Update From McConnell Campaign
Posted: Monday, September 22, 2008
September 22, 2008
To: Friends and Allies of Team Mitch
Fr: Justin Brasell & Scott Jennings, Campaign Advisors
Re: Weekly Campaign Update
Stabilizing our Nation’s Economy
While the political season is in full swing, there are serious issues facing our Nation. Here is what Senator McConnell released in response to the Treasury Department’s plan they are working with Congress to implement in an effort to stabilize our financial markets:
"This proposal is, and should be kept, simple and clear. And we have the opportunity here to help protect Americans on Main Street-their homes, savings, student loans, jobs and small businesses, and their retirement plans. We must closely scrutinize the proposal to make sure it works and we must do so quickly. Simply put, now is not the time for partisan plans or pet projects. Americans are looking for economic security and want us to stand up for them in a bipartisan way." – Senator Mitch McConnell, Saturday, September 20, 2008
Analysis from Washington
Stu Rothenberg, writing in today’s Roll Call, says: “Two Republicans under attack, Maine Sen. Susan Collins and Kentucky Sen. Mitch McConnell, the Minority Leader, appear to be comfortably ahead and likely to win.”
Stu knows what the rest of us know – Bruce Lunsford isn’t running a credible campaign, and the leadership of Mitch McConnell is showing through.
Desperation in Lunsford World
With just 43 days to go, desperation has set in over at the Lunsford campaign. They are running an extremely dishonest campaign against Senator McConnell, while making absolutely no case whatsoever about how Lunsford would be better for Kentucky than Sen. McConnell.
Why are they failing to make this case? Because it can’t be made. McConnell is right on the issues (see: energy policy and taxes) and Lunsford has abandoned trying to make the case that he can be more effective for Kentucky priorities than McConnell ($500 million for Kentucky projects in the last year alone).
The truth is Senator McConnell proudly stands by his work for Kentucky priorities for universities, communities, agriculture, and other needs that towns and counties have across the state.
Today’s Lexington Herald-Leader outlines some of McConnell’s victories for Kentucky:
Most recently, he has aired a commercial featuring Karen Hall, a drug prevention program director with Comprehend Inc.'s Regional Prevention Center in Maysville. Hall, in the ad, talks about how McConnell helped secure $250,000 in federal funds to help the non-profit corporation expand its drug abuse prevention programs. McConnell tagged those funds for the center in the 2001 homeland security appropriations bill.
(see the ad here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8o5QSXwK6kg )
All this feeds into McConnell's central theme of his re-election bid: that he has the clout to bring hundreds of millions in federal funds to Kentucky.
"It's a combination of being the Republican leader of the Senate, and being a senior member of the Senate and a senior member of the appropriations committee," McConnell said. He has repeatedly argued that electing Lunsford as a freshman, even in the majority party, would result in a "dramatic reduction" in the ability to divert funds to Kentucky.
Over the years, McConnell has secured billions of dollars for Kentucky-based projects. Sometimes, taxpayer groups have criticized him for earmarks, such as the $9 million he helped tag for a new chapel at Fort Campbell last year or $500,000 for energy research that benefited Pure Energy Corp. of Louisville in 2000. Both were cited as examples in the Citizens Against Government Waste's annual "Pork Book" reports.
But McConnell says he stands behind every project and program he's fought to help fund, particularly for universities — more than $36 million for research in 2007 for Kentucky colleges — and the removal of chemical weapons from the Blue Grass Army Depot.
"I've gotten $45 million in agriculture research projects over the last 10 years," McConnell added. "That money would have gone somewhere else."
In 2007, the Senate changed the law to require senators who request earmarks to put their name next to the project, thereby increasing transparency.
McConnell said he would support any further reforms to heighten disclosure of the budget process because he said he's proud of the efforts he's made. In fact, he said his frustration is that Kentucky newspapers don't make a big enough deal out of the money he diverts to the state, which his office often touts in press releases.
"We announce what we're doing all along the way," he said.
Union bosses engage
In case you missed Sunday’s Courier-Journal story, the union bosses are here. They are stepping up political activity against Senator McConnell for one reason: they want to eliminate the secret ballot in labor union elections, and Senator McConnell has stopped that terrible idea in the U.S. Senate.
Would you want these guys looking over your shoulder while you were casting a ballot for anything?
Just take a look at this video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R4WqJ7LA40U
Neither would we.
McCain and McConnell
You might have seen Lunsford’s ad trying to make it seem like John McCain doesn’t support Senator McConnell for reelection. More blatant dishonesty, according to Courier-Journal columnist Al Cross in his Sunday column. In response to Lunsford, here’s what McCain said about McConnell:
"Mitch McConnell is my friend. He is a man of honesty and integrity, and Kentucky is a better place because of his leadership." – Senator John McCain, Tuesday, September 16, 2008
See the Team Mitch rebuttal ad here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8o5QSXwK6kg
Lunsford makes erroneous claims about the Senator’s voting record in the ad. Let’s look at the facts:
CHARGE: Voted himself pay raises but opposed raising the minimum wage.
