Grow America’s Infrastructure Now (GAIN)

Background

Grow America’s Infrastructure Now (GAIN) describes itself as a “diverse coalition of businesses, trade associations, and labor groups that share a vested interest in creating jobs and strengthening our nation’s economy through infrastructure development.”¹

Grow America’s Infrastructure Now launched in May 2017 with a number of former members of the Midwest Alliance for Infrastructure Now (MAIN), “a regional coalition founded on a shared belief that infrastructure development will give way to further economic opportunities.” MAIN is described as “a leading contributor to the debate over the Dakota Access Pipeline” — a role GAIN suggested it would carry on at the national level.²

In 2016, DeSmog reported that MAIN was a possible front group behind a series of fake profiles conveying pro-Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) messages on Twitter.³ DeSmog also discovered a connection between MAIN and the DCI Group, a preferred public relations group for the Republican Party. Craig Stevens, now spokesman for GAIN and also formerly listed as the spokesman for MAIN, is a partner at DCI Group.⁴ ⁵

Under the umbrella of its “GAIN Fact Checker” project, Grow America’s Infrastructure Now has targeted anti-pipeline activists.⁶ The GAIN Fact Checker website has also promoted the production of natural gas, downplayed oil spills,⁷ and promoted pipelines.⁸

Stance on Climate Change

November 19, 2018

Grow America’s Infrastructure Now published a blog post about a recent op-ed by Merrill Matthews in The Hill: “Pipeline Paralysis: The left’s latest fossil fuel obstruction tactic.” GAIN summarized the op-ed as “highlighting current efforts and tactics from environmental activists to thwart pipeline projects across the country.”⁹

According to GAIN, the November 2018 order by U.S. District Judge Brian Morris to halt construction of the Keystone XL pipeline (KXL) was political rather than based on the law: ¹⁰

“It appears that the judge’s decision may have been fueled by partisan politics rather than actual findings,” stated the blog post.¹¹

Morris ruled for the plaintiffs in the case because the Trump administration’s Department of State hadn’t factored climate change concerns into its approval for KXL’s permit – which the agency had denied in 2015, during the Obama administration. “An agency cannot simply disregard contrary or inconvenient factual determinations that it made in the past, any more than it can ignore inconvenient facts when it writes on a blank slate,” Morris wrote in his order. ¹²

December 6, 2016

MAIN promoted¹³ an op-ed by Patrick Michaels in The Hill, in which Hill claimed environmental fears regarding the Dakota Access Pipeline were “overblown.”¹⁴

“Trump has publicly voiced his support for the project,” Michaels wrote. “This reroute of the project will merely delay the inevitable – oil flowing from the Bakken shale to consumers with no detectable effect on earth’s climate.”

Funding

In 2016, while working with MAIN, Craig Stevens declined to comment on the group’s funding and instead referred to its membership list.¹⁵

Key People

Craig Stevens – GAIN spokesman, former MAIN spokesman, and partner at the PR firm DCI Group. According to his GAIN biography, Stevens “served in the Bush Administration for seven years, beginning in the Department of Health and Human Services under Secretary Tommy G. Thompson. After HHS, Craig moved to the Department of Energy where he served as the department’s chief spokesman under Secretary Sam Bodman. Craig has also worked on the presidential campaigns of Governor George W. Bush (2000) and former Governor Mitt Romney (2008).” ¹⁶ ¹⁷ ¹⁸ ¹⁹
Ed Wiederstein — MAIN coalition chair ²⁰ ²¹

The following people have been listed on the GAIN website:²²

Name	2018	2019	2020
Albert Wynn	Y	Y	Y
Brigham McCown	Y	Y
Craig Stevens	Y	Y	Y
James “Spider” Marks	Y	Y	Y
Tom Magness	Y	Y	Y

Actions

February 2019

Grow America’s Infrastructure Now announced in the Washington Examiner’s daily energy newsletter that it had launched a new “fact checker” website “dedicated to countering targeted attacks of coordinated disinformation campaigns by so-called environmental activists.” GAIN was the newsletter’s sponsor at the time.²³ DeSmog and Daily KOS noted that the new website often “repeats a claim without offering any further evidence and then deems it true.”²⁴

