podesta_email_01256.txt

podesta-emails 5,886 words email

V11 P17 P22 P19 V14

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week June 20, 2008 - PMUSA Soon to Be ProgressiveAccountability.org Update New McCain Campaign Developments . . . . On Tuesday, McCain launched a new ad highlighting his break from Bush on global warming. [TIME <http://thepage.time.com/2008/06/17/mccain-up-with-global-warming-tv-ad/> , 6/17/08] . The McCain campaign hired two new press aides, Leah Yoon and Laura Perloff. Both come from NPR. [Fishbowl <http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowlDC/radio/who_says_npr_is_liberal_87520.a sp> DC, 6/19/08] . McCain met with Hispanic leaders in Chicago in a closed-door event to discuss immigration. [Associated Press <http://apnews.myway.com/article/20080620/D91DI6LO0.html> , 6/19/08] Progressive Media USA and Partner Activities This Week . . . Energy McCain spent this week focused on energy. On Monday, he announced he reversed his previous stance calling to end for the federal ban on offshore drilling. The following day, President Bush announced that he also supports an end to the ban. Later in the week, McCain appeared to be open to drilling in ANWR. PMUSA and our partners worked to frame McCain and the same as Bush on energy, to point out McCain's flip-flop and to paint McCain as a friend to Big Oil, not families. RESEARCH: The research team put together documents on McCain's missed votes and votes against increased fuel efficiency and renewable energy, McCain's lobbyist connections to Big Oil, and how McCain and Bush are the same on energy policies. We posted these documents to McCainSource.com, shared them with our partners and sent them to reporters. PRESS: PMUSA worked with the League of Conservation Voters, Sierra Club, Americans United for Change and Friends of the Earth released statements criticizing McCain's push for offshore drilling. PMUSA sent our McCain oil research document to Senator Reid, Rep. Markey, Rep. Pelosi and Rep. Emanuel. Senator Reid and Congressman Markey spoke out against McCain's position and today Congressman Emanuel sent a letter to McCain asking if he would drill in the Great Lakes. Campaign Money Watch released a report connecting McCain's support for offshore drilling with his ties to the energy industry. * "'John McCain's big money donors and lobbyist friends have struck again,' said David Donnelly, director of Campaign Money Watch. 'McCain's reversal on off-shore drilling is a blatant pitch for donations at today's Houston fundraising events.' McCain's speech on energy policy, which he is scheduled to deliver today in Houston, comes on the same day that Campaign Money Watch is releasing a report on McCain's connections to the energy sector, including the oil, gas and nuclear power industries. The report can be viewed at http://www.campaignmoney.org/mccainenergy." [Campaign Money Watch, 6/17/08] * "Congress passed a permanent ban on drilling in the lakes in 2005 and McCain isn't likely to suggest drilling in such a habitat. But that doesn't stop Emanuel from closing: 'I hope your newfound stance on offshore drilling will not be followed by support for drilling in the Great Lakes.'" [Politico <http://www.politico.com/blogs/jonathanmartin/0608/Rahm_presses_McCain_on_Gr eat_Lakes.html> , 6/20/08] * "Instead of siding with the hardworking American families being exploited by an energy industry awash in record profits, Senator McCain supports allowing Big Oil to begin the wholesale 'exploitation' of our coasts. Rather than offering consumers real relief from skyrocketing energy prices, Senator McCain's plan would merely pad Big Oil's bottom line while putting thousands of miles of pristine beaches and coastline at risk." [Sierra <http://www.sierraclub.org/pressroom/releases/pr2008-06-17.asp> Club, 6/17/08] * "Just mentioning the words 'renewable energy' doesn't hide the fact that Senator McCain is now embracing the outdated energy policies of the past," LCV President Gene Karpinski said. "If Senator McCain is serious about ending our addiction to oil and helping working families with inefficient cars, why has he voted against or missed every fuel efficiency bill since 1990? Drilling in protected areas offshore won't solve our energy needs in the short term and in the long term, will increase the threat of global warming. We need to break our addiction to oil - not look for another fix." [League <http://www.lcv.org/newsroom/press-releases/mccain-embracing-outdated-energy -policy.html> of Conservation Voters, 6/17/08] * "If John McCain were looking for a way to prove he's running for George Bush's third term, he couldn't do better than this. Maybe we should start calling him 'Exxon John.'" [Friends of the Earth Action, 6/16/08] * "'Senator McCain and President Bush just couldn't bare the agony of being apart on this major environmental issue for even a day' said Jeremy Funk, spokesman for Americans United for Change. 