Oregon: Smith Revealed!

Yes, Smith is Still a Republican

According to the Associated Press this morning, Senator Gordon Smith can't run from the GOP fast enough. Why would a proud Senator want to distance himself from his own party? Simple put, any political figure running for office that is associated with the GOP and President Bush is in serious danger of losing their seat. Mr. Smith has repeatedly attempted to counter the Democratic tidal wave by espousing his bipartisanship. His most recent television commercial runs depict this bipartisanship with claims of supporting popular democratic figures such as Senators Barack Obama and Ron Wyden. Meanwhile, Sen.Wyden has repeatedly requested that Mr. Smith remove the ads touting the supposed longtime friendship. Mr. Smith has refused, an act that would not be necessary were the relationship an honest one.

The fact is that most politicians are forced to work with their opponents from across the aisle in order to push through legislation. This doesn’t make them friends or partners or even allies. Shouldn’t Smith’s record be enough to support his bipartisanship claims? Democrats call Smith's bipartisan record — including opposition to Alaska oil drilling —misleading. "You can't be bipartisan and vote with Bush 90 percent of the time," said Oregon Democratic Chairwoman Meredith Wood Smith, no relation to the senator. "It just doesn't work."

Sounds like another Republican candidate running for office this year that voted 90 percent of the time with George W. Bush...

Do Our Leaders Feel Our Pain?

Oregonians have seen what can happen when our leaders leave working people behind.  Over the past months, we have watched as our families, friends and neighbors lose their jobs, their retirement, their healthcare, and even their homes.  We see our children sliding further behind in school and now, as Wallstreet gets billions in government bailouts, working people in Oregon are taking a close look at those making our decisions in Washington.  What do we see in Senator Gordon Smith?

Unfortunately for Smith, it's a bad time to be a wealthy, out of touch Senator.  Notably when his record consists of repeatedly voting against raising the minimum wage [Vote 278, S. Amdt. 3540 to S. 1301, 9/22/98; Vote 357, S. Amdt. 2547 to S. 625, 11/9/99; Vote 26, S. 256, 3/7/05]

AND

supporting legislation that would cripple the union's ability to represent working families on political and legislative issues (on the ballot again this year, Measure 64).  The rules Smith supported would have only applied to unions and not corporations, despite corporations outspending labor 11-1  [Vote 17, S. 1663, 2/26/98].

Perhaps The San Francisco Chronicle put it best this morning when it pointed out that, "No Republican says aristocrat like Sen. Gordon Smith of Oregon" and that "If Kerry looked like a professor at La Sorbonne, then Smith resembles a playboy at the Monte Carlo Casino".  Check out the whole editorial here.

 

Despite Last Minute Attempts to Distance Himself from the Bush Administration, Smith Falls Behind

Come election time, Sen. Gordon Smith is all over the map.

It's no secret that Americans are less than satisfied with the Bush Administration (see latest approval ratings) and Sen. Smith is no dummy. Take the following examples:

-Throughout his career, Smith has voted 80% of the time with President Bush. 

-This year, with his re-election campaign on the horizon and Bush's approval ratings in the toilet, that number dropped to 45% (see yesterday's article in the Congressional Quarterly).

The war in Iraq.  Smith voted for the war and supported it for four years before deciding it was a bad idea.

Unfortunately for Smith, some of his recent attempts to appear "middle of the road" have backfired.  Take his commercials featuring a Portland democrat championing Smith's support for gay rights.  In response, Basic Rights Oregon director has pointed out that Smith was "a poster child" for a 2004 constitutional amendment denying homosexuals the right to marry, and noting that "every election, [Gordon Smith] will roll out the same tired old political ads in Portland in an effort to look like a moderate...But the fact is that after more than a decade of Senator Smith, we still have no federal hate crimes law. We still have no federal nondiscrimination law".

Then there's Smith's attempt to align himself with popular democrats like Oregon Senator Ron Wyden who was featured in one of Smiths' ads.  Wyden recently cleared that up with his own ad declaring his support for Smith's opponent.

It appears as though being a Democrat isn't working for Smith.  Stay tuned for what's next...

