Martha McSally had a doozy of a debate last night. Defensive and desperate, she distorted her record over and over again. Instead of focusing on the issues, McSally peddled debunked lies. Her debate performance is the clearest proof yet: McSally will do or say anything to get elected.
Below, we break down some of her most egregious falsehoods.
RHETORIC: McSally denied that she put Arizonans’ privacy at risk by voting to allow anyone to buy or sell private information online: “What are you even talking about? Of course, I did not do that.”
- REALITY: McSally voted to repeal rules that would prevent internet service providers from selling users private browsing data and received nearly $100,000 from the telecom industry.
RHETORIC: McSally said: “I voted to protect people with pre-existing conditions to make sure insurance companies were forced to give them healthcare, had no caps on insurance, and couldn’t cancel it.”
- REALITY: McSally voted for the 2017 Republican plan to repeal the Affordable Care Act that would take away guaranteed protection for individuals with pre-existing conditions.
RHETORIC: McSally denied that she supported plans to cut retirement programs, and said:“We must protect Medicare and Social Security for those that are at retirement and for the next generations to come.”
- REALITY: McSally supported a Social Security privatization plan that would put retirement funds at risk and voted to cut $473 billion from Medicare.
RHETORIC: Asked if she wanted to turn Medicare into a private voucher system, McSally responded, “Absolutely not. What I want to do is strengthen Medicare for the seniors that are there and the next generations.”
- REALITY: McSally voted for the Republican budget that would turn Medicare into a voucher a program.
RHETORIC: McSally refused to explain why she removed herself from a bill supporting DREAMers and said: “I have consistently shown that I was willing to do something on DACA.”
- REALITY: McSally pulled her support from an immigration bill providing a pathway to citizenship for DREAMers and opposed 2013 comprehensive immigration bill that would have provided a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants and increased funding for border security.
RHETORIC: McSally falsely claimed the Republican tax bill did not increase the deficit: “The revenue is actually up this year, Ted. That’s actually not accurate. It’s not because of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.”
- REALITY: The federal deficit ballooned nearly 17% this year, from $666 billion in FY 2017 to $779 billion in FY18.
Published: Oct 16, 2018