A leak of documents allegedly produced by the Heartland Institute, a libertarian think tank organized as a 501(c)(3) institution, is just the latest contribution to the controversy surrounding politically active nonprofit organizations as the 2012 elections approach.

President Obama's Council on Jobs and Competitiveness (Jobs Council) recently released its 2011 year-end report, Road Map to Renewal. The report comes one year after Obama tasked the Jobs Council with developing "a set of recommendations to create jobs in the short run and improve our nation's competitiveness over the long term." The report includes recommendations on tax reform, manufacturing, energy, innovation, education, and regulation and has been widely criticized for offering a one-sided "corporate" agenda. While the Jobs Council wrote that "getting the regulatory balance right is important," its proposals on regulatory "reform" narrowly favor corporate interests. The proposals, which mischaracterize the important role of regulation in protecting the American people, will not generate jobs or increase American competitiveness.

Big Business lobbyists and their allies in Congress waged systematic attacks against regulations in 2011, attempting to undermine the protections that keep our environment clean, our products and workplaces safe, and our economy prosperous. Underlying the charge against basic protections is an attack on government's role in safeguarding the general welfare of its citizens and in addressing the negative effects of irresponsible corporate behavior.