2008 Hits on Hillary Clinton

GIMMICKS BARACK OBAMA CALLED HILLARY CLINTON’S GAS TAX HOLIDAY AN “ELECTION-YEAR GIMMICK” 2008: Then-Senator Obama Criticized Clinton For “Endorsing A Plan To Suspend The Federal Excise Tax On Gasoline…For The Summer Travel Season.” “Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton lined up with Senator John McCain, the presumptive Republican nominee for president, in endorsing a plan to suspend the federal excise tax on gasoline, 18.4 cents a gallon, for the summer travel season. But Senator Barack Obama, Mrs. Clinton’s Democratic rival, spoke out firmly against the proposal, saying it would save consumers little and do nothing to curtail oil consumption and imports.” [New York Times, 4/29/08]  Obama Campaign: Clinton’s Gas Tax Holiday “An Election-Year Gimmick.” “A new Obama response ad airing in Indiana in the campaign's final days calls Clinton's gas tax holiday proposal ‘an election year-gimmick, saving Hoosiers just pennies a day.’” [USA Today, 5/2/08] SPENDING MCCAIN ACCUSED THEN-SENATOR CLINTON OF EXCESSIVE PORK SPENDING McCain: “Senator Clinton Tried To Spend $1 Million On The Woodstock Concert Museum.” [2008 Republican Primary Debate, 10/21/07]  2007: Then-Senator Clinton And Senator Schumer Lobbied For A $1 Million “Museum Located At The Performing Arts Center That Would Commemorate The 1969 Woodstock Music Festival In Their State.” “The Senate Labor, Health and Human Services and Education Committee Appropriations Report shows that Clinton and fellow New York Sen. Charles Schumer did lobby for a $1 million earmark for the Bethel Performing Arts Center in Liberty N.Y. Clinton and Schumer intended to use the earmark for a museum located at the Performing Arts Center that would commemorate the 1969 Woodstock music festival in their state.” [Politifact, 10/19/07] McCain: “In Her Short Time In The United States Senate, The Senator From New York, Senator Clinton, Has Gotten $500 Million Worth Of Pork-Barrel Projects.” “In her short time in the United States Senate, the senator from New York, Senator Clinton, has gotten $500 million worth of pork-barrel projects…My friends, that kind of thing is going to stop when I'm president of the United States.” [New York Times, 2/4/08] McCain: “Senators Clinton And Obama Have A Plan To Raise Taxes And Government Spending -- That Is The Wrong Way Forward.” “The bill is not perfect, but it faithfully reflects both mine and the President's principles of providing tax relief for families and businesses. Additionally, the bill provides mortgage assistance to homeowners in need. I am proud of my Republican colleagues who were able to defeat efforts to weigh down the legislation with irresponsible expansion of government spending. Senators Clinton and Obama have a plan to raise taxes and government spending -- that is the wrong way forward. This November, voters will choose between my vision for lowering taxes, cutting spending, and restoring fiscal responsibility, and the Democrats' tired ideas of raising taxes and increasing frivolous spending.” [Press Release, John McCain, 2/8/08] MCCAIN CRITICIZED CLINTON FOR HER SUPPORT OF A BANK BAILOUT McCain: Then-Senator Clinton Proposed “A Multibillion Dollar Bailout For Big Banks And Speculators…There Is A Tendency For Liberals To Seek Big Government Programs That Sock It To American Taxpayers While Failing To Solve The Very Real Problems We Face.” “McCain, the presumptive Republican nominee, outlined his plan to address the housing situation earlier this week. His campaign released a statement Thursday calling the housing crisis a ‘complex problem that deserves a careful, balanced approach that helps the homeowners in trouble, not big banks and speculators that

acted irresponsibly…I believe the role of government is to help the truly needy, prevent systemic economic risk, and enact reforms that prevent the kind of crisis we are currently experiencing from ever happening again. Those reforms should focus on improving transparency and accountability in our capital markets -- both of which were lacking in the lead-up to the current situation…However, what is not necessary is a multibillion dollar bailout for big banks and speculators, as Sens. Clinton and Obama have proposed. There is a tendency for liberals to seek big government programs that sock it to American taxpayers while failing to solve the very real problems we face.’” [CNN, 3/27/08] MCCAIN CRITICIZED CLINTON FOR HER LACK OF SUPPORT FOR TAX RELIEF Appearing On Fox News, McCain Argued That His Desire To “Give Americans