FACTS: PALIN WAS NOT THE FIRST GOVERNOR TO ACT ON CLIMATE CHANGE OR REORGANIZE HER CABINET TO DEAL WITH IT

In JANUARY 2007, Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick Began Sweeping Cabinet Reorganization to Integrate Energy and Environment to Deal With Climate Change. "The challenge of climate change illustrates vividly the need to integrate energy and environmental policy," added Governor Patrick, who has begun a sweeping Cabinet reorganization that combines energy and environmental affairs agencies into a single secretariat." [Gov. Patrick Press Release, 1/8/07 ]

· Nevada Created Climate Committee in April, 2007. On April 10, 2007, “Governor Jim Gibbons today signed an executive order creating the Nevada Climate Change Advisory Committee and named its 13 members. The Committee is tasked with making recommendations to the Governor on reducing Nevada's greenhouse gas emissions." [State of Nevada Press Release , 4/10/07]

· By May of 2007, 29 States had Taken Action On Climate Change. "Among the 29 states that have taken steps to curb their contributions to global warming, some have been more active than others. Massachusetts sued the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency over its refusal to regulate greenhouse gas emissions, and won a victory in the U.S. Supreme Court last month. California, at the urging of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, passed the nation's most stringent emissions control legislation. California also worked with several New England states to set up the carbon registry." [St. Petersburg Times, 5/10/97 ]

Palin Created Subcabinet on Climate Change In SEPTEMBER 2007. According to a press release, “Governor Sarah Palin today signed Administrative Order 238 establishing a sub-cabinet to prepare a climate change strategy. ‘Many scientists note that Alaska’s climate is changing,’ Governor Palin said. ‘We are already seeing the effects. Coastal erosion, thawing permafrost, retreating sea ice and record forest fires affect our communities and our infrastructure. Some scientists tell us to expect more changes in the future. We must begin to prepare for those changes now.’” She also said that the sub-cabinet would look at ways to develop the state’s renewable energy sources. [Palin press release, 9/14/07]

FACT: MCCAIN SUPPORTED 4 OF 5 BUSH BUDGETS

· McCain Voted for 4 of 5 Bush Budgets Adding Up To $9.8 Trillion In Spending. McCain supported four of the five Bush budgets that the Senate voted on from 2001-2006. McCain voted for the FY 2002 budget, the FY 2005 budget, the FY 2006 budget and the FY 2007 budget. The budgets added up to $9.8 Trillion in spending. [2001 Senate Vote #98; 2004 Senate Vote #58; 2005 Senate Vote #114; 2006 Senate Vote #74]

FACT: MCCAIN’S SPENDING PROPOSALS DON’T ADD UP AND ARE FAR MORE COSTLY THEN OBAMA’S PLANS

· McCain Offers Four More Years Of Soaring Deficits. Just like George Bush, McCain budget plan offers four more years of soaring deficits. The non-partisan Tax Policy Center said McCain’s tax plan would add $3.4 trillion to the debt over the next decade, and cuts for the wealthy instead of middle class families. [Tax Policy Center, 7/23/08, p. 42]

· New York Times: McCain’s Budget Will Add $200 Or $300 Billion To The Deficit Per Year. “The Obama campaign claims it can pay for all this, and even reduce the deficit, through tax increases and spending cuts. I think a more skeptical look at its budget leaves you worried it may add something like $50 billion a year to the deficit. But applying the same arched brow to Mr. McCain’s stated plans leaves you worried that he will add $200 billion or $300 billion or, depending on his voluntary tax system, even more.” [New York Times, 6/18/08 ]

· McCain Has No Plan To Pay For His Tax Cuts For The Wealthy And Corporations. McCain’s promise to continue George Bush’s tax breaks for the wealthiest Americans and give big corporate interests a tax cut would cost $340 billion a year, according to the Tax Policy Center. The Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, and New York Times have all raised questions about whether McCain can pay for these tax breaks. In fact, a Washington Post editorial even said that his budget plan is “not credible” [Editorial, Washington Post, 7/14/08 ; Editorial, New York Times, 7/12/08 ; Wall Street Journal, 4/16/08]

· Washington Post: McCain’s Approach To Taxes Is Far More Costly Than Obama’s. “There is a serious debate to be had in this presidential campaign about the fundamentally different tax policies of Barack Obama and John McCain. Then there is the phony, misleading and at times outright dishonest debate that the McCain campaign has been waging -- most recently with a television ad. The two candidates have very different positions on taxes. Mr. Obama wants to raise taxes on the wealthiest Americans and cut them substantially for low- and middle-income taxpayers. He would cut taxes for more households, and by a larger amount, than Mr. McCain, who would give the greatest benefits to wealthy households and corporations. … The McCain campaign insists on completely misrepresenting Mr. Obama's plan. … The country can't afford the tax cuts either man is promising, although Mr. McCain's approach is by far the more costly. We don't expect either side to admit that. But neither side should get to outright lie about its opponent's positions, either.” [Editorial, Washington Post, 8/31/08 ]

