With President Barack Obama in Orlando on Tuesday for fundraisers as he gears up to run for a second term, American Crossroads, a conservative political organization with ties to many prominent Republican leaders including legendary strategist Karl Rove, released an ad in Florida taking aim at the president.
The ad, which also ran in Pennsylvania, took aim at Obama for calling for tax increases on wealthiest Americans as part of his proposed American Jobs Act. Taking quotes from former President Bill Clinton, the ad hammers Obama for looking to raise taxes during rough economic times. The ad ran in Orlando and Pittsburgh starting in Monday and the ad buy, which cost American Crossroads around $70,000, will end on Wednesday.
"The president is trying to sell this bill as a new idea, but it's really just a smaller version of his failed 2009 stimulus bill and this time it's packaged with a huge permanent tax hike," said Jonathan Collegio, the communications director of American Crossroads. "Raising taxes on businesses when the economy is weak is a proposal for further stagnation, not growth."
Clinton fired back at American Crossroads, which he labeled a Republican group, in a statement released on Tuesday. The former president, whose wife, Hillary, ran for the Democratic presidential nomination against Obama in 2008 and now serves as secretary of state, insisted that he backed Obamas plan, looking to frame the issue by noting that billionaire investor Warren Buffett supported the measure.
American Crossroads has used a quote from me in a video opposing President Obama's jobs plan and the Buffett Rule.The advertisement implies that I opposed the Buffett Rule.In fact, I support both the American Jobs Act and the Buffett Rule.I believe that it's only fair to ask those of us in high-income groups -- who have received the primary benefits of the last decade's economic growth and the majority of its tax cuts as well -- to contribute to solving our long-term debt problem, said Clinton.
The former president attempted to clarify the remarks used in the ad which he made last month.
What I did say was that the Buffett Rule cannot solve the problem alone, continued Clinton. "Reducing the debt requires three things: more economic growth, more spending cuts, and more revenue. Right now, the most important thing is to put America back to work. That's why I support the American Jobs Act.
Bill Burton, the former deputy White House press secretary under Obama who is now a strategist with Priorities USA Action, took aim at the new ads as well.
"The billionaires and oil companies funding these ads are desperate to stop President Obama's plan that would ask them to pay their fair share in taxes to reduce our debt and create jobs, said Burton. Mitt Romney, Rick Perry, and Karl Rove will spend millions on false television ads because they know that the American public strongly supports the president's plan that will finally ensure billionaires do not pay a lower tax rate than middle class families. No fair-minded American thinks that someone like Mitt Romney should pay an estimated 14 percent tax rate while hardworking Americans are paying far more."
While Democrats sent out a memo from Obama strategist David Axelrod in which he argued the American people support Obamas plan and the American Jobs Act, the Republican National Committee fired back, arguing that the presidents plan would not pass the Democratic-controlled U.S. Senate.
Sean Spicer, communications director for the RNC, maintained in a memo that key Democratic senators -- including Bob Casey of Pennsylvania and Bill Nelson of Florida, who are both up for re-election in 2012 -- had issues with Obamas proposal.
"President Obama can run from Washington and avoid his responsibilities to the American people, but he cant hide from the facts. No matter what he says on the campaign trail, his bill has bipartisan opposition, Democrats are unwilling to stand with him, and many of his policy proposals would only further harm the American economy, Spicer insisted. So, instead of waging political war against Republicans, he should ask Senators Casey and Nelson why they wont co-sponsor his bill. Perhaps they, too, want to be re-elected.
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com or at (850) 727-0859.
