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Joe Isuzu for President
January 23, 2008 12:36 PM
So now the Clinton campaign has taken it to the next level, taking it to the airwaves with their patently false twisting of Barack Obama's words. . (Listen to the ad HERE).
“Listen to Barack Obama last week talking about Republicans," the announcer says.
“The Republicans were the party of ideas for a pretty long chunk of time there over the last 10, 15 years," Obama says.
“Really?" says the announcer. "Aren’t those the ideas that got us into the economic mess we’re in today? Ideas like special tax breaks for Wall Street. Running up a $9 trillion debt. Refusing to raise the minimum wage or deal with the housing crisis. Are those the ideas Barack Obama’s talking about?”
“The Republicans were the party of ideas," Obama says again.
"Hillary Clinton thinks this election is about replacing disastrous Republican ideas with new ones, like jumpstarting the economy," says the announcer. "Putting an immediate freeze on foreclosures and mortgages. Cutting taxes for the middle class. and creating millions of new jobs. With the economy in crisis, we need a president with the ideas, the solutions that get America working for all of us. Hillary Clinton. Solutions for America."
At this point, the Clintons obviously know and don't care that this is a blatantly false representation of what Obama said, which doesn't square with the video or transcript of what Obama said.
This has been tirelessly fact-checked by us, the Washington Post, Factcheck.org, Politico, and Politifact.
With unanimity, the charge has been established as false.
And yet the Clintons continue to make it.
We fact checked this twisting (as well as some Obama fudges) on Good Morning America this morning (Watch it HERE or read the dot-com version HERE.
The conservative editorial page of the Wall Street Journal today looked at Obama's frustration in the face of this (and other) Clinton falsehoods, writing that "One of our favorite Bill Clinton anecdotes involves a confrontation he had with Bob Dole in the Oval Office after the 1996 election. Mr. Dole protested Mr. Clinton's attack ads claiming the Republican wanted to harm Medicare, but the President merely smiled that Bubba grin and said, 'You gotta do what you gotta do.'...The Illinois Senator is still a young man, but not so young as to have missed the 1990s. He nonetheless seems to be awakening slowly to what everyone else already knows about the Clintons, which is that they will say and do whatever they 'gotta' say or do to win. Listen closely to Mr. Obama, and you can almost hear the echoes of Bob Dole at the end of the 1996 campaign asking, 'Where's the outrage?'"
Bob Dole, of course, lost that race.
-- jpt
January 23, 2008 | Permalink | Share | User Comments (25)
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I'm really disappointed in the Clintons for their misstatements and exaggerations. This kind of politics paralyzes the political process and only makes the Clintons look bad. America is tired of this kind of politics and will be heard at the polls.
Posted by: thebob.bob | Jan 23, 2008 1:19:23 PM
Why is the Wall Street Journal so interested in "swiftboating" the Clintons? Oh maybe it is becuase the Republican who they support want to face Obama the transparent phony instead of battle tested Hillary Clinton. After all, the Clintons are undefeated against the RNC. go ask Rudy Guiliani why he was scared to take on Hillary.
Posted by: geevill | Jan 23, 2008 1:14:25 PM
If there is one difference between the Clinton and Obama camps, this obvious lie campaign is illustrative. Dems were irate when Kerry lost because of the swiftboat ads. Now we have a leading Democratic candidate stooping to the same level.
What will the Clinton followers have gained if they have won the election and lost their integrity?
Posted by: Da Coach | Jan 23, 2008 1:06:47 PM
The media are playing dumb, really dumb. That are exactly Obama's words. Are the media also confused by his words? Why not ask Obama to clarify what he meant?
Posted by: JL | Jan 23, 2008 12:58:05 PM
Obama should know that it goes with teh territory. The Obama campaign started the tricks and games by marketing Obama like the holier than thou person, the Saint that was above every politician and can't do wrong. They should know better than that, they know Obama is just another politician and if he wants to play in the big leagues he should be ready for that!
They have joined forces with the Republican machine to smear Edwards at first and Hillary, now they should be ready to get a dosis of the same medicine.
Posted by: Terry | Jan 23, 2008 12:55:44 PM
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