· Washington Post: McCain’s Plan To Balance The Budget By 2013 “Is Not Credible.” “McCain says that President McCain would balance the federal budget by 2013. The plan is not credible. … Mr. McCain sells American voters short -- and he does himself a disservice -- with his implausible claim.” [Editorial, Washington Post, 7/14/08 ]

· New York Times: McCain Cannot Balance The Budget On A Crusade Against Pork And A One-Year Sliver Of Federal Spending And He Either Has A “Secret Plan To Balance The Budget Or He’s Blowing Smoke.” “Mr. McCain’s main campaign promises, if fulfilled, would lead to huge budget deficits. Extending the Bush tax cuts, enacting more tax cuts of his own and staying the course in Iraq would cost hundreds of billions of dollars more, every year, than the small bore spending cuts he has specified. Mr. McCain cannot balance the budget on a crusade against pork and a one-year freeze in a sliver of federal spending. Either he has a secret plan to balance the budget or he’s blowing smoke.” [Editorial, New York Times, 7/12/08 ]

· Palin Hired Friends for Key Administration Positions. “Other friends and allies have gotten good jobs. Palin appointed close friend and political fund-raiser Deborah Richter as director of the Permanent Fund Dividend Division—the state agency that hands out yearly oil-dividend checks to Alaskans. As her attorney general, Palin chose Talis Colberg, a friend who specializes in insurance law. Some legal experts warned that Palin would do better to select someone with more experience in the oil and gas field—a big part of the Alaska attorney general's caseload—but ‘she chose someone she trusted,’ says Dave Dittmer, her pollster.” [Newsweek, 9/6/08 ]

· Palin Hired a High School Friend With No Experience to Head the State Division of Agriculture – a $95,000 Per Year Job. “So when there was a vacancy at the top of the State Division of Agriculture, she appointed a high school classmate, Franci Havemeister, to the $95,000-a-year directorship. A former real estate agent, Ms. Havemeister cited her childhood love of cows as one of her qualifications for running the roughly $2 million agency.” [New York Times, 9/14/08 ]

· Palin Hired a High School Friend Who Had Established an Alaska Franchise of Mailboxes Etc. to Head the Economic Development Office, Paying Him $83,000 Per Year. “The Wasilla High School yearbook archive now doubles as a veritable directory of state government. Ms. Palin appointed Mr. Bitney, her former junior high school band-mate, as her legislative director and chose another classmate, Joe Austerman, to manage the economic development office for $82,908 a year. Mr. Austerman had established an Alaska franchise for Mailboxes Etc.” [New York Times, 9/14/08 ]

· Palin Hired One of Todd Palin’s Fellow Bristol Bay Setnetters to Serve on the State Fisheries Board. “Gov. Palin also appointed one of her husband's fellow Bristol Bay setnetters to the state Fisheries Board.” [Washington Post, 9/22/08 ]

· Palin Hired Childhood Friend John Bitney, a Registered Lobbyist, to Work on Her Gubernatorial Campaign – Later Became Her Legislative Director. In 2006, according to the Associated Press, "Bitney terminated his lobbying contracts when he joined the [Palin] campaign" and wrote "position papers, speeches, talking points, letters and messages for the campaign." The AP reported, however, that Bitney remained registered as a lobbyist while working with Palin, though "state law prohibits a registered lobbyist from serving as a campaign's director or treasurer, participate in fundraising or exercise any decision making authority or control over the campaign." [Associated Press, 9/21/06, Anchorage Daily News, 7/10/07]

o Bitney Served as Palin’s Legislative Director Once She Took Office. According to the Anchorage Daily News in 2007, John Bitney served as “Gov. Palin’s legislative director.” [Anchorage Daily News, 7/10/2007]

FACT: MCCAIN HAS REPEATEDLY VOTED AGAINST INCREASED FUNDING FOR NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND, MORE TEACHERS AND FOR FAILING SCHOOLS AND DISADVANTAGED STUDENTS

· McCain Voted Against Reducing the Bush Tax Cuts For The Wealthy In Order to Fully Fund The No Child Left Behind Act. McCain voted against a proposal to reduce President Bush’s tax cuts for the wealthy and instead use those funds for deficit reduction and to fully fund the No Child Left Behind Act. [SCR 23, Vote 60, 3/19/03; Vote 64, 3/16/06; Vote 58, 3/16/06; Vote 56, 3/16/05; Vote 35, 3/10/04; Vote 330, 9/9/03; Vote 5, 1/16/03]

