Topic: Taxes
Adwatch: DeWine’s Desperate Distortions
Republican Incumbent Senator Continues Campaign of Misleading Ads
AMHERST -- Continuing a trend using misleading statements, factual errors, and outright distortions in his campaign advertisements, Ohio Republican incumbent Senator Mike DeWine today released an ad that uses slight of hand to hide the truth.
"It appears as though Senator DeWine can't help himself. Every ad uses distortions or parlor tricks to try and fool voters," said Sherrod Brown spokesperson Joanna Kuebler. "His loyal support for the president's millionaire tax breaks, flawed drug bill, job-killing trade pacts, and the failed intelligence that sent us to war has cost him dearly. And he knows it. He's throwing Hail Marys, but there's no one in the end zone."
The most egregious distortion to date occurred in an ad in which DeWine doctored images of the burning Twin Towers on 9/11.
The DeWine ad released today attempts to convince voters of newspaper support that never existed. The ad displays what appears to be commentary directly from newspaper writers or editors. However, in print too small for a viewer to easily notice, or read, is the actual quote source – an outside organization and a political pundit.
The ad also smears Brown's accomplishments in Congress.
"Sherrod Brown worked successfully with Republicans and Democrats to make our country more secure, lower prescription drug costs, and balance the budget," said Kuebler. "It's no surprise Senator DeWine would dismiss those policies, they don't benefit his campaign donors. Ohio voters are too smart for his campaign of distortions, and on November 7 he'll realize just how smart they are."
READ MORE »Adwatch: Is Mike DeWine telling the truth about his tax cuts?
Is Mike DeWine telling the truth about his tax cuts? The Columbus Dispatch says the tax cuts of the last six years went overwhelmingly to wealthier Americans. The Akron Beacon Journal said the tax cuts were skewed heavily in favor of the wealthy. The Dayton Daily News said the tax cuts would simply not have a major benefit for middle-class Americans. Sherrod Brown voted for middle-class tax cuts instead.
While Brown fought for the middle-class, DeWine was voting to give tax breaks to his contributors – to oil companies, to companies who outsource jobs, and even to companies who move their plants overseas.
READ MORE »
Brown Fought To Lower Taxes For Middle Class Families
AMHERST, OH -- The Sherrod Brown campaign released a new television advertisement today that contrasts U.S. Representative Sherrod Brown's record of fighting to cut taxes for middle class families with Senator Mike DeWine's record of favoring tax cuts for the wealthy.
DeWine voted for more than $1 trillion in tax cuts that largely benefited the richest Americans, and provided billions of dollars in subsidies to oil and drug companies.
Middle class families have received few benefits from the Bush tax cuts. Since President George W. Bush and DeWine took office in 2000, the cost-of-living has skyrocketed, wages have stagnated, and Ohio lost more than 200,000 manufacturing jobs.
DeWine's ads attempt to paint the Republican incumbent as supporting tax cuts for Ohio families. However, recent news reports revealed that DeWine has used both implicit and explicit distortions in several of his campaign ads.
The ad can be viewed here: http://sherrodbrown.com/pages/overwhelmingly
It will air in major markets across Ohio Saturday.
"Senator DeWine is not telling the truth and he knows it. He's trying to mislead Ohio voters about whose side he's on," said Brown Communications Director Joanna Kuebler. "He has been a loyal supporter of the president's tax breaks for millionaires. Sherrod Brown has long supported tax cuts for middle class families, and has offered a new plan to expand middle class tax cuts. Mike DeWine's plan is more of the same - help the rich get richer."
Brown has consistently supported tax cuts that help middle class families. He voted to eliminate the marriage penalty tax and for child care and tuition tax breaks. He fought to lower costs for Ohio families by voting against the GOP energy bills that led to rising gas prices, and the Medicare bill which raised prescription drug costs and left seniors with gaps in coverage. He introduced a "Path to Opportunity" for middle class families that would provide them tax breaks to help pay for child and elderly care, homeownership, and higher education.
"Senator DeWine is trying to turn fiction into fact," said Kuebler. "The fact is, he can't distort his way out of the mess he created for Ohio's middle class. And on November 8, he'll face reality."
