Judging by who John McCain listens to and who Gordon Smith caters to, their answer is yes.
McCain has surrounded himself with lobbyist advisers, and Gordon Smith has spent his years in Washington, D.C. becoming a vending machine for votes for the special interests.
With Republican presidential nominee John McCain coming to Oregon on Monday to raise checks of $33,100, it’s time to examine McCain and Smith’s special interest ties.
Smith Is a Vending Machine For Votes
After cashing in more than a quarter million dollars from pharmaceutical and health care special interests, Smith voted to ban the federal government from negotiating lower drug prices for seniors, opposed improving Medicare and left rural seniors medically stranded.
Smith has also raised millions from Big Oil and the other special interests who control his vote on climate change. He has heeded his special interest bosses and opposed Democratic U.S. Senator Ron Wyden’s bill combating climate change.
McCain's Campaign Is Run By Lobbyists
From his senior advisers to his national political director, McCain's lobbyist roots are deep, longstanding and troubling.
“John McCain, who made his name attacking special interests, has more lobbyists working on his staff or as advisers than any of his competitors, Republican or Democrat.”
(Thomas B. Edsall, The Huffington Post, 6-23-07)
“All told, there are 11 current or former lobbyists working for or advising McCain, at least double the number in any other campaign. Among the current and former lobbyists working for McCain are: Campaign CEO Rick Davis, a partner at Davis Manafort, where his clients have included SBC Communications and Verizon; and former Davis Manafort associate, National eCampaign Director Christian Ferry. At the end of 2006, Mike Dennehy, who founded The Dennehy Group, a New Hampshire lobbying firm, was appointed McCain's national political director. He gave up that post in May to become a senior campaign advisor.”
(Thomas B. Edsall, The Huffington Post, 6-23-07)
“After championing campaign finance reform and ethics legislation to score political points, he now has a staggering amount of lobbyists involved in every aspect of his campaign. In fact, two of the top three sources for John McCain's campaign cash are D.C. lobbying firms, and he looked the other way as Jack Abramoff bought and paid for the Republican Party and the Culture of Corruption.”
(Governor Howard Dean, DNC Email, 2-6-08)
“This tandem can’t be trusted to bring the change we need in Washington, D.C.,” DPO Executive Director Trent Lutz said. “Oregonians don’t want more special interest influence in Washington, D.C., they want less. Oregonians don't want a lobbyist-in-chief, they want a leader. Lobbyists have been telling Gordon Smith and John McCain how to vote for so long, they can't relate to Oregon's working families.”
As Part Of Statewide Protests, Oregonians In Smith’s Hometown Protest His Corporate Sponsored Opposition To Climate Change Bill
Gordon Smith has become a vending machine for votes. Special interests insert money and Gordon Smith produces any vote they want.
Following earlier protests in Eugene and Medford, Oregonians in Pendleton, U.S. Sen. Gordon Smith’s (R-OR) hometown, demanded that Smith stand up to his corporate donors and stop opposing important climate change legislation.
“Oregon cannot afford to have a senator whose special interest contributors have bought his opposition to fixing climate change,” said Ben Talley, Pendleton area organizer for the Stop Gordon Smith Campaign. “We can’t let Gordon Smith get away with serving the corporate interests rather than the people’s interests.”
“Why doesn’t Gordon Smith think Climate Change is a problem? Because he’s paid to ignore this crisis,” Talley said. “Smith has taken millions from Big Oil and other special interests who control his votes. In return, Smith has voted twice to keep $5 billion in tax breaks for Big Oil and oppose important climate change legislation.”
Smith’s donors have bought his opposition to the Lieberman-Warner Climate Security Act. Oregon’s other U.S. Senator, Democrat Ron Wyden, is a co-sponsor of the bill to combat climate change and the bill has bi-partisan support.
But Smith won't support this important legislation. Smith has taken millions of dollars from the special interests who oppose this legislation, including hundreds of thousands from Big Oil. For more information on how special interests control Smith’s votes, click here.
The bill would be an important step in combating climate change. It would cap greenhouse emissions and make appliances and buildings more energy efficient, according to The Register-Guard.
(The Register-Guard Editorial, 2-28-08)
The Eugene, Medford and Pendleton protests were held outside Smith’s offices. They were organized by the Stop Gordon Smith Campaign.
]]>Before he starts boasting about declarations, he should apologize to coastal communities for abusing them to get re-elected in 2002.
