Party Propaganda

Factcheck.org

Thankful for Your Questions  We are officially in the off-season and, as always, we're thankful for your questions, which help us nurse our election hang-over.

Are congressional Democrats talking about confiscating IRA and 401(k) investment accounts?  No. There's no plan to seize these accounts. One House witness at a committee hearing proposed to allow some people to trade their old accounts for a new type that would be less risky.

Our Subscribers Speak  Once again, they find us clear, reliable, unbiased and useful.

Can a convicted felon serve in elected office?  The Constitution allows a convicted felon, such as Alaska Sen. Ted Stevens, to be a member of Congress, even if in prison. It's up to the Senate or House to decide who may serve. As for state offices, different laws...

Was the deadline for absentee ballots from military members extended in Virginia?  A hearing is scheduled Dec. 8 to decide whether Virginia election officials should count absentee ballots that arrived late. In response to a lawsuit filed before Election Day by John McCain's campaign, a judge had ordered officials to keep such...

Is Obama planning a Gestapo-like "civilian national security force"?  This false claim is a badly distorted version of Obama's call for doubling the Peace Corps, creating volunteer networks and increasing the size of the Foreign Service.

Do 40 percent of Americans pay no taxes?  About 38 percent of households have zero or negative income tax liability, but they pay other federal taxes.

Mr. President  It's our 44th episode just in time for our 44th President to-be. But there are some questions swirling around about how exactly President-elect Obama will move forward. We go through some of the basics.

Can the presidential candidates keep their campaign money?  No. They can donate any contributions they haven't spent to charities or political parties, and they can pay leftover campaign bills. The big rule is: no personal use.

2008 FactCheck Awards  Roll out the red carpet! We bring you some noteworthy ads of the 2008 election season.

Accountable America

Day One: Swift Boat Strategist Attacks Accountable America 

It's Day One at Accountable America and right-wing veterans of the Swift Boat effort are already on the attack:

Chris LaCivita, a Republican strategist who helped organize the Swift Boat effort, said Mr. Matzzie’s group was likely to have the opposite effect on potential donors, firing them up instead of discouraging them.

“They’re not going to be intimidated by some pipsqueak on the kooky left,” Mr. LaCivita said.

Stay tuned to this space for more squeaking.

Ad Watch: Billionaire Adelson Feels Your Pain 

Today, the right-wing group Freedom's Watch launched a new advertisement criticizing the Democratic leadership in Congress of being out of touch with working Americans. You can watch it here. The script of the ad begins:

Every day we get up and go to work.

And we'll do it tomorrow. And the next day. And the next.

Because there are bills to pay. Mortgages to worry about. Credit cards. And the high cost of gas? It's a killer for all of us...

"Us" refers to you, me and Sheldon Adelson, the primary financial backer of Freedom's Watch. While we are all worried about bills, Mr. Adelson might be worried a bit less -- he's the 12th richest person in the world with a net worth of $26 billion.

His mortgage is to finance an $11 billion project to recreate the Las Vegas Strip in Macau, an administrative region of China.

Here's a photo of Mr. Adelson, trying to figure out how he's going to afford to fill up his tank:

To be fair, like many Americans, Adelson is struggling to meet some of his financial goals, including his desire "to pass Microsoft founder Bill Gates as the world's richest man."

Major Backer of Gingrich's American Solutions Under Federal Investigation 

Another right-wing group that is spending plenty of money this cycle is Newt Gingrich's American Solutions for Winning the Future.

On its website the group contends that "action is needed from the bottom-up at all levels of society... to topple the current entrenched interests." The group's "vision" is "competence, substance, integrity, and transparency in government."

But mega-developer Mel Sembler, one of the group's top funders to the tune of at least $3 million, might have missed the memo. The Palm Beach Post recently reported that Mr. Sembler and his company are under federal investigation for a $100,000 payment allegedly used to grease the wheels of local government in Florida:

A developer paid a $100,000 fee to lobbyist Hugo Unruh after being told it would be hard to win county approval for a traffic-throttling shopping center without him.

The message came from Boynton Beach Mayor Jerry Taylor, who at the time was a trusted aide to Palm Beach County Commissioner Mary McCarty.

Now the fee and Taylor's role have drawn the attention of federal investigators.

...St. Petersburg-based Sembler is a national developer of shopping centers and residential communities. It was founded by Mel Sembler, a major state and national Republican Party fund-raiser who is especially friendly with the Bush presidential family.

McCarty said Sembler is a political acquaintance whom she bumped into recently at a White House affair.

Read the whole article HERE.

Welcome 

Welcome to Accountable America. We're working to stop the Right Wing special interest groups who are pushing lawmakers in Washington.

Accountable America works to stop the outrageous policies of right-wing and special interests in Washington especially in the areas of economic policy, energy policy, national security policy and government reform.

Our first project seeks to discourage groups and right-wing donors trying to "swiftboat" progressives. We aim to educate the public about the connections between these donors, many with unsavory business and personal stories, and lawmakers in Washington.

Accountable America is a non-partisan, non-profit corporation. We do not seek to elect or defeat candidates or endorse candidates for federal office.

Our funding comes over the Internet, from individuals and from unions and progressive political organizations.