Politicians & Pundits: Mitt Romney

American Future Fund: “Better Or Worse”

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A video from the American Future Fund rattles off a laundry list of deceptive claims about President Obama’s record, starting with the old falsehood that the president made the economy “worse.” But that’s nonsense: Obama inherited an economy that was shedding hundreds of thousands of jobs per month, and while we still haven’t fully recovered from the crushing Bush recession, the private sector has created more than 4 million jobs in the past 29 months of growth. Those gains are due in part to the Obama administration’s Recovery Act and rescue of the auto industry, both of which, along with the health care law, AFF completely misrepresents.

Read more after the jump.

American Commitment: “Stands”

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In an ad attacking New Mexico Senate candidate Rep. Martin Heinrich (D), the conservative group American Commitment calls the Affordable Care Act “a massive tax increase on the middle class” and absurdly claims the health care law “gives Washington bureaucrats control over our health care decisions.” The ad also alleges that Heinrich “refuses to stop another tax hike,” presumably on the basis of his support for ending wasteful tax breaks for the wealthiest Americans.

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American Commitment: “Fading Away”

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The conservative group American Commitment is running a dishonest new ad attacking Nevada Senate candidate Shelley Berkley. The ad criticizes Rep. Berkley for supporting the Affordable Care Act, which it claims is “one of the biggest tax increases in history,” and suggests that Berkley supports additional tax hikes. In reality, the health care law does not impose higher taxes on most Americans – it actually provides tax credits for millions – and Berkley has been a strong supporter of tax cuts for the middle class.

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American Commitment: “Facts”

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American Commitment is running an ad in Florida that attacks Sen. Bill Nelson (D) with a litany of debunked talking points about health care reform. Contrary to the ad’s claims, the Affordable Care Act reduces the deficit, does not raise taxes on most Americans (and actually gives tax credits to millions), provides important benefits for seniors, and increases the number of insured Americans by millions. Meanwhile, repealing the Affordable Care Act as the group advocates would have devastating consequences for people all over the country who are already benefiting from the law.

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American Crossroads: “Hit”

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After the Supreme Court upheld the Affordable Care Act’s requirement that most Americans obtain health insurance or pay a penalty, commonly known as the “individual mandate,” American Crossroads pounced with a new ad accusing President Obama of raising taxes on the middle class. Unfortunately, the ad leaves out some crucial facts: The mandate will not have a direct impact on the vast majority of Americans – aside from helping keep their premiums down – and Obama has cut taxes for working Americans by far more than the cost of forgoing insurance under the health care law.

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Americans For Prosperity: “Not A Tax Increase?”

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Americans for Prosperity is running an ad that portrays President Obama’s landmark health care law as a huge tax increase. In reality, most families that earn under $250,000 will not see their taxes go up under Affordable Care Act, which also provides tax credits for millions of working Americans. Meanwhile, the ad’s description of the law as a “$2 trillion health care takeover” is completely bogus – ACA reduces the deficit and relies heavily on the private sector to give millions of people better access to quality insurance.

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Americans For Prosperity: “Stop Irresponsible Spending”

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An Americans for Prosperity ad hits Missouri Sen. Claire McCaskill (D) over a variety of policies she voted for, accusing her of supporting “irresponsible spending.” But the ad is both incoherent, nonsensically suggesting that voting to increase revenue contradicts McCaskill’s desire to balance the budget, and dishonest. Contrary to the AFP’s insinuations, the “failed” stimulus bill created millions of jobs, the bailouts prevented further collapse, and the Affordable Care Act lowers the deficit.

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Americans For Prosperity: “Bill Nelson: Stop Wasteful Spending”

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Americans for Prosperity warps Sen. Bill Nelson’s (D-FL) voting record, misrepresenting the impact of legislation he supported (health care reform and the Recovery Act) and offering dishonest descriptions of legislation he opposed. The ad claims Nelson voted “against stopping more taxpayer-funded bailouts,” citing a vote to allow the auto rescue to proceed – a successful move that has saved jobs in the auto industry and throughout the economy. AFP also accuses Nelson of voting “against American-made energy” on the basis of his opposition to faster offshore drilling permits one year after the Deepwater Horizon oil spill hurt tourism on Florida’s Gulf Coast.

Read more after the jump.

Restore Our Future: “Doing Fine?”

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The pro-Mitt Romney super PAC Restore Our Future released an ad exploiting President Obama’s comment that “the private sector is doing fine.” While Restore Our Future might have voters believe that the president’s statement is evidence of a callous or out-of-touch approach to economic recovery, the full context reveals that Obama was speaking specifically about how public-sector job losses are impeding economic recovery – something that’s backed up by facts. As the private sector has gained 4.3 million jobs over 28 straight months of growth, state and local government have been forced to lay off employees, with the GOP crowing about shrinking government all the while. That’s a reality that disproportionately impacts women and African Americans – something that Restore Our Future’s ad neglects to mention when it’s wielding accusations about women’s unemployment “under Obama.”

Read more after the jump.

Americans For Prosperity: “Wisconsin Moving Forward”

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American For Prosperity targets Wisconsin senatorial candidate Tammy Baldwin by linking her to former Speaker Nancy Pelosi, citing a handful of House votes in the past several years as evidence of Baldwin’s support for “wasteful spending.” In each case, however, AFP misses the mark. Efforts taken to rescue the economy helped stave off an even worse, deficit-deepening collapse, while other policies such as the Affordable Care Act actually reduce future deficits.

Read more after the jump.