The best part of this article over at Wired’s Threat Level blog is that McCain’s own campaign advisors told reporters that if they had doubts of McCain’s campaign claims that they should head over to FaceCheck.org to see the truth.

The trouble was that FactCheck.org, run by the non-partisan Annenberg Foundation, funded by the University of Pennsylvania, ran the numbers and dove into the statements and found out that McCain’s statements actually didn’t check out. Oops!

John McCain’s campaign on Tuesday launched a ‘truth squad’ to battle internet-driven rumors and blatant untruths about vice presidential pick Sarah Palin. But it was the McCain campaign that was truth-squaded Wednesday when a public policy group at the University of Pennsylvania called the campaign out for distorting its words to mislead voters.

…

Factcheck.org wasn’t the only group complaining about the McCain team’s integrity Wednesday. Ben Smith at The Politico reports that CBS asked YouTube to take down a McCain web ad that used a clip of evening news anchor Katie Couric saying “One of the great lessons of that campaign is the continued and accepted role of sexism in American life.” The clip came from a comment that Couric made in reference to Hillary Clinton, but this ad was about Palin.

What was the McCain campaign’s response? None of course – when confronted with the truth, they went running and suddenly “couldn’t be reached for comment.” That’s okay though, because his supporters filled the vaccum of lies with their own – check out some of the whoppers in the comments – if you can’t dispute the validity of the claims, let’s redirect attention to some more popular lies, like “Obama’s a closet muslim!” or “Obama sat on the board of the Annenberg Foundation,” which is one of my favorites since it’s so far from the truth it’s hilarious. Then there’s my personal favorite: “Annenberg/FactCheck.org/anyone who disagrees with me is funded by George Soros!”

That one’s great, it’s almost the telltale signal that conservatives have run out of ammo when they dig into the Soros bin.

[ FactCheck.org Finds That McCain's 'Facts' Don't Check Out ]
Source: Threat Level (Wired.com)

Paul Krugman, columnist for the New York Times, has this one spot on:

Did you hear about how Barack Obama wants to have sex education in kindergarten, and called Sarah Palin a pig? Did you hear about how Ms. Palin told Congress, “Thanks, but no thanks” when it wanted to buy Alaska a Bridge to Nowhere?

These stories have two things in common: they’re all claims recently made by the McCain campaign – and they’re all out-and-out lies.

Dishonesty is nothing new in politics. I spent much of 2000 – my first year at The Times – trying to alert readers to the blatant dishonesty of the Bush campaign’s claims about taxes, spending and Social Security.

But I can’t think of any precedent, at least in America, for the blizzard of lies since the Republican convention. The Bush campaign’s lies in 2000 were artful – you needed some grasp of arithmetic to realize that you were being conned. This year, however, the McCain campaign keeps making assertions that anyone with an Internet connection can disprove in a minute, and repeating these assertions over and over again.

Well said, Paul. And speaking of internet connections, we’ll do our best to make sure we keep blasting the truth through this fog of lies.

[ Blizzard of Lies ]
Source: The New York Times (courtesy of TruthOut)

On today, the day after September 11th, it’s worth pointing out how some people in power took advantage of a tragic moment that will live forever in the minds and hearts of Americans and in American history as an opportunity to seize power and inject the American people with a healthy dose of fear, uncertainty, and doubt.

The more frightened the American people were, the more they could keep us controlled, and slowly but surely we’re breaking out of that shell. Why? We’re coming to terms with the failures of the people who have propagated these lies, and we’re looking back in time and rethinking our frightened, knee-jerk reactions to the fear they’ve fostered. With that in mind, here’s a few myths about national security that have been repeated so often in the media that you’ve likely heard them all before.

Some of the highlights? The myth that Islamofaacism is our greatest national security threat, the myth that we have to give up some civil liberties in times of war to keep us safe, the myth that we’re “fighting them there so we don’t have to fight them here,” one that makes me particularly sick, and the myth that our current strategy must be working because there hasn’t been another attack.