First, he worked with Vice President Dick Cheney and the White House in 2002 to divert Klamath River water to help him get re-elected. That water diversion ended up destroying Oregon’s coastal fishing communities.
Then, he denied his coordination with Cheney and the White House. Even though he had boasted about working with Cheney and run TV ads on his coordination with the White House.
Now, he wants to take credit for helping the communities he devastated in 2002.
I repeat, before Smith starts boasting about declarations, he should apologize to coastal communities for abusing them to get re-elected in 2002.
Is there any limit to what Gordon Smith will say to Oregonians or do to our natural resources to help him get elected? Apparently not.”
After watching you Say Anything for more than a decade, they don’t trust the ad, or you.
Smith’s positive ad has turned into an internet negative as bloggers from both right and left excoriate him for his Say Anything behavior.
A sample of the commentary from conservative blog Oregon Catalyst:
“Gordon Smith is a shameless example of a politician without core principles, a true politician who says anything that is expedient for reelection.”
“He has been no less partisan than his party, which is quite partisan indeed. Here, Smith proves himself your standard pandering politician who will say anything to be elected. Anything.”
And from progressive blog Blue Oregon:
“By the way, did Gordon Smith ‘independently’ conclude he should vote with Bush 90% of the time.”
]]>
In the past 12 months, our Stop Gordon Smith Campaign has protested several times at Smith's events and his Oregon offices, created web videos, handed out flyers at more than 100 events throughout the state and sent more than 110 press releases to reporters.
We've earned coverage on OPB, in The Oregonian and The Register-Guard and numerous other TV, radio, newspaper and blog outlets from Oregon to Washington, D.C.
Let's look at how you've held Gordon Smith accountable. For selling his votes to the special interests, for saying anything, and for opposing Oregon's Democratic U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden.
Flyers And Videos
Stop Gordon Smith activists have passed out flyers on Smith's record on everything from civil rights to Iraq and signed up supporters at more than 100 events across Oregon.
Click here to download flyers.
Thousands of people have watched our online videos. We've even inspired supporters to send us their own videos explaining why they want to Stop Gordon Smith.
Protesting The Special Interest Senator
June - Veterans led the way in June 2007, protesting Smith's continued votes for the Iraq War and dismal ratings from Disabled American Veterans.
December - Stop Gordon Smith Campaign protestors rallied outside all five of Smith's Oregon offices to expose his Say Anything pattern on the Iraq War. Five protests, in one day, outside all of a U.S. Senator's state offices. It was an Oregon first.
January - A month later, protestors greeted Smith in Medford at one of his rare public appearances in Oregon.
April - Medford and Eugene activists gathered outside Smith's offices the day before Earth Day to protest him for becoming a vending machine for votes, especially on the environment.
Exposing His Record
The Stop Gordon Smith Campaign makes sure that reporters get the facts on the Say Anything Senator's record, from his documented doubletalk and his opposition to a woman's right to choose, to how he's become a vending machine for votes.
Keep It Up!
With only six months left until the election, we need your help more than ever.
Sign your friends up for the campaign, pass out flyers, make a video, and keep sending in those letters to the editor.
Thank you for all your work!
Together, we will Stop Gordon Smith.
Marc Siegel
Communications Director
Democratic Party of Oregon
Democratic candidates are debating Sunday at Pacific University in Forest Grove. Here are the questions we hope reporters will ask Smith on Sunday.
-It’s 3 a.m. and the phone rings. It’s Big Oil and your other special interest friends thanking you for your loyalty and asking you to continue opposing Ron Wyden’s climate change bill. At 4 a.m., your Oregon constituents call and ask you to stand up to the special interests and support the bill. What will you tell your constituents?
-Blue Oregon’s Jeff Alworth recently reported that you consistently vote with Republicans on close votes in the U.S. Senate.
More so than many other Republican U.S. Senators. When your influence matters most, why do you exercise it least?
-During your 2002 campaign you ran TV ads saying you would not vote to drill for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Then, you voted to drill for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in 2005 and 2006. Given that track record, how can you assure voters they can believe your 2008 campaign statements?
-If you could spend your time purchasing million dollar golf clubs or fighting for the middle class, what would you do? Never mind, you already answered that question.
It started on a blog.
Blue Oregon editor Jeff Alworth’s revealing look at voting numbers shows Republican Gordon Smith consistently votes with Republicans and cancels out Oregon's Democratic U.S. Senator, Ron Wyden. And he caters to conservatives on almost every key vote where he could make a difference.