'It didn't matter that they are already of one mind on everything from endless war in Iraq to more tax breaks for millionaires to privatizing Social Security - there was now this pesky difference on off-shore drilling and they just had to nip it in the bud, for the sake of the McBush relationship'" [Americans United for Change, 6/18/08] PROGRESSIVEACCOUNTABILITY.ORG worked with Marc Ambinder to get him to post a story on McCain's comments at a Missouri town hall where he seemed open to drilling in ANWR. Following Ambinder's post, LCV and Sierra Club released statements hitting McCain. McCain was forced to address the issue. * "He then volunteered that he had changed his position on offshore oil drilling, which he now supports, because of the rising price of oil. Asked if the high price of oil tempts him to reconsider drilling in ANWR, he said: 'No, but again, if somebody says, 'will you look at this information?' .I'll be glad to look at that information. I think it's incumbent on me to review it. But I certainly haven't changed my position.'" [Wall <http://blogs.wsj.com/washwire/2008/06/19/mccain-open-to-new-information-on- anwr/> Street Journal, 6/20/08] PAID MEDIA: Sierra Club ran a radio ad in several Ohio media markets calling attention to Senator McCain's ironic use of windmills in Ohio TV advertising despite his failure to support renewable energy initiatives in the Senate, and asking him to vote for incentives for wind power and other renewables when they come up on the floor. ONLINE: PROGRESSIVEACCOUNTABILITY.ORG created a web video <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=inDMgrNWPow> that shows how McCain and Bush are the same on offshore drilling. Here are some of the stories that used our frame: . "McCain's energy plan gets positive reception; Most oil execs respond favorably as he touts policy and raises funds in campaign trip here" [Houston Chronicle <http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/5843453.html> , 6/18/08] . "While McCain has traditionally sided with environmentalists on climate change, he has a mixed voting record on oil drilling and support for renewable energy." [Washington <http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/06/16/AR200806160 2731.html?sid=ST2008061700079> Post, 6/17/08] . "He's been saying well look I broke with President Bush on global warming but on the other hands, he and the President are in lockstep now on increasing more oil drilling and so that could really complicate Senator McCain's efforts to reach out to independent voters." [Wolf Blitzer, CNN's The Situation Room, 6/18/08] . "Well while President Bush calls for an end to the federal moratorium on offshore drilling, it might be a good time to point out that Republican presidential nominee John McCain has uh been pitching that for two days." [Megyn Kelly, FOX News, 6/18/08] The End of "The Maverick" Vaneer In the last few weeks, McCain has run from endorsing bi-partisan climate change legislation in the Senate and startled many with his reaction to a Supreme Court ruling on detainees. We framed McCain's embrace of offshore drilling as the death blow to McCain's maverick image is gone. We put together a memo for the Sunday shows that highlights all the opinion pieces which have declared the Maverick as gone. The memo also included polling information on how many people believe McCain will continue Bush's policies, data on how McCain is unpopular with his base and how McCain has moved to the right on his "Maverick" issues to please the base. Here are some of the stories about the end of the Maverick. * "Yet while it would be hard to categorize him as a doctrinaire Republican or conservative, Mr. McCain appears to have ceded some of his carefully cultivated reputation as a maverick." [Elisabeth Bumiller, New <http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/17/us/politics/17policy.html?hp> York Times, 6/17/08] * "It wasn't too many years ago that 'maverick' was the cliche of choice in describing him. But that term didn't even make the list this year when voters were asked by the Pew Research Center to sum up McCain in a single word.Voters have notoriously short memories, but it could be argued that McCain cheapened his own brand. He embraced President Bush and attempted to become, like Bush, the choice of the Republican establishment." [Paul West, Baltimore <http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/nation/bal-te.infocus15jun15,0,4687694.sto ry> Sun, 6/15/08] * "The man once celebrated for his informality with reporters emerged in a severe gray suit and stood in front of four American flags, flared with the help of adhesive tape. He scolded