Founded in 2004, Americans for Prosperity (AFP) is an organization dedicated to lobbying federal and state governments for the passage of libertarian free market policies, limited government, and lower taxes. The founders are two billionaires: Charles and David Koch. They are some of the most influential conservatives lobbyists in the United States. Some even claim that the Koch family has tremendously reshaped American politics.

On the Americans for Prosperity donation page, they outline several reasons why a visitor should donate to their organization. Primarily, they argue that the American Dream has become “less of a reality” due to the actions of the federal government. The AFP creates a false correlation between the fall of the American Dream and an increase in government regulation, taxes, and “crony politics”. These policies and actions have not decreased the social mobility of American citizens. In actuality, neoliberal economic policies, those that prioritize private interests, deregulation, and tax cuts for the wealthy are to blame for the lack of social mobility. In other words, the same policies that the AFP is trying to endorse are contributing to the downfall of the American Dream. The American Dream is predicated on the idea that everyone in America can gain success or wealth, no matter their economic status. But how does one increase their economic status when there aren’t unions to protect workers’ rights, governments creating minimum wages, and agencies ensuring overtime pay? Making this false relationship is misleading and presents “big government” as the enemy when the true enemy is the economic ideology that is used by the government.

The probability of a 30-year-old American outearning their parents

The Americans for Prosperity donation page also makes appeals to tradition. The largest text on the page reads, “You can help restore economic freedom”. The AFP uses a second-person point of view to engage the audience and invoke a sense of classic American ideals. They use terms such as “American prosperity” and the “American Dream” to call upon the patriotism of the potential donors. These American ideals are old concepts, by revitalizing them, the AFP is making the argument that the American people must return to the country’s old customs and principles. Like other conservative organizations, the AFP claim that the free market and free society are being threatened by the government. They use fear-mongering to encourage people to donate to their organization. According to them, decreasing taxes, government regulation, and crony politics will return the America of old. 

In addition, the background of the donation page is the American flag. It is used as a prop to remind the donors of “American values”. They manipulate their audience into thinking that a good American that loves their country and wants everyone to have a chance to succeed should support their cause of restoring the American Dream.