January 23, 2019

On the GainFactChecker.org website, GAIN claimed Native American activist Nathan Phillips was being funded by an anti-pipeline group called Bold Nebraska. Phillps had attracted national attention after a video of him being confronted by students at a Right to Life rally in Washington D.C. went viral.²⁵

September 5, 2018

Grow America’s Infrastructure Now spokesperson Craig Stevens praised the New Hampshire state legislature for approving development of the Granite Bridge natural gas pipeline. The move came after years of what Stevens referred to as disruptions to pipeline development in the Northeast by political activists. Prior opposition to gas infrastructure development in the region was responsible, in Steven’s opinion, for shortages and higher prices for consumers:²⁶

“For too long, environmental activists and dogmatic politicians have succeeded in shutting down prudent, safe infrastructure development across the country — and especially in the Northeast. The cost of their ideological endgame has fallen on the shoulders of everyday, hard-working families and businesses. The support for Granite Bridge Pipeline makes clear voters are seeing past the rhetoric.”²⁷

March 21, 2018

A Washington Times special report, titled “Infrastructure 2018: Moving America Forward — Land, Water and Air,” featured commentaries from dozens of individuals, including members of Congress, governors, and industry representatives. GAIN spokesperson Craig Stevens contributed a piece about protecting infrastructure development, specifically pipeline construction, from “activism from the bench”:

“But perhaps the most obvious measure is to ensure that businesses that are investing aren’t penalized for it. While that may sound like common sense, one of the biggest obstacles in the way of midstream energy development has become courts acting as de facto regulators. In recent months, several examples have brought to light the alarming trend of court rulings that are possibly influenced by pressure from interest groups interrupting pipeline construction.”²⁸

January 24, 2018

In a video posted to GAIN’s YouTube page titled “Dakota Access Pipeline – A Success Story,” spokesperson Craig Stevens touted the nation’s networks of gas pipelines:

“Pipelines themselves are the safest, most environmentally sensitive, and even most cost-effective way to transport the energy our nation needs.”²⁹

September 21, 2017

GAIN sponsored a panel discussion at the 47th Annual Legislative Conference held by the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation, titled “Energy for All: Examining America’s Diverse Infrastructure.” The panel was moderated by Albert R. Wynn, a GAIN strategic advisor and former Maryland congressman, who said:³⁰

“Whether you’re concerned about safety, transporting goods, whether you’re even concerned about trying to make America great again, whatever your perspective, infrastructure is part of the discussion.”³¹

July 18, 2017

In a commentary for InsideSources titled “Time to Rethink the ‘Big Oil’ Lie,” Grow America’s Infrastructure Now spokesperson Craig Stevens expressed concern about criticism of the oil and gas industry by activists, the media, and lawmakers:³²

“These smear tactics have real consequences—not only for the companies on the receiving end, but also for consumers. They threaten to undermine projects that provide access to affordable energy for businesses and families. And they risk destabilizing domestic development, the value of which cannot be overstated amid turmoil in the Mideast, where countries like Qatar continue to escalate tensions.”³³

Stevens also praised the Trump administration for its support of the industry:³⁴

“Try as they might, opposition groups can’t mask the important contribution traditional energy producers are making to our country and our communities. It’s time to turn the page on the false narrative that the energy industry—and, more largely, businesses in generally—are out to exploit the little guy. That voters elected a businessman who makes no apologies for his support for the oil and gas industry suggests that the needle may finally be moving in the right direction.”³⁵

June 2017

The Des Moines Register reported that while working as an attorney at the law firm Belin McCormick, an Iowa Utilities Board member, Richard Lozier Jr., had represented MAIN in a case regarding the Dakota Access Pipeline. Lozier said he would recuse himself from regulatory matters regarding DAPL while on the board and would withdraw himself as counsel for the MAIN Coalition, which had intervened in a major court case regarding the pipeline.³⁶

September 2016

DeSmog reported on a potential connection between MAIN and a series of Twitter accounts that had been posting about the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL): ³⁷

“DeSmog tracked down at least 16 different questionable Twitter accounts which used the #NoDAPL hashtag employed by protesters, in order to claim that opposition to the pipeline kills jobs, that those protesting the pipeline at the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe’s encampment use violence, and that the pipeline does not pose a risk to water sources or cross over tribal land.

