On Monday, John McCain presented his new economic plan, a plan he says is enthusiastically supported by over 300 professional economists.
This seems a bit suspect, since McCain’s gas tax holiday was quickly dismissed by economists a few months ago as pandering that would put money into the pockets of oil companies instead of consumers, and the gas tax holiday is a key component of his new economic plan.
So the online magazine Politico decided to call some of these economists, and sure enough:
In interviews with more than a dozen of the signatories, Politico found that, far from embracing McCain’s economic plan, many were unfamiliar with — or downright opposed to — key details.
One of the listed economists is even an Obama supporter.
What the economists signed was actually a 403-word-long letter that supported vague economic priorities such as free trade and a reduction in corporate tax rates, not his economic plan. The letter doesn’t mention the gas tax holiday. Nor does it mention the deficit, which is projected to approach $400 billion this year. McCain’s economic plan, on the other hand, is 15 pages long, mentions the gas tax holiday on the second page, and promises to balance the budget by the end of his first term.
But that didn’t stop the McCain campaign from claiming that the economists support his economic plan. So much for straight talk.