one reporter for asking a question without raising her hand. One star correspondent, arriving a few minutes late for the event, was forced to wait outside until McCain finished." [Dana Milbank, Washington <http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/06/16/AR200806160 2148.html?hpid=opinionsbox1> Post, 6/17/08] * "But McCain needs to win independents to win the presidency, and there are indications that the McCain 'brand' -- his image as an independent maverick -- has been damaged in the past few years." [Jake Tapper, ABC <http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalpunch/2008/06/is-the-mccain-b.html> News, 6/20/08] * "I like McCain, and I promised myself I'd defend him against any Democratic effort to blur his record with Bush's. I didn't anticipate that the erstwhile maverick would be making it harder to distinguish between the two." [Brian Dickerson, Detroit <http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080620/COL04/806200406/10 81> Free Press, 6/20/08] McSame The McSame frame continues to gain traction, including a front page New York Times story this week. * How Close McCain Is to Bush Depends on the Issue "- The Democrats like to say that electing Senator John McCain <http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/m/john_mccain/in dex.html?inline=nyt-per> would usher in the third term of George W. Bush <http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/b/george_w_bush/ index.html?inline=nyt-per> , and they do not mean it as a compliment. The Republicans counter that calling the senator "McBush" is political spin and that Mr. McCain is his own man. <http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/17/us/politics/17policy.html?_r=1&hp=&oref=s login&pagewanted=all#secondParagraph> Skip to next paragraph A look at Mr. McCain's 25-year record in the House and Senate, his 2008 campaign positions and his major speeches over the last three months indicates that on big-ticket issues - the economy, support for continuing the Iraq <http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/international/countriesandterritories/ir aq/index.html?inline=nyt-geo> war, health care - his stances are indeed similar to Mr. Bush's brand of conservatism. Mr. McCain's positions are nearly identical to the president's on abortion and the types of judges he says he would appoint to the courts." [New <http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/17/us/politics/17policy.html?_r=1&hp=&oref=s login&pagewanted=all> York Times, 6/17/08] * Fix Pick: 'McSame' as Bush? John McCain = George W. Bush. "For much of the last few months, Democrats and their affiliate groups have worked hard to ensure voters become familiar with that equation. And, according to a <http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/politics/documents/postpoll_061608.htm l> new poll conducted by the Washington Post and ABC News voters are internalizing the message. Thirty eight percent of those surveyed said McCain would take the country in a 'new' direction, while 57 percent said a McCain administration would mostly keep America on the 'same' course." [Washington <http://blog.washingtonpost.com/thefix/2008/06/fix_pick_mcsame.html> Post, 6/18/08] Trade McCain gave a speech on free trade in Canada today. Our research team pulled together a document on McCain's record and many of his insensitive statements about the jobs not coming back. We shared this document with our partners. AFL-CIO hosted a press conference call to respond to McCain's speech. The call featured Senator Sherrod Brown and a worker. * "Instead of delivering a speech from Ottawa, Canada, Senator McCain should visit Ottawa, Ohio, where the Phillips plant closed," [Sen.] Brown said. "We need trade policies that create new jobs at home, not ship them to Mexico. We need a new direction, not a third Bush term." [AFL-CIO release, 6/20/08] FISA Congress is voting on a FISA compromise today. Our research team put together a document outlining how McCain aides Charlie Black and Wayne Berman ran a secretive lobbying campaign for retroactive immunity while working on the McCain Campaign. The document also shows that McCain has received lots of money from the telecom industry and supports the industry position on this issue. We gave this document to Talking Points Memo who will write a story on it. We also gave this document to reporters who have been working on FISA. Oil in Iraq This week it was announced that top U.S. oil companies will receive no-bid oil contracts in Iraq. Research put together a document on McCain's lobbyist ties to Big Oil and contractors in Iraq. Talking Points Memo is working on a story about it for next week. In the States This week saw Senator McCain stopping in Iowa and Minneapolis, MN. Alliance for a Better Minnesota hosted two