Politicians & Pundits: George W. Bush

U.S. Chamber Of Commerce: “IL-10: Brad Schneider”

adcheck •

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce criticizes U.S. House candidate Brad Schneider (D-IL) for supporting “government-mandated health care” and accuses him of wanting “to hit our small businesses with higher taxes.” However, the Chamber relies on the false argument that ending the Bush tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans would have a significant impact on small businesses, when in fact it would reduce the deficit without harming the economy. The Chamber’s broader argument that taxes and regulations are holding back the economy is misleading, as the real key to job creation is increasing consumer demand.

Read more after the jump.

U.S. Chamber of Commerce: “CA-26: Julia Brownley”

adcheck •

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce claims that Julia Brownley cast three votes to raise energy costs for California businesses. But those three bills were about how to spend money that will be raised by a cap-and-trade system that’s already law in the California. The deception doesn’t end there, as the ad falsely suggests Brownley’s support for the Affordable Care Act and Democratic efforts to end the Bush tax cuts for the wealthiest will harm job creation.

Read more after the jump.

U.S. Chamber of Commerce: “IL-13: David Gill”

adcheck •

The U.S Chamber of Commerce attacks David Gill over taxes and health care, using graphics and audio to suggest that the Illinois congressional candidate’s positions would cause the American economy to flat-line. But they repeat the distortion that the Affordable Care Act cuts Medicare, and mischievously cite their own, ill-conceived study as proof that ending the Bush tax cuts for the wealthy will kill job growth. And leaving aside the fact that the Chamber-commissioned study fail to analyze actual Democratic proposals, the failure of those tax cuts is plain to see in economic data on the past decade.

Read more after the jump.

Restore Our Future: “Kindergarten”

adcheck •

An ad from pro-Romney super PAC Restore Our Future complains about high federal debt and the slow economic recovery, asking if America is going “forward” or “backward.” Restore Our Future fails to note, however, that 4.6 million new jobs have been created over 30 consecutive months of private-sector growth, or that GOP-favored public-sector downsizing is dragging down the recovery. In addition, it’s Bush-era policies plus the global recession that set the U.S. on a path towards an explosion of the federal debt.

Read more after the jump.

Americans For Job Security: “Running”

adcheck •

Americans for Job Security portrays the economy as still mired in recession, using a woman’s voiceover to suggest that President Obama has failed “to turn the economy around.” But while the economy has yet to dig out of the massive, nearly unprecedented hole created by the 2007-08 financial crisis, it has certainly turned around. The economy was hemorrhaging nearly a million jobs each month when President Bush handed over to Obama, and today the economy has been adding jobs for 30 months – two and a half years straight. Just as the ad’s depiction of the recent past is inaccurate, its insinuations about our immediate future are not supported by the evidence.

Read more after the jump.

Crossroads GPS: “Big”

adcheck •

Crossroads GPS accuses Rep. Shelley Berkley (D-NV) of supporting “the largest tax increase in American history,” as well as “a plan to raise taxes on nearly a million small businesses next year.” Both charges are based on the scheduled expiration of the Bush tax cuts, and both are false. The Bush tax cuts were passed with an end date – an agreement in late 2010 extended them for two years – and allowing them to expire would not be the biggest tax increase ever. In addition, Berkley only wants to phase out tax breaks for the wealthiest Americans, which would not affect many actual small businesses or harm job creation.

Read more after the jump.

National Federation of Independent Business: “Commitment”

adcheck •

The National Federation of Independent Business calls Iowa congressional candidate Christie Vilsack a “tax hiker,” citing her support for the Affordable Care Act. But the health care law doesn’t raise taxes on most Americans, and Vilsack has specified that she supports keeping the Bush-era tax cuts for those earning under $1 million.

Read more after the jump.

American Crossroads: “Next”

adcheck •

Even though the small business owners featured in American Crossroads’ latest presidential ad have benefitted from over $300,000 in government defense contracts during the Obama administration, they complain that President Obama’s “bad decisions” and regulations are harming job growth. But the ad cites a study that doesn’t address Obama’s proposals, and small business owners routinely say that regulations aren’t what’s keeping them from hiring.

Read more after the jump.

Crossroads GPS: “Dang Right”

adcheck •

An ad from Crossroads GPS says Rep. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) is “out of touch with Wisconsin,” claiming that she wants to give the government more control over health care and let “unelected bureaucrats” make decisions on Medicare spending cuts. In reality, Baldwin’s priority is expanding health care coverage to all Americans, and she has floated a variety of ways to do so, while the “unelected bureaucrats” are in reality a Senate-confirmed advisory board that’s prohibited from cutting Medicare benefits. The ad’s accusation that Baldwin wants to tax middle-class families also doesn’t hold water; in August she voted to extend the Bush tax cuts for income under $250,000.

Read more after the jump.

Crossroads GPS: “Questionable”

adcheck •

Crossroads GPS attacks Virginia Senate candidate Tim Kaine (D) over his support for last year’s deal to raise the debt ceiling, which created the deficit reduction “super committee” and imposed defense cuts as an incentive for members of the committee to reach a compromise. Now that the super committee has failed and the defense cuts are looming, GPS is accusing Kaine of backing a plan to “devastate America’s defense and Virginia jobs.” But Kaine supported the debt ceiling deal because it was necessary to avoid devastating economic default, and he has laid out a plan to avoid the impending defense cuts.

Read more after the jump.