Organizations: Congressional Leadership Fund

Congressional Leadership Fund: “Busy Betty”

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An ad from the Congressional Leadership Fund attacks Rep. Betty Sutton (D-OH) over virtually every Democratic priority, citing the Recovery Act, a cap-and-trade bill, and the health care law. But the stimulus bill didn’t ‘fail’ – it helped avoid an even more severe economic downturn, and the ad’s charge that stimulus money went to China is unsupported. The cap-and-trade bill in question would have boosted the economy with little cost to consumers. And the allegation that the health care law – which cuts taxes for most Americans – would kill jobs has been dismantled repeatedly.

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Congressional Leadership Fund: “Cherry Hill Tax”

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The Congressional Leadership Fund attacks Democratic Congressional candidate Shelley Adler (NJ) for raising property taxes on Cherry Hill citizens three times. However, the ad fails to note that the votes in question were for entire township budgets, two of which the council approved unanimously, and that through her tenure Cherry Hill had the lowest tax rate of any municipality in Camden County. Additionally, the tax rate increases were largely attributed to state’s mismanagement of pension funds and the requirement that municipalities contribute additional money to cover the state shortfalls. Lastly, when the mayor attempted to increase the property tax levy by 22 percent in 2008 once the recession had begun, Adler was one of only two members who voted against the proposal.

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Congressional Leadership Fund: “Closer Look”

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The Congressional Leadership Fund takes out a second ad against Texas congressional candidate Pete Gallego, attacking him for voting to raise taxes as a state legislator. But the bills the Congressional Leadership Fund cites to support its case include one to keep online companies like Amazon from skirting Texas’ sales tax rules, another to keep people from avoiding sales tax on car sales, and another that would have added just $5 to yearly motor vehicle registration fees to pay for the state’s underfunded trauma centers.

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The Week In Conservative Attack Ads

After last week’s wave of House ads, conservative outside groups focused most of their attention on the Senate this week. Of the 14 ads we fact-checked, eight of them targeted Senate hopefuls (five from Karl Rove’s Crossroads groups and three from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce), compared to only two hitting House candidates (both from the Congressional Leadership Fund). We also answered presidential ads from Restore Our Future, Americans for Job Security, and American Future Fund. Finally, Americans for Prosperity joined the conservative campaign to oust three Florida Supreme Court justices.

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Congressional Leadership Fund: “Look”

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The Congressional Leadership Fund goes after Texas congressional candidate Pete Gallego for supporting the “job-killing” health care law “that cuts Medicare $716 billion,” but the claim that the Affordable Care Act will kill jobs has long been debunked, and the law doesn’t cut seniors’ benefits. Instead, it finds savings by reducing future Medicare spending – savings that Gallego’s opponent, Rep. Francisco Canseco (R), also voted for in the Ryan budget. The ad also attacks Gallego for voting to raise taxes as a state legislator, but Gallego voted actually voted against one of the tax bills CLF cites to prove their point.

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Congressional Leadership Fund: “Continued”

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Congressional Leadership Fund seeks to damn Rep. Betty Sutton (D-OH) by tying her to House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-CA). Although Sutton has received an unremarkable $25,000 from Pelosi’s leadership PAC since 2006, the rest of the ad’s accusations are misleading. Sutton’s vote for the Affordable Care Act didn’t cut $700 out of current Medicare spending; it found future savings without cutting seniors’ benefits. The “failed” stimulus helped rescue the economy from an even greater recession, and the cap-and-trade bill Sutton supported would have boosted the economy at minimal cost to consumers.

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The Week In Conservative Attack Ads

This week, conservatives flooded the airwaves with attacks on Democratic candidates. We fact-checked a total of 21 new ads, exceeding our total from the previous three weeks combined. The increase in volume was marked by 11 spots targeting House candidates, signaling a heightened focus on lower-level races as we approach the final stretch of campaign season.

New Players, Same Money?

Karl Rove’s groups were active as usual – American Crossroads launched a misleading attack on President Obama and Crossroads GPS targeted three Senate hopefuls – but they let some of their allies lead the charge this week.

Read more after the jump.

Congressional Leadership Fund: “Sutton Works For Pelosi”

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The Congressional Leadership Fund, a super-PAC associated with the American Action Network, uses Rep. Betty Sutton’s voting record to suggest that she places the interests of Rep. Nancy Pelosi above those of Ohio. To do so, they rely on misrepresentations of clean energy legislation, the Affordable Care Act, and the Recovery Act, the last of which helped prevent a deeper recession and cut taxes for families and businesses across the country.

Read more after the jump.