events, launched two websites, and conducted a visibility outside of the event using the "McSame" frame. Next week, the Senator will be in California, Colorado and Ohio. California and Colorado will focus on the immediate economic and environmental impacts of McCain's proposal to conduct more drilling for oil, while Ohio will demand more immediate actions to lower Ohioans' gas bills. Iowa Due to the continued natural disaster, coverage in the mainstream media has been hard to come by. However, surrogates we've been working with had their own message to give Senator McCain. McCain earmark opposition assailed By JANE NORMAN <mailto:[email protected]> Des Moines Register Washington, D.C. - Republican presidential candidate John McCain opposed legislation last year that included money for flood control in Des Moines, which shows he is wrong to push for reforms to the congressional earmark system, a Democratic lawmaker charged Thursday. State Sen. Jack Hatch of Des Moines said the earmarked money was needed to relieve water problems on the city's north side, which were magnified over the weekend when a levee break forced an evacuation of the Birdland area and ruined several dozen homes and businesses. [Snip] President Bush eventually vetoed the bill, which authorized more than 900 navigation, flood-control and environmental projects across the country. A report on the bill said the Des Moines metropolitan area suffered more than $152 million in flood damage in 1993. "The Birdland Park and Central Place levees on the Des Moines River failed during the 1993 flood event and do not provide reliable flood protection, placing nearly 200 homes and businesses at risk," the report said. Every member of the Iowa congressional delegation voted to override Bush's veto, the first override of his presidency. McCain strongly backed Bush. "This legislation is fundamentally flawed, authorizing nearly 1,000 new projects without any method for prioritizing the needs of our national water infrastructure," he told the Senate. He added that the bill was "full of pork projects and unchecked government spending." [Des Moines Register, 6/20/08 <http://www.desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080620/NEWS09 /806200360/1001/NEWS> ] Blog McCain: <http://iowatrueblue.com/Default.aspx?tabid=36&EntryID=740> Same As Bush On Oil Written by: Gordon Fischer, 6/18/2008 9:41 AM MCCAIN JUST LIKE BUSH ON OFFSHORE DRILLING This week both McCain and Bush push oil industry plan to end to the federal ban on offshore drilling. On energy issues, McCain and Bush share an agenda aimed at helping Big Oil. Yesterday, both Bush and McCain called for an end to the federal moratorium on offshore drilling. Additionally, McCain has repeatedly <http://www.mccainsource.com/homefront?id=0004> voted against and skipped votes on renewable energy and increased fuel efficiency. McCain has a dismal 24% lifetime rating from the <http://lcv-ftp.org/LCV/mco.pdf> League of Conservation Voters. Big Oil loves McCain, like they love Bush. Today's <http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/5843453.html> Houston Chronicle headline on McCain's speech reads: "McCain's energy plan gets positive reception; Most oil execs respond favorably as he touts policy and raises funds in campaign trip here" McCain has received more than <http://mccainsource.com/corruption?id=0014> $1 million from the oil & gas industry according to a Campaign Money Watch analysis of data from the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics Center. Like Bush, McCain is surrounded by Big Oil lobbyists. At least 22 staffers or fundraisers for McCain's campaign have lobbied for Big Oil. They have represented 5 of the 9 oil companies in the 2008 Fortune 200. Like Bush, McCain offers billions in tax cuts for Big Oil, but no relief for families. According to the <http://thinkprogress.org/wonkroom/2008/03/27/mccain-petroleum/> Center for American Progress Action Fund,McCain's tax plan gives nearly $4 billion in tax breaks to the top five American oil companies, but gives families very little. Economists have panned McCain's gas tax holiday, saying it won't help families with gas prices. [Iowa True Blue, 6/18/08 <http://iowatrueblue.com/Blog/tabid/36/EntryID/740/Default.aspx> ] Minnesota Minnesota was graced with McCain's presence at an "undecided voters" town hall and fundraiser. They hosted two events, one with foreclosure victims in partnership with ACORN and another with veterans focused on the GI Bill with VoteVets. In addition to holding a <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9WDw7zOkR1E> "McSame" presence outside of the fundraiser, they released two websites. McCain v <http://www.mccainvminnesota.com/> Minnesota is focused on the impacts of the Iraq War has had on funding in Minnesota, Senator