Click here to read the full post with the clear charts that debunk the Smith Myth. IT’S WORTH THE FEW MINUTES IT TAKES TO READ IT.
Click here to listen to Alworth’s quick explanation yesterday on KPOJ’s morning radio show.
Key Excerpts:
Reliable GOP Vote
“One of the handiest features allows you to see how often your Senator voted with his party. With Gordon Smith, an interesting pattern emerges. In the 105th and 106th Congresses--when Smith was not up for re-election--he was a reliable Republican vote. In fact, he voted with the GOP majority about 3% more often than his colleagues did on average. But during the 107th Congress, when he was running for re-election, he mavericked up, voting with the Republicans less frequently than his colleagues. So now that he's prepping up for the fight of his life, would you guess that he's mavericking up again?”
(Jeff Alworth, Blue Oregon, 4-21-08)
When Tough Votes Are Up
“Another way to assess Smith's maverick bona fides is to examine what he did when the vote was on the line. It's one thing to vote against drilling ANWR, as he did in 2005, when the outcome was not in doubt. But what about when it is in doubt? For each session, the Post lists the dozen or so closest votes, including names of defectors. You would imagine that a maverick like Gordon Smith would take brave stands against his caucus even when it meant scuttling their position, right? You would imagine wrong.”
(Jeff Alworth, Blue Oregon, 4-21-08)
"The Post had 12 close votes listed for 1999 (106th), and 15 for 2001 (107th). The GOP had pretty loose party unity in '99--just 88.4%. In '01, it was a more unified 95.2%. The number of times Gordon Smith deviated from the majority in these close votes: zero. Nada. None for 27. By contrast, Arlen Specter (R-PA) was a real maverick. In these close votes, he dissented from his party 58% and 40% of the time. Susan Collins (R-ME), Olympia Snowe (R-ME), and George Voinovich (R-OH) were all far more maverick than our man Gordon."
(Jeff Alworth, Blue Oregon, 4-21-08)
Cancelling Out Ron Wyden
“For Oregonians, that means we have had a Senator cancelling out every effort Ron Wyden has made to end the war, address health care and wages, and make progress on the environment. For the next seven months, we're gong to hear a lot of hype about Smith's 'independence' in the Senate. Don't believe it--he is and has voted like a good, orthodox Republican, making sure the agenda of George W. Bush has had smooth sailing. The numbers tell us so.”
(Jeff Alworth, Blue Oregon, 4-21-08)
In an editorial today The Oregonian said it will watch closely how candidates handle climate change this election cycle.
“Thus the challenge for us in making endorsements -- and ultimately for voters in marking their ballots -- lies in distinguishing the sincerely green candidates from the Sam Brownback fakes. Global warming isn't the only crushing issue, of course, but it's a big one, requiring voters to weigh some tough questions in making their choices.”
(The Oregonian Editorial, 4-22-08)
So, where does Smith stand on the issue?
Smith’s donors have bought his opposition to the Lieberman-Warner Climate Security Act. Wyden is a co-sponsor of the bill to combat climate change and the bill has bi-partisan support.
But Smith won't support this important legislation. He’s taken millions of dollars from the special interests who oppose this legislation, including hundreds of thousands from Big Oil.
Oregonians made that point yesterday as they protested outside Smith's offices in Eugene and Medford.
Smith’s environmental negligence is no surprise. He consistently earns low environmental ratings, including an anemic 14 percent from League of Conservation Voters in 2006.
And he has consistently chosen to provide tax breaks for Big Oil over funding alternative energy development.
“Gordon Smith’s record shows that the only green he cares about is campaign cash,” DPO Chair Meredith Wood Smith said. "Gordon Smith has become a vending machine for votes. Special interests insert money and Gordon Smith will oppose climate change legislation, provide tax breaks to Big Oil and vote any way the special interests want him to."
On the eve of Earth Day, protestors in Eugene and Medford demanded that U.S. Sen. Gordon Smith (R-OR) stand up to his corporate donors and stop opposing important climate change legislation.
“Oregon cannot afford to have a senator whose special interest contributors have bought his opposition to fixing climate change,” State Rep. Paul Holvey (D-Eugene) said in Eugene. “We can’t let Gordon Smith get away with serving the corporate interests rather than the people’s interest.”