“On September 13, people began to suspect these accounts were fake, calling them out on Twitter, and by September 14, most of the accounts no longer existed.”

One of these accounts, @AnglaDullea, had followed the Midwest Alliance for Infrastructure Now and retweeted messages from a group titled “Standing Rock Fact Checker,” which describes itself as a project of MAIN on its website. ³⁸

Asked whether MAIN or his firm DCI Group had any knowledge of the likely-fake accounts, MAIN spokesperson Craig Stevens denied their involvement:³⁹

“I don’t know about the tactics themselves and I don’t know who or what is behind it, but as someone who’s trying to get facts out and trying to be respectful in tone, it was incredibly frustrating that this was going on. As far as I know, and think I know, the MAIN Coalition had nothing to do with them.”

October 27, 2015

Ed Wiederstein, chairman of MAIN, sent a letter to the South Dakota Public Utilities Commission urging approval of the Dakota Access Pipeline.⁴⁰

October 1, 2015

According to Illinois Commerce Commission docket records, the Midwest Alliance for Infrastructure Now Coalition, along with the 60 Plus Association and the National Association of Manufacturers, filed an initial brief in a case requesting approval for the Dakota Access pipeline. They were represented by the law firm Lueders, Robertson & Konzen LLC.⁴¹

Midwest Alliance for Infrastructure Now (MAIN) — Several former members of MAIN morphed into Grow America’s Infrastructure Now in July 2017.⁴²
DCI Group – GAIN spokesman and former MAIN spokesman Craig Stevens is a partner at DCI Group, “where he provides strategic communications and public relations counsel to a number of DCI Group’s clients, drawing on his nearly two decades of experience in consulting, government, campaigns, and politics.” ⁴³

GAIN Members

Name	2017	2018	2019	2020
Abilene Chamber of Commerce				Y
Associated General Contractors of Michigan	Y	Y	Y	Y
Columbus/Central Ohio Building & Construction Trades Council	Y	Y	Y	Y
Greater North Dakota Chamber of Commerce	Y	Y	Y	Y
Illinois Petroleum Marketers Association				Y
Iowa Association of Business and Industry	Y	Y	Y	Y
Longview Chamber of Commerce				Y
Louisiana Oil and Gas Association	Y	Y	Y	Y
Louisiana Propane Gas Association	Y	Y	Y	Y
Michigan Forest Products Council	Y	Y	Y	Y
Midland Odessa Transportation Alliance				Y
Monahans Chamber of Commerce				Y
Ohio Chamber of Commerce	Y	Y	Y	Y
Ohio Manufacturers Association	Y	Y	Y	Y
Pennsylvania Manufacturers’ Association			Y	Y
Pipeliners Local Union 798	Y	Y	Y	Y
Poepping, Stone, Bach & Associates, Inc.	Y	Y	Y	Y
Rio Grande Valley Partnership				Y
South Dakota Petroleum and Propane Marketers Association	Y	Y	Y	Y
Texas Independent Producers & Royalty Owners				Y
Texas Pipeline Association				Y

MAIN Members

The membership of the Midwest Alliance for Infrastructure Now, which has described itself as a “project of the Iowa State Building and Construction Trades Council,” has included companies and organizations from states across the Dakota Access Pipeline route:⁴⁴

