privatized.  Utility companies are running a close second.  Many of the public parks and recreation programs around the country are going that way too.  

So it’s important to connect the dots and remember:  The goal of ultra conservative extremists is to dismantle public programs so the upper classes don’t have to pay taxes to support them.  Some of the UCE’s honestly don’t believe in taxation for anything other than defense, and even that is being contracted out in many instances.  They don’t want to pay taxes and let the common good be the guiding principle.  They want investment opportunities to increase their wealth.  Even for the UCE’s who accept the whole tax thing, there is still the ever-expanding lust for profit at the expense of others.   So when you put the “no tax” people in cahoots with the “more wealth” bunch,  you get a heady mix of power at the expense of the majority of Americans.

This has been a long time building.  ALEC was formed in 1973 for the explicit purpose of rewinding the progressive achievements  of the 20th century.  Go to http://www.alec.org and click on “initiatives.”  The whole story is right there.  Then watch the news and connect the dots.  The lowest tax rates in 50 years. CHECK.  Private companies making huge profits using prisoners as employees for private corporations.  CHECK.   Prisoners replacing public employees and putting union members out of work.  CHECK.   Disenfranchising citizens by making it harder for them to vote.  CHECK.   Propaganda campaign against public schools and public school teachers. CHECK.  Defunding and crippling the EPA.  CHECK.  Shifting wealth from the middle class to the top 1% of the population.  CHECK.  Electing ALEC members all across the country who will perform as programmed.  CHECK.   Filling the lower court systems with conservatives who will “graduate” to appellate and supreme state courts.  CHECK.   Convincing voters to vote against their own best interest by keeping them focused on gays, guns and abortion.  CHECK.   Closing public hospitals and clinics.  CHECK.  Branding “entitlement” programs as the enemy of the people.  CHECK.  Shifting the blame for the country’s economic woes to President Obama and silencing critics of the Bush administration.  CHECK.  

Well, you get the message.  Now it’s up to us to explain this to as many voters as possible.  We can let this pattern continue until we are totally under the power of the corpublicans with the tea party flakes running the country –  or not.  If you don’t like what’s happening,  change it one issue, one candidate, one public program at a time.

I’m going to be 72 yrs old next month, and I’d like to live long enough to see at least the beginning of the next progressive resurgence of citizen action.  Maybe the good people of Wisconsin are showing us the way.  If it takes tens of thousands of activists in every state to get enough momentum going to reach the tipping point, so be it.  Every time you see an opportunity to show up at a rally –  BE THERE.   Showing up is 80% of what life is all about.  Isn’t it?

Listen to Murdock Report, WGNU 920am, St. Louis

June 28 program on the American Legislative Exchange Council. If the link doesn’t take you right to the podcast, go to http://www.wgnu920am.com and click on Kenneth Murdock.

Ask your state reps and senators where they will be August 3-6.  If they say “New Orleans,” ask if they happened to be attending the ALEC conference to get talking points and model legislation from powerful corporations.

The most important homework progressives need to do right now is to study up on what ALEC’s mission is.  Below the fold, you can find a quick overview of the damage ALEC is doing to our country.  You can take it from there.  Pick one of their “initiatives” and educate everyone you know about it.

American Legislative Exchange Council

History and Philosophy:  After the “shellacking” the Republicans took in 1964 with conservative Barry Goldwater’s defeat in the presidential election, some really smart conservatives got together to form ALEC in 1973 with the intention of changing state laws gradually and, thereby, changing the country from a liberal-leaning mood to an ultra conservative one.  Keep in mind this was the Nixon era when Democrats and Republicans alike were passing things like the EPA, the Clean Water Act, Clean Air Act,  women’s rights, and other liberal programs.  (It’s only since 1972 that it is illegal for newspapers to print “jobs female” and “jobs male” in the want ads.)  Back then, “conservative” had a negative connotation which the Paul Weyrich and friends crowd wanted to change.   With huge funding from major corporations, ALEC has grown from just an idea to one of the most influential ultra conservative organizations in the country.