Smith's Financial Policies Are Same Old, Same Old

Last night at the first of two debates between Senate Candidates Gordon Smith and Jeff Merkley, Sen. Smith name dropped popular democrats like John Kerry, Hillary Clinton and Ron Wyden.  He talked extensively about cutting taxes and reaching across the isle.  In all honestly it sounded like a speech straight out of the McCain-Palin-Bush ticket.  He acused Merkley of advocating for higher taxes on "families with children" and "farms and timber workers".  Personally, I don't know very many Oregonians who make over $250,000 a year...but I do know the facts about Gordon Smith:

-Sen. Smith voted for a tax cut bill in which 76 percent of the benefits went to the wealthiest 20 percent of Americans... 

...Then he then turned around and opposed tax relief for the middle-class by voting against

over $50 billion in tax relief for 23 million middle-class families in a bill that would have protected them from paying the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT). The AMT was originally designed to ensure the wealthy paid their fair share. (Vote 414, H.R. 3996, 12/6/07; [Vote 247, 1429, 7/30/99])

Isn't this argument about lowering taxes for the wealthiest citizens with no regard for the bulk of Americans-this "trickle-down" policy from the eighies-getting a little old?  When are we going to learn?

Can Smith Defend His Record Tonight?

At 7pm tonight, Sen. Gordon Smith will attempt to defend his record in the United States Senate at the first of two senatorial debates.  What will Smith say about healthcare, education and your social security?  How will he defend his refusal to raise the minimum wage? 

Let's start by taking look at his record on Health Care, an issue on the forefront of many American's thoughts, as more and more working people can't pay their bills and sometimes even lose their homes due to rising health care costs and a system that cares more about the insurance companies' profits than American citizens:

Smith Supported Weakened Patients Bill of Rights. Smith voted for an insurance industry backed bill that excluded 100 million Americans from access to health care and gave insurance companies final say on treatment. [Vote 210, S. 1344, 7/15/99]

Smith Opposed Medicare Prescription Drug Coverage. Smith voted against an amendment to authorize a voluntary and affordable prescription drug benefit in the Medicare program. (Vote 143, S. 3598, H.R. 4577, 6/22/00)

 

Meanwhile....

Smith Has Accepted Over $127,000 from the Health Insurance Industry and over $169,000 from Pharmaceutical Interests. Smith has accepted over $127,000 in campaign contributions from individuals who work for HMOs and other health service providers and over $169,000 from individuals who work for pharmaceutical and health products companies. (Center for Responsive Politics, Opensecrets.org, Accessed 5/20/08)

Gordon Smith & Undocumented Workers Update

Earlier we told you about a story by Portland's Willamette Week pointing to rampant hiring of illegal immigrants at food packaging businesses owned by Senator Gordon Smith--apparently a well-known "secret" in the area. Smith has also faced recent investigations into an unusually high number of on-the-job injuries at his worksite.

At the same time, Smith has voted with the Bush administration to oppose better safety and wage standards for workers and fair immigration reform.

So has Smith been rewarded for his allegiance to the "you're with us or your against us" Bush Administration? This administration hasn't hesitated to "raid" other similarly situated workplaces accused of similar worker abuses. But Gordon Smith and his companies have remained unscathed. We hope this isn't a result of cronyism at its worst.
That's why today the Oregon AFL-CIO filed Freedom of Information Act Request with the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Immigration and Customs Enforcement for all documents and correspondence related to businesses owned by Senator Gordon Smith since January 2001. These documents, we hope, will shed light on the truth about Gordon Smith's operations and whether the administration plays favorites when it's a U.S. Senator accused of worker abuses.

On the news front, Willamette Week has published two more stories about Smith's Frozen Foods exploitation of undocumented workers. Part two and part three.

Gordon Smith Touts "Revived Economy"

This month Senator Gordon Smith earned his place in the "severely out of touch politicians" Hall of Fame when he referred to a so-called revival of the American economy.

In the Jackson County Republican Newsletter Smith says,

As a member of the Senate Finance committee I have had the unique privilege to be closely involved in formulating economic policies aimed at growing the American job market, and increasing the vibrancy of our economy. Recent trends suggest that equipping Americans’ natural ingenuity with a favorable tax code has helped revive our economy, and I am proud to continue my commitment to that end. [Sept. 2008, Medford]

Smith's favorable tax code?  He voted for a tax cut bill in which 76 percent of the benefits went to the wealthiest 20 percent of Americans. [Vote 247, 1429, 7/30/99]

Now for a quiz:

Which of the following ACTUALLY represents the U.S. economy in 2008?

a) 605,000 jobs lost
b) Unemployment Rate at a 5-Year High
c) 2 Million Home Forclosures
d) 46 Million without Health Care
e) $4-a Gallon Gas Energy Crisis

Answer: All of the above. [CNNMoney.com, 6/8/08 & 9/5/08; Brookings Institute, 3/7/08; Associated Press, 9/5/08]

"Americans’ natural ingenuity with a favorable tax code has helped revive our economy" - Sen. Gordon Smith

Does this sound familiar to anyone else?

