Obama ad stretches it too
Posted: Friday, September 19, 2008 1:16 PM by Domenico Montanaro
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From NBC's Domenico Montanaro
There's been a lot of talk lately of the disingenuousness of McCain's ads released in the past two weeks (and there were some really misleading ones -- the latest "Dome" one, in fact, continues to misrepresent on Obama's tax plan.)
But as we pointed out yesterday in Thoughts, McCain isn't the only one stretching a bit.
In addition to that Spanish-language ad that links McCain to Rush Limbaugh on immigration, Politifact and FactCheck.org point out Obama's ad on education up last week isn't exactly square with the facts.
The ad claims McCain "voted to cut education funding, against accountability standards. He even proposed abolishing the Department of Education." That Politifact gives a "Barely True;" FactCheck says it "misleads."
There are clear differences on education policy between these two candidates -- as there are on almost every issue -- but Obama's ad on the subject is "cherry picking" McCain's record, Politifact writes.
Over McCain's long career, "there’s an example or two bolstering Obama’s claims, but there are other examples in McCain’s nearly 22 years in the Senate, more telling, that show that McCain generally supports increased funding for education, stronger accountability standards and a more powerful Education Department."
McCain voted for a budget resolution in 1995 that called for a 1% cut in education funding. He did vote for No Child Left Behind which increased education funding 33%. But Democrats point out that, with the new expectations on schools and teachers, that NCLB was underfunded, particularly with regard to special education.
On abolishing the Department of Education, McCain did say in 1994, "I would certainly favor doing away with the Department of Energy, and I think that given the origins of the Department of Education, I would favor doing away with it as well."
FactCheck: "We couldn't find any other record of McCain mentioning this idea, and the quote is the only support the Obama campaign provided for its claim. Saying McCain 'proposed' abolishing the department, as if it were a legislative initiative, is misleading."
Politifact: "Given the McCain campaign’s pledge to fully fund the No Child Left Behind Act, and in that way endorse the expanded federal role in education that law calls for, it seems unlikely McCain has any intention of abolishing the Department of Education should he be elected."
If anything, McCain's record on education funding and the Department of Education is mixed. Democrats, in general, propose and vote for greater public education funding than Republicans, and it could be argued it isn't clear what the education agenda of a President McCain would be. But Obama's ad is a bit breezy with the fairness of the facts it presents.
Biden's speeches stretch it sometimes, too
Also, Biden, according to FactCheck.org, has been creating a "skewed impression" of McCain's record when it comes to McCain on "small borrowers," as well as what McCain has said on the GI Bill.
