New DNC ad: “Exxon John”; Update: DNC responds

Noteworthy for several reasons: It’s a rare show of creativity by a Democratic ad team, it alludes in its choice of music to another goofy political ad that only news junkies like you and me will know, and of course it’s brazenly dishonest in throwing stones at McCain when St. Obama’s taken more money from Exxon employees this year than Maverick has. “Chevron John” could have worked — except that Obama’s taken more money from their employees too. “ConocoPhillips John” would at least have been accurate, but it just doesn’t have the same ring, does it?

That’s the only dishonesty here either; note the suggestion in the lyrics that McCain opposes alternative fuels.

Update: A bit of equal time in the interests of fairness — the DNC says it’s only true that Obama outraised McCain among oil employees if you exclude the RNC/DNC combined totals. From their press guy:

McCain Voted Against Renewable and Alternative Energy repeatedly while in the Senate.

McCain Voted Nine Times Against Tax Incentives For Renewable Or Alternative Energy. [2006 Senate Vote #42, 3/14/2006; 2005 Senate Vote #158, 6/28/2005; 2004 Senate Vote #89, 5/11/2004; 2002 Senate Vote #94, 4/25/2002; 2002 Senate Vote #91, 4/25/2002; 2002 Senate Vote #77, 3/21/2002; 2001 Senate Vote #125, 5/21/2001; 1999 Senate Vote #246, 7/30/1999; 1992 Senate Vote #150, 7/23/1992]

McCain Voted Three Times Against Renewable Energy Mandates. McCain repeatedly voted against establishing standards for renewable energy production. [2005 Senate Vote #141, 6/16/2005; 2002 Senate Vote #55, 3/21/2002; 2002 Senate Vote #50, 3/14/2002]

McCain Raised More From Big Oil:

$56,361: Combined amount McCain and the RNC have raised from Exxon employees
$42,808: Combined amount Obama and the DNC have raised from Exxon employees

$204,461: Total McCain/RNC combined contributions from Exxon, Chevron & BP employees
$94,221: Total Obama/DNC combined contributions from Exxon, Chevron & BP employees

79%: percent of Exxon employee contributions that go to GOP
74%: percent of Chevron employee contributions that go to GOP
57%: percent of BP employee contributions that go to GOP

$1,332,033: Amount McCain has raised from Oil and Gas industry employee
$394,465: Amount Obama has raised from Oil and Gas Industry employee

$2.1 million: Amount McCain and the RNC together have raise from Oil and Gas industry since Jan. 2007***

3-to-1: “overall, McCain’s campaign has gotten three times more money from the industry than Obama’s has — $1.3 million compared to about $394,000.”

3: number of Republican Presidential candidates who received more money from Oil & Gas Industry than Barack Obama (McCain, Giuliani, Romney)

*** McCain Has Raised More Than $2.1 Million From The Oil And Gas Industry, Including More Than $1.1 Million In The Month Of June. According to the Center for Responsive Politics, John McCain received $1,039,768 in contributions from the oil and gas industry between January 2007 and May 2008 – a figure which dwarfs any other presidential candidates’ oil industry money. In addition, the Washington Post reported that “campaign contributions from oil industry executives to Sen. John McCain rose dramatically in the last half of June, after the senator from Arizona made a high-profile split with environmentalists and reversed his opposition to the federal ban on offshore drilling.” According to the Post’s analysis, oil and gas industry executives and employees contributed $1.1 million to McCain and the Republican National Committee’s Victory Fund in June – $882,950 of which were donated after McCain’s June 16th announcement that he supported ending the moratorium on offshore drilling. These contributions, when combined with the $1.03 million raised by McCain prior to the month of June, indicated that he has raised more than $2.1 million from the oil and gas industry. [Center for Responsive Politics website, “Selected Industry Totals to Candidates,” accessed 7/31/08; Washington Post, 7/27/08; “Oil Flow,” WashingtonPost.com graphic, accessed 8/3/08]

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