FACT: It’s pretty convenient that Lunsford forgets to mention the 10 times McConnell has voted to raise the minimum wage in the last twelve years and the 28 times that McConnell voted to limit his own pay during his career.
McConnell has voted ten times over the last decade to raise the minimum wage, but to do so in a way designed to preserve and create Kentucky jobs. McConnell’s votes for the minimum wage included targeted tax relief for small businesses that create the majority of new jobs in Kentucky and frequently hire many minimum wage earners . (Roll Call 181, 5/24/07; Roll Call 42, 2/1/07; Roll Call 229, 8/3/06; Roll Call 180, 6/21/06; Roll Call 258, 10/19/05; Roll Call 27, 3/7/05; Roll Call 75, 4/7/00; Roll Call 357, 11/9/99; Roll Call 183, 7/9/96; Roll Call 184, 5/9/96).
During his career in the Senate, McConnell has voted at least 28 times to limit his own pay.
(Roll Call 7, 1/29/87; Roll Call 9, 1/29/87; Roll Call 222, 7/3/87; Roll Call 11, 2/2/89; Roll Call 12, 2/2/89; Roll Call 306, 11/17/89; Roll Call 133, 7/17/91; Voice Vote, 2/24/93; Roll Call 16, 2/24/93; Roll Call 20, 2/25/93; Voice Vote on Amendment to S. 382, 3/3/93; Roll Call 23, 3/3/93; Roll Call 103, 5/5/94; Voice Vote on HR 4539, 9/28/94; Roll Call 232, 5/25/95; Voice Vote on Amendment to HR2020 8/5/95; Voice Vote on HR 2020, 8/5/95; Voice Vote on Amendment to S. 1244, 9/22/95; Roll Call 576, 11/15/95; Voice Vote on amendment to HR 3756, 9/10/96; Voice Vote on HR 3610, 9/30/96; Voice Vote on amendment to S 1023, 7/17/97; Roll Call 191, 7/22/97; Roll Call 314, 10/21/98; Roll Call 256, 10/18/05; Voice Vote on Amdt 2934, 3/8/06; Roll Call 19, 1/18/07; Roll Call 48, 2/15/07 )
CHARGE: McConnell voted for the infamous Bridge to Nowhere… Twice
FACT: The Lunsford ad cites McConnell’s vote for final passage of HR 3, commonly known as the 2005 Highway Bill or SAFETEA-LU. Lunsford is attacking McConnell’s vote for:
- $45 million to repair the Brent Spence Bridge (Northern Kentucky)
- $ 54million to build two Louisville bridges
- $38 million for the 21st Century Parks initiative in Louisville
- $35 million for a new interchange in Bowling Green
- $40 million for riverfront development in Owensboro
- $10 million for riverfront development in Henderson, and
- $10.2 million for riverfront development in Ashland.
The second vote cited was against a Coburn Amendment that would have stripped funding for the bridge. In this vote, McConnell voted with Barack Obama, Joe Biden, and Hillary Clinton who Lunsford calls “Kentucky’s adopted daughter” (Roll 262 10/20/2005).
A few months later, McConnell served on the Appropriations Committee, which fixed the problem in the Conference Report to H.R.3058 by removing the specific earmark for the bridges in question and allowing Alaskans, under Governor Palin, to determine where the funds should be spent. The bill with the following provision passed by Unanimous Consent on 11/21/2005:
SEC. 186. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, any amounts made available pursuant to Public Law 109-59 for the Gravina Island bridge and the Knik Arm bridge shall be made available to the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities for any purpose eligible under section 133(b) of title 23, United States Code: Provided, That in allocating funds for the equity bonus program under section 105 of such title, the Secretary shall make the calculations required under that section as if this section had not been enacted: Provided further, That the descriptions for High Priority Projects #406, the Gravina Island bridge, and #2465, the Knik Arm bridge, in section 1702 of Public Law 109-59 are hereby deleted and in their place is inserted `the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities'.
And finally, on the lighter side…Chicago!
Our campaign has a new ad out discussing whether or not Bruce ought to be running for Senate in Illinois!
Watch the ad here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wXW26hcGG7Y
Isn’t it funny that Hillary Clinton came to Kentucky this past weekend to campaign for Lunsford? There’s one Chicago native campaigning for a Chicago resident, who both support a U.S. Senator for President who hails from…Chicago.
And don’t forget…our grassroots operation is in full swing. Email us if you need more information on where to get involved.
Days Until Election Victory: 43
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