Do as I Say (Not as I Do): Profiles in Liberal Hypocrisy/Temp

Do as I Say (Not as I Do): Profiles in Liberal Hypocrisy is a book written by author Peter Schweizer and published by Doubleday in 2005. The book covers the alleged contradictions and hypocritical behavior of famous liberals, including Ted Kennedy, Nancy Pelosi, Bill Clinton and Hillary Clinton, Ralph Nader, Al Franken, Cornel West, Michael Moore, George Soros, Noam Chomsky, Barbra Streisand and Gloria Steinem. Schweizer contends that many liberals publicly promote liberal values regarding the environment, affirmative action, racism, sexism and finance but practice the opposite in their private and professional lives.

Summary

In the book itself, Schweizer names several prominent figures in American liberalism and enumerates what he perceives as discrepancies between what they advocate in political life, and what they themselves practice. Among the figures mentioned in the book are Ted Kennedy, Bill and Hillary Clinton, Al Franken, Michael Moore, Noam Chomsky, and Barbra Streisand, among others. The Primary focus of the book is Schweizer's contention that while these people's political advocacy regarding the environment, affirmative action, racism, sexism and finance are incongruent with their private lives.

Notable issues that Schweizer addresses in the work are Noam Chomsky's acceptance of money from prominent capitalist institutions such as the Pentagon, living in an expensive home, and his visitation of socialist states such as Cuba. Schweizer, in the rest of the work, makes similarly-toned accusations against individuals the book focuses on, particularly surrounding political issues such as environmentalism, labor, and taxation.

Publicity

Effects of publication

After the book's publication, many figures accused in the book responded through writing and other media to the claims. A local ABC News affiliate investigated Schweizer's claims and found that she pays her non-union workers $1.25 more than union wage at the largest winery in the state, and that it is actually illegal for her to help her workers unionize according to the 1975 Agricultural Labor Relations Act Al Franken wrote to the conservative publication The National Review to dispute some of Schweizer's claims.