“Why doesn’t Gordon Smith think Climate Change is a problem? Because he’s paid to ignore this crisis,” Allen Hallmark said in Medford. Hallmark is a Southern Oregon organizer for the Stop Gordon Smith Campaign. “Smith has taken millions from Big Oil and other special interests who control his votes. In return, Smith has voted twice to keep $5 billion in tax breaks for Big Oil and oppose important climate change legislation.”
Smith’s donors have bought his opposition to the Lieberman-Warner Climate Security Act. Oregon’s other U.S. Senator, Democrat Ron Wyden, is a co-sponsor of the bill to combat climate change and the bill has bi-partisan support.
But Smith won't support this important legislation. Smith has taken millions of dollars from the special interests who oppose this legislation, including hundreds of thousands from Big Oil. For more information on how special interests control Smith’s votes, click here.
The bill would be an important step in combating climate change. It would cap greenhouse emissions and make appliances and buildings more energy efficient, according to the Register Guard.
(The Register Guard Editorial, 2-28-08)
Both protests were held outside Smith’s senate offices in Eugene and Medford. They were organized by the Stop Gordon Smith Campaign.
]]>Gordon Smith's special interest contributors have bought his opposition to the Lieberman-Warner Climate Security Act.
They have bought his opposition to combating climate change.
This Monday, April 21, we need to remind Smith that he's in Washington D.C. to represent Oregonians, not the corporations who fund his campaigns.
The Climate Security Act has bi-partisan support in the U.S. Senate. Oregon's other U.S. Senator, Democrat Ron Wyden, is a co-sponsor. Yet Smith won't stand up to his corporate backers and support this bill.
So, stand up for Oregon and our environment on April 21 in Eugene and Medford. Remind Gordon Smith that he works for us, not the special interests.
Eugene State Rep. Paul Holvey and Central Lane and Linn County State Rep. Phil Barnhart will speak at noon outside Smith's Eugene office. Southern Oregon Stop Gordon Smith Campaign organizer Allen Hallmark will speak outside Smith's Medford office.
And if you can't make it to Eugene or Medford, let your friends in those cities know about these events.
Read all the details on the jump!
Why:
U.S. Sen. Gordon Smith's (R-OR) special interest contributors have bought his opposition to the Lieberman-Warner Climate Security Act.
Smith refuses to support the Lieberman-Warner Climate Security Act. Smith should support the bill, which has been co-sponsored by U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) and a bipartisan coalition. Climate change demands immediate action.
When:
Monday, April 21, 2008. 12-1 PM.
Where:
Outside Senator Smith's Eugene and Medford Offices
Eugene:
Wayne Morse Federal Courthouse
405 East 8th Avenue
Eugene, OR 97401
Medford:
Security Plaza
1175 East Main
Medford, OR 97504
Who:
Anyone who cares about the future of Oregon's environment should come. Oregonians who want their interests, not the special interests, represented in the U.S. Senate.
Bring A Sign!
Suggested messages:
StopGordonSmith.com
Smith + Big Oil $ = Climate Change
Gordon Smith: Big Oil's Senator
$pecial Interest $enator $mith
RSVP With:
Brent Sandmeyer
Democratic Party of Oregon
brent@dpo.org
That’s what Tax Day is for Gordon Smith’s special interest contributors. It’s the day they can tally up how many billions Gordon Smith is saving them in return for the millions they have contributed to his campaigns.
A couple examples. In each example, Smith cancelled out the vote of Oregon's Democratic U.S. Senator, Ron Wyden.
Smith Helped Protect $5 Billion In Big Oil Tax Breaks.
Tax loopholes that save the oil industry $5 billion were removed from the original Senate version of the GOP tax reconciliation bill in February 2006, but after heavy lobbying by the industry, Congressional negotiators reinserted them into the final bill. The $5 billion tax break for Big-Oil could have been used instead to partially offset the increase in middle class taxes. Gordon Smith voted for the final tax bill with the Big-Oil tax breaks.
[Republican Policy Committee, 2/7/06; Washington Post, 4/26/06; Joint Tax Committee, 5/9/06; Vote 118, 5/11/06]
Smith Opposed Efforts To Lower Drug Prices For Seniors.
Smith voted against an amendment to allow the federal government to negotiate volume discounts for seniors the way it does for military personnel and veterans.
[Senate vote #60, 3/17/05]
How did these industries earn Smith’s votes?
With checks to his campaigns.
The Say Anything Senator has accepted hundreds of thousands of dollars from the Pharmaceutical and Health Products Industry over the last several years.