[ Ten Conservative Myths about National Security ]
Source: Campaign for America’s Future

I’m not really a “blame the media” kind of person, but when someone says something that’s flat out incorrect, a reporter or journalist should – if they know – take it on themselves to point out that what their subject has said is simply false, whether it’s an anchor or a reporter, during or after an interview or soundbite. Unfortunately, both John McCain and Sarah Palin have been parroting back the same boldface lies to throngs of supporters who desperately want to believe it’s true, with the hopes that if they keep repeating it, people will assume that it is. Sorry, it’s not.

It’s completely clear that the McCain campaign is outright lying about Sarah Palin’s opposition to the bridge to nowhere. It’s almost comical how many news stories have debunked it (here’s a pretty thorough list). And the Obama campaign is not being passive about it, either. Not in any way.

On the same day that dozens of news organizations have exposed Governor Palin’s phony Bridge to Nowhere claim as a ‘naked lie,’ she and John McCain continue to repeat the claim in their stump speeches. Maybe tomorrow she’ll tell us she sold it on eBay,” said Obama campaign spokesman Tommy Vietor.

And this is only one of a host of lies that McCain and Palin have uttered on the stump and in interviews. McCain, who has abandoned virtually every “maverick” instinct he’s ever had, just yesterday blasted Obama for wanting to cancel a weapons system that he himself opposed just a few years ago. This has happened multiple times and it’s not going to stop. In fact, Palin is STILL saying that she opposed the bridge to nowhere on the campaign trail. She’s lied about it at least 23 times.

23 times she’s lied, and her supporters are eating it up. Why? These are the same folks who still believe that Obama is a closet muslim. They’ll likely believe anything if it’s fed to them by the people they agree with.

[ The Media Still Refuse to Call McCain What He Is: a Liar ]
Source: Alternet

Need more proof that the right-wing is the wrong-wing? Over at the Campaign for America’s Future’s Making Sense blog, there’s a fabulous and well-cited run-down of our most recent top-ten conservative failures, from the Iraq War and the money pit it’s created to Hurricane Katrina blowing the lid off of FEMA and Bush Administration incompetence (“Brownie, you’re doing a hell of a job?” Can you believe that clown was invited to comment on Faux News before Hurricane Gustav came through?), to the housing crisis, torture and warrantless wiretapping, the drowning of the middle class, big oil reaping record profits while Americans struggle to pay for gas, and more.

Hit the highlighted topics or drill down for as much information – and associated facts – as you can handle, it’s incredibly well written and a stark reminder of what’s at stake in this election.

[ Top Ten Conservative Failures ]
Source: Campaign for America’s Future

One Alaska mother, Anne Kilkenny, took it on herself to send her own thoughts about Sarah Palin to a group of friends after Palin was announced as John McCain’s running mate. That one email – lengthy and detailed, full of truths, slams, and compliments, managed to make its way around the world. And frankly, it’s worth reading. One woman who’s known Palin for 16 years shares her real thoughts and feelings about her, and if America wants to know the woman who thinks she can be a heartbeat from the Presidency, they should read it as well.

For example:

Sarah campaigned in Wasilla as a “fiscal conservative”. During her 6 years as Mayor, she increased general government expenditures by over 33%. During those same 6 years the amount of taxes collected by the City increased by 38%. This was during a period of low inflation (1996-2002). She reduced progressive property taxes and increased a regressive sales tax which taxed even food. The tax cuts that she promoted benefited large corporate property owners way more than they benefited residents.

…

As an oil producer, the high price of oil has created a budget surplus in Alaska. Rather than invest this surplus in technology that will make us energy independent and increase efficiency, as Governor she proposed distribution of this surplus to every individual in the state.

In this time of record state revenues and budget surpluses, she recommended that the state borrow/bond for road projects, even while she proposed distribution of surplus state revenues: spend today’s surplus, borrow for needs.

She’s not very tolerant of divergent opinions or open to outside ideas or compromise. As Mayor, she fought ideas that weren’t generated by her or her staff. Ideas weren’t evaluated on their merits, but on the basis of who proposed them.

