UPDATED: Hey Barry - Didja Fire Goolsbee Yet?
by alegre, Thu Apr 17, 2008 at 05:23:21 PM EDT
So I hear you've gone and mailed out another pack of lies about Hillary's trade record and NAFTA.
[T]he mailer cites a Newsday article from September 2006 concerning Clinton's perceived support for NAFTA. Aspects of that article, however, were retracted because it included the since-discredited line that the Senator said the trade agreement was a "boon." The Obama mailer didn't include the "boon" quote, but even Newsday offered that the use of their piece in a political context could be misleading.In addition, the mailer criticizes Clinton for supporting permanent normal trade relations with China, citing a 2000 quote she made to CNN: "But on balance, I've looked at this, I've studied it. I think it is in the interests of America and American workers that we provide the option for China to go into the WTO."
Obama, however, has a similar quote from the Illinois Farm Bureau, albeit one with greater caveats and stipulations. "So I think it is important for us to negotiate our trade agreements recognizing that the global economy has shifted," he said in September 2004. "What that means then is that when the Chinese government devalues its currency by 40%, we've got to make sure that we bring China before the WTO. The same way that we get brought before the WTO if other countries think that a disadvantage, that they are being disadvantaged by our existing trade policies."
(Entire mailer at the above HuffPo link)
I guess I shouldn't be surprised - this isn't the first time you've lied in some sad, last-ditch effort to con voters at Hillary's (and our nation's) expense. I may not be surprised, but that doesn't mean I'm going to remain silent when it comes to your Chicago, smack-down, smoky-back-room, old-style, dirty brand of politics-as-usual.
You were set straight on this the last time you pulled this stunt in Ohio so the fact that you're doing it all over again just ads insult to injury. How stupid to you think voters are anyway?
Obama Campaign Distributes Two Dishonest Mailers In Ohio
2/23/2008 2:32:40 PMThe Obama campaign is distributing two dishonest mailers in Ohio. The first mailer falsely claims that Hillary said NAFTA was a "boon" to the economy. Hillary never said that. The Obama campaign is basing the quote on a 2006 Newsday article that characterized her views this way without any substantiation. In fact, Newsday recently said that the Obama campaign's use of their article was "misleading." The Politico called the Obama campaign's use of the quote "bogus."
The second mailer from the Obama campaign mimics Harry and Louise ads that the health care industry used to scare people into opposing universal health care. The ad claims "Hillary's health care plan forces everyone to buy insurance, even if you can't afford it."
Here are the facts:
Sen. Obama fails to mention Hillary's plan cuts costs just as aggressively as Sen. Obama, if not more so.Hillary's plan contains more generous subsidies than the Obama plan. Noted health expert Ken Thorpe of Emory University concluded that under the Hillary plan, everyone will be able to afford coverage.
The Obama plan leaves 15 million people out, which drives up costs because everyone else ends up subsidizing their emergency care.
Paul Krugman called the mailer "ugly" and "destructive."
In answer to your latest round of attacks using previously discredited claims, Hillary's campaign has put out the following information on Fact Hub...
Obama Campaign Releases Another Negative, Misleading Trade MailerToday, Sen. Obama's campaign is circulating another false NAFTA mailer in Pennsylvania.
The Obama campaign continues to use a widelydiscredited citation to attack Hillary Clinton. Huffington Post explains "the mailer cites a Newsday article from September 2006 concerning Clinton's perceived support for NAFTA. Aspects of that article, however, were retracted because it included the since-discredited line that the Senator said the trade agreement was a 'boon.'" Sen. Obama admitted in February that the source is not accurate:
"It was pointed out that even Newsday disputed his campaign's use of `boon' in quotes. Obama said `that's fair enough' but `the mailer went out before the newspaper made the correction, right? That's my understanding and I will need to check with staff on that.'" [ABC, Political Punch, 2/23/08]Sen. Obama's new mailer also falsely claims that Hillary supported NAFTA "up until last year." This is false - Hillary publicly said NAFTA was flawed as early as 2000:
"What happened to NAFTA I think was we inherited an agreement that we didn't get everything we should have got out of it in my opinion. I think the NAFTA agreement was flawed."Sen. Obama's mailer also criticizes Hillary for supporting trade relations with China as a way to enforce fair trade practices, an argument Sen. Obama himself has made.
I'm callin' bullshit Barry - it's time for you to own up to your lies and level with the good people of Pennsylvania.
Oh and by the way...
Have you fired Nathan Goolsbee yet for the way he went behind everyone's back and told the Canadians that your tough talk on NAFTA was just more bullshit? That you didn't mean what you were saying on the campaign trail?
Because until you own up to what your top economic advisor said, fire his ass and level with the American people when it comes to your own stand on trade, you've no right to go after Hillary on this (or any other) issue. An apology for that string of evasive and in some cases - dishonest explanations of what happened between Goolsbee and the Canadians would be nice too.
