Both Candidates Made Misstatements, But McCain's Were By A Mile

I've put together a summary of the misstatements of fact in last night's debate as tracked by FactCheck.org.

The bottom-line is that while Obama did make a few mistakes, none were outright fabrications, and even when wrong, he was fairly close to being accurate.

McCain, on the other hand, delivered several whoppers that weren't even close to the truth.

First, Obama's misstatements:

• Denied voting for a budget plan that called for a tax increase on people making $42K. He did vote for a budget resolution with such a recommendation, but even if it had passed, it would have not have had the force of law. Moreover, he does not support such a tax increase in his current plan.
• Claimed Iraq has a $79 billion surplus, but that figure is outdated and the actually number is now closer to $60 billion.
• Claimed 95% of "the American people" would see a tax cut under his plan when he should have said "95% of American families with children."
• Claimed McCain's health care plan would levy taxes against employers on health care premiums when McCain would actually be taxing individuals.

Second, McCain misstatements:

• Denied Kissinger called for meetings with Iran without conditions, when Kissinger had made such a call.
• Claimed Joint Chiefs Chairman Mike Mullen had criticized Obama's troop withdrawal plan when Mullen had not.
• Claimed earmarks had tripled in the last five years when they have actually decreased.
• Claimed U.S. pays $700 billion per year to buy oil from hostile nations when the actual figure is at most $359 billion.
• Claimed Obama would hand the health care system to the federal government, which is false.
• Claimed Dwight Eisenhower had penned a letter offering his resignation if Normandy had failed, but that didn't happen.

Basically, when Obama erred, he was saying 2 + 2 = 4.01. When McCain erred, he was saying 2 + 2 = 4,000,001.

Comments

[theHutt]

FactCheck.org actually made a mistake on McCain's claim that Obama "has voted in the United States Senate to increase taxes on people who make as low as $42,000 a year." Obama said "it's just not true."

FactCheck.org sided with McCain, but qualfied it by saying that this was true only for individuals making that amount, not families, and they pointed out that the vote in question was in fact a resolution, not a vote on a bill, so technically wouldn't "increase taxes" in any way.

They missed something critical, though: Obama was absolutely right.

The resolution called for allowing most of the Bush tax cuts to expire normally, AS ORIGINALLY WRITTEN. The status quo, then, was that taxes would go up automatically as the tax cuts phased out.

In other words, Obama may have voted for a resolution that was against CUTTING taxes (by lowering them beyond the original expiration date), but that is NOT the same thing as voting "to increase taxes."

It's comparable to a store manager hiring a seasonal employee specifically for the Christmas shopping rush -- the status quo, then, is that the employee's job ends by January. If that manager chooses not to hire on that employee for a permanent position at that time, has he "fired" that employee? No! They both knew that things ended after the holidays -- anything beyond that is completely separate.

I was shocked that FactCheck.org missed this distinction.

[SMP]

McCain really truely believes that Middle class Americans are stupid and more so that women are stupid.............


Not this time..Not this year


Obama..The True Leader

[TruthSeeker09]

They should have some way to instantly factcheck debates, then people like McCain couldn't get away with absolute fabrications or wholly wrong statements.

[martinchill]

Jeopardy seems to be pretty quick at checking facts....

[leoeris]

Hey, that would be a damn fun debate. Alex Trebec hosts Debate Jeopardy. McCain vs. Obama vs Biden vs. Palin. That way we could see which ones actually recognized a fact when they saw one.

[smed]

One of the channels should do the debates with "pop up video" like on MTV...

The debates would need to be delayed, say by 5 minutes...

Anytime the candidates say a misstatement, a pop up bubble would clarify the truth.

I'll bet the channel that does it would be by far the most watched.

[Richard22]

McCain is changing the GOP... it's now Grumpy, Old and Petulant

[Cinnamonape]

Here's another- McCain attacking Obama over the latters complaints that Musharraf allowed the Taliban/Al Qaida to establish bases in the areas of Waziristan. McCain replied that Musharaf took control because Pakistan was a "failed state" in 1999.

