DatelineCarolinaPOLITICAL AD WATCH #4

Ad Watch - John McCain Campaign Advertisement "Family"
by Mel Slater, University of South Carolina Mass Communication Doctoral Student

     "Is the biggest celebrity in the world ready to help your family?" The 30 second ad, "Family," asks this question about Senator Barack Obama. The ad calls into question whether the Democratic nominee can lead the country on issues that include taxes, the economy and jobs.

The ad began airing on August 6 in states that Senator John McCain calls "Battleground states." There are 11 states included in this group: CO, IA, MI, MO, NV, NH, NM, OH, PA, VA (NoVA), and WI.¹  The ad is paid for by the McCain campaign. Click here to watch the advertisement.

Claims against Sen. Obama

     The ad, while acknowledging Obama's celebrity, makes claims that he promises higher taxes and more government spending that will result in lost jobs.

"Promises higher taxes"
     The ad claims that Obama will raise taxes. The claim is partly true. Obama has stated that he intends to raise taxes for CEOs and families with incomes over $250,000 while seeking to lower taxes on those who make less than $250,000 per year and eliminating taxes on the elderly making $50,000 or less.²  The McCain campaign has made claims about Obama's tax proposals "that are false or wildly exaggerated" according to Economist.com.³

"More government spending"
     The next claim in the ad is that Obama will increase government spending. This claim is true. The programs and initiatives Obama outlines will increase spending in "education, child care, work, homeownership, and saving."²  Sen. Obama asserts that the programs can be funded by closing tax loopholes and raising the highest income tax rate by 4.5 percentage points to 39.5%.⁴

"Results will be fewer jobs"
     The McCain ad then states that the result of higher taxes and more government spending by Obama will be fewer jobs. According to the Tax Policy Center, both tax plans by McCain and Obama will raise deficits as a result of spending. "Senator Obama's plan would add $3.4 trillion to the national debt (including additional interest costs) while Senator McCain's plan would add $5.0 trillion."²  The plans by McCain and Obama are different in their approach to job creation. McCain's plan cuts taxes for corporations.  Obama's plan would focus on raising wages and spending on the infrastructure.⁵  CNNMoney.com reports that economists are divided along liberal and conservative lines as to which plan would succeed.⁶

Claims for Sen. McCain

     The ad ends by making the claim that McCain will provide "Renewable energy to transform our economy" and "Create jobs and energy independence."

"Renewable energy to transform our economy" and "Create jobs and energy independence"

     This is true. Sen. McCain's plan includes an increase in the use of nuclear energy and other low-carbon fuels. He proposes building up to 45 nuclear plants by 2030. [7] McCain states that 700,000 jobs will be created to build the plants.⁸  Marilyn Brown Professor, School of Public Policy, Georgia Institute of Technology says that a 13 percent reduction in Green House Gases would result if the nuclear power plants were built.  Jobs would be created.⁹
Final Note
     The McCain campaign reference to the celebrity status of Barack Obama is interesting because McCain's running mate, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, received the same type of celebrity attention.¹⁰  After naming Palin, McCain had risen to a statistical dead heat against Obama according to a poll by the Wall Street Journal.¹¹  Vermont Gov. Jim Douglas said that Gov. Palin had "energized the Republican Party."¹²

REFERENCES

1   http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2008/08/06/1249590.aspx
2   http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/UploadedPDF/411741_updated_candidates.pdf
3   http://www.economist.com/world/europe/displaystory.cfm?story_id=11869783
4   http://www.economist.com/world/unitedstates/displaystory.cfm?story_id=11792500
5   http://money.cnn.com/galleries/2008/news/0806/gallery.election_issues/19.html
6   http://money.cnn.com/2008/08/01/news/economy/wages_candidates/index.htm
7   http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/08/05/energy.plans/index.html
8   http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/09/26/debate.mississippi.transcript/index.html?iref=mpstoryview
9   http://www.gatech.edu/energybuzz/
10   http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080914/OPINION03/809140301&imw=Y
11   http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122099348086116259.html
12   http://www.politickerma.com/jeremyjacobs/1053/vt-gov-douglas-boosts-palin-mccain-speech-mass-delegates