Job-Slayer John McCain to Campaign in Washington State

Republicans Rossi & McKenna remain silent as McCain continues to brag about killing Boeing tanker deal that outsourced 9,000 Washington jobs

SEATTLE - Defying the friendly advice of Democratic Chairman Dwight Pelz, Republican John McCain will bring his campaign to give Americans a third Bush term to Washington state next month - even as he continues to boast about his efforts to outsource at least 9,000 jobs here in Washington to France.

The AP has reported that McCain helped EADS, the French-owned company for which many of his top campaign advisors lobbied, to win a $35 billion Air Force tanker contract over Boeing. Even within the last week, McCain continued to boast about his efforts to ship Washingtonians' jobs overseas on National Public Radio: 

SIEGEL: But when you talk about cutting $100 billion in spending, though, I mean, the bridge to nowhere, the famous Alaska bridge that you've talked about as the epitome of the useless earmark, it's about $350 million. There's a huge difference between programs like that and hundreds of billions.
McCAIN: Well, in all due respect, I saved $6 billion in killing off a bogus Air Force tanker deal. I can identify billions and billions and billions of dollars. As I said, I mentioned 35, and I mentioned another 65 that's been made part of the baseline of the budget which has contributed to the largest expansion in government since the Great Society. (NPR, 4/23/08)

Washington State Democrats have called on Republicans Dino Rossi and Rob McKenna to stand up for Washington jobs instead of John McCain, as our Democratic Congressional delegation and Gov. Gregoire have done since the announcement of the tanker deal. McKenna continues to chair McCain's campaign here in Washington state, and Rossi has remained dead silent.

"Washingtonians quite literally can't afford a third Bush term of failed economic policies that ship American jobs overseas, and it's astounding that McCain has the audacity to campaign here after putting his lobbyist friends above Washington's working families," said Washington State Democratic Party Chair Dwight Pelz. "Dino Rossi and Rob McKenna, themselves Republicans in the mold of George W. Bush, continue to put their partisan loyalties to John McCain and the Republican Party ahead of the interest of Washington's working families."

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McCain Dismissed Impact of Tanker Deal on U.S. Workforce.  Asked about the deal, McCain said: "I've never believed that defense programs, that the major reason for them should be to create jobs." [Associated Press, 3/3/08]  

McCain "Pressed the Pentagon" to Ignore Airbus Subsidies When Considering Deal. "They say he pressed the Pentagon not to factor into its selection criteria alleged subsidies that Airbus was receiving from European governments, even thought the U.S. had sued the European Union at the World Trade Organization over subsidies provided to Airbus." [The Hill, 3/7/08] 

McCain Received Contributions From EADS "As Campaign Was Foundering." "McCain himself has received support from the EADS North America executive suite. He has received more than $12,000 in campaign donations from some of the company's top U.S. officials, support that continued even as his presidential campaign was foundering in mid- to late 2007." [Seattle Post Intelligencer, 3/7/2008, http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/354300_mccaintanker08.html] 

McCain Sponsored Amendment that Ended Defense Department's Buy American Requirement. In May 2003, Senate Republicans voted for a McCain amendment that would allow the Defense Department to forego a requirement to purchase American-made equipment if that equipment was manufactured by Australia, the United Kingdom, Norway, Sweden, The Netherlands or Spain. [Senate Vote 191, 5/21/03]

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