TITLE: "Family."
LENGTH: 30 seconds.
AIRING: Colorado, Iowa, Michigan, Missouri, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Wisconsin.
SCRIPT: Announcer: "Is the biggest celebrity in the world ready to help your family? The real Obama promises higher taxes, more government spending, so fewer jobs. Renewable energy to transform our economy, create jobs and energy independence, that's John McCain."
McCain: "I'm John McCain and I approved this message."
KEY IMAGES: Obama is seen walking on stage before throngs of cheering supporters in Berlin, with light bulbs flashing as he works the crowd. It cuts to a picture of two smiling children while the words, "Obama: Ready to help your family?" appear on screen. As the female announcer touts McCain's energy plan, the Republican is shown shaking hands with a voter while an American flag waves in the background and later touring a plant. Shots of windmills and an offshore oil rig also appear.
ANALYSIS:
The ad plays off a theme that the McCain campaign has been pushing ever since Obama's tour of Europe last month — that Obama is a worldwide celebrity but not a leader ready to be president. This ad opens another line of attack — that the country would lose jobs if the Democrat's economic policies were enacted.
The McCain campaign backs up the claim by citing calculations that say Obama's plan to increase taxes on the wealthy would lead business owners to cut hiring.
The Obama campaign says the calculations ignore job-creating tax cuts he has proposed, including a 50% tax credit for small business contributions to health premiums, and his plans to create jobs in the energy and construction fields. Obama economic policy director Jason Furman also said the Democrat would cut capital gains taxes to zero for small and start up businesses, permanently extend the research and development tax credit and provide new tax benefits for companies that create jobs in the U.S.
Obama has said he would raise taxes on the wealthy — those making more than $250,000 a year — to fund more government spending that includes health care, energy and jobs programs. Obama also has proposed $80 billion a year in tax cuts for lower income earners including worker, homeowners, retirees and parents. So saying he promises higher taxes is only half the story.
___
Analysis by Nedra Pickler
___
On the Net: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v_3DxDBH9nn4