Iowa State Building and Construction Trades Council
Iowa Association of Business and Industry
SD Trucking Association
Pierre Economic Development Corp.
SD Intrastate Pipeline Company
SD Petroleum and Propane Marketers Association
South Dakota Grain and Feed Association
South Dakota Hotel and Lodging Association
South Dakota IBEW Union
South Dakota Corn Growers
Eastern South Dakota Building and Construction Council
Great River Economic Development Foundation
Midwest LECET (Laborers)
Illinois Association of Convenience Stores
Illinois Petroleum Marketer Association
Illinois State Grange
Petroleum Marketers and Convenience Stores of Iowa
Laborers District of North Dakota and Minnesota
ND Association of Oil and Gas Producing Counties
North Dakota Petroleum Council
Greater North Dakota Chamber of Commerce
Laborers’ International Union of North America (LiUNA!)
International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE)
United Association (UA)
International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW)
International Brotherhood of Teamsters (Teamsters)

Contact & Address

GAIN lists the following address on LinkedIn:⁴⁵

GAIN Now
P.O. Box 65582
Washington, D.C. 20035-5582

Other Resources

Resources

1
“About Us,” Gainnow.org. Archived January 27, 2019. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/SqhlA
2
“Labor, Manufacturing, and Business Groups Launch National Infrastructure Coalition,” Gainnow.org, May 17, 2017. Archived February 18, 2019. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/vDlki
3
“Did an Industry Front Group Create Fake Twitter Accounts to Promote the Dakota Access Pipeline?” DeSmog, September 15, 2016.
4
“MAIN Coalition Denounces Federal Agency Joint Statement on Dakota Access Project,” Midwest Alliance for Infrastructure Now, September 9, 2016. Archived February 18, 2019. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/XNyaS
5
“Craig Stevens,” DCI Group. Archived February 18, 2019. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/IxiWg
6
“Activists Conveniently Conflate Coronavirus Pandemic with Climate Change,” Gain Fact Checker, May 26, 2020. Archived July 8, 2020. Archive URL: https://archive.vn/CK4lS
7
“FACT CHECK: Did the Dakota Access Pipeline spill 580,000 gallons of oil?” Gain Fact Checker, May 11, 2020. Archived July 8, 2020. Archive URL: https://archive.vn/z4ibM
8
“FACT CHECK: Are pipelines ‘dangerous’ with ‘no clear benefits?‘” Gain Fact Checker, April 14, 2020. Archived July 8, 2020. Archive URL:https://archive.vn/UVwpE
9
“Op-ed – ‘Pipeline Paralysis: The left’s latest fossil fuel obstruction tactic’,” Growing America’s Infrastructure Now, November 19, 2018. Archived February 18, 2019. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/QTFpc
10
“Op-ed – ‘Pipeline Paralysis: The left’s latest fossil fuel obstruction tactic’,” Growing America’s Infrastructure Now, November 19, 2018. Archived February 18, 2019. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/QTFpc
11
“Op-ed – ‘Pipeline Paralysis: The left’s latest fossil fuel obstruction tactic’,” Growing America’s Infrastructure Now, November 19, 2018. Archived February 18, 2019. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/QTFpc
12
Karl Puckett. “Judge blocks construction of Keystone XL pipeline,” Great Falls Tribune, November 8, 2018. Archived February 23, 2023. Archive URL: https://archive.is/wip/Kqk5V
13
“Environmental Fears Over DAPL Overblown,” Midwest Alliance for Infrastructure Now, December 6, 2016. Archived February 18, 2019. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/kpgkP
14
“Environmental Fears Over DAPL Overblown,” The Hill, December 6, 2016. Archived February 18, 2019. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/xE8pu
15
“Did an Industry Front Group Create Fake Twitter Accounts to Promote the Dakota Access Pipeline?” DeSmog, September 15, 2016.
16
“Did an Industry Front Group Create Fake Twitter Accounts to Promote the Dakota Access Pipeline?” DeSmog, September 15, 2016.
17
“About Us,” Grow America’s Infrastructure Now website. Archived February 28, 2023. Archive URL: https://archive.is/wip/U7zgg
