DNC Hammers Republicans As Party Of Hypocrites

The Democratic National Committee released a web ad on Tuesday morning that, playing off the "Party of No" meme, accuses the Republican party of a double standard when it comes to budgetary prudence.

The spot, titled "Party of Hypocrisy," accuses several high-profile Republican lawmakers of being silent or supportive as large deficits were run up during the Bush years, even as they proclaim themselves fiscal hawks today.

The video points out that House Minority Leader John Boehner "voted for Bush budgets totaling $9.8 trillion," while Minority Whip Eric Cantor voted for $12.1 trillion in Bush budgets.

Watch the video:

One particularly notable feature of the ad, however, is which Bush administration official the DNC chooses to highlight. During Bush's last year in office, Democrats couldn't move fast enough to cut a commercial with the former president in it. This ad, however, features Dick Cheney. Part of that choice is surely due to the former vice president's toxic approval ratings. But it certainly must help that Cheney, and not Bush, has been so vocally critical of the Obama administration's foreign and domestic policies.

UPDATE: The two Republican targets in the ad respond:

Boehner spokeswoman Antonia Ferrier writes:

"We missed the part of the video where they defend the President's massive, fiscally-irresponsible budget that will double the debt in five years and triple it in 10. When the President's Budget Director concedes they are raising the deficit to unsustainable levels, I guess they have to blame everyone else."

And here's Brad Dayspring, spokesman for Rep. Eric Cantor:

"As we close in on President Obama's first 100 days, I would ask Virginia's Governor Tim Kaine if his partisan attack ads and disinformation campaigns are a calculated rejection of the President's attempts to change Washington."

Become a fan of HuffPost Politics on Facebook, or follow us on Twitter.

Comments

[zest]

11:45 AM on 04/22/2009

The Republican way is to let the poor pay the taxes and fight the wars, which in essence protects the "haves" property.

[rosal]

12:50 AM on 04/22/2009

Notice how the two Repbs change the subject (normal Repb procedure). They never explain why they voted to give the trillions to Bush. Since they lack solutions for the problems they created, all they can do is tell everybody what they don't like about this administration, which is everything.

[swift goat pet for truth]

01:39 AM on 04/22/2009

Actually, the GOPers have.

They say they were led astray and they are sorry.

In other words, they are for giving our tax money on their rich buddies only when they are in power.
The rest of the time they think its bad.

[rsprags]

12:33 AM on 04/22/2009

Good for the DNC; Keep it coming! It sad we have to continue to remind them of their record.

[dolphy]

11:53 PM on 04/21/2009

The party of misinformed and disinformation is saying the ad is disinformation? What a bunch of losers and whiners.

[OneAngryDwarf]

11:38 PM on 04/21/2009

Love the updates, talk about tone deaf. Cantor's spokesperson has the nerve to actually accuse the President's team of stoking the partisan fire. Like anyone can forget the high-fives going around after every single Republican voted lock-step against every single thing that has been brought to the floor of the House.

[BUZZARDSTKE]

11:31 PM on 04/21/2009

DEAD ON!!

[Hopeington]

11:21 PM on 04/21/2009

Phooey! Just when I thought they could amaze me no longer, the 2 spokes persons act like we didn't just hear Boehner and Cantor say what they said. They know their constituents are idiots, their mistake is thinking the rest of us are too.

[jinxed]

02:37 AM on 04/22/2009

Too true, but most long-serving politicians have an overblown opinion of how smart they think they are and how dumb their constituents are.

[SteveDenver]

11:12 PM on 04/21/2009

Is this really hypocrisy or is it carefully calculated lying?
Rarely do Republicans go back on a statement they've made. They make a statement and do exactly the opposite. No hypocrisy, because there was never an intent to do as they claimed. It's all posturing, lies and manipulation of public opinion... for Jesus and the children.

[nirek]

07:39 PM on 04/21/2009

The headline says it all !

[bloodyhands]

06:44 PM on 04/21/2009

Short ,Sweet and to the Point.
I like it.

[indieminded]

06:21 PM on 04/21/2009

Cantor and Boehner are perfect embodiements of the words of Benjamin Disraeli:

"A conservative government is an organized hypocrisy."

[graceland9]

09:38 PM on 04/21/2009

NICE

[Schmice]

06:19 PM on 04/21/2009

What a terrible commercial. The damning stuff is in writing and we know that much of the electorate is either functionally illiterate or doesn't care to read anything. The audio, (which is better than that quasi-porn background music, lets Boehner and Cantor deliver their short, powerful, anti -Obama salvos, which, if you're just listening, go unrebutted. Who produced that crappy comercial?

[BlackWidowPilot]

05:08 PM on 04/21/2009

Hypocrisy incarnate:

http://www.armchairsubversive.org

Hypocrisy, thy name remains GOP.. as in "Greedy Old Perverts" "Goring Our Progress" and "Gutting Our Prosperity."

Yeeeach.

Leland R. Erickson

Citizen

[TchoupitoulasCanal]

05:02 PM on 04/21/2009

And yet, neither Boehner or Cantor actually responded to the factual underpinnings of the advertisement. Shocking, really!

[carl99e]

05:00 PM on 04/21/2009

Don't worry the Republicans will do just fine running on their record. Just look at the last thirty years of accomplishments. Or, maybe they can run on Obama's record. I wouldn't put it past them.