Friday, October 1, 2010

PACman Karl Roves Everywhere But Near the Truth in Political Ads, per factcheck.org

Max Baucus, the Chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, requested this week that the IRS do a full investigation into Karl Rove's "Crossroads" PAC for improperly using their tax-exempt status to manipulate elections, along with other corporate 'front' not for profits.

So, it  is no surprise that in my daily email there was another update from one of my favorite genuinely non-partisan organizations, factcheck.org. 
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Crossroads Jam-Up
Conservative 'super PAC' makes false and misleading claims in a blizzard of ads.

October 1, 2010
Summary

The latest ads from the American Crossroads “super PAC” attack Democrats running for Senate seats in Colorado, Illinois, Ohio, Nevada, Missouri and New Hampshire.

The ads contain a number of misleading and false claims.


An Ohio ad falsely claims that the stimulus "failed to create jobs." It blames candidate Lee Fisher for the state’s job losses, which were declining long before he became lieutenant governor and were worsened by the recession.

In Colorado, an ad says Sen. Michael Bennet was "the deciding vote" on health care, though he was one of 60 senators who supported it. The ad also contains false and misleading characterizations of the new law.

In Illinois, an ad misuses a newspaper headline to imply that Alexi Giannoulias is at fault for the loss of millions in a college investment fund.

A Nevada ad exploits a gaffe by Majority Leader Harry Reid, who said last March that “only 36,000 people lost their jobs today, which is really good." As he later explained, Reid meant to say that the previous month’s job loss was much less than expected.

New Hampshire’s Paul Hodes is accused of voting for projects that weren’t even mentioned in the stimulus bill he supported.

In Missouri, an ad attacking Robin Carnahan repeats a litany of misleading claims about the stimulus and health care laws.

American Crossroads is funding the ads, in part, with donations from corporations. A controversial Supreme Court decision earlier this year lifted restraints on the use of corporate funds for political activity.

Note: This is a summary only. The full article with analysis, images and citations may be viewed on our Web site:http://factcheck.org/2010/10/crossroads-jam-up/
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The issue of corporate cash dominating our elections, thanks to the ultra-conservative SCOTUS decision on Citizens United, appears to be about anything but citizens.

1 comment:

  1. Paul Krugman summed it up well today ...

    http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/04/opinion/04krugman.html?_r=1&src=ISMR_HP_LO_MST_FB

    ReplyDelete