Sen. Obama Offers 5th Explanation of NAFTA-Gate
3/10/2008 3:48:24 PMAfter days of misleading denials, Sen. Obama has finally acknowledged that a meeting took place between his senior economic advisor and Canadian officials regarding NAFTA. But Sen. Obama now claims that the detailed memo obtained by the AP describing the meeting - and Goolsbee's downplaying of Obama's anti-NAFTA rhetoric - is inaccurate. This is at least the fifth different explanation offered by Sen. Obama and his campaign.
5. 3/10/08 - Sen. Obama: The meeting did happen, they did discuss NAFTA, but advisor just said Obama wanted to make NAFTA 'stronger for U.S. workers.' "So here's what happens. You've got one of my economic advisors goes and visits a Canadian embassy and they're asking him questions and he says, 'Well, Senator Obama isn't planning to repeal NAFTA, but he wants to amend it to make it stronger for U.S. workers.' The Canadian embassy writes it up as, 'Well, maybe Obama is not as tough on NAFTA as you might think.' And the Clintons start waving this and saying, 'See? Actually, he's the one.'" [Mississippi Rally, 3/10/08]
4. 2/29/08: Sen. Obama: 'It did not happen.' Anchor: "So, completely inaccurate, did not happen, end of discussion." Sen. Obama: "It did not happen." [WKYC TV, 2/29/08]
3. 2/28/08 - Rice: 'There had been no contact.' "The Canadian ambassador issued a statement that was absolutely false. There had been no contact. There had been no discussions on NAFTA. So we take the Canadians at their word...period. " [MSNBC, Susan Rice, 2/28/08]
2. 2/27/08 - Obama advisor just said 'hello.' "Goolsbee: Canada's consul general in Chicago contacted him `at one point to say `hello' because their office is around the corner." [ABC, 2/29/08]
1. 2/27/08 - 'No conversations have taken place' with the Canadian government on NAFTA. "Earlier Thursday, the Obama campaign insisted that no conversations have taken place with any of its senior ranks and representatives of the Canadian government on the NAFTA issue." [CTV, 2/29/08]
Seriously Barry... I wouldn't talk about trade with voters as long as Goolsbee's still on your team. It only reminds us of what he told the Canadians - that your words on the campaign trail aren't to be taken seriously and that you're basically lying to the voters when you talk about NAFTA and trade. If you want to prove to us that you're not full of you know what, you need to fire Goolsbee and do it now. Otherwise, anything you say on this topic is just more empty words and rhetoric.
This pack of BS is a carbon copy of something he sent out in Ohio in February - one that was widely discredited and where he himself has admitted that parts of it are not true.
Look guys, this latest assault on the truth is just more evidence that Sen. Obama's getting desperate in Pennsylvania. He spent over $3 million last week and a whopping, record-shattering $3.4 million this week to try to knock Hillary out of this race. And now this.
Think about what he's said and done over the past couple weeks. He and his surrogates have gone on the offensive and tried to force Hillary out of this race before the big day on the 22nd. They're determined to keep millions of voters from being heard in the last 10 states because they know a win in PA will give her the momentum she needs to close the gap. And if she does that she just might convince enough Supers to throw in with her thereby winning the nomination of our party this summer.
I've been wondering about this for a while now - why force her out now when there's so little daylight between them, and before millions of voters have had their say?
What's the hurry?
Then I watched last night's debate and it all started to come together for me. Obama went on national television - in front of 10 million viewers - and for the first time in 14 months he was put on the spot regarding some tough questions. Without a prepared speech and no expectation that the press would be as hard on him as they have been with Hillary throughout this entire campaign, he flubbed one question after another.
He's afraid if he doesn't knock her out now people will realize what a flawed candidate he is and his base of support will start to erode. He's worried people will finally understand that he won't be able to handle what the goopers throw at him, and once they open their eyes to that factoid the jig's up. The supers will flock to Hillary's side.
If you think Gibson and Steph were tough on him last night, honey you ain't seen NOTHIN' yet. They were just the warm-up act boys and girls. That was a minor sunburn compared to the scorching heat he's going to get from the RNC and the 527s out there.
UPDATE
Ya know I wasn't going to include this tonight - I've been beating the fundraising drum pretty hard over the past 2 days but this latest stunt of Obama's has - PISSED - ME - OFF! So yeah - I'm going to ask you guys to pony up if you're as pissed as I am over this pack of lies.
He pulled this in Ohio guys - just a few days before the primary leaving too little time for Hillary to set the record straight. Or so he thought. He not only pulls out the same discredited mailer but he uses the same timing. Only this time the people of Pennsylvania - who live just one state away from Ohio and have been hit by hard times just like their neighbors - know better. They listened and watched as this story unfolded in Ohio and saw the results as well (double digit win for Hillary there).
So let him know this stunt won't work - at least here on line gang.
Send Hillary some love so she can buy ad time to set the record straight between now and next Tuesday!
Thanks!
Tags: 2008 elections, Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, Pennsylvania, president, trade (all tags)
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