Organizing for America

DEBATE REALITY CHECK: TROOP FUNDING

Today, Sarah Palin said Obama opposed funding for the troops. [Vice Presidential Debate, 10/2/08]

FACT: ATTACK ON TROOP FUNDING IS “HIGHLY MISLEADING”

AP: Charge That Obama Voted Against Troop Funding Is “Misleading.” “The ad's most inflammatory charge — that Obama voted against troop funding in Iraq and Afghanistan — is misleading. The Illinois senator consistently voted to fund the troops once elected to the Senate.” [AP, 7/18/08 ]
Fact Check.org: The Claim That Obama Voted To Cut Off Funding For Our Troops Is “Highly Misleading.” Factcheck.org wrote, “Lieberman also said that "colleagues like Barack Obama were voting to cut off funding for our American troops on the battlefield." That's a highly misleading claim that McCain also touted in an ad this summer. Obama has voted in favor of war-funding bills at least 10 times since becoming a senator. The McCain camp and Republicans cite one vote Obama cast against a funding bill as justification for their claim – but that vote came after President Bush had vetoed a version of the bill that included a date for withdrawal from Iraq. In fact, most Republicans voted against that 2007 war-funding bill Obama and the Democrats supported.” [Factcheck.org, 9/3/08 ]
FACT: USING THE SAME STANDARD, MCCAIN HAS SUPPORTED CUTTING OF FUNDING TO THE TROOPS

FactCheck.org: Using The McCain Campaign’s Standards, It Would Be “Literally True” To Say That “McCain Urged A Veto Of Funding For Our Troops.” “The McCain camp and Republicans cite one vote Obama cast against a funding bill as justification for their claim – but that vote came after President Bush had vetoed a version of the bill that included a date for withdrawal from Iraq. In fact, most Republicans voted against that 2007 war-funding bill Obama and the Democrats supported. McCain was absent for the vote, but he urged the president to veto the bill. As we said about this subject previously, ‘Based on those facts, it would be literally true to say that ‘McCain urged a veto of funding for our troops.’ But that would be oversimplified to the point of being seriously misleading.’ And the same goes for Lieberman’s claim at the convention.” [FactCheck.org, 9/3/08 ]

McCain Cheered On Bush And Welcomed His Veto Of The Iraq And Afghanistan Spending Bill, Noting That The Congress Needed To Pass A New Spending Bill Because The “Troops In The Field Are Waiting On Our Action.” McCain: “I look forward to the President’s prompt veto of this misguided bill. After the President rejects the legislation, I sincerely hope that the Congress will finally get serious about passing a measure that can be enacted into law. … We need to send a bill to the President that he can sign, and we need to do it as soon as possible – our troops in the field are waiting on our action.” [McCain release, 4/26/07 ]

McCain Introduced Amendment To Cut Off Funds For Troops In Somalia. On October 14, 1993, McCain introduced an amendment to the Fiscal Year 1994 Department of Defense appropriations bill to prohibit funding of U.S. military operations in Somalia except for the withdrawal of all U.S. troops. The amendment was defeated by a tabling motion, introduced by Senator Thurman, 61-38 (Republicans: 16-28; Democrats: 45-10). [2003 Senate Vote 313, 10/14/93, Motion agreed to 61-38: R 16-28; D 45-10; Biden: Y to table]

Ø McCain Later Admitted That He “Regretted” Introducing The Amendment And Stated “In Hindsight, I Wish I Had Not Undertaken So Drastic A Step.” “On October 14, 1993, eleven days after the ambush of our rangers in Mogadishu, I offered an amendment on the Senate floor restricting funds for American forces in Somalia to the purpose of their ‘prompt and orderly withdrawal.’ President Clinton criticized the amendment and its supporters for our ‘headlong rush into isolationism,’ which it was not. But it was an encroachment on presidential authority and a retreat in the face of aggression from an inferior foe that I would never have contemplated in the past. And even though I regretted my action, I felt the circumstances were so compelling that it was a necessary response to a failed policy that had cost the lives of eighteen good Americans . In hindsight, I wish I had not undertaken so drastic a step. But, as the administration had already agreed to compromise legislation that would have set a date for withdrawing our forces five months hence, my demand for a more prompt retreat was only a difference of timing not in kind. I could hardly see how our troops' security or America's international reputation would be better served by a slow retreat than a quick one.” [John McCain, “Worth the Fighting For,” p.280]