I just got my most recent FactCheck and I'm disappointed. I've always thought of them as non-partisan and taken their word as the gospel. When they skewer Republicans, it's right on target. Same with Democrats.
But lately I've noticed they've got a bit of bias going on. Thought it was just my imagination until today, when it became clear:
http://factcheck.org/article445.html Quote:
Summary
In an ad featuring a Boston terrier at his side, GOP candidate Michael Steele accuses Democratic Rep. Ben Cardin of taking "money from special interests" and then voting against importing cheaper prescription drugs from Canada. Steele says he wants to "ban gifts from special interests." The ad misleads viewers by conflating campaign contributions (Cardin's "money from special interests") with lobbyists' gifts ("gifts from special interests") that Steele says he wants to ban.The ad makes it appear as if Steele has not received contributions from special interest groups when, in fact, he has.
The spot also accuses Cardin of voting against bills that would have allowed cheaper medicines to be imported from Canada. It's true Cardin has voted against such measures in the past, although one of the bills the Steele campaign accuses Cardin of voting against would only have allowed cheaper imports if the Secretary of Health and Human Services gave his approval, which he had already refused to do.
Steele also fails to mention his party affiliation in any of his ads. A DSCC ad attacking Steele, which we find to be accurate, leaves no doubt that he is a Republican.
Analysis
Steele's ad appeared on Maryland airwaves on September 27, in response to a Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee ad that claimed Steele "loves George W. Bush." While we take no issue with the factual content of the DSCC ad, we find the Republican candidate's most recent ad to be misleading.
|
The bold paragraph above is what caught my attention. I hope that everyone in the state of Maryland knows that Steele is a Republican. I mean, he's only the Lt. of a Republican Governor.
Quote:
|
Continuing with the theme from a previous ad that he "likes puppies," Steele stands next to a growling Boston terrier and says Cardin, has "taken money from special interests for twenty years." Then Steele says he wants to "ban gifts from special interests." If you listen carefully Steele doesn't accuse Cardin of taking gifts , instead he says Cardin has taken money from special interests. "Money" equals legal campaign contributions.
|
Steele didn't accuse Cardin of taking gifts. He specifically says that Cardin takes money from special interest groups, which he does. There's no "careful listening" that needs to be done. Special interest groups are special interest groups, regardless of whether the campaign contributions are legal or not.
Quote:
|
Steele does not mention that he is a Republican in any of his ads; the majority of Maryland voters are Democrats.
|
Um...so? Democrats obviously will vote for a Republican - just ask Robert Ehrlich.
Quote:
|
Steele has said in his ads, that he is against last-minute pork-barrel spending amendments, against gifts from lobbyists and for importing drugs from Canada. But lest he be mistaken for a Democrat, the DSCC highlighted his more Republican positions in a Sept. 27 ad, citing sources that showed Steele supports keeping troops in Iraq without a timetable for departure, and noting that in 2004 he said he supported the President's Medicare prescription drug plan - a bill most Democrats didn't back. Also, Steele has said he is against "any effort that would result in the destruction of a human embryo," meaning he is against current embryonic stem cell research. Steele is in favor of using adult stem cells and umbilical cord blood cells only. In 2002, The Baltimore Sun reported that "Steele says he is staunchly opposed to abortion," and in 2006 the National Right to Life identified Steele as "pro-life." Steele's party affiliation, while not clear in his ads, will be clear on the ballot.
|
So that would make him....a moderate? Because he doesn't tow the party line? I'd think that would be a good thing, but FactCheck doesn't seem to think so. And they're making a rather large deal about him not stamping "Republican" on his forehead, when anyone who would be eligible to vote for him certainly already knows his party affiliation.