"I think, still, the fundamentals of our economy are strong" - John McCain, Jacksonville, Fla., Sept. 15th, 2008.

Smith Snubs America Jobs, Hires Undocumented Workers

Portland's Willamette Week published a story today accusing Republican Senator Gordon Smith of hiring undocumented workers at his family's food company, Smith Frozen Foods. But while Willamette Week admits to secondhand (though ample) evidence of the illegal hirings, there is no question about where Smith stands when it comes to American jobs and American workers.  He votes repeatedly against legislation that would protect American jobs and American standards.

• Smith Supported Importing Agricultural Workers.  Smith supported a bill to allow an almost limitless number of foreign workers into the United State for agriculture jobs and to gut existing worker protections.  [Vote 233, S. Amdt 3258 to S. 2260, 7/23/98]

• Yet he voted AGAINST an amendment to allow long-term, tax-paying Central American, Haitian, and Eastern European refugees to apply for visas to stay in the country without first leaving.  [Vote 257, S. Amdt. 4184, S. 2045, 9/27/00].

Smith is a multi-millionaire, reported to be the12th wealthiest Senator in the country with much of his wealth handed down from the family company.  Still, Willamette Week reports he pays his employees "$80 a day, four or five days a week, 10 months a year—if they’re lucky."

 

By encouraging foreign labor and then opposing fair immigration policy, Smith assigns immigrants a second class status, which not only undermines the hard work of American workers, but lowers workplace standards for everyone else.

We can do better.

 

All That Cash is Starting to Make Sense...

Breaking News: Smith accepted money from Sen. Ted Stevens in the midst of an investigation that led to an indictment of the Alaska senator on seven counts of falsely reported gifts.

OREGON'S SMITH TAPPED STEVENS TO REPAY LOAN

By Glenn Thrush
Sep  3, 2008

(The Politico)

Like nearly every other Republican, including Sarah Palin, Oregon Republican Gordon Smith has distanced himself from indicted Alaska Sen. Ted Stevens. But just two years ago, Smith tapped Stevens for $10,000 in an effort to pay himself back for a $2.3 million loan he made to his campaign in 1996.

Stevens’ Northern Lights PAC wrote a pair of $5,000 checks to Smith in March 2005 and April 2006 -- joining lobbyists, energy companies and financial firms who contributed to the 1996 fund over the same period.

Smith, who earned a fortune running his family's frozen food business, has returned $10,000 from Stevens for the '08 campaign but has refused to give back $29,000 in other donations from the Alaska Republican, despite being lambasted by Democratic opponent Jeff Merkely.

Smith, a solid fundraiser who has managed to raise $10.1 million for this year’s race, has only be able to get donors to cough up $810,000 for the old loan. Instead of using his current campaign committee to pay off the debt to himself, as some senators have done, Smith has solicited contributions directly into his still-extant 1996 committee, pumping about $335,000 into the old account in recent years.

From a financial perspective it was a canny tactic – allowing Smith to effectively double his take from a handful of contributors, tapping them for 1996 and 2008 checks in a short time period.

Between Feb. 2005 and June 2006, for example, the Mortgage Bankers Association of America PAC gave Smith $8,000 for the 1996 fund, $6,000 for his 2008 race and another $10,000 to Smith’s pet PAC, Impact America.

Calls to a Smith spokeswoman weren’t immediately returned.

Copyright 2008 POLITICO

Gordon Smith: No Friend to Oregon's Seniors

Gordon Smith may try to portray himself as a friend to Oregon seniors, but the truth is that he has chosen tax cuts for the wealthy over efforts to keep Social Security safe, voted to slash funding for Medicare and opposed efforts to make prescription drugs more affordable for seniors. After a lifetime of hard work, we believe Oregon seniors ought to be able to retire with dignity and respect. Gordon Smith's record tells a different story.