Bush Campaign Lies
Thursday, April 15, 2004
Bush Campaign Lie #34: Kerry Voted Against Tax Credits For Small Businesses To Purchase Health Insurance
We've seen this type of sleazy legislation-warping before. The basis for the Bush campaign claim is that Kerry voted against Senate Amendment #349 in the first session of the 107th Congress. The stated purpose of the amendment was:
"To provide tax credits for small business to purchase health insurance for their employees and to provide for the deductibility of health insurance for the self-employed and those who don't receive health insurance from their employers and for long-term care."So it would seem that Bush has Kerry dead to rights here.
Until you read the actual text of the amendment, which has nothing to do with tax credits, health insurance, baby puppies, or anything else warm, fuzzy and wholesome. The complete text of the amendment follows:
"At the appropriate place, insert:I'm not entirely certain what Susan Collins, and otherwise respectable Republican senator from Maine, was trying to do when she introduced this amendment, but it's pretty clear she wasn't trying to draft legislation which carried out its stated purpose. The fact that this amendment narrowly failed on a party-line vote is further evidence that it was introduced solely to provide the GOP with ammunition to smear Democrats like Bush is doing, and not out of a sincere desire to assist small businesses in providing health care
SEC. . Notwithstanding any other provision of this resolution, the revenue levels and other aggregates in this resolution shall be adjusted to reflect an additional $70 billion in revenue reductions for the period of fiscal years 2002 through 2011."