Relief…From Taxes” Represented A Difference Of “Views And Philosophy And Vision” Between Him And Then-Senator Clinton. “I want to give Americans relief -- relief from taxes. And that’s my goal, and I, again, hold to the firm conviction, the fundamental principle is that a reduction in taxes lead to growing economies and eventually increases in revenues. And increases in taxes have the opposite effect on entrepreneurs, on businesses and families in America. And that will be a clear difference of opinion between -- and views and philosophy and vision between myself and either Senator Obama or Senator Clinton.” [FOX News, Your World With Neil Cavuto, 4/16/08] SUPPORT FOR MILITARY MIKE HUCKABEE BLASTED CLINTON FOR VOTING AGAINST AN AMENDMENT TO CONDEMN MOVEON.ORG FOR INSULTING DAVID PETRAEUS Washington Times: Huckabee Lashed Out At Clinton For Her Refusal “To Condemn By Name The Billionaire Backer Of MoveOn.Org’s Attack On Gen. David H. Petraeus,” Saying She Had To “Get [Her] Lips Off The Backside Of George Soros.” “Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee gets uncharacteristically angry when talking about Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton’s failure to condemn by name the billionaire backer of Moveon.org’s attack on Gen. David H. Petraeus. ‘If you can’t get your lips off the backside of George Soros long enough to use those lips to say it’s wrong to declare a sitting general … guilty of treason,’ the 2008 Republican presidential hopeful said, ‘how would you ever expect to have the support of the very military you might have to send into deadly battle?’” [Washington Times, 9/25/07]  Then-Senator Clinton Voted Against An Amendment “To Express The Sense Of The Senate That General David H. Petraeus,…Deserves The Full Support Of The Senate And Strongly Condemn Personal Attacks On The Honor And Integrity Of General Petraeus And All Members Of The United States Armed Forces.” [S.Amdt.2934, S.Amdt.2011, H.R.1585, Vote 344, 9/20/07] WASHINGTON DAVID AXELROD INSISTED THAT HILLARY CLINTON DID NOT OFFER REAL CHANGE IN THE 2008 PRIMARY, BUT RATHER A CONTINUATION OF WASHINGTON POLITICS Axelrod On Clinton: "But For All Of Her Advantages, She Is Not A Healing Figure…The More She Tries To Moderate Her Image, The More She Jeopardizes Herself In The Nominating Fight And Compounds Her Exposure As An Opportunist." "I also offered Obama my assessment of his most prominent potential opponents: Hillary Clinton is a formidable candidate, who should be considered the frontrunner for the nomination because of her strength, intellect, discipline, and, of course, access to an array of assets far in excess of any other candidate. …But for all of her advantages, she is not a healing figure…The more she tries to moderate her image, the more she jeopardizes herself in the nominating fight and compounds her exposure as an opportunist. And after two decades of the Bush-Clinton saga, making herself the candidate of the future will be a challenge…" [David Axelrod, Believer: My Forty Years in Politics, 2/10/15] Commented [BJ1]: RNC bullet, no access to original source

Axelrod: "[I] Also Believed That Barack Offered The Country Something Hillary Could Not: A Fresh Start." "I could never forget Hillary's willingness to be there when Susan launched her charitable crusade against epilepsy, and I knew that the Clintons would see my role in this Obama insurrection as an unforgivable betrayal. However, I also believed that Barack offered the country something Hillary could not: a fresh start." [David Axelrod, Believer: My Forty Years in Politics, 2/10/15] Axelrod: In 2008, "The 'Change' Hillary Was Offering Was Not Much Change At All- Certainly Not A Move Away From The Raw, Divisive Politics That Had Come To Define Washington." "She had pressed her advantage on Washington experience and gamely parried our call for change by embracing the word. Yet the 'change' Hillary was offering was not much change at all- certainly not a move away from the raw, divisive politics that had come to define Washington." [David Axelrod, Believer: My Forty Years in Politics, 2/10/15] Axelrod: Clinton "Was Too Much A Part Of The System In Washington Ever To Change It- And Without Changing The Politics Of Washington, Real Solutions To Big Problems Would Never Come." "With one ad-libbed comment, Hillary had identified the main fault line of her campaign. Her message was clear: she understood the limitations posed by a bitterly divided and corrupted Washington, where political survival and self-interest were paramount. You can't