McCain's health care plan, and foreclosure numbers tied with McCain's personal housing wealth. McCain v Minnesota Pawlenty Poker <http://www.pawlentypoker.com/> . In preparation for Governor Pawlenty receiving the VP nod, which has received a lot of buzz recently, Alliance for a Better Minnesota is targeting Pawlenty as a run-of-the-mill Conservative that has harmed Minnesota's interests. The website is a poker game, where the player acts as Pawlenty betting away important MN infrastructure funding in order to "Win" the grand prize, a VP nod. Play the game to see fun special appearances from other lawmakers. Pawlenty Poker Protest Clips McCain's Minnesota visit met by anti-war protesters by Mark <http://minnesota.publicradio.org/about/people/mpr_people_display.php?aut_id =78> Zdechlik, Minnesota Public Radio, June 19, 2008 Minneapolis - Protesters who plan to march during the Republican National Convention in St. Paul in September got a warm-up Thursday with presidential candidate John McCain visiting the Twin Cities for two appearances. Outside the Hilton Hotel in downtown Minneapolis on Thursday afternoon, about 100 people peacefully demonstrated during a fund raising event for John McCain. About a dozen more chanted outside McCain's townhall meeting at the Landmark Center in St. Paul. <http://images.publicradio.org/content/2008/06/19/20080619_protest2_33.jpg> Union <http://images.publicradio.org/content/2008/06/19/20080619_protest2_33.jpg> protesters But antiwar protester Meredith Aby says today's turnout will not even compare to the tens of thousands of protesters expected to march on the Republican convention. "The RNC is going to be huge. The September 1 demonstration is on day when nobody has to go to work, unlike today, and that we've been building for, for years, whereas his demonstration is something that was called for two weeks ago, but even trying to figure out his schedule has been very hard, even trying to figure out where to organize something at," Aby said. About two-thirds of those assembled appeared to be anti-war protesters who want to end the war in Iraq. Union members also demonstrated calling for greater access to health insurance. There was a heavy police presence, but there were no arrests. One Republican Party official said he expected several hundred people to attend McCain's fundraiser. The townhall meeting was an invitation-only event for 200 undecided voters the campaign said it identified through a telephone marketing firm. One of the protesters was Gary Struss, with the Sheetmetal Workers union, Local 10. He said a McCain administration will be a continuation of President Bush's policies. "I'm gonna protest Mc Bush being John McCain and his failed policies because his policies are the same as George Bush and they have failed America," Struss said. The protests were largely peaceful. One man was arrested for trying to enter the townhall event, which was closed and guarded by security officers. [MN Public Radio, 6/19/08 <http://minnesota.publicradio.org/display/web/2008/06/19/mccain_protests/> ] McCain's pitch: Republican Pledging to fight hard in Minnesota to win the presidency By Bill Salisbury and Rachel E. Stassen-Berger, 06/20/2008 Outside the hotel, anti-war activists and union members formed a crowd that exceeded 100. About three dozen Minneapolis police officers were stationed around the hotel. There were no incidents. Meredith Aby, a lead organizer of a planned protest march at the September Republican National Convention in St. Paul, spoke into a bullhorn as motorists passed by. A sign reading "McBush" seemed to be the most popular, and the crowd was decidedly younger than those attending the fundraiser. "He says this state's in play for the 2008 election, and I just don't think that's true," Aby said. "Minnesotans value peace, and they value justice, and I don't think he values either of those things." [Pioneer Press, 6/20/08 <http://www.twincities.com/politics/ci_9642141> ] New Mexico Letter to the Editor Green Development Benefits from Federal Tax Relief Juan Reynosa Hobbs has a great opportunity to become the hub of energy production in New Mexico, not just within the oil industry, but also within the emerging realm of renewable energy. Solar and wind industries are growing rapidly in our country, and with the introduction of the Lieberman-Warner bill, Congress is aiming to give economic development incentives to both of these renewable energy sectors. Not only is it one of the greatest economic opportunities for rural communities right now, but it also provides opportunities to young people with barriers to employment by providing career pathways to green jobs. Hobbs has always been on the forefront of oil and gas production, and it is this fact that has helped the town survive throughout many economic