Club for Growth President David McIntosh released an email letter this weekend saying the group was not going to “back down” in their fight against Donald Trump.

McIntosh claimed Trump is “posing” as an anti-establishment conservative, but in reality he’s a liberal.

The letter accuses the billionaire of supporting single-payer socialized medicine “to the left” of Obamacare; advocating the largest tax increase in history; opposing a flat tax; use of eminent domain laws to seize private property; and protective tariffs that will lead to “massive trade wars.”

McIntosh described Trump as the “worst Republican candidate on economic issues” and that “short of Bernie Sanders, he may be the most liberal candidate” in the race.

Trump, for his part, has also trashed the Club on Twitter, claiming they run an “extortion” racket after they asked him for a donation that he declined to give.

The Club responded that the donation ask came after Trump requested to meet with the group and before he revealed his platform.

The Club has earned kudos from conservatives for its long history of holding Republicans in Washington accountable for their voting records.

Now, expect the Twitter firestorm to continue.

Here’s McIntosh’s letter:

Dear Friend:

I’d rather not talk about Donald Trump.

Everyone is talking about Donald Trump and I’d rather talk about just about anything else. But I have to talk about Donald Trump. The Club for Growth has to talk about Donald Trump. There’s simply too much at stake not to talk about Donald Trump.

By now, you may have seen some of the very public clashes between Trump and the Club for Growth. I don’t expect them to end anytime soon.

Because perhaps the only thing that Donald Trump and the Club for Growth have in common is that neither of us back down from a battle, even a tough battle!

The Club believes that Donald is the worst Republican candidate on economic issues – plain and simple. In fact, short of Bernie Sanders, he may be the most liberal candidate in the whole field on fiscal policy.

Not only has Trump been all over the map on some of the Club’s key issues – but he has taken several positions that are downright horrendous!

• Trump came out for socialized medicine that was to the left of Obamacare, and he still thinks it works.
• Trump proposed the largest tax increase in U.S. history. That’s not easy to do, but Trump did.
• Trump not only supported eminent domain to take people’s private property so developers could use it for casinos and amusement parks, he’s tried to do it himself!
• Trump jumped on board with Obama’s tax-the-rich mantra, dismissing a flat tax because he wants rates that “graduate upward.” Note to Donald: that’s the system we have in place.
• Trump doesn’t just saber-rattle about trade wars, he wants to take up the sword and rush the U.S. into massive trade wars with huge tariffs that would be a devastating tax on American businesses and consumers.

Donald Trump poses as anti-establishment. But that’s exactly the problem. He’s posing, just like the reality star he is. Playing a part for the sake of an audience – he really is the worst kind of politician.

The Club for Growth has also built a reputation on being anti-establishment, especially when it comes to fighting against the Republican Party for failing to cut taxes and shrink government.

But that’s the key difference between the Club and Donald Trump. The Club is anti-establishment but it is also FOR something: “Prosperity and Opportunity through Economic Freedom.”

The only thing Donald Trump is for – is Donald Trump.

This past week I wrote an op-ed explaining how the failure of Republican leaders in Washington has given birth to the Donald Trump show.

You and I don’t want any more excuses from John Boehner and Mitch McConnell. We want them to fight for the principles they were sent to Washington to defend. And Republicans are angry because they haven’t done the job. So, they’re looking for presidential candidates to stir things up and force real change.

The Club for Growth has done exhaustive work researching the economic liberty records of GOP presidential candidates, and there are decidedly pro-growth candidates with policies that could turn things around.

Donald Trump is absolutely not one of them. His record on taxes, trade, spending, and entitlement reform is simply awful. And his posturing on all sides of issues makes him the worst kind of politician.

So it’s great that Donald Trump is anti-establishment. But I’m more concerned about what he’s FOR than just what he’s against – and we hope you are too.

Best regards,

David McIntosh
President | Club for Growth

http://www.newsmax.com/Newsfront/club-for-growth-trump/2015/09/13/id/691339/