#1: REVELATIONS THAT
SENIOR WHITE HOUSE ADVISER DAVID PLOUFFE ACCEPTED MONEY FROM A FIRM THAT HAD
TIES WITH IRAN, SYRIA, AND WAR CRIMINAL CHARLES TAYLOR
The Washington Post Headline: “Obama
Associate Got $100,000 Fee From Affiliate Of Firm Doing Business With Iran.” (Tom
Hamburger and Peter Wallsten, “Obama Associate Got $100,000 Fee From Affiliate
Of Firm Doing Business With Iran,” The Washington Post ,
8/6/12)
Plouffe Accepted A
Speaking Engagement From A Company “That Has Come Under Intensified Scrutiny
Because Of Its Activities In Iran And Syria.” “Since Plouffe’s speeches,
MTN Group has come under intensified scrutiny from U.S. authorities because of
its activities in Iran and Syria, which are under international sanctions
intended to limit the countries’ access to sensitive technology. At the time of
Plouffe’s speeches, MTN had been in a widely reported partnership for five
years with a state-owned Iranian telecommunications firm.” (Tom Hamburger and
Peter Wallsten, “Obama Associate Got $100,000 Fee From Affiliate Of Firm Doing
Business With Iran,” The Washington Post ,
8/6/12)
MTN Is Suspected Of Being
“Fully Owned” By The Iranian Revolutionary Guard. “MTN is in business with
Irancell, which according to a 2006 American government cable obtained by the
group WikiLeaks is ‘fully owned’ by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps,
considered a central instrument of repression in Iran.” (Peter Baker, “Aide’s
Fee Draws Critics and, Then Defenders,” The New York Times, 8/7/12)
- According To United Against
Nuclear Iran, MTN “Carried Out Orders From The Regime To Shut Off Text
Messaging And Skype During Times Of Political Protest …” “According
to a nonpartisan advocacy group called United Against Nuclear Iran, MTN
‘carried out orders from the regime to shut off text messaging and Skype
during times of political protest, and reportedly has a floor in its
Tehran headquarters where Iranian military officials compile and access
tracking data. That data has been used to track, apprehend, torture and
kill regime opponents.’ ‘Simply put,’ the group said in a statement, ‘MTN
has blood on its hands.’” (Peter Baker, “Aide’s Fee Draws Critics and,
Then Defenders,” The New York Times ,
8/7/12)
Obama’s Secretary Of
Defense Signed A Letter From United Against Nuclear Iran That Attacked MTN For
Claiming To Be A “Liberating Force” In Iran While It Carried Out Orders From
The Regime To Suppress Dissent. “In addition, given MTN’s
relationship with the regime, MTN's assertion that it is a ‘liberating force,’
‘enriching the lives’ of Iranians is completely untenable. MTN cannot
reasonably assert that the substantial profits it earns from its growing role
in the Iranian telecommunications market are merely a byproduct of a larger
altruistic goal to empower the citizens of Iran and the developing world. If
MTN was truly interested in empowering the Iranian people, it would not partner
with the regime that oppresses them, and it would surely not carry out orders
from the regime to shut off communications during times of popular protest.”
