April 21, 2008
"Better Off"
The Democratic National Committee has released this ad to run on national cable networks starting tomorrow. The spot, which features footage of John McCain asserting that all is well with the economy, will be used at organizing events across the country as part of the DNC's field effort. Set to run for three weeks ...
Republican National Committee Chairman Robert M. Duncan issued this comment about the ad: “Howard Dean’s new ad recklessly distorts John McCain’s statements and represents the sort of dishonest campaigning voters are sick of. Echoing Obama’s discredited attacks on John McCain will not make voters forget the Democrats’ plans to raise taxes on hard-working Americans. The FEC reports that have been filed will show that the RNC maintains a huge financial advantage over the DNC, and to the extent Howard Dean can afford to actually run these ads, it will be out of a position of weakness.”
The AP fact-checked the spot and concluded that it was "edited to exclude the remainder of his answer, where he acknowledged that 'things are tough right now.'" Full AP piece available after the jump.
New Democratic Party ad edits McCain's response on economy
Associated Press / 4-20-08
TITLE: "Better Off?"
LENGTH: 30 seconds.
AIRING: Nationally on cable.
SCRIPT: CNN's Anderson Cooper: "Senator McCain, are Americans better off than they were eight years ago?"
McCain: "I think you could argue that Americans overall are better off, because we have had a pretty good prosperous time, with low unemployment, low inflation. A lot of good things have happened. A lot of jobs have been created ... I think we are better off overall."
KEY IMAGES: A clip of McCain at the Jan. 30 Republican debate in Simi Valley, Calif., sponsored by CNN. A split screen depicts scenes of foreclosure signs, a shuttered plant gate and $4 gas prices as text on the screen states: "Unemployment Up," "Highest Inflation in 17 years," "Gas Prices Up 200 Percent" and "1.8 Million Jobs Lost." The ad ends with two text questions: "Do you feel better off?" and "Is John McCain the Right Choice for America's Future?"
THE SPIN: This is the Democratic National Committee's first ad against McCain. It seeks to capitalize on the public's anxiety over the economy. Democrats have been trying to link McCain to President Bush's economic policies and cast him as out of touch with the nation's financial fears.
ANALYSIS: The video of McCain's response is edited to exclude the remainder of his answer, where he acknowledged that "things are tough right now." This type of selective quoting has become commonplace. Obama, in criticizing McCain on the economy last week, used only a portion of a McCain answer to Bloomberg Television.
Here is McCain's full response to Cooper's question at the debate:
Cooper: "Senator McCain, are Americans better off than they were eight years ago?"
McCain: "I think you could argue that Americans overall are better off, because we have had a pretty good prosperous time, with low unemployment and low inflation and a lot of good things have happened. A lot of jobs have been created.
"But let's have some straight talk. Things are tough right now. Americans are uncertain about this housing crisis. Americans are uncertain about the economy, as we see the stock market bounce up and down, but more importantly, the economy particularly in some parts of the country, state of Michigan, Governor Romney and I campaigned, not to my success, I might add, and other parts of the country are probably better off.
"But I think what we're trying to do to fix this economy is important. We've got to address the housing, subprime housing problem. We need to, obviously, have this package go through the Congress as quickly as possible.
"We need to make the Bush tax cuts permanent, which I voted for twice to do so. I think we need to eliminate the alternate minimum tax that sits out there and challenges 25 million American families.
Cooper: "It sounds like you're saying we're not better off."
McCain: "I think we are better off overall if you look at the entire eight-year period, when you look at the millions of jobs that have been created, the improvement in the economy, et cetera.
"What I'm trying to emphasize, Anderson, that we are in a very serious challenge right now, with a lot of Americans very uncertain about their future, and we've got to give them some comfort.
"We've got to give them some stimulus. We've got to give them some tax relief. We've got to stop this outrageous squandering spending that causes us to have to borrow money from China, and we've got to get our fiscal house in order.
"I think we went on a spending spree that, frankly, betrayed Ronald Reagan's principles about tax cuts and restraint of spending."
Analysis by Associated Press writer Jim Kuhnhenn
Posted at 09:28 AM
Comments
Obama is a big sham and the biggest political asshole of all. Here is the DNC, which he should have control over, yet he says nothing, while he slings mud on mccain for not controlling the party in North Carolina whom he has no control over. This social climber who tries to raise himself over contemporary politics, with the audacity to run for the biggest office with only 3 years of national experience (this is the same goober who said that Nader must think a lot of himself to run for office - Nader with his 40 years in Washington being questioned by a man whose qualifications are based on non-executive experience in a state government). McCain goes to bat to stop this negative soundbite stuff over and over, even speaking against Obama's preacher (remember we dont know the context of what he meant either so we should not condemn the man for it). Metro-Goober has no business in being president yet - Mr. vote absent and abstain on key issues as a part-time senator who spent most of his nominal experience grandstanding for president - should pay his dues before seeking an office which exceeds him. I don't even want to see him in 40 years running for president, because he always be the arrogant golden boy who is bolstered by the party fogies who know a teflon nobody can best be their puppet. We need a man in office, either Mccain, or dare I say Hilary who even though I dislike her at least she is not disgustingly unqualified and stands a better chance of not totally screwing us.
Fat Henry | 04.26.08 12:49 PM
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