· McCain Repeatedly Opposed Funding To Help Reduce Class Sizes By Hiring 100,000 New Teachers. On four different occasions, McCain voted against funding to hire 100,000 new teachers to help reduce class sizes. In addition, he has repeatedly voted against increased funding for teacher training programs. [2001 Senate Vote #103, 5/15/2001; 1999 Senate Vote #41, 3/11/1999; 1998 Senate Vote #93, 4/22/1998; 1998 Senate Vote #50, 3/31/1998]

· McCain Opposed Increased Education Funds For Failing Schools And Disadvantaged Students. McCain has repeatedly voted against increased funds for education programs designed to assist disadvantaged students. For instance, he opposed providing $250 million to help ensure accountability in programs for disadvantaged students and to assist states in their efforts to turn around failing schools. McCain even opposed funding for states to reduce dropout rates at middle and high schools with significant dropout problems. [Vote 330, 9/9/03; Vote 90, 5/3/00; Vote 147, 6/27/00]

· McCain Education Adviser Said “Education Is Obviously Not The Issue Senator McCain Spends The Most Time On.” “In comparison to Senator Barack Obama’s education plan, Senator John McCain’s is downright terse. Among his short list of initiatives, Mr. McCain, the Republican presidential nominee, includes bonus pay for teachers who raise student achievement or who take jobs in hard-to-staff schools, an expansion of after-school tutoring, and new federal support for online schools and for the voucher program in Washington, D.C. The brevity of Mr. McCain’s plan reflects his view that the federal government should play a limited role in public education, and his commitment to holding the line on education spending, said Lisa Graham Keegan, a McCain adviser and former Arizona education commissioner. ‘Education is obviously not the issue Senator McCain spends the most time on,’ Ms. Keegan said, adding that his plan’s limited scope should not be interpreted as a lack of commitment to education and school reform. ‘He’s been a quiet and consistent supporter of parents and educators who he thinks are making a difference.’ … Mr. McCain would reallocate 60 percent of the $3 billion in current federal spending on teacher quality programs to finance direct payments to ‘high-performing teachers’ who take jobs in high-needs schools and to those who improve achievement.” [New York Times, 9/10/08 ]

FACT: MCCAIN WON’T FULLY FUND NO CHILD LEFT BEHIND LIKE HE CLAIMS

· Washington Post Editorial: McCain’s Promise To Slow Discretionary Spending In A Bid To Balance The Budget Leaves Little Money For Initiatives Or To Fully Fund No Child Left Behind. McCain’s “education plan is both late in coming and still a work in progress, and his promise to slow discretionary spending in a bid to balance the budget leaves little money for initiatives or to fully fund No Child Left Behind.” [Editorial, Washington Post, 8/20/08 ]

· McCain Education Adviser Said McCain Believes NCLB Is Adequately Funded. “McCain has talked about freezing education funding until a review can be done of which projects work and which don’t. Money may get re-allocated among different programs but [education adviser Lisa Graham] Keegan said McCain believes NCLB is adequately funded.” [AJC, 6/16/08 ]

· McCain’s Plan To Freeze Discretionary Federal Spending Applies To Education Programs, Including Title I Under NCLB. “I'll go into more detail in a bit, but I wanted to highlight two important things I thought Keegan said. First, McCain's plan to freeze discretionary federal spending applies to education programs, including the largest program under the NCLB law, Title I. Though as president he may seek to re-allocate money between programs, McCain believes the NCLB law is ‘adequately funded,’ Keegan said. So states and schools shouldn't look for any additional federal dollars in a McCain budget.” [Education Week, 6/12/08 ]


FACT: MCCAIN SUPPORTS VOUCHERS

· McCain Supports Taking Money Away From The Public School System To Fund Private School Vouchers. McCain supports private school vouchers that take fund from public schools. In 2001, he also voted for President Bush’s voucher proposal. [S 1, Vote #179 , 6/12/01]

· McCain Supports Vouchers. In an interview, McCain said, “I support vouchers.” [Spartanburg Herald-Journal, 7/26/07; NEA McCain Education Tracking Document]

· Biden Voted For Sarbanes-Oaxley Act, Which Implemented Regulatory Reform. McCain voted for the conference report of the Sarbanes-Oaxley, a bill that that would require more complete disclosure of corporate finances and overhaul regulation of the accounting industry. It would establish a new oversight board, funded by fees on publicly traded companies, to police accounting firms. The agreement would forbid firms from providing investment banking, management consulting and other services for publicly traded companies. It would require additional corporate reporting and disclosure requirements. In cases of security fraud, it would impose civil monetary penalties and require executives engaged in financial misconduct to pay back bonuses and profits. The money would be placed in a fund for defrauded investors. It also would bar executive loans. The agreement would create a criminal penalty for securities fraud and obstruction of justice involving document shredding and require top corporate executives to certify company financial statements. [Vote #192, 7/25/2002]

