Radio ad distorts Darcy Burner's position

Eighth Congressional District candidate Darcy Burner is touting a tax plan that she says would cut taxes for families.

Why, then, does a new radio ad paid for by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce say she supports "higher taxes on families with children"?

The ad, in support of Burner's Republican opponent, U.S. Rep. Dave Reichert, is based on a local media report that Burner thinks President Bush's tax cuts "wrongly favor the rich."

She does.

But the ad ignores the two candidates' agreement on one part of the president's cuts: the child tax credit. That means both support lowering taxes for families with children.

Reichert's campaign points out that letting the president's 2001 and 2003 tax cuts expire would affect a lot of other taxes, as well — dividend, estate and capital-gains taxes.

The radio spot, which started airing Friday in local markets, is part of a $20 million national ad buy with which the U.S. Chamber is supporting some House and Senate candidates. Chamber spokesman J.P. Fielder was quick to document the information in the ad.

Letting the Bush tax cuts lapse would affect many families, but the vague language of the ad gives a false impression that Burner's position would target families with children.

Regarding the two candidates' views on energy, the ad says Reichert "is fighting for lower energy costs, to give us some relief at the pump."

Fielder cited Reichert's 2006 vote on an amendment to end a moratorium on some offshore-oil drilling. But on the whole, Reichert opposes new offshore drilling, just as Burner does.

In the 2006 vote, he agreed with Republicans on the amendment. But on the overall bill, which expanded offshore drilling, he was one of 31 Republicans to vote no, along with most Democrats.

In July alone, Reichert voted seven times against bills to allow drilling offshore and in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR), his campaign says.

"We are in a similar place with [Reichert] in terms of offshore drilling and drilling in ANWR," said Sandeep Kaushik, a Burner campaign spokesman.

Emily Heffter: 206-464-8246