fluctuations. Yet with increasing gas prices and peak oil production on the horizon, New Mexicans in Hobbs have an opportunity to diversify our economic development strategy to include other energy sources that are as readily available as oil is: solar and wind energy. New Mexico has consistently strived for more economic development throughout the state and you can see this in Hobbs with the development of the casino/racetrack, the prison, and the new nuclear enrichment plant. Yet solar and wind power, besides offering a cleaner form of energy, have much more to offer. There are many tax incentives, rebates, and credits attached to implementing these energy sources and the jobs created by these industries, especially for young people, are career ladder jobs with benefits and almost always have to pull from the local job market. [Hobbs News Sun, 6/19/08] Blog Renewable Energy: Time to Go Forward By eli <http://clearlynewmexico.com/page/community/person/BWB> il yong lee - Jun 16th, 2008 The Consumer Price Index, the key measure of inflation, just went up to 4.2%. The US Department of Labor places the blame squarely on rising fuel costs. Last Friday's Albuquerque Journal editorialized, "If Tecton strikes natural gas, the drilling needs to be done in compliance with strict standards on air quality, noise and visual pollution. There's a long way to go before alternative energy sources free us from reliance on fossil fuel. In the meantime, we simply don't have the luxury of arbitrarily blocking oil and gas." Has anyone asked Westsiders how they feel about having drilling in their backyard? And just when would the Journal like to get started on developing alternative energy sources? When gas hits $9 a gallon, like it is in many parts of Europe? It seems like America's reliance on oil has gotten us to where we are now - windfall profits by fossil fuel executives, exorbitant gas prices, runaway global warming, and climate crises like Katrina and the recent flooding in Iowa. America needs renewable energy now. Starting new fossil fuel endeavors is a step backward, not forward. [Clearly New Mexico, 6/16/08 <http://clearlynewmexico.com/page/community/post/eli/BJT> ] Ohio Next week, Senator McCain will be swinging through Ohio. In advance of his visit, ProgressOhio distributed an email about gas prices to its list and received an overwhelming response. People are submitting their feelings, and they are very upset about how closely McCain has aligned himself with big oil. Tell McCain How Much You're Paying At The Pump Gas prices have hit an all-time high. Our country is in the midst of a recession, thanks in part to our crippling dependence on oil. Here in Ohio, families are struggling with the impact of $4-per-gallon prices. But maybe John McCain has been too busy fundraising with Texas oil billionaires lately to hear about it. Click <http://www.progressohio.org/page/m/56fc7a99c7783e58/RjAQLf/VEsF/> here to tell John McCain how much you're paying, and how gas prices are hurting your family. * McCain Voted Against Taxing Oil Companies to Finance a Tax Rebate For Consumers. McCain voted twice against a measure that would have provided an income tax rebate to Americans by temporarily taxing enormous oil company profits. * McCain Voted Against Reducing Dependence On Foreign Oil. He voted against legislation calling on the President to submit a plan to reduce foreign petroleum imports by 40 per cent. * Since launching his campaign in 2007, Senator McCain has skipped out on every key environmental vote the Senate has considered. In one instance, his absence killed the rollback of billions of dollars in tax breaks for the oil and gas industry to invest in renewable energy tax credits. McCain was the one senator not voting. When Senator McCain swings through Ohio next week after his trip to Texas, we'll have a message for him. But we need your help. Let us know how much you're paying at the pump, and the impact it's having on your family. We'll compile those responses and send them to McCain's Senate office. <http://www.progressohio.org/page/m/56fc7a99c7783e58/RjAQLf/VEsC/> Click here to tell John McCain how much you're paying, and how gas prices are hurting your family. A few responses: "Senator McCain, if these prices continue I will need to reduce the amount I contribute to my 401k as the cost of my medical insurance has increased by 33%, to say nothing of the cost of food. Drilling for more oil is not the answer, oil companies need to invest in new technology." "High gas prices, which have nothing to do with either over-regulation or with "homeland security" concerns, have forced me to rethink the necessity of every trip I would make in my car, whether for work, chores, or pleasure. It now costs me nearly thirty dollars to fill the same exact gas tank I used