While Sarah was Mayor of Wasilla she tried to fire our highly respected City Librarian because the Librarian refused to consider removing from the library some books that Sarah wanted removed. City residents rallied to the defense of the City Librarian and against Palin’s attempt at out-and-out censorship, so Palin backed down and withdrew her termination letter. People who fought her attempt to oust the Librarian are on her enemies list to this day.

Sarah complained about the “old boy’s club” when she first ran for Mayor, so what did she bring Wasilla? A new set of “old boys”.

Read the whole message at the link below.

Anne has had the bravery to tell the world the truth about a woman who was chosen specifically to draw the spotlight because so little was known about her – someone who could change the political debate this fall from the issues and the truth to lies and personality, and so far it seems to be working. Here’s hoping we can shift the focus back in time before the election.

[ The Sarah Palin I Know ]
Source: Alternet

Earlier this week, we learned that Sarah Palin said “being a small-town mayor is kind of like being a community organizer, except you have actual responsibility.”

Really Ms. Palin? Actual responsibility?

(click to embiggen)

There’s some excellent commentary on this and other topics at the ever-eloquent Ill Doctrine. Check out this video for specifics:

While “Moose Burgers” Palin is out riding her snowmobile and gunning animals for food with assault weapons (and somehow Republicans actually admire her for these things), those “community organizers” are rallying events larger than the population of her city, and bringing real Americans together to solve the real problems that she and her party refuse to solve.

I almost feel bad for coming out at Palin with both guns blazing like this, but after I saw this Daily Show clip today, I really just couldn’t resist:

It takes something very very special to call out Karl Rove and throw him under his own proverbial campaign bus. If the video ended there, it’d already be a masterpiece, but it doesn’t end there – it keeps going. And it’s fantastic.

“In Dick Morris’ defense…he is a lying sack of sh*t.” Absolutely glorious.

[ Sarah Palin Gender Card ]
Source: The Daily Show

Along with all of the other speakers at the Republican convention last night, Palin claimed that she spoke for “ordinary Americans,” “small-town America,” and essentially everyone who’s not part of the “Washington DC elite.” Well, sorry Sarah, I’m not part of that elite, I’m definitely an ordinary American, and you most certainly do not speak for me or my values, and you don’t speak at all for justice, equality, or any of the other values that most Americans hold dear.

In the same night, other speakers at the Republican convention derided those ordinary Americans for organizing and trying to make their voices heard – they outright laughed at people who dare to blog about their comedies of errors, speak out against their injustices, or speak up for candidates and lawmakers and organizations seeking the common good.

The fine folks at PFAW have started a campaign to show Palin that she most certainly doesn’t speak for us, and I think it’s worthwhile to share, and it’s definitely worthwhile to add your name to the petition. Why doesn’t Palin speak for me? Here’s a few reasons:

* Denying a rape victim the right to choose abortion: That’s not the American Way
* Prohibiting partner benefits for same-sex couples: That’s not the American Way
* The teaching of religious creationism in public school science classes: That’s not the American Way
* The banning of books from public libraries: That’s not the American Way
* Opposing hate crimes laws that protect gays and lesbians: That’s not the American Way

She opposes freedom of speech, reproductive choice, gay equality and gives short shrift to separation of church and state. She doesn’t speak for us. If she doesn’t speak for you, add your name to the statement now and send it on to your friends.

Sounds right to me.

[ Sarah Palin Does Not Speak for Me! ]
Source: People for the American Way

Why don’t the Republicans want to talk about the Economy? Because they know full well they’ve got nothing, they know they’ve got nothing to talk about, and the ones who do want to talk will make themselves look foolish because they think the economy is in great shape, there is no housing crisis, and everything’s fine – mostly because their health and wealth are made on the backs of the millions of Americans who are suffering in today’s economy.

Well, Barack Obama has a few choice words for not just the Republicans, but for all of those people in St. Paul who seem to think the plight of the average American just isn’t worth talking about:

[ Obama Slams Republicans on the Economy ]
Source: TruthOut