Howard Dean slams McCain for treatment of Cobell

Howard Dean slams McCain for treatment of Cobell
TUESDAY, AUGUST 26, 2008
Filed Under: Cobell | Politics 

Howard Dean, the chairman of the Democratic National Committee, criticized Sen. John McCain 's (R-Arizona) for his treatment of Elouise Cobell, the lead plaintiff in the Indian trust fund lawsuit.

During a June 26, 2005, hearing before the Senate Indian Affairs Committee, McCain chastised Cobell for comments she made about a trust reform bill. Although Cobell apologized for the comments, McCain treated her in a hostilemanner, Dean said yesterday.

"He treated her like dirt. It was a disgrace. There's going to be a big difference between a John McCain presidency and a Barack Obama presidency for Indian Country," Dean told Native delegates to theDemocratic National Convention, The Durango Herald reported.

McCain later promised to give the Cobell case "one good shot" during his tenure as chairman of the Indian Affairs Committee. He withdrew plans for an $8 billion settlement at the last minute

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Sarah Palin on Taxes

The Statement: At a debate Thursday, Oct. 2 in St. Louis, Missouri, Republican vice presidential candidate Gov. Sarah Palin charged Democrat Sen. Barack Obama of supporting higher taxes. "Barack had 94 opportunities to side on the people's side and reduce taxes, and 94 times he voted to increase taxes or not support a tax reduction — 94 times."

Get the facts!

The Facts: The effort to convince voters that Sen. Barack Obama would support higher taxes is a central part of Sen. John McCain's presidential campaign. McCain and the Republican National Committee have repeatedly cited 94 alleged votes by Obama to bolster their argument. Factcheck.org, a non-partisan project of the University of Pennsylvania's Annenberg Public Policy Center, pieced through records to determine just what these 94 instances were. Key findings:

–23 were against proposed tax cuts.

— 7 were "for measures that would have lowered taxes for many, while raising them on a relative few, either corporations or affluent individuals."

– 11 were to increase taxes on people making more than $1 million a year, to help fund programs such as Head Start, school nutrition, or veterans' health care.

– 53 were votes on budget resolutions or amendments that "could not have resulted by themselves in raising taxes," though many "were clear statements of approval for increased taxes"

The total also includes multiple votes on the same measures. Annenberg says a close look at the record reveals that Obama has "voted consistently to restore higher tax rates on upper income taxpayers but not on middle- or low-income workers."

The Verdict: Misleading. Palin's summary ignores the fact that some of the votes were for measures to lower taxes for many Americans, while increasing them for a much smaller number of taxpayers. The total also includes multiple votes on the same measures and budget votes that would not directly lead to higher taxes