Go to http://www.alec.org and read the three guiding principles of ALEC on their masthead:  Limited Government, Free Markets and Federalism.  These ultra conservative extremists honestly don’t believe it is the government’s job to help individuals.  They believe that individuals will make self-serving and therefore good economic decisions and, thereby, contribute to the well-being of society as a whole (the “invisible hand” theory.)  This is why they are anti anything “public.”

They believe “markets” should regulate themselves and that states should be allowed to make their own laws without interference from the national government.  (We know how well that worked out with segregation and labor laws.)

The whole “Don’t Tread on Me” theme so popular now with a small fringe of voters sums up the ALEC philosophy of federalism.  On the ALEC website, click on “Initiatives” and see how they brag about their “triumph” over the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.  They are the ones putting out the talking points calling health care reform “Obamacare” and doing all the fear-mongering about the effect of health care reform on different constituencies.  

Notice also under “Initiatives” that they are the ones who came up with the expression “EPA train wreck” which ultra conservative politicians on all levels of government are using.  They know that a catchy phrase like that, if repeated often enough, burrows its way into voters’ brains.  And that people don’t vote using rational arguments and facts.  They vote what they “believe.”  Ultra conservative extremists have pushed the “global warming hoax” frame so successfully that even rational voters question the facts about climate change.  

Membership:  State legislators join ALEC for a nominal fee.  Corporations join by paying anywhere from $5,000 to $50,000 in dues.  This is what they call a “public-private partnership.”  Corporations foot the bills for meetings, dinners, retreats, vacations for legislators (and their families if they choose) who then go home and introduce the bills written by ALEC which benefit the corporations.   The website lists the number of bills written by ALEC and which law firm gets to write them.

(The next national ALEC meeting will be August 3-6, 2011 in New Orleans, and states have one night during that conference to themselves which they call “State Night.”  Legislators from each state get treated to a nice dinner and a chance to schmooze with corporate staffers.  Ask your state rep and senator where they will be August 3-6.)

Issues: Given their philosophy, it isn’t hard to figure out what ALEC’s priorities will be.  They are

    *anti union, anti collective bargaining, anti minimum or living wage laws

    *anti public education

    * anti environmental regulation

    * anti tax  (“starve the beast”)

    *anti health care reform

    * anti voter participation in elections  (Photo ID bills)

Each issue has a “task force” with legislators and corporations that are affected by each particular issue.  

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/…

From the above source:

“Backed by the oil industry, ALEC has lined up legislators to lower taxes on gasoline and to undermine regulations aimed at curbing  carbon dioxide emissions leading to global warming.

  “Backed by the drug companies, ALEC has mounted a full-scale campaign to defeat initiatives by cities and states to promote importing lower-priced select medicines from Canada.

  “Backed by low-wage employers, ALEC has promoted legislation to block local governments from raising local minimum wages or even requiring government contractors to pay a fair wage to their employees.

  “Backed by the telephone companies, ALEC has worked to bar or hamstring cities that have sought to build cheaper or even free Internet services for their residents.

  “Backed by the insurance companies, ALEC has been promoting a campaign to stop state insurance commissioners from requiring insurance companies to meet the same accountability and auditing rules that were imposed on publicly-traded corporations in the wake of the Enron debacle.”

So ALEC’s tentacles reach into every part of our lives.  They are well-funded and have been very successful.  “Graduates” of their state legislature programs are now in the U.S. Congress pushing for the same goals.  To their credit, the people who run ALEC and their corporate backers have been very successful.  They started small and have grown into one of the most powerful organizations in the country.

If voters prefer the “Limited Government, Free Markets, Federalism” philosophy, so be it.  But I doubt most voters really understand the implications.  For a look at what our country will be like in a few years, go back and read the chapters about the 19th century in any history textbook.  I doubt this is what the majority of Americans want, but the gap between the rich and poor in our country is now as bad as it was in “the Gilded Age” when robber barons ran the country.  

Wisconsin voters have started the revolt against the corporate takeover of our country.  It’s up to the rest of us to join the protest movement and vote the ultra conservative extremists out of office starting at the state level.