18
“MAIN Coalition Denounces Federal Agency Joint Statement on Dakota Access Project,” Midwest Alliance for Infrastructure Now, September 9, 2016. Archived February 18, 2019. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/XNyaS
19
“Craig Stevens,” DCI Group. Archived February 18, 2019. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/IxiWg
20
“Coalition Chair,”
21
Midwest Alliance for Infrastructure Now. Archived February 28, 2019. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/IKn3t
22
“About Us,” Gainnow.org. Archived January 27, 2019. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/SqhlA
23
Washington Examiner’s Daily on Energy Newsletter, February 14, 2019.
24
“The Latest Propaganda Push From Pro-Pipeline Front Group GAIN,” DeSmog, February 15, 2019.
25
“Anti-Keystone Group Fundraises Off Pipeline Foe’s Viral Video,” Grow America’s Infrastructure Now Fact Checker, January 23, 2019. Archived February 16, 2019. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/gv7d4
26
Craig Stevens. “Granite Bridge Support Signals Shifting Attitudes Toward Responsible Energy Development,” InsideSources.com, September 5, 2018. Archived February 5, 2019. Archive.is URL: http://archive.is/qeH88
27
Craig Stevens. “Granite Bridge Support Signals Shifting Attitudes Toward Responsible Energy Development,” InsideSources.com, September 5, 2018. Archived February 5, 2019. Archive.is URL: http://archive.is/qeH88
28
Craig Stevens. “A major stumbling block for energy infrastructure: Activism from the bench,” The Washington Times, March 21, 2018. Archived February 5, 2019. Archive.is URL: http://archive.is/qcWF2
29
“Dakota Access Pipeline – A Success Story,” YouTube video uploaded by user “Grow America’s Infrastructure Now,” January 24, 2018.
30
“Energy for All: Examining America’s Diverse Infrastructure,” YouTube video uploaded by user “Grow America’s Infrastructure Now,” October 12, 2017.
31
“Energy for All: Examining America’s Diverse Infrastructure,” YouTube video uploaded by user “Grow America’s Infrastructure Now,” October 12, 2017.
32
Craig Stevens. “Time to Rethink the ‘Big Oil’ Lie,” InsideSources.com, July 18, 2017. Archived July 18, 2017. Archive.is URL: http://archive.is/MZfEz
33
Craig Stevens. “Time to Rethink the ‘Big Oil’ Lie,” InsideSources.com, July 18, 2017. Archived July 18, 2017. Archive.is URL: http://archive.is/MZfEz
34
Craig Stevens. “Time to Rethink the ‘Big Oil’ Lie,” InsideSources.com, July 18, 2017. Archived July 18, 2017. Archive.is URL: http://archive.is/MZfEz
35
Craig Stevens. “Time to Rethink the ‘Big Oil’ Lie,” InsideSources.com, July 18, 2017. Archived July 18, 2017. Archive.is URL: http://archive.is/MZfEz
36
William Petroski. “Iowa regulator recuses himself from Dakota Access Pipeline case,” Des Moines Register, June 14, 2017. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
37
Steve Horn. “Did an Industry Front Group Create Fake Twitter Accounts to Promote the Dakota Access Pipeline?” DeSmog, September 15, 2016.
38
“About Us,” Gainnow.org. Archived January 27, 2019. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/SqhlA
39
“Did an Industry Front Group Create Fake Twitter Accounts to Promote the Dakota Access Pipeline?” DeSmog, September 15, 2016.
40
“TO: South Dakota Public Utilities Commission” (PDF), Midwest Alliance for Infrastructure Now, October 27, 2015. Retreived from South Dakota Public Utilities Commission website.
41
“Docket Sheet for 14-0754,” Illinois Commerce Commission. Archived February 18, 2019. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/fc1EK
42
Steve Horn. “Emails Show Iraq War PR Alums Led Attempt to Discredit Dakota Access Protesters,” DeSmog, July 20, 2017.
43
“About Us,” Grow America’s Infrastructure Now website. Archived February 28, 2023. Archive URL: https://archive.is/wip/U7zgg
44
“Who We Are,” Midwest Alliance for Infrastructure Now. Archived February 18, 2019. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/a24HG
45
“Grow America’s Infrastructure Now,” LinkedIn. Accessed February 18, 2019. Archived .pdf on file at Desmog.

DeSmog

DeSmog