change that game, she implied; to get things done, you had to know how to play it. As soon as she said it, I recognized the opportunity that Hillary had handed us. She was too much a part of the system in Washington ever to change it- and without changing the politics of Washington, real solutions to big problems would never come." [David Axelrod, Believer: My Forty Years in Politics, 2/10/15] Axelrod: "At The Very Moment When We Were Arguing That She Was Nothing More Than A Status Quo Washington Politician, Her Awkward Evasions And The Critical Commentaries That Ensued Buttressed Our Case." "Hours later, during the NBC debate at Drexel University, it was Hillary on the defensive, the real tripwire for her coming when Tim Russert asked about Governor Eliot Spitzer's abortive plan to provide driver's licenses to undocumented immigrants in New York. Hillary danced around the issue, palavering at length about Bush's failure to enact immigration reform, without giving a direct answer to Russert's question. She soon found herself besieged by nearly everyone onstage, all eager to take the front-runner down a peg. It was the first time in a dozen debates that Hillary tripped up. At the very moment when we were arguing that she was nothing more than a status quo Washington politician, her awkward evasions and the critical commentaries that ensued buttressed our case." [David Axelrod, Believer: My Forty Years in Politics, 2/10/15] Axelrod: "The Only Real Change [Clinton] Was Offering Was In Political Parties, And That Simply Wasn't Enough." "The change she was offering was not away from Washington's habit of parsing words and passing on tough issues. (She habitually sought safe harbor.) The change she was offering was not away from a system dominated by PACs and corporate lobbyists. (She had taken their money and vocally defended their work.) The only real change she was offering was in political parties, and that simply wasn't enough." [David Axelrod, Believer: My Forty Years in Politics, 2/10/15] ETHICS 2008: LIBERAL BLOG DAILY KOS CRITICIZED HILLARY CLINTON FOR ATTACKING “THE CREDIBILITY OF A 12-YEAR-OLD RAPE VICTIM” Daily Kos: Then-Attorney Hillary Rodham Attacked The Credibility Of A 12-Year-Old Rape Victim. “In a breathtaking story published today in Newsday, details of Hillary Clinton's involvement in a decades-old rape case in Arkansas comes under close scrutiny. It is really worth reading the whole well-sourced article, but here is the upshot: Two years into her career of making change and having Day One-readying experience, 27 year old Hillary Rodham was appointed a public defender in a rape case, and played out deep in the gray areas of morality by attacking the 12-year old victim's credibility. Though nobody involved in the case can recall a shred of evidence that the victim had any sort of history of making false Commented [BJ2]: RNC bullet, no access to original source Commented [BJ3]: RNC bullet, no access to original source Commented [BJ4]: RNC bullet, no access to original source Commented [BJ5]: RNC bullet, no access to original source Commented [BJ6]: RNC bullet, no access to original source

claims, Hillary argued it as a centerpiece of her case anyway. And conveniently omitted this aspect of the case from her 2003 book, ‘Living History.’” [Daily Kos, 2/24/08] MCCAIN HIT CLINTON FOR BEING “INTELLECTUALLY DISHONEST” McCain Accused Clinton of Making “Intellectually Dishonest Attacks.” At a time when Senator Clinton knows that American and allied forces are making real progress in Iraq, it is unfortunate that she would look to score political points by mischaracterizing Senator McCain's statement with intellectually dishonest attacks.” [Press Release, John McCain, 3/17/08] STAFF JOHN EDWARDS CRITICIZED CLINTON FOR MARK PENN’S TIES TO BLACKWATER John Edwards Criticized Hillary Clinton Because Of Mark Penn’s Link To Blackwater Client BKSH. “Democrat John Edwards said Friday the top strategist for presidential rival Hillary Rodham Clinton has ties to the controversial Blackwater security firm, and warned against installing ‘a group of corporate Democrats’ to replace the Bush White House. Edwards suggested similarities between Clinton, the Democratic front-runner, and the Republican president. ‘George Bush has been a perfect example of cronyism because Blackwater has given hundreds of thousands of dollars to Republicans and to President Bush,’ he said in an interview with The Associated Press. ‘I also saw this morning that Senator Clinton's primary adviser, Mark Penn, who is like her Karl Rove, his firm is representing Blackwater.’ ‘It is the reason I continue to say we don't want to replace a group of corporate Republicans with a group of corporate Democrats,’ he said.” [AP, 10/5/07] FLIP-FLOPPING BARACK OBAMA HIT CLINTON FOR CHANGING POSITIONS ON “NAFTA, TORTURE, AND THE IRAQ WAR” Then-Senator Obama Criticized Clinton For “Flip-Flopping On NAFTA, Torture, And The Iraq War.” [Hardball With Chris Matthews, MSNBC, 10/31/07] EVASIVENESS DEMOCRATIC CANDIDATES CRITICIZED CLINTON FOR FAILING TO TAKE A CLEAR POSITION ON DRIVERS LICENSES FOR UNDOCUMENTED IMMIGRANTS In A 2007 Democratic Primary Debate, Candidates Criticized Clinton For Failing To Stake Out A Clear Position On New York Governor Spitzer’s Plan To Give Drivers Licenses To Undocumented Immigrants. [Hardball With Chris Matthews, MSNBC, 10/31/07] DEMOCRATIC PRIMARY DEBATE MODERATOR TIM RUSSERT TRIED TO GET CLINTON TO SAY WHETHER OR NOT SHE THOUGHT CLINTON FOUNDATION DONORS SHOULD BE MADE PUBLIC, BUT SHE DODGED THE QUESTION Clinton Dodged A Question In A Democratic Primary Debate Over Whether Or Not Her Husband’s Foundation Should Make Its Donors Public. “Russert: Until such legislation, would they voluntarily, the Clinton library and Clinton Foundation, make their donors public? Clinton: Well, you'll have to ask them. Russert: What's your recommendation? Clinton: Well, I don't talk about my private conversations with my husband, but I'm sure he'd be happy to consider that.” [Democratic Primary Debate, NBC News, 9/26/07]

IMMIGRATION DEMOCRATIC CANDIDATES CRITICIZED CLINTON FOR FAILING TO TAKE A CLEAR POSITION ON DRIVERS LICENSES FOR UNDOCUMENTED IMMIGRANTS In A 2007 Democratic Primary Debate, Candidates Criticized Clinton For Failing To Stake Out A Clear Position On New York Governor Spitzer’s Plan To Give Drivers Licenses To Undocumented Immigrants. [Hardball With Chris Matthews, MSNBC, 10/31/07] CLINTON FOUNDATION DEMOCRATIC PRIMARY DEBATE MODERATOR TIM RUSSERT TRIED TO GET CLINTON TO SAY WHETHER OR NOT SHE THOUGHT CLINTON FOUNDATION DONORS SHOULD BE MADE PUBLIC, BUT SHE DODGED THE QUESTION Clinton Dodged A Question In A Democratic Primary Debate Over Whether Or Not Her Husband’s Foundation Should Make Its Donors Public. “Russert: Until such legislation, would they voluntarily, the Clinton library and Clinton Foundation, make their donors public? Clinton: Well, you'll have to ask them. Russert: What's your recommendation? Clinton: Well, I don't talk about my private conversations with my husband, but I'm sure he'd be happy to consider that.” [Democratic Primary Debate, NBC News, 9/26/07] FOREIGN POLICY MCCAIN HIT CLINTON FOR SUPPORTING WITHDRAWAL FROM IRAQ, WHICH HE LIKENED TO SURRENDER Politifact: McCain Said Clinton Wanted To “Wave A White Flag” And Withdraw From Iraq. [Politifact, 1/27/08] McCain: Then-Senator Clinton Wanted “Withdrawal And De Facto Surrender” From Iraq “On Day One” Of Her Presidency. “At a time when Senator Clinton knows that American and allied forces are making real progress in Iraq, it is unfortunate that she would look to score political points by mischaracterizing Senator McCain's statement with intellectually dishonest attacks. The differences between Senator McCain's position, that we must win this war, and Senator Clinton's position, withdrawal and de facto surrender on day one, are important enough to have an honest debate over. It would be the height of irresponsibility to stick with campaign promises to the left-wing of the Democratic Party and proceed with withdrawal regardless of what the situation is on the ground in Iraq in January 2009.” [Press Release, John McCain, 3/17/08] MCCAIN ATTACKED CLINTON FOR OPPOSING THE SURGE McCain Attacked Clinton For Saying The Surge Was Not Working In 2008. “All I can say is that she obviously does not understand nor appreciate the progress that's been made on the ground. She told General Petraeus last year when he testified that you'd have to suspend disbelief in order to believe that the surge is working. Well, the surge is working. All I can say is that this will be a big issue in the election as we approach November, because at least a growing number of Americans, though, still frustrated and understandably so, believe that this strategy is succeeding.” [CNN, 3/17/08] MCCAIN SAID CLINTON WAS BLAMING THE U.S. FOR FOMENTING ISLAMIC EXTREMISM McCain Accused Senator Clinton Of Holding The U.S. Responsible For “Fomenting The Terrible Evil Of Radical Islamic Extremism.” “Senator Clinton and Senator Obama will concede to our critics that our own actions to defend against its threats are responsible for fomenting the terrible evil of radical Islamic extremism and the resolve to combat it will be as flawed as their judgment. I intend -- I intend to

