From The Corner:
Is He or Isn’t He? [Byron York]
The McCain has released a new ad entitled “Advice.” It says:
Obama has no background in economics.
Who advises him?
The Post says it’s Franklin Raines, for “advice on mortgage and housing policy.”
Shocking.
Under Raines, Fannie Mae committed “extensive financial fraud.”
Raines made millions.
Fannie Mae collapsed.
Taxpayers? Stuck with the bill.
Barack Obama.
Bad advice. Bad instincts. Not ready to lead.
Just a few moments ago, the Obama campaign released a statement from Raines:
I am not an advisor to Barack Obama, nor have I provided his campaign with advice on housing or economic matters.
Added Obama spokesman Bill Burton:
This is another flat-out lie from a dishonorable campaign that is increasingly incapable of telling the truth. Frank Raines has never advised Senator Obama about anything — ever...
Now, when the ad was released, the McCain campaign also released this supporting information:
The Obama Campaign Has Solicited Franklin Raines, Who “Stepped Down As Fannie Mae’s Chief Executive Under The Shadow Of A $6.3 Billion Accounting Scandal,” For “Advice On Mortgage And Housing Policy.” “In the four years since he stepped down as Fannie Mae’s chief executive under the shadow of a $6.3 billion accounting scandal, Franklin D. Raines has been quietly constructing a new life for himself. He has shaved eight points off his golf handicap, taken a corner office in Steve Case’s D.C. conglomeration of finance, entertainment and health-care companies and more recently, taken calls from Barack Obama’s presidential campaign seeking his advice on mortgage and housing policy matters.” (Anita Huslin, “On The Outside Now, Watching Fannie Falter,” The Washington Post, 7/16/08)
The Washington Post: “Two Members Of Mr. Obama’s Political Circle, James A. Johnson And Franklin D. Raines, Are Former Chief Executives Of Fannie Mae.” (Editorial, “Tough Decision Coming,” The Washington Post, 8/28/08)
As far as I can tell, the Post has not corrected its reporting. Who is correct? We’ll see.
http://corner.nationalreview.com/post/?q=NDY5MGQ1MWMwMjQzM2E5ODI0NzNiZmUyZDVkNGVkYTY=
Saw it. That’s why I first tried to do a google-search for earlier articles. It was clear that google was purging info. So I switched to yahoo and stumbled on what I posted.
The left wing sites and blogs are all in denial. Surfing through a few, the common meme is that the rightwingers are all lying about the connection and that this is another rightwing smear. Of the few that do admit any connection whatsoever, they dismiss it as trivial - Raines took a few calls from the campaign, big deal, that doesn’t make him an advisor.
These people live in some sort of alternate universe. One where Big Brother is alive and well and busy revising the facts to suit his current goals.