Gibson Counters His Opponent's Lies

 We have already documented the lies being spewed against Congressman Gibson by his obviously desperate opponent.  The response from the Gibson camp is set forth below.  You may also click HERE to go directly to the link which sets forth the response with better graphics and fonts.

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SETTING THE RECORD STRAIGHT
Why our opponent has a credibility problem

PAID FOR BY CHRIS GIBSON FOR CONGRESS

Our opponent routinely uses false attacks and distortions to advance his partisan narrative. Devoid of vision and inspiration, his campaign represents all that is wrong with American politics.

Here are just a few of the most egregious and oft-repeated false attacks.

False claim: “[Gibson] quickly began supporting the Tea Party’s radical agenda.” [Julian for NY Press Release, August 14, 2012]…“And his voting record is not one of a moderate.” [Timestamp: 3:30]

Fact: Congressman Gibson enjoys broad support across the political spectrum, from conservative Republicans and pragmatic Independents to moderate Democrats. The Washington Post ranks him as the 3rd most independent Republican in the House of Representatives [U.S. Congress Votes Database, Washington Post, Accessed August 30, 2012] and he was ranked at the center of the House by National Journal in 2011. [Members in the Middle: House Members with Centrist Records, National Journal, March 2, 2012].

False claim: “Congressman Chris Gibson has voted to effectively end Medicare as we know it by turning it into a coupon program.” [Julian for NY Website, Accessed August 30, 2012] “Guaranteed coverage is gone” [Politics of Fear Target Elderly, Times Union, August 22, 2012]

Fact: The non-partisan fact-checker organization, Politifact, called the claim that the Republicans voted to end Medicare the 2011 “lie of the year.” With the nonpartisan Medicare trustees estimating Medicare will go broke in a little over a decade, what ends Medicare is the status quo. That is not an option – Congressman Gibson believes we owe it to those who built this country to fulfill our pledges and commitments we made to them. He has supported two different proposals to date that ensure we honor those pledges. The premium support proposal in the Republican budget would allow future seniors -those 54 and younger - to choose between a variety of federally pre-approved plans (like 25 percent of Medicare beneficiaries already do) to pick the coverage option that best meets their needs. Plans would be required to offer coverage to every senior (they could not cherry pick beneficiaries), and lower income seniors and the chronically ill would receive more money from the government while the wealthiest seniors would receive less. Anyone 55 or older would have absolutely no change in their benefits. The most recent iteration of the premium support model would have the option to choose between traditional Medicare or a pre-approved plan, with the government paying the full cost for at least two plan options. This year Congressman Gibson supported the bipartisan budget proposal (Cooper-LaTourette) that incorporates an accountable care approach, broader access to discount drugs, and additional measures to combat fraud, waste, and abuse. Congressman Gibson has demonstrated a willingness to work together with Democrats to ensure we save Medicare from bankruptcy and strengthen it for future generations. [Additional Resources: “Republicans Voted to End Medicare is 2011 Lie of the Year, Politifact; “$6,400 Myth,” Wall Street Journal, August 19, 2012; “Despite Democrats’ Warnings, Private Medicare Plans Find Success,” New York Times, August 25, 2012]

False claim: “…one area where a majority of Republicans went one way and [Gibson] broke with them was support for the small business innovation research fund....He was against it when even a majority of Republicans supported it.” [Timestamp: 3:39]

Fact: Congressman Gibson voted four times (H.R. 366, H.R. 2608, S. 1082, and H.R. 1540) to extend and reauthorize the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program. [Library of Congress THOMAS]