defeat the threat by staying on offense and by marshalling every relevant agency of our government and our allies in the urgent necessity of defending the values, virtues, and security of free people against those who despise all that is good about us.” [Remarks at Conservative Political Action Conference, 2/7/08] McCain: Then-Senator Clinton Wouldn’t “Recognize And Seriously Address The Threat Posed By An Iran With Nuclear Ambitions To Our Ally Israel In The Region.” In a speech before at the Conservative Political Action Conference McCain said that Senators Clinton and Obama “won't recognize and seriously address the threat posed by an Iran with nuclear ambitions to our ally Israel in the region. I intend -- I intend to make unmistakably clear to Iran we will not permit a government that espouses the destruction of the state of Israel as its fondest wish and pledges undying enmity to the United States to possess the weapons to advance their malevolent ambitions.” [Remarks at Conservative Political Action Conference, 2/7/08] New York Times: A Top Pentagon Official Accused Then-Senator Clinton Of “Reinforcing ‘Enemy Propaganda That The United States Will Abandon Its Allies In Iraq” When She Sought Detailed Plans For A Military Withdrawal. “Issuing a stunning rocket, one of the Pentagon’s top officials sent a letter to Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton earlier this week that essentially told her that any outline of plans for withdrawing American troops from Iraq is tantamount to reinforcing ‘enemy propaganda that the United States will abandon its allies in Iraq, much as we are perceived to have done in Vietnam, Lebanon and Somalia.’ The letter from Defense Undersecretary Eric Edelman was in response to Senator Clinton’s request in May for the Defense Department to draw up proposals to get the troops out of the battlefields…The backstory, according to the A.P. and elsewhere, is that Senator Clinton, as a member of the Armed Services Committee, has been asking the Defense Department to develop a detailed proposal for withdrawing troops, which could be complicated, she said in May, and would require planning.” [New York Times, 7/19/07] TRADE MCCAIN ACCUSED THEN-SENATOR CLINTON OF BURYING HER HEAD IN THE SAND OVER HER OPPOSITION TO FREE TRADE AGREEMENTS Advocating Free Trade Agreements, McCain Said: “Senators Obama And Clinton Think We Should Hide Behind Walls, Bury Our Heads And Industries In The Sand, And Hope We Have Enough Left To Live On While The World Passes Us By.” “Opening new markets for American goods and services is indispensable to our future prosperity. We can compete with anyone. Senators Obama and Clinton think we should hide behind walls, bury our heads and industries in the sand, and hope we have enough left to live on while the world passes us by. But that is not good policy and it is not good leadership. And the short-sightedness of these policies can be seen today in Congress’ refusal to vote on the Colombian Free Trade Agreement. When new trading partners can sell in our market, and American companies can sell in theirs, the gains are great and they are lasting. The strength of the American economy offers a better life to every society we trade with, and the good comes back to us in many ways -- in better jobs, higher wages, and lower prices.” [McCain Remarks on the Economy at Carnegie Melon University, 4/15/08] HEALTHCARE REPUBLICAN PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES CRITICIZED HILLARY CLINTON’S HEALTH CARE PLAN FOR 2007: Mitt Romney Attacked Clinton For Proposing A Government Takeover Of Health Care. “There were some exaggerations and misstatements of facts along the way. Mr. Romney, for instance, spoke of his record in Massachusetts and said, ‘We solved the problem in health care in our state, not by having