Adwatch: RNC September 19, 2006
Ad Text | Reality |
ANNOUNCER: “Sherrod Brown, a tax cutter? Come on.” [Footage pauses and the words “TAX CUTTER?” appear.] | Sherrod Brown Supports Tax Relief for the Middle Class. Sherrod Brown Has Voted At Least 33 Times for Tax Cuts. Including: · He voted for the college tuition tax credit [H.Amdt. 207 to HR 2014 Roll Call 243 6/26/97; HR 2014, Vote #350, 7/31/1997] · Earned Income Tax Credit [HR 6, Vote #73, 3/29/2001; HR 2488 , Vote #331, 7/22/1999] · To extend Child Tax Credit [HR 1308, Roll Call 472, 9/24/04; HCR 393 , Vote #91, 3/25/2004; HR 3 , Vote #42, 3/8/2001] · To end the marriage penalty [HR 4181, Roll Call 138, 4/28/04; HCR 393, Vote #89, 3/25/2004] To responsibly cut the estate tax to help family farms and small businesses. [HR 8, Vote #101, 4/13/2005; HR 8, Vote #287, 6/18/2003; HR 8, Vote #82, 4/4/2001; HR 2014, Vote #350, 7/31/1997] Brown Announced Additional Middle Class Tax Cuts. Brown “used the front porch of a two-story home in a middle-class north Columbus neighborhood to unveil a package of tax breaks that he said would help working families cope with financial stresses from birth to old age.” [Plain Dealer 9/7/06] |
“Sherrod Brown has voted for higher taxes over 35 times.” [Screen reads: “HIGHER TAXES 35 TIMES”] | FactCheck.Org: Tax Ad is “Way Off Base.” The non-partisan FactCheck.org called an earlier Republican tax ad and its 35 times figure “way off base.” Most of the votes cited were really votes against Republicans’ irresponsible, budget-busting tax breaks for the wealthiest few. According to the report, “voting not to cut taxes isn't what is ordinarily meant by voting to make them "higher.’" [FactCheck.Org, “Volleys of Tax Votes: A September Blizzard in Ohio.” 9/11/06] In His 20 Years in Washington, DeWine Has Often Voted Against Middle Class Tax Relief. DeWine voted against expanding the child tax credit [S 1054, 5/15/03, #151] [S 1162, 7/9/03, #266] [S 949, Vote #134, 6/26/1997] [S 1054, 5/15/03, #166] Against a tuition deduction [HR 8, 7/13/00, #182] [HR 1836 , Vote #114, 5/17/2001] Against ending the marriage penalty. [S 1054, 5/15/03, #167] Against tax relief for the middle class. [HR 1836, 5/21/01, #116] [HR 1836, 5/21/01, #126] [HR 1836, 5/22/01, #133] [HR 1836, Vote #141, 5/22/2001] Against tax credit for family caregivers. [S 1054, 5/15/03, #169] [SCR 23 , Vote #72, 3/21/2003] [HR 8, Vote #191, 7/14/00] [HR 1836 , Vote #140, 5/22/2001] Against a cut in payroll taxes. [S 1054, 5/15/03, #160] DeWine Opposed Bipartisan Alternatives Aimed at Middle-Class Relief. In debate on the Tax Relief Act of 2001, DeWine consistently opposed amendments, offered by both Democrats and Republicans, that would increase tax relief for lower and middle income Americans by reducing the amount of tax cuts for the wealthiest few [HR 1836, 5/21/01, #116; HR 1836, 5/21/01, #126; HR 1836, 5/22/01, #133] DeWine Voted to Phase Out Middle Class Relief. The 2003 tax bill phases out middle class tax relief like the child tax credit increase, AMT exemption, marriage penalty relief, and expansion of the10% bracket after two years. [HR 2, 5/15/03, #179; HR 2, 5/29/03 #196; Citizens for Tax Justice analysis,” Final Tax Plan Tilts Even More Toward Richest.” 5/23/03] DeWine Voted To Eliminate Tuition Deduction. DeWine voted to eliminate the tuition deduction that benefited over 134,000 Ohio students at a time when tuition at Ohio universities rose an average of 49.6% since 2001. Meanwhile, the bill protects loopholes that provide another $5 billion in tax breaks for Big Oil. [DSCC Press Release 5/16/06; Senate Finance Committee Press Release, 11/7/05; Higher Education Coordinating Board 1/06; Washington Post, 4/26/06] HR 1215 Would Cost the Middle Class. “On average, families who [earned] less than $30,000 a year get a tax hike, not a tax cut” under the Republican plan [Presidential radio address, 10/28/95]. House Republicans Did Not Lay Out How Tax Cut Would Be Paid For. To partially pay for these tax cuts, the House Republicans’ budget included cuts in “Medicare, Medicaid, child care, school-lunch programs, food stamps, child nutrition, child welfare, [and] student loans” [Christian Science Monitor, 11/16/95]. “How will the G.O.P. pay for the tax cuts? They vowed to spell out their plans for financing the tax breaks, but two-thirds of the money raised by the bill would come from $177 billion in spending reductions yet to be specified” [Time, 1995]. Many Republicans Were Skeptical of HR 1215. According to Time magazine, “almost half the House Republicans signed a letter arguing that the tax breaks should be narrowed so that they would only reach families earning $95,000 and less; a smaller but more influential group asked that they be contingent on meeting deficit-reduction targets. Newt Gingrich rejected the first demand and only slightly fulfilled the second”.… Senate “deficit hawks…[had] little enthusiasm” for these tax cuts. [Time Magazine, 17 April 1995] |