Smith has raised nearly $1.5 million from Big Oil and the other special interests who control his reckless environmental votes against reducing greenhouse gases and lowering fuel standards.
“Gordon Smith’s record clearly shows he’s a vending machine for votes,” DPO Chair Meredith Wood Smith said. “Special interests insert money and Gordon Smith produces corporate tax breaks, overpriced prescription drugs and anything else they want.”
Open Left documents how Gordon Smith won’t support the Responsible Plan to End The War In Iraq, a plan that Oregon’s leading Democratic U.S. Senate candidates support.
No surprise as that position dovetails with Smith’s five votes in 2007 to continue the war. Five votes that cancelled out Democratic U.S. Senator Ron Wyden’s votes.
But, the Say Anything Senator, rather than standing by his opposition to the Responsible Plan and standing by his voting record to continue the war, takes hypocrisy to a new level by seeking credit for authoring the plan.
Open Left pinpoints the hypocrisy.
“That Gordon Smith is literally arguing he authored a plan to remove all troops from Iraq without endorsing that plan should give you a sense for how precarious the Republican position really is.”
(Matt Stoller, Open Left, 4-8-08)
“With his latest contradiction, the Say Anything Senator has made two things clear,” DPO Chair Meredith Wood Smith said. “One, unlike the leading Democratic U.S. Senate candidates, Gordon Smith does not support a Responsible Plan To End The War In Iraq. Two, he will say anything to get re-elected.”
But who is it from and how does it affect his votes?
As journalists report on the millions of dollars Gordon Smith will have for his re-election campaign, they’ve unearthed the most important questions about his fundraising.
Where are Gordon Smith’s contributions coming from and how do they shape his votes in Washington, D.C.?
Smith Fundraising In The News
“The race is being closely watched nationally. Smith, the only Republican in the Senate who represents a West Coast state, is considered vulnerable. But he has a big campaign finance advantage over all of the candidates.”
(AP, 4-5-08)
After the May 20 primary, Gordon Smith will “…face the morning with at least $8 million.”
(David Sarasohn Column, The Oregonian, 4-6-08)
“The Pendleton Republican far outpaces any of the Democrats in fund-raising and name recognition.”
(OPB, 4-4-08)
Special Interests And Smith
The special interests have gotten what they paid for out of Smith. He has taken millions of dollars from special interests and repaid their contributions with a voting record that favors Wall Street at the expense of Main Street.
While cashing in more than a quarter million dollars from pharmaceutical and health care special interests, Smith has voted to ban the federal government from negotiating lower drug prices for seniors, opposed improving Medicare and left rural seniors medically stranded. In all these votes he cancelled out Democratic U.S. Senator Ron Wyden’s vote.
Smith has raised nearly $1.5 million from Big Oil and the other special interests who control his vote on climate change. He has heeded his special interest bosses and opposed Wyden’s bill combating climate change.
“Gordon Smith has learned that when you deliver votes for the special interests, they deliver checks for your re-election,” DPO Chair Meredith Wood Smith said. “From ignoring climate change to neglecting seniors, the special interests have gotten their money’s worth out of Gordon Smith.”
Here are the questions we hope reporters will ask Smith tomorrow and Saturday.
-Why do you let special interest checks dictate your U.S. Senate votes? Big Oil donations have paid for your opposition to tackling climate change and raising fuel standards. Pharmaceutical industry dollars bought your votes to raise seniors’ prescription drug prices.
-How will you repair your relationship with the middle class now that they know you’ve earned failing grades from the TheMiddleClass.org Congressional Scorecard and have been criticized for spending $1.25 million (easily the cost of four middle class homes in Oregon) on golf clubs. Do you encourage Oregon’s working families to spend $1.25 million on leisure equipment rather than groceries, gas, medical bills or college?
-When will you apologize to Ron Wyden for consistently cancelling his votes in the U.S. Senate? You have cancelled out Ron Wyden more than 1,600 times in the U.S. Senate on heath care, climate change, Iraq and other key issues.
-During your 2002 campaign you ran TV ads saying you would not vote to drill for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Then, you voted to drill for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in 2005 and 2006. Given that track record, how can you assure voters they can believe your 2008 campaign statements?
-Even some of your supporters and allies have questioned the accuracy of your statements or the sincerity of your actions. Is this the first time your own supporters have criticized your accuracy and sincerity? If not, how have you dealt with this in the past?