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Chamber Wants Criminal Probe Of Yes Men Hoax

Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Tom Donohue

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce wants a criminal investigation into the hoax perpetrated this morning by activists, who sent out a fake press release from the Chamber falsely announcing that the group had shifted its opposition to serious efforts to tackle global warming.

A Chamber spokesman put out the following (real) statement this afternoon:

Public relations hoaxes undermine the genuine effort to find solutions on the challenge of climate change. These irresponsible tactics are a foolish distraction from the serious effort by our nation to reduce greenhouse gases. The U.S. Chamber believes that strong climate legislation is compatible with the goals of improving our economy and creating jobs. We continuously seek opportunities to engage in a constructive dialogue to achieve these goals. We will be asking law enforcement authorities to investigate this event. Beyond that, the Chamber will simply continue to focus on a positive vision for getting people back to work and growing our economy.

As we reported, the hoax was perpetrated by the Yes Men, working with Avaaz Action Factory.

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