Reality Check: McCain's Big Ideas

Tuesday, May 13, 2008

Des Moines – John McCain recently began airing a new television ad in Iowa in an attempt to distract from the fact that his health care plan does not focus on providing health care for the 47 million Americans without health insurance. His “Accountability” ad also fails to mention his flip flop on tax cuts for the richest Americans and his opposition to investing in Iowa ethanol.

“In his new ad, John McCain continues to hide from the fact that his health care plan fails to provide real solutions for the 273,000 Iowans without health insurance,” said Brooke Borkenhagen, Iowa Democratic Party Press Secretary. “His big ideas include hurting Iowa’s farmers by ending federal investment in American ethanol and increasing incentives for Brazilian farmers to import their ethanol to the United States.”

“McCain has flip-flopped on the Bush tax cuts. He now wants to give tax cuts to the wealthiest Americans at a time when Iowa families are struggling to make ends meet. Iowans want change and all John McCain has to offer is more of the same failed Bush policies.”

McCain’s Big Idea: Make health care portable and affordable?

Reality: McCain’s plan does not focus on reducing the ranks of the uninsured, of which there are about 47 million, or one in seven Americans. According to the New York Times, “The McCain campaign has no estimate of how many of America’s 47 million uninsured would likely gain coverage under its plan.” In Iowa alone, there are 273,000 people living without health insurance, including 43,000 children across the state. That is 9% of Iowans. [Wall Street Journal, 10/11/2007; New York Times, 3/2/2008, statehealthfacts.org, accessed 4/28/08]

Reality: McCain voted against reauthorizing the State Children’s Health Insurance Program, which aimed to maintain health care coverage for 50,000 children from low-income Iowa families. [2007 Senate Vote #307, 8/2/2007]

McCain’s Big Idea: Make taxes simpler and fairer?

Reality: McCain wants to make taxes simpler and fairer for the wealthiest Americans; the same Bush tax cuts that McCain once said he could not “in good conscious” support. Now that he is trying to appeal to the radical, right wing of the Republican Party, McCain wants to makes the Bush tax cuts permanent. [Senate Floor, 3/18/03; Washington Post, 4/25/2008]

McCain’s Big Idea: Make energy cleaner and cheaper?

Reality: McCain wants to end all price supports for ethanol here in Iowa, and at the same time, he wants to make it easier to import ethanol from Brazil. John McCain clearly does not value Iowa farmers’ contributions to help our country reach energy independence. [CNN, 4/21/08; Des Moines Register, 05/02/08]

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Script for McCain “Accountability” Television Ad:

JOHN MCCAIN: The great goal is to get the American economy running at full strength again -- creating the opportunities Americans expect and the jobs Americans need.

ANNOUNCER: As president, John McCain will make taxes simpler, fairer; Energy cleaner, cheaper; Health care portable and affordable; Corporate CEOs accountable; Mortgage debt restructured; Big ideas for serious problems, John McCain.

MCCAIN: I'm John McCain and I approve this message.