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A new McCain ad calls Obama a celebrity (true) who says he'll raise taxes on electricity (false).
By Joe Miller | factcheck.org
Jul 31, 2008 | Updated: 9:35 a.m. ET Jul 31, 2008
Summary
McCain's new ad claims that Obama "says he'll raise taxes on electricity." That's false. Obama says no such thing.
McCain relies on a single quote from Obama who once – and only once so far as we can find – suggested taxing "dirty energy," including coal and natural gas. That was in response to a reporter's suggestion that a tax on wind power could fund education. Obama isn't proposing any new tax on electricity or "dirty energy" as part of his platform, and he never has.
Toxic Charges
We usually try to avoid writing articles about Hollywood's latest gossip, but in this case, we felt that the McCain campaign's choice of celebrities is worth a brief mention. In a conference call with reporters, McCain spokesman Brian Rogers said the ad features Ms. Hilton and Ms. Spears because, on the listing of "three biggest international celebrities in the world," they rank second and third. We'll leave it to you to judge how up-to-date the McCain campaign's celebrity meter is. But we will note that, in a lucky coincidence, Spears and Hilton also topped an AP poll for "worst celebrity role model." That connection appears to be deliberate. When asked whether the campaign intended to imply that Obama is as "frivolous and irresponsible" as Spears or Hilton, Rogers replied, "I think that's exactly what we've been saying."
If McCain's aides believe that Barack Obama is like Britney Spears, that's their prerogative
http://www.newsweek.com/id/149680/page/1
By Joe Miller | factcheck.org
Jul 31, 2008 | Updated: 9:35 a.m. ET Jul 31, 2008
Summary
McCain's new ad claims that Obama "says he'll raise taxes on electricity." That's false. Obama says no such thing.
McCain relies on a single quote from Obama who once – and only once so far as we can find – suggested taxing "dirty energy," including coal and natural gas. That was in response to a reporter's suggestion that a tax on wind power could fund education. Obama isn't proposing any new tax on electricity or "dirty energy" as part of his platform, and he never has.
Toxic Charges
We usually try to avoid writing articles about Hollywood's latest gossip, but in this case, we felt that the McCain campaign's choice of celebrities is worth a brief mention. In a conference call with reporters, McCain spokesman Brian Rogers said the ad features Ms. Hilton and Ms. Spears because, on the listing of "three biggest international celebrities in the world," they rank second and third. We'll leave it to you to judge how up-to-date the McCain campaign's celebrity meter is. But we will note that, in a lucky coincidence, Spears and Hilton also topped an AP poll for "worst celebrity role model." That connection appears to be deliberate. When asked whether the campaign intended to imply that Obama is as "frivolous and irresponsible" as Spears or Hilton, Rogers replied, "I think that's exactly what we've been saying."
If McCain's aides believe that Barack Obama is like Britney Spears, that's their prerogative
http://www.newsweek.com/id/149680/page/1
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