government take it over the way Hillary Clinton would.’ But Mrs. Clinton's plan calls for creating new options for buying private or public insurance at affordable rates, requiring everyone to obtain insurance, and providing subsidies and tax credits to small businesses and individuals who could not afford it. She has said that the plan would not be run by the government.” [New York Times, 10/22/07] Wall Street Journal: McCain Compared Health Care Choices Under Then-Senator Clinton’s Plan To Saying “You're Going To Be Executed -- Do You Want A Knife Or A Bullet?” “The Arizona senator dismisses the fact that people could choose which health plan to sign up for under either Democrat's plan. ‘If you mandate, as Sen. Clinton wants to do, then, yeah, you've got a choice, but you still have a mandate. That's like saying, 'You're going to be executed -- do you want a knife or a bullet?’’ Sen. McCain told reporters aboard his bus. Sen. Clinton's policy chief, Neera Tanden, replied: ‘That's a great choice of words when literally people are dying.’” [Wall Street Journal, 4/19/08] PERSONALITY Republican Consultant: “Hillary Is Very Polarizing.” “‘Hillary’s very polarizing,’ one Republican consultant said. ‘There’s no middle ground there.’ For 16 years, Clinton has been at the dead center of some of the country’s most strident political battles, and most people seem to either love her or hate her. Stretching back a decade, her favorable ratings among voters nationwide have wobbled between the high 40s and the high 50s, while her unfavorable rating has hovered in the 40s since 2000. Republicans don’t have much distance to cover to push that unfavorable figure above 50. Asked where Clinton might be vulnerable in the general election, GOP pollster Glen Bolger joked, ‘With voters.’” [Salon, 3/26/08] Salon: Republicans Will “Say Clinton Will Do Or Say Anything To Win, And That She Can’t Be Trusted.” “Though many Democrats like and respect Clinton as a role model, an effective legislator and a fighter against a relentless GOP onslaught, the image Republicans would want in voters’ minds this fall if she wins the nomination is far more sinister. They’ll say Clinton will do or say anything to win, and that she can’t be trusted (also, she’ll raise your taxes). McCain’s campaign will call her a liberal and paint her support for ending the war in Iraq as a surrender to terrorists (the same strategy they’d use against Obama). Clinton’s problem is that many voters already see her in a negative light; there isn’t much work Republicans would have to do to put her there.” [Salon, 3/26/08] McCain’s Response to DNC Ad: Obama and Clinton are Out of Touch, Not Him. “Both Senator Clinton and Senator Obama want to raise taxes. That's out of touch, that's out of touch. Senator Obama says that he doest want to raise taxes on anybody making over $200,000 a year. Yet, he wants to nearly double the capital gains tax. Nearly double it. Which 100 million Americans have investments in - mutual funds, 401ks. Policemen, firemen, nurses. He wants to increase their taxes. And he obviously doesn't understand the economy because history shows, every time you have cut capital gains taxes, revenues have increased going back to Jack Kennedy. So out of touch, yes, they are out of touch, when they want to raise taxes at the worst possible time when we're in a recession.” [ABC News, “This Week with George Stephanopoulos,” 4/20/08] ECONOMY McCain: “I Know Economics Very Well.” On CNN, McCain attempted to explain why he said economics wasn’t his strong suit. “I said it wasn't my strongest because I spent 22 years in the military and I have been a member of the Armed Services Committee and involved in every major national security challenge in the last 20 years. I have been involved as chairman of the Commerce Committee. I've been involved as part of the Reagan revolution where we cut taxes and restrained spending and embarked on one of the strongest periods of economic growth in the history of this country. I know economics very well, certainly better than Senator Clinton and Senator Obama.” [CNN, 4/3/08]

LEGISLATION/HEARINGS McCain Attacks Dems. On False Charges. “’They have never, to my knowledge, been involved in legislation, or hearings, nor engagement on this issue,’ McCain said today of opponents Obama and Clinton. ‘I have a long history. I traveled around the world and seen the impacts of climate change on the world.’ But that statement doesn't take into account the fact that Clinton accompanied him on two of those trips. McCain traveled with Clinton, who sits on the Environment and Public Works Committee, on two congressional trips to examine climate change issues; one during the summer of 2004 and another -- in 2005 -- to Alaska and Canada…Obama's resume on environmental policy is not as thick as his colleagues', but it isn't completely void of participation either; in 2007, for example, he sponsored a bipartisan bill to create a national education effort around the climate change issue. The bill was referred to the HELP committee last year.” [First Read, MSNBC, 5/13/08]