“He voted to raise gas taxes, letting down Ohio families.” [Screen says “VOTED TO RAISE GAS TAXES”. Screen reads, “SOURCE: HR 2264 8/93, HR 3415 5/95] | DeWine Voted for 5 Cent Increase in Gas Tax. In 1990, DeWine voted for the Omnibus Budget Act which included a five cent increase in the gas tax, a larger increase than the 1993 bill cited in the ad. [H R 5835, Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1990; 10/26/90; Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, 7/14/96] DeWine Has Voted For Billions in Tax Breaks for Big Oil. The 2006 tax bill protects loopholes that provide another $5 billion in tax breaks for Big Oil. [Vote #118, 5/11/06; Washington Post, 4/26/06] DeWine Voted Twice For the 2005 Energy Bill, Gave Billions to Oil Industry. Included $6 Billion in Oil & Gas Subsidies. In 2005, DeWine voted twice for the final version of the Energy Bill. The bill included a 7.5 billion gallon Renewable Fuels Standard, and lacked the controversial liability shield for producers of MTBE. The bill also contained $6 billion in oil and gas subsidies. [HR 6, 7/29/05, #212; HR 6, 7/29/05, #213; DeWine Voted for Energy Tax Breaks; Mostly for Fossil Fuels. In 2003, Senator DeWine voted to invoke cloture, and limit debate, on a conference report for energy policy. The policy would have created $25.7 billion in tax breaks. The tax breaks would have provided $11.9 billion for oil and gas production. [Vote 456, 11/21/2003] DeWine Has Received Over $400,000 in Campaign Donations from Oil and Gas Industry. [www.fec.gov] CEO Pay Averaged $32 Million in 2005. In a year of record gas prices at the pump, the top executives at the 15 largest oil companies earned a total of $512.9 million, averaging $32 million in salary. [Bloomberg News 8/30/06] |
“He let us all down when he voted to raise taxes on Social Security and Medicare.” [Screen: “TAX SOCIAL SECURITY AND MEDICARE. Screen reads, “SOURCE: HR 2264 8/93, HR 1215 5/96] | Only the Top 10% of Recepients Effected by 1993 Bill. The 1993 tax bill created no new Social Security taxes for the 81.8% of beneficiaries who did not already pay. Only the top 10.2% of beneficiaries saw potential increases. [IRS, “Taxation of Social Security Benefits” ; FactCheck.org, “Taxing Social Security & Gasoline: Bush Attack Lacks Context,” 9/8/04] The revenue from this increase went exclusively to the Medicare trust fund. [FactCheck.org, “Taxing Social Security & Gasoline: Bush Attack Lacks Context,” 9/8/04] Brown Voted to Cut Social Security Tax for Middle Class. In 2000, Sherrod Brown voted to increase the income levels subject to taxation to $80,000 for singles and $100,000 for couples. [Vote #449, 7/27/00, H.R.4865] DeWine Voted Against Repeal of Social Security Tax. DeWine voted against allowing consideration of the Dorgan amendment, which would repeal the 1993 tax on Social Security benefits. [S.Amdt. 566 to S 1054 Vote #149 5/15/03] Medicare Payroll Tax Would Affect Only those Making Over $135,000. Those with incomes of more than $135,000 would become subject to the Medicare hospital insurance payroll tax. The payroll tax previously ended at that level. [H.R. 2264, Vote #199, 5/27/93; Washington Post, 5/14/93] |
“Tax after tax. There’s a record.” [Screen zooms out, shows all the TV screens.] “Sherrod Brown let us down.” ANNOUNCER 2: “The Republican National Committee is responsible for the content of this ad.” [Screens spell out: SHERROD BROWN LET US DOWN, screen reads: THE REPUBLICAN NATIONAL COMMITTEE IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE CONTENT OF THIS ADVERTISEMENT. PAID FOR BY THE REPUBLICAN NATIONAL COMMITTEE WWW.GOP.COM AND NOT AUTHORIZED BY ANY CANDIDATE OR CANDIDATE’S COMMITTEE] | Republican Ads Fudge the Numbers. According to FactCheck.org criticized an earlier Republican tax ad and its 35 times figure for “tak[ing] several opportunities to run up the numbers by counting multiple votes on the same issue.” [FactCheck.Org, “Volleys of Tax Votes: A September Blizzard in Ohio.” 9/11/06] |
DeWine Gave Billions to Richest, Special Interests as Costs for Middle Class Soared
AMHERST, OH - Incumbent Republican Senator Mike DeWine continued his campaign of false claims and distortions today by releasing a new ad that again touts his record of supporting tax breaks and subsidies for the richest Americans and corporations even as middle class families struggled to pay rising energy, tuition, and health care costs. U.S. Representative Sherrod Brown (D-OH) voted to cut taxes to at least 33 times, and this month introduced a "Path to Opportunity" for middle class families that would provide them with a tax break for each major phase of their lives.