(Letter To Sifiso Dabengwa, President and CEO Of MTN Group, United Against A Nuclear Iran, 2/29/12)
Prior To Plouffe’s
Decision To Speak At MTN, U.N. Investigators Suspected That MTN’s Liberia
Subsidiary Was A Continuing Source Of Income For Convicted War Criminal Charles
Taylor. (Doreen
Carvajal, “As Liberian Stands Trial, Investigators Lose Scent In Hunt For
Missing Millions,” The New York Times, 6/6/10)
- Charles Taylor’s Former
Vice-President Testified That Taylor Became A Secret Part Owner Of MTN’s
Liberian Subsidiary. (Doreen Carvajal, “As Liberian Stands
Trial, Investigators Lose Scent In Hunt For Missing Millions,” The New York Times, 6/6/10)
#2: A “DISGUSTING” NEW
OBAMA AD FAILS
Priorities USA Has An Ad
Featuring A Former Steelworker Who “Appears To Blame Romney For the Death Of
His Wife.” “Joe Soptic, a former steelworker, makes yet another appearance
in a pro-Obama ad, this time for the Super PAC Priorities USA Action. We have
examined this case before, and for the benefit of readers we repeat our main
points from an earlier column that awarded the Obama campaign One Pinocchio for
the use of this case study against presumptive GOP nominee Mitt Romney. Most
controversially, Soptic this time appears to blame Romney for the death of his
wife after he lost his health insurance when the steel plant closed.” (Glen
Kessler, “New Anti-Romney Ad: Same Steelworker, Tougher Message,” The
Washington Post’s “FactChecker,” 8/7/12)
- The Washington Post’s FactChecker:
“Four Pinocchios.” (Glen Kessler, “New Anti-Romney Ad: Same
Steelworker, Tougher Message,” The Washington Post’s “FactChecker,” 8/7/12)
- CNN: “Ad Linking Romney To Death
Of The Wife Of A Laid Off Steelworker Inaccurate.” (Brianna
Keilar, “Ad Linking Romney To Death Of The Wife Of A Laid Off Steelworker
Inaccurate.”CNN, 8/7/12)
NOW: “Asked About The Ad On
Tuesday And Wednesday, Obama Campaign Officials Refused To Comment.” “Asked about the ad on
Tuesday and Wednesday, Obama campaign officials refused to comment, saying the
legal separation between campaigns and super PACs meant they had no part in the
spot's production.” (“Pro-Obama Super PAC Defends Controversial Ad,” CNN, 8/8/12)
- THEN: In 2007,
Obama Called Upon His Opponents To Own Up To Outside Group Expenditures On
Their Behalf.
OBAMA: “[Y]ou can’t say yesterday, you don’t believe in ‘em, and today,
you’re having three-quarters of a million dollars being spent for you. You
can’t just talk the talk.” (Sen. Barack Obama, Remarks At A Campaign
Event, Oskaloosa, IA, 12/22/07)
- THEN: Obama: “I
Don’t Just Talk The Talk; I Walk The Walk.” OBAMA: “I
don’t just talk the talk; I walk the walk. ... I’ve been doing this all my
life.” (Sen. Barack Obama, Remarks At A Campaign Event, Oskaloosa, IA, 12/22/07)
Former Bill Clinton
Adviser Lanny Davis: Priorities USA’s Ad Is “Disgusting.” “On @WMALMornings, Lanny
Davis calls PrioritiesUSA cancer ad ‘disgusting,’ says Obama should repudiate
it.” (Steven Portnoy, Twitter Feed, 8/9/12)
MSNBC’s Mika Brzezinski:
“They're Not Telling The Truth.” “There's no price to pay, because
they can say, ‘Well, I don't know the details.’ You know what, at least on this
show, that's just not going to pass. They're not telling the truth.” (MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” 8/9/12)
MSNBC’s Joe Scarborough:
“This Is So Short-Sighted And Stupid.” “‘This is so short-sighted and
stupid that I can't believe an organization that is this good has allowed
themselves to be caught in such petty lies over the last 24 hours,’ added
Scarborough.” (MSNBC’s “Morning Joe,” 8/9/12)
CNN’s Brianna Keilar:
“It’s Not Accurate.” “A new attack ad by a Super PAC backing President Obama appears to
blame Mitt Romney for a woman's death from cancer after his company, Bain
Capital, shut down the steel mill where the woman's husband worked. … It's a
very heart-wrenching story, but it’s not accurate. Here is the actual
timeline…” (Brianna Keilar, “Ad Linking Romney To Death Of The Wife Of A Laid
Off Steelworker Not Accurate,” CNN, 8/7/12)
Time ’s Michael Crowley:
“The Ad Is Scurrilous.” “It is at once the most dishonest and substantive
ad of the summer. Narrowly judged, the ad is scurrilous.” (Michael Crowley,
“That Priorities USA Ad: Dishonest But Important,” Time, 8/8/12)
#3: NEWLY RELEASED EMAILS
SHOW OBAMA TOOK AN INTEREST IN SOLYNDRA’S LOAN PROGRAM BECAUSE IT CAME UP AT
“POLITICAL EVENTS”
