Comments:

Ann: Sarah Palin is, in my mind, the worst choice John McCain could have made as his vice presidential pick. This was his first executive decision to show us how he would run his administration and it speaks volumes about his character and decision-making skills. Don’t be fooled by the glitz and glamour that Palin presents. She’s new and she attracts attention because we don’t know anything about her. But the fact that she is a woman and thus, in McCain’s opinion, will lead the women of America to vote for her is not only ridiculous, it is insulting. As something of a political junkie, I have read reams of information about Sarah Palin and have found that almost everything that comes out of her mouth in the campaign is a half-truth, lie or vicious lie.

Now, you may say, well she’s not running for president, McCain is. That’s true but the fact that McCain is supporting and repeating Palin’s lies, speaks to what we can expect from them should, God forbid, they end up in office together.

America cannot afford another administration who lies to citizens as easily as it breaths. Please take time to learn the truth before voting.

Here’s a little fact checking on Sarah Palin.

Bridge to Nowhere
Palin said, “I told the Congress, "Thanks, but no thanks," on that bridge to nowhere.”
Fact: Palin did eventually reject the project but only AFTER it was already dead. Congress had removed the earmark money, thus withdrawing support for the bridge, before Plain switched positions. Plan ran for governor on a platform supporting the bridge. As governor, Palin kept the money for Alaska that had been earmarked for the bridge. She never “told the Congress thanks, but no thanks.” She said, thanks and put that money in the state coffers without building the bridge.

Energy
Palin said, “Starting in January, in a McCain-Palin administration, we’re going to lay more pipelines … build more new-clear plants … create jobs with clean coal … and move forward on solar, wind, geothermal, and other alternative sources.”
Fact: If this is true it will be a direct contrast to past actions. Palin cut funding for renewable energy in 2007. She vetoed $20 million toward a Fire Island Wind Farm Project. In 2008 she cut $20 Million for Chugach Electric Association Wind Farm.
Palin also said, “America needs more energy; our opponent is against producing it.”
Fact: Obama is NOT not against producing more energy. In fact, he's not even against drilling for oil any more. He has a $150 billion clean energy program and says that he wants to develop clean coal technology, advance the next generation of biofuels, prioritize construction of the Alaska gas pipeline and take other steps to both conserve energy and produce it, in various forms.

Taxes
Palin said, “The Democratic nominee for president supports plans to raise income taxes, and raise payroll taxes, and raise investment income taxes, and raise the death tax, and raise business taxes, and increase the tax burden on the American people by hundreds of billions of dollars.”
Fact 1: Obama proposes to cut taxes for most individuals (81.3 percent of all households would get a tax cut), while raising them only for a relative few at the top.
Fact 2: Of the 50 states, Alaska ranks No. 1 in taxes per resident and No. 1 in spending per resident. Its tax burden per resident is 2.5 times the national average; its spending, more than double.
Fact 3:According to the National Tax Foundation, Alaska ranked 18th in federal taxes paid per resident ($5,434) but first in federal spending received per resident ($13,950). Its ratio of federal spending received to federal taxes paid ranks third among the 50 states, and in the absolute amount it receives from Washington over and above the amount it sends to Washington, Alaska ranks No. 1.

Gas Pipeline
Palin said, “I fought to bring about the largest private-sector infrastructure project in North American history. And when that deal was struck, we began a nearly $40 billion natural gas pipeline to help lead America to energy independence.
Fact: Construction hasn’t begun on the pipeline, and the project isn't even a done deal yet.

Votes and Popularity
At the convention, Republicans said Palin “got more votes running for mayor of Wasilla, Alaska, than Joe Biden got running for president of the United States.”
Fact: Palin received 651 votes in 1996, and 909 votes in 1999 in her two races for mayor of Wasilla. Biden, despite withdrawing from the race after the Iowa caucus, got 79,754 votes in the Democratic primaries.

Special Interest Lobbyists
Palin said, “I took on the old politics as usual in Juneau … when I stood up to the special interests, the lobbyists, big oil companies, and the good-ol’ boys network.”
Fact: Palin’s Lt. Governor is a former oil lobbyist. As mayor of Wasilla, she hired the first federal lobbyist for the town and had the support of entrenched Alaska politicians during her 2006 race.

Ties to Big Oil
Palin said, “Despite fierce opposition from oil company lobbyists, who kind of liked things the way they were, we broke their monopoly on power and resources.”
Fact: A cross section of environmental activists in Alaska cite Palin’s eagerness to embrace expanded offshore oil development, her lawsuit against further protection of polar bears so as not to hinder oil drilling in Alaska's ice-filled waters, and her ardent support to allow oil companies into the Alaska wildlife refuge. Palin accepted $13,000 from lobbyists representing the Oil Industry in her 2006 campaign for governor.

Big Government
Palin said, “Government is too big … he (Obama) wants to grow it. Congress spends too much … he promises more.”
Fact: Analysts say the McCain-Palin plan would increase the deficit more than the Obama-Biden plan would. The Wall Street Journal said the McCain-Palin tax cuts will either explode the federal deficit or require “unprecedented cuts” in federal spending on domestic programs. The national Tax Policy Center Report says the McCain-Palin budget would add $5 trillion to the debt over the next decade. It says the Obama-Biden plan would increase the national debt by an estimated $3.4 trillion in the next decade.

About Obama
Palin said Obama hasn’t authored “a single major law or even a reform” in the U.S. Senate or the Illinois Senate.
Fact: Obama has helped push through major ethics reforms in both bodies, and has a history of working with both parties to pass legislation. For example.
• In 2005, Obama passed law ensuring that wounded veterans recovering in military hospitals do not have to pay for their meals or phone calls to family members.
• In 2006, Obama sought the help of Republican Senator Richard Lugar and passed law to boost U.S. efforts to keep WMDs and other dangerous weapons out of the hand of terrorists.
• In 2006 Obama worked with Republicans to pass legislation, which became law, improving and increasing services for homeless veterans.
• In 2007, Obama proposals providing improvements in health care for recovering soldiers were passed into law, including requirements for post-deployment mental health screenings and a national study on the needs of Iraq war veterans.

Earmarks
This week, (September 8) McCain and Palin criticized Obama over the amount of money he has requested for his home state of Illinois.
Palin said, “Just the other day our opponent brought up earmarks — and frankly I was surprised that he would even raise the subject at all. I thought he wouldn't want to go there."
Facts: Prior to Palin’s election as mayor, the small town of Wasilla, Alaska had never received significant federal funds. Under her leadership, the town received almost $27 million in earmarks. Before selecting her as his running mate, Sen. McCain on three different occasions released as list of "objectionable" spending that included earmarks for Wasilla, requested by its mayor at the time — Sarah Palin. Palin continued to solicit federal funds as governor. She requested $160.5 million in earmarks for the state in 2008, and almost $198 million for 2009. By comparison, Barack Obama received less than $100 million in earmarked funds for Illinois last year.