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Political Blood Money

"Money is the mother's milk of politics"- Jesse M. Unrah

It seems to be that way in regards to keep this horrific industry alive. They have been involved in strong political ties over the years. However, in recent years there have been the elimination of limits political contributions that both organizations and individuals can give to politicians during election cycles. This means that the abusive and unethical industry of adolescent RTC's will continue to be unregulated and endorsed by many school districts for special education purposes. Thus the industry becomes way too big to fail, laughing all the way to the banks.

Open Secrets has information on who's lobbying for this industry and their donations.
If you see a candidate from your state on this list, use your voice to vote against them. They are part of the problem not the solution if they are bribed by these companies and super PACs! Also if they are elected in office, don't expect them to sponsor any regulations and oversight, they just don't care due to the money they're receiving from these major parties.

Donors
The Following individuals have been known for donating to political campaigns to keep these abusive facilities open with no oversight and regulation at the federal level. The regulations they fight against ranges from laws regarding licensing, accreditation, criminal background checks, and method of therapy and treatment used. It's all done under the guise of  States Rights with the rhetoric"being best dealt with at the state-level". As we see, the states handle it very poorly. This allows them to relocate to more permissive states and continue to operate after they've been expelled from another states for abuse and lawsuits.

Robert Lichfield
 
 Owner of WWASPS was a major donor to Mitt Romney's 2008 presidential run. He later became Romney's biggest finance co-chair in Utah.

Paul Babeu
Former headmaster at the abusive now-defunct DeSoto School. After the school went under investigation, he relocated to Arizona where he was elected Sheriff of Pinal County. As a major donor of Mitt Romney in 2012, he served as his Arizona finance co-chair.


Charles Colson (deceased) 
Owner of abusive faith-based rehab chain Teen Challenge until his death in 2012. Teen Challenge operated by an evangelical christian organization called The Assemblies of God. Teen Challenge as been noted for hiring ex-convicts since President George W. Bush deregulated christian reform programs nationwide. Pre-Teen Challenge, Colson served under Nixon and was part of the Watergate Seven, among the first to go to prison for Watergate. 


Mel Sembler
Probably the most notorious figure in the troubled teen industry. Sembler ran the extremely abusive drug-rehab chain Straight Inc. This popularized the industry into a booming business after the success of CEDU and The Seed, borrowing from the idea of the Synanon Cult. Straight was shutdown by the Senate in 1993 following a federal abuse investigation. However Sembler was never held accountable, he and his wife Betty Sembler founded the Drug Free America Foundation. Under President George W. Bush he served as ambassador to Italy from 2001-2005. Later he would be a major fundraiser for Republican campaigns. He served as a major fundraiser for Mitt Romney in 2008 and 2012.

Politicians
These are well-known politicians connected with the Troubled Teen Industry that the mainstream media refuses to report on.

Mitt Romney
Republican Presidential candidate in 2008 and 2012. Founder of Baine Capital which owns a chain of abusive treatment centers and therapeutic wilderness programs and "schools" known as Aspen Education Group and CRC Health Group. Aspen became a subsidiary of CRC after being acquired by Bain in 2006. Before the Bain take-over, Aspen has had a terrible track record of child abuse, fraud, and death. Mitt Romney has been well connected with Therapeutic Program owners in Utah including WWASPS owners Robert and Narvin Lichfield.


Rick Santorum
Former senator from Pennsylvania, he later served on the board of Universal Health Services. During his 2012 presidential run, he has been exposed as abuse stories and lawsuits emerged from investigative reporters (limited to the internet obviously). 


Marilyn Tavenner
Former secretary of the Virginia Department of Health and Human Services who halted the investigation of abuse at the Whisper Ridge facility in Charlottesville at the demand of a UHS/PSI lobbyist. She was later appointed by President Barrack Obama as CEO of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services which provides public funds to RTC's for children and adolescents.


Chris Buttars
Former Utah state senator later served as the director of an abusive RTC West Ridge Academy (formally known as Utah Boys Ranch). Under his leadership, the facility received a $10,000 donation from the LDS church to strengthen religious ties as well. He later resigned due to controversy at the RTC he directed.


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