· AP Factcheck: Western Forces Have Been Killing Civilians At A Faster Rate Than Insurgents Have Been Killing Civilians In Afghanistan; Bush Said He Understands The Agony Over The Loss Of Innocent Lives And Is Doing Everything He Can To Protect Them. “A check of the facts shows that Western forces have been killing civilians at a faster rate than the insurgents have been killing civilians. The U.S. and NATO say they don't have civilian casualty figures, but The Associated Press has been keeping count based on figures from Afghan and international officials. Tracking civilian deaths is a difficult task because they often occur in remote and dangerous areas that are difficult to reach and verify. As of Aug. 1, the AP count shows that while militants killed 231 civilians in attacks in 2007, Western forces killed 286. Another 20 were killed in crossfire that can't be attributed to one party. Afghan President Hamid Karzai expressed his concern about the civilian deaths during a meeting last week with President Bush. Bush said he understands the agony that Afghans feel over the loss of innocent lives and that he is doing everything he can to protect them. He said the Taliban are using civilians as human shields and have no regard for their lives. ‘The president rightly expressed his concerns about civilian casualty,’ Bush said of Karzai. ‘And I assured him that we share those concerns.’” [AP, 8/14/07 ]

· 2008: McCain Said "No One Has Supported President Bush on Iraq More Than I Have." During a March 2008 interview on The Mike Gallagher Show, McCain stated, "no one has supported President Bush on Iraq more than I have." [The Mike Gallagher Show, 3/28/08, For audio, Think Progress Blog, http://thinkprogress.org/2008/04/02/mccain-no-one-has-supported-president-bush-on-iraq-more-than-i-have/]

· 2006: McCain Had Full Confidence in Bush’s Ability to Lead the War. McCain was asked if he had confidence in Bush and his national security team to “lead the war,” to which he responded, “I do. I do. I have confidence in the president and I believe that he is well aware of the severity of the situation.” He also said that “I know that the president’s committed to win and I know the president’s committed to prevail.” [NBC News, 8/20/2006]

· 2003: McCain Said Bush Led With “Clarity” And Did Not Exaggerate the Case for War. During an interview with a live audience, Senator McCain praised President Bush on his leadership on the Iraq war and said, “I think the president has led with great clarity and I think he’s done a great job leading the country, don’t you all?” And asked if he think the president exaggerated the case for war, McCain said, “I don’t think so…I think that he made a strong case and I think that case has been verified with discovery of mass graves and the brutality of this incredible regime.” [MSNBC, “Hardball,” 4/23/2003; Fox News, “Hannity and Colmes,” 7/31/2003]

· 2003: McCain Declared He Would Have Done Nothing Differently From Bush In The Run-Up To The Iraq War If He Were President. Bill O’Reilly asked McCain, “All right, Senator, if you were president, what would you have done differently in the run-up to this war?” McCain stated: “Nothing.” O’Reilly followed up: “Nothing?” McCain elaborated, “The president has handled this, in my view, skillfully.” [Fox News, The O’Reilly Factor, 3/18/03]

· 2002: McCain Said The President “Has Embarked On A Well Planned Effort” To Take On Iraq. “I think the president has embarked on a well planned effort to rid the world and this country of the threat of the use of weapons of mass destruction by Saddam Hussein.” [CNN, 9/12/02]

· 2003: Prior To The Invasion Of Iraq McCain Said, “I Have No Qualms About Our Strategic Plans.” “I have no qualms about our strategic plans. I thought we were very successful in Afghanistan,” McCain told the Hartford Courant in March 2003, just prior to the invasion of Iraq. [Hartford Courant, 3/5/03]

· 2002: McCain Supported The Administration’s Military Strategy For Iraq, Said Only 100,000 Troops Would Be Needed. In an interview on Meet the Press, Tim Russert asked McCain: “Let me read something that you wrote just last week in Time magazine. ‘I'm not yet convinced that the large U.S. force contemplated for the operation [in Iraq] is the best or only option.’ Today, the front page of The Washington Post, ‘War Plans Target Hussein Power Base. Scenarios feature a smaller force, narrower strikes,’ calling for 100,000 rather than the 500,000 we used in the Persian Gulf War, and not taking out power dams and electric grids, but focusing on Saddam and his Republican Guards. Is that what you see?” McCain responded, “Yes…And I believe that this strategy is based on one fundamental fact: Saddam Hussein is dramatically weaker than he was before. And what Iraq—in 1991—what Iraqi soldier is going to die for Saddam Hussein if he thinks he's on his way out? And so from everything I can tell, that seems to be a very good strategy, and I think we're going to take great advantage to the precision of our weapons that can be delivered from the air.” [NBC, Meet the Press, 9/22/02]