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Home > Blogs > Ohio politics > Archives > 2010 > September > 07 > Entry
Ad Watch: Fisher TV ad hits Portman on trade
During the election season, we will take a look at some of the TV ads of the major candiates.
By Jack Torry Washington Bureau
THE AD: “Economic Plan,” a 30-second TV commercial aired in cable and some broadcast outlets across Ohio.
PRODUCER: AKPD Media for Senate Democratic candidate Lee Fisher.
VIDEO: Opens with a photo of Rob Portman’s blue booklet on creating jobs, which dissolves into a red map of China. The viewer sees images of Chinese workers hard at work, Portman shaking hands with former President George W. Bush, the interior of an empty factory, another photo of Portman standing next to Bush, and one of Portman shaking hands with a senior Chinese official with a Chinese flag in the background.
SCRIPT: Male announcer: “Congressman Rob Portman knows how to grow the economy - in China. He voted for billions in tax breaks for companies that export jobs. On his watch as Bush’s trade czar, our deficit with China exploded, sending 100,000 Ohio jobs overseas.
As Bush’s budget chief, Portman oversaw a spending spree that doubled the deficit. Outsourcing. Bad trade deals. Soaring deficits. Congressman Portman. A real economic plan. But not for Ohio.” Then Fisher says, “I’m Lee Fisher and I approve this message.”
ANALYSIS: Fisher’s message? Rob Portman is the Grim Reaper, determined to destroy Ohio’s economy while making China richer. It is a clear effort to win the support of union members in Ohio, many of whom believe international trade has cost jobs. Some of the points made in the ad are accurate. As a Republican congressman from Cincinnati, Portman in 2000 supported former President Bill Clinton’s call for permanent normal trade relations with China.
Portman was close to Bush, serving a year as trade representative and a year as budget director. As trade rep, Portman helped win congressional approval in 2005 of a free-trade agreement with six Central American nations.
But the commercial also relies on a selective use of statistics that are misleading. It claims the federal deficit doubled while Portman was budget director. He was director from May 2006 through June 2007 as the annual deficit fell from $248 billion to $163 billion. He drafted the 2008 fiscal year budget, which covered the federal spending year from Oct. 1, 2007, through Sept. 30, 2008.
The second claim of 100,000 jobs disappearing while Portman was trade representative from May 2005 to May 2006 is an even greater reach. That figure comes from a 2008 study by the Economic Policy Institute of Washington, a non-profit organization that gets about 29 percent of its financing from labor unions.
Earlier: Ad Watch: ‘Jobs for Ohio’ ad
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By liberty
September 9, 2010 10:45 AM | Link to this
NAFTA was signed into law by Clinton and all the democrats bragged on how this was such a good idea to make the rest of the world catch up to us economically. The idea was if the other countries raised their economies they would buy more from the US. Now all the democrats are acting like they were always agaisnt NAFTA. The only people agaisnt NAFTA, and this includes Obama, are the ones that support the unions. If no jobs were shipped overseas most american companies would be out of business so there still wouldn’t be any manuacturing jobs in the US. Some RTA bus drivers are making over $90K a year. Do you really want unions manufacturing our products. We would be paying at least double for all products including cars if all the parts were made here.
By Cuz
September 8, 2010 1:48 PM | Link to this
Seems to me if one opposes Portman one should first bash former Pres Clinton, who signed us up for NAFTA (even after having the chance to kill it after assuming office). Besides, politicians can’t actually send the jobs elsewhere (the business people do that to lessen costs, remain competitive, improve balance sheets, improve profits, retain the value of their stock. All these type ads (of questionable truth and intellectual honesty) seem not to be designed to provide a fair and complete info on which to base an election decision but pander more to get folks stirred up with half truths and, unfortunately, they seem to work. I find viewing this sort of political gibberish from a non-partisan, independent position helps to identify what is trash talk and what is not.
By AD
September 8, 2010 4:28 AM | Link to this
Just like Sherrod Brown went after Dewine on outsourced jobs. The fact is Brown has done nothing better. The job situation has actually gotten worse on Brown’s watch.
By uncle jj
September 8, 2010 12:59 AM | Link to this
dems are so desperate. fisher in particular is an idiot. he was too busy pursuing his ambition to be a senator to handle his job with the dept of development. he quit just as NCR left dayton.