to fill for barely twelve. Nothing in terms of the alleged "War on Terror" can sufficiently explain such a spike, but rampant giveaways, deliberate choking of supply, and sociopathic profiteering does. Big Oil is is deep in YOUR pocket, Senator, and their interests clearly trump those of the American people in your mind. This makes you unsuitable to represent us in OUR White House." "My husband and I are retired. I have to travel to a nursing home daily to help my 93 year old mother. It takes a tank of gas to visit my grandchildren in Cleveland, so we can't go very often. We need to remove speculators from fixing oil prices and require refineries to prove they are off line and not faking it to increase prices. There is plenty of oil for Americans to use if there was honesty within the oil companies. GREED is the major problem not shortages. Opening up offshore and Alaska might help 10 years from now,but by that time we had better have alternative energies or vehicles to transport us. You know all the lobbiests by their first names tell them you are fighting for middle class Americans not the oil barons from now on." "This has impacted my single person business more than anything, in that clients have to come to me, and my business seems to be affected by that. More importantly, it is easy to see why Bush & Co. are twiddling thumbs in the White House -- they want the situation to get bad enough to make their dreams of more off-shore drillling come true. If John McCain does not distance himself from this obvious political mischief and self-serving ineptitude by resisting such obvious ploys from the present administration, he will be nothing more than a lackey for the folks he'd like to avoid." Wisconsin Columns John Nichols: Call out New York Times on McCain/Bush comparison John Nichols <mailto:[email protected]> - 6/19/2008 10:53 am Recalling the worst of Judith Miller's reporting on Iraq's weapons of mass destruction, the New York Times ran one of its "fair and balanced" stories on the presidential race Monday. The piece, which purported to assess similarities and differences between unpopular Republican President George Bush and hoping-to-be-popular Republican presidential candidate John McCain, was another example of how major media in the U.S. seek to portray a relatively predictable conservative as a free-thinking political "maverick." The folks at Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting (FAIR), the media watchdog group created in the tradition of pioneering media critic -- and brilliant reporter -- I.F. Stone, are appropriately upset with the Times. [snip entire FAIR takedown of NYT piece, highlighting enviro similarities][Capitol Times, 6/19/08 <http://www.madison.com/tct/column/292267> ] Wineke: McCain hates war? I don't believe that. Bill Wineke [email protected] JUN 17, 2008 John McCain says he "hates war." I know he says that because a television ad saying so appears on my set at least once or twice every hour. McCain says he "hates" war because his father and his grandfather were admirals, because he flew jets during the Vietnam War and because he spent five years as a prisoner of war. Those would all be good reasons to hate war. They are all good reasons for us to admire and respect John McCain and his family. But there is a ringer in McCain's ads. The ringer is this: John McCain most assuredly does not hate war. He was an enthusiastic backer of the Iraq War before we invaded Iraq. He has backed the war every day since we invaded. His differences with the Bush adminstration are not over whether we should have invaded Iraq in the first place but are over whether we should have waged the war more aggressively once we started it. McCain's prescription for what America should do next in Iraq is more of the same. That's a legitimate point of view and it deserves legitimate debate. But to introduce that point of view by saying "I hate war" is disingenous, to say the least. [Madison Capitol Times, 6/17/08 <http://www.madison.com/wsj/mad/opinion/blogs/291954> ] Marc Perkel: The problem is McCain's judgment, not his age Dear Editor: John McCain's campaign is accusing Democrats of ageism because they say McCain is "confused," "oblivious," and "out of touch." But this isn't a criticism of McCain's age because Bush is far younger than McCain and Bush is also confused, oblivious, and out of touch. McCain is just like Bush, who is a young, vigorous guy. The problem with McCain isn't his age, it's his poor judgment. It's not that McCain is too old, it's that McCain, like Bush, is just plain wrong and he hasn't learned anything from Bush's mistakes. Marc Perkel, San Bruno, Calif. [Madison Capitol Times, 6/19/08 <http://www.madison.com/tct/opinion/letters/292262> ] Blog/Email list outreach bigoilmccain.gif One Wisconsin Now has launched