Story Created:
Oct 20, 2008 at 11:02 AM EST
Story Updated:
Apr 17, 2009 at 1:59 PM EST
(WKTV) - The latest commercial from the Congressman Arcuri campaign has hit the airwaves, claiming that Arcuri's opponent - Richard Hanna - is similar in policy beliefs as George W. Bush.
Here's what the commercial says: "NARRATOR: Tired of eight years of George Bush? Richard Hanna isn't. Richard Hanna supports George Bush's failed policies down the line. Hanna supports Bush's tax breaks for oil companies and millionaires. He supports continuing Bush's endless War in Iraq. Hanna supports Bush's unfair trade deals that have sent our jobs overseas, and like Bush, Richard Hanna supports a risky plan to privatize social security. Richard Hanna...wrong on George Bush..wrong for upstate New York. MICHAEL ARCURI: "I'm Michael Arcuri and I approve this message."
The first claim is that Hanna supports Bush's tax breaks for oil companies and millionaires.
The Arcuri campaign's support for this? They say it came from a Hanna press release on September 12.
However, two press releases were released from the Hanna campaign on September 12 - one that rebutted Arcuri's claim in a commercial about his record for cutting taxes, and another urging Arcuri to return money given to his campaign from Congressman Charles Rangel, who was under three separate investigations by the House Ethics Committee. Neither proof that Hanna supported these claimed tax breaks. Nothing in these two press releases support the claim the commercial makes.
The next claim is that Hanna supports the war in Iraq.
Arcuri's campaign points to a Hanna questionnaire from the Utica Observer-Dispatch. But in that questionnaire, Hanna does not say he supports the war...but supports a timetable for withdrawal...in the situation we're already in. And Hanna is quoted in the Post Standard this past week as saying the war is "one of the worst foreign policy decisions in this country's history."
The third claim is that Hanna supports unfair trade deals that send jobs overseas. Arcuri cites the Automotive Free International Trade Political Action Committee contributing to Hanna's campaign, as the organization's website says they support campaigns of pro-free trade candidates in congressional races.
But Hanna Press Secretary Renee Gamela says Hanna's official stance is that there is no such thing as free trade, only "fair and reasonable trade"...and says that "he is not in favor of open unregulated trade...and feels that we must do everything to protect businesses and workers."
And finally, Arcuri's commercial says Hanna supports privatizing social security. Both sources the Arcuri campaign cites for this makes no such claim.
Arcuri's camp cites an AARP questionnaire...but in it, Hanna says "the most important thing about social security is there when you need it. All decisions must be based on that premise." And the other source - Hanna's membership in the Foundation for Economic Education...a nationwide economical organization.
Arcuri's campaign points to a 2005 newsletter in which the president of the organization wrote an editorial about his thoughts on why privatization was a good idea - which has nothing to do with the opinions of its thousands of members...including Richard Hanna.
That's like Steve McMurray giving an editorial that he thinks mustard needs to be removed from restaurants - and that, by association - myself and anyone now and who was ever employed at WKTV also thinks so.
And that just doesn't cut the mustard, so to speak, and neither does this commercial. The support the Arcuri campaign presents as their "proof" does not lend credence to their claims.
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