"Instead of fighting to lower costs for middle class families, Senator DeWine voted to give more than one trillion dollars to the richest Americans and rewarded drug and oil companies with billions of dollars in subsidies," said Ben LaBolt, a spokesman for Brown. "After doctoring images of the Twin Towers for political gain, Mike DeWine continued his campaign of distortion today by attacking Representative Brown's vote for the largest peacetime economic expansion in American history. Senator DeWine has gotten things done for his special interest campaign contributors like the drug and oil industry, but his votes have broken the budgets of middle class families."
Senator Mike DeWine voted for the Bush tax cuts that provided more than $1 trillion in tax cuts to the richest Americans as the cost-of-living for most Ohioans rose. DeWine voted to cut Pell Grants as tuition at public universities in Ohio rose to the fifth highest in the nation [Plain Dealer 9/19/06]. Senator Mike DeWine voted for a Medicare bill that left seniors with gaps in coverage totaling more than $2,000 and banned the agency from negotiating for lower drug prices like the VA does. DeWine supported a GOP energy bill which provided billions of dollars in subsidies to the oil and gas industry but led to an increase in the price of gasoline of more than 75 cents.
Brown has consistently supported tax cuts that help middle class families. He voted to eliminate the marriage penalty tax and for child care and tuition tax breaks. He fought to lower costs for Ohio families by voting against the GOP energy bills that led to rising gas prices and led the House fight against the Medicare bill which raised prescription drug costs and left seniors with gaps in coverage. Brown's targeted tax cut plan for middle class families would provide relief for parents, homeowners, students, and those taking care of an elderly parent.
Back-and-Forth on Taxes Holds Sway in Ohio Senate Contest
From CQ Politics via Yahoo! News:
Ohio voters who are watching television or reading newspapers this week will see plenty about what their candidates for the Senate — Republican incumbent Mike DeWine and his Democratic challenger, Rep. Sherrod Brown (news, bio, voting record) — have to say about taxes.
In recent days, DeWine and Brown have brandished their records on tax issues, with each pointing to congressional votes to burnish his own credentials or criticize his opponent. The national parties’ campaign committees have also chipped in with independent expenditures on ads to try to affect one of the year’s most highly competitive — and potentially decisive — contests in the battle for control of the Senate.
At a campaign appearance in Columbus today, Brown announced a plan to provide “targeted” tax cuts for middle-class families whose incomes he said have stagnated during the presidency of George W. Bush.
Brown proposed a five-pronged plan to steer tax relief to families with incomes of between $43,000 and $150,000 a year. He would provide tax relief for families who have new children, pay for child care, pay for college tuition or books, are buying a new home or care for elderly parents.
“What we should do is strengthen families, and the way to strengthen families is by getting serious about targeted middle-class tax cuts,” Brown said in a conference call with reporters later Wednesday.
Click here to read the full article.
Brown says tax-credit plan would benefit middle class
From Columbus Dispatch:
In a U.S. Senate race that has been increasingly about which candidate most wants to help middle-class Ohioans, Democrat Sherrod Brown rolled out a package of tax credits Wednesday that he says will help families from childhood to old age.
"This is real help for real families, at every stage of their lives,'' said the Lorain congressman, who unveiled his plans Wednesday on the front porch of a middle-class family's home in the Columbus neighborhood of Clintonville.
The Brown campaign is hoping, too, that the package of tax credits Brown said he would push for in the Senate will help blunt a barrage of TV ads from his opponent, Republican incumbent Mike DeWine. The ads criticize Brown for voting against President Bush's tax cuts of 2001 and 2003, along with other GOP tax-cutting plans.Brown's "Path to Opportunity" package would include $1,000 tax credits for parents in the first three years of their children's lives, increasing current child care tax credits, increased tax deductions for college tuition, a "first home" tax credit for individuals and married couples, and an elder care tax credit.
Brown said he thinks that he can convince the Senate to approve his package next year, even if the Democrats do not take control of Congress in the Nov. 7 election. His tax credit proposals, Brown said, could be paid for by the new Congress rolling back existing tax breaks for oil companies "and other special interests.''
Click here to read the full article.
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