Problem was that it actually became much more of a failed state, AFTER, the coup because Musharraf used the Islamists to counter and suppress the secularist "democratic" parties of Benizir Bhutto and Azwar Sharif. Before that time there was a vigorous democracy, and Courts that were independent. Afterwards the State imposed Islamic law, and this has resulted in situations like "honor killings" and gang-rapes not only going uncharged, but in some cases the women being sent to prison for exposing the perpatrators. McCain supports this?

AND MOST TELLING- in 1998 Senator McCain supported the sale of F-16's to Pakistan, in spite of the fact that they were preparing to test a nuclear weapon. "Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), speaking on CBS, said that releasing the F-16s -- which he supports -- was unlikely to affect Pakistan's decision"

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/inatl/longterm/southasia/stories/urge051898.htm

So was Senator McCain willing to supply F-16's to a nuclear-armed rogue "failed state"?????

[JoJoRae]

You failed to mention McCain lied about supporting the troops. 2006 Senator McCain supported the interests of the Disabled American Veterans 20 percent.
He"s voted for veterans funding bills only 30% of the time, according to a scorecard of roll-call votes put out by the nonpartisan Disabled Americans for America.
He campaigned agaist the new GI Bill and did not vote on it. He said it would hurt retention. While the Congressional Budget Office estimates that the bill would cause a 16% drop in re-enlistment rates across all four branches of the military, the same study also predicts a 16% uptick in new recruits attracted by the benefit.

The IAVA (Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans for America) has given McCain a D and Obama a B+ when it comes to their veteran voting record.

The Vietnam Veterans of America says McCain has voted against them in 15 key votes. Obama only voted against them once. The Disabled Veterans of Americagave McCain a 20% rating Obama an 80% rating

McCain voted Nay on a bill that would "To increase Veterans medical services funding by $1.5 billion in FY 2007 to be paid for by closing corporate tax loopholes."
Also a bill that would, "To provide an additional $500,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2006 through 2010, to be used for readjustment counseling, related mental health services, and treatment and rehabilitative services for veterans with mental illness, post-traumatic stress disorder, or substance use disorder."

[rawdawgbuffalo]

i turned the vol down, and could only think of the history of ole miss and james meredith

[marthlois]

Kissinger said today that he had not said that we should negotiate with Iran without pre-conditions. Now I cannot find it, but I do think I remember his saying just that in the special with the 5 secretaries of state.
If so, is Kissinger just like McCain in that he doesn't believe in utube?

[Hollis-Greene]

And here is a perfect example

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ajm5JTf7jZs&feature=rec-fresh

You were the best Tim and all the 'Readers/Thinkers" in America miss you greatly...

OBAMA 08

[marthlois]

Oh I've thought about Tim so often.....I bet he's watching and frustrated that he can't be heard:) Miss the dear man.

This video should be resurrected and sent everywhere possible. thanks.

[RENREVARD]

What about McCain statement that he support the Veterans and clean energy.His voting record proves he does not.

[marthlois]

I'm surprised all of this has not come out more. The disabled veterans gives Obama a B+ and McCain a big 'ol D. I think the problem here is that unless it's the vets, in particular, calling him out,
it would look like an attack on the US most celebrated P O W !

[notthistime]

It seems to me that a lot of the media missed the fact that McCain seemed to acknowledge that our government has been torturing prisoners. Is that the case? Did our government admit to torturing prisoners? Who and when did we do it?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QzhXn8QXW1E&feature=related
Listen when the meter gets to 7:02 mins

"We have a long way to go in our intelligence services. We have to do a better job with human intelligence. We have to make sure that we have people who are trained interrogaters that we don't ever torture a prisoner ever again."

[BarackMarley]

What about McCain's statement that Bin LAden was a freedom fighter. He said the afghan warriors and islamic extremists, read muhajadeen, that bin laden helped drive the Russians out of Afghanistan were freedom fighters. No one is fact checking that?

Read About it Here
http://www.newsone.com/elections/article/mccain-called-bin-laden-a-freedom-fighters