Exposing McCain's lies about Obama connection to Raines

John McCain has put out another advertisement that is an outright lie stating that Obama receives advice from Franklin Raines.

Watch Ari Melber shut load mouth Joe Watkins down.

For context check the WaPo:

The McCain video attempts to link Obama to Franklin Raines, the former CEO of the bankrupt mortgage giant, Fannie Mae, who also happens to be African-American. It then shows a photograph of an elderly white woman taxpayer who has supposedly been "stuck with the bill" as a result of the "extensive financial fraud" at Fannie Mae.

The Obama campaign last night issued a statement by Raines insisting, "I am not an advisor to Barack Obama, nor have I provided his campaign with advice on housing or economic matters." Obama spokesman Bill Burton went a little further, telling me in an e-mail that the campaign had "neither sought nor received" advice from Raines "on any matter."

So what evidence does the McCain campaign have for the supposed Obama-Raines connection? It is pretty flimsy, but it is not made up completely out of whole cloth. McCain spokesman Brian Rogers points to three items in the Washington Post in July and August. It turns out that the three items (including an editorial) all rely on the same single conversation, between Raines and a Washington Post business reporter, Anita Huslin, who wrote a profile of the discredited Fannie Mae boss that appeared on July 16. The profile reported that Raines, who retired from Fannie Mae four years ago, had "taken calls from Barack Obama's presidential campaign seeking his advice on mortgage and housing policy matters."

Since this has now become a campaign issue, I asked Huslin to provide the exact circumstances of the quote. She explained that she was chatting with Raines during the photo shoot, and asked "if he was engaged at all with the Democrats' quest for the White House. He said that he had gotten a couple of calls from the Obama campaign. I asked him about what, and he said 'oh, general housing, economy issues.' ('Not mortgage/foreclosure meltdown or Fannie-specific,' I asked, and he said 'no.')"

By Raines's own account, he took a couple of calls from someone on the Obama campaign, and they had some general discussions about economic issues. I have asked both Raines and the Obama people for more details on these calls, and will let you know if I receive a reply.

The Pinocchio Test

The McCain campaign is clearly exaggerating wildly in attempting to depict Franklin Raines as a close adviser to Obama on "housing and mortgage policy." If we are to believe Raines, he did have a couple of telephone conversations with someone in the Obama campaign. But that hardly makes him an adviser to the candidate himself--and certainly not in the way depicted in the McCain video release.

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/fact-checker/2008/09/obamas_fannie_mae_conne...

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• Obama
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• Melber
• Joe
• Watkins
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• 2008
• campaign
• economics

[ObamaForMiddleClass]

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Register at voteforchange. com

[Finkelstein]

Obama embodies the values our country has been "talking about" for years, but which our govenment has NOT upheld. Meanwhile, the majority of the American people DO uphold those values in their everyday lives!

Soon we will have a president who's in sync with the People, who tells the TRUTH for a change, who values the Constitution and will help to restore it, and restore the rule of law and common decency to our country. Obama!!

Plus, the guy is brilliant! That's a good quality in a President.

[makeupartist61]

aaahhhh shutup. obamas better than that old fart

[kittybang08]

Is it just me or does McCain spend TOO much time talking about Obama and not enough time talking about HIS plans to run our country?

[FreeAgain2]

And let's not Forget JIM JOHNSON, who actually picked/vetted Obama's VP. Johnson made MILLIONS from Freddie and Fanny and then was forced to resign due to $200 million worth of bad accounting - Just another Obama peep who has caused MILLIONS of AMERICANS in to FORECLOSURE by handing out loans to subprime burrowers - and now these folks are ruined with their credit DESTROYED - no more car loans, credit, school loans etc.

THANKS to Dodd, Franks, Schumer, Johnson, Raines.

BAD CHANGE!

[dirckson]

My bad, it's Keating.

[dirckson]

McCain? Surch for 'Keiting economics' right here on YouTube !

[tomco727]

looks like an expert in bs wrote this was it say it aint so joe sittig in the make believe katies dinner eating his acorn pie

[metavoice]

Baddmanaz,

Pigment does not a brother make.

[Ninefingers1010]

Anita Huslin (reporter) would say that Raines is a lier.

What a track record.....He stoled 90 mil and now is a lier.

Obama sure can pick people.

[mick0057]

In no way am I defending Raines or supporting Obama. But in the interest of truth RAINES ISN'T AND NEVER WAS AN ADVISOR TO OBAMA.

Simple, there is more than enough truths that he should answer for. Why invent? He had a "couple of phone calls" from the campaign.

Why some insist on extrapolating this into "chief economics adviser" I don't know.

[mick0057]

First I never said Raines said that. That is my own opinion after reading the content of the article. Now, no can or should try to defend the monies that flowed from Raines and Fannie Mae into Obamas' coffers. Similarly no one should discount McCains' and others early recognition of the crisis. Thankfully it is here for all to see. Along with Waters, Franks, defending of Raines. But my interest in the truth precludes me from touting that particular cannard.