a <http://www.onewisconsinnow.org/page/content/bigoilmccain/> petition to Wisconsin's Congressional Delegation demanding that they stand against Senator John McCain's plan to giveaway $4 billion in new tax breaks to his friends in Big Oil. In 2006, Bush and McCain supported budget giveaways of $5 billion in tax cuts. This at a time when working people are struggling to pay $4-a-gallon gas prices and Big Oil companies are raking in records profits. One company pocketed as high as $7 billion in only one quarter recently. According to a report from the Captial Times, "The unprecedented rise in gasoline prices helped put 2,600 General Motors employees out of work in Janesville." That plant is scheduled to close as early as the end of 2009. It is pretty clear that the pain at the pump is spreading quickly to many other areas of our economy, especially in working family wallets. Take a moment to sign a <http://www.onewisconsinnow.org/page/content/bigoilmccain/> petition to your representative in Congress! Tell them to reject the Bush/McCain policies of more tax giveaways to an industry that has devoured so much and given back so little. [OneWisconsinNow.org, 6/20/08 <http://www.onewisconsinnow.org/page/content/bigoilmccain/> ] Blogs Drilling Himself in the Foot -- Even Oiled up McCain Has No Where to Move By Keith Schmitz The president today is going to announce a push on Congress to open up off-shore locations for oil drilling. This is not smart on many levels -- it will take ten years to get black gold, the oil companies will only sell it overseas anyways, the price of oil will drop just pennies, conservation will do us better over the long term. But unlike Kramer on Seinfeld Bush doesn't do levels. He is also not doing John McCain any favors. Turns out Barack Obama has a post primary bounce, especially in Florida. Turns out that bounce may go higher. There are some places where NIMBYism towards off-shore drilling won't play well. Florida <http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2008/06/18/1151622.aspx> is one of them. [Folkbum's Rambles and Rants, 6/18/08 <http://folkbum.blogspot.com/2008/06/drilling-himself-in-foot-even-oiled-up. html> ] McSame on Offshore Drilling By Cory @ One <http://www.onewisconsinnow.org/page/community/person/C3VY> Wisconsin Now - Jun 19th, 2008 at 9:28 am EDT Anyone that is watching television in the state of Wisconsin has probably seen the new John McCain ad on the environment. The ad over-reaches trying to put a happy face on John <http://www.onewisconsinnow.org/page/community/post/codyoliphant/CHGl> McCain's record in the Senate. Although the ad tries to paint McCain as a "maverick" on the environment, reality shows that his departures from the Bush party line are rare at best. Conveniently, just after starting the current ad buy, McCain provided us with the latest example of why he is McSame as Bush on the environment. This week both Bush and McCain pushed an oil industry plan <http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25241280/> to end the federal ban on offshore drilling. The oil industry is hardly known for its protective policies over the environment. Actually in many ways the most serious environmental issues of our day can, in some way, be laid at their feet. Yet this same oil industry appears to be the policy guide for both Bush and McCain on offshore drilling. In the Senate John <http://thinkprogress.org/wonkroom/2008/05/12/mccain-wind-hypocrite/> McCain has stood in the way of many pieces of legislation that focused on renewable energies and new solutions. Through his support of the oil industry plan this week, he has made a policy choice that is guaranteed to lead our energy policy into an eventual dead end. We cannot drill our way out of this energy crisis and relying on this kind of backward thinking does little for us long term, but it does do a lot for the oil industry's bottom line. It is no coincidence that McCain backs up Bush and Big Oil at the same time that he has been raising funds <http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/5843453.html> from Texas oil execs. He has raised some $1 million from oil and gas interests already. Further, McCain has at least 22 staffers and fundraisers that have lobbied for Big <http://mccainsource.com/corruption?id=0014> Oil interests. While there are some Republican leaders that are taking <http://www.usnews.com/articles/news/national/2008/06/18/schwarzenegger-stil l-opposes-offshore-drilling.html> a stand against Big Oil, John McCain is not one of them. He has fallen into line on many issues and offshore drilling is just the latest. No amount of ad buys can change his McSame record on offshore drilling and the environment. [OneWisconsinNow, 6/19/08 <http://www.onewisconsinnow.org/page/community/post/coryliebmann/CHGz> ]