**UPDATE – Politifact said AFSCME “ad repeats inaccurate claim that Joe Heck wants to privatize Social Security.”
FACT: Dr. Heck wants to protect Social Security for current beneficiaries, those approaching retirement and preserve it for future generations.
Here are the facts about AFSCME PEOPLE IE TV AD “I’m One” – 8/2/2016
After Harry Reid’s super PAC was hit was a “mostly false” for their “highly misleading” attack on Dr. Joe Heck, Nevada’s “meddler-in-chief” Reid has called in more D.C. friends to prop up his handpicked candidate, and “partisan bully,” Catherine Cortez Masto.
“Dr. Joe Heck’s parents depend on Social Security and he is fully committed to protecting the promise of Social Security for our seniors and those approaching retirement. Dr. Heck is the only candidate in the race who has actually taken action to strengthen Social Security. After hearing from seniors frustrated by the lack of a cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) increase for Social Security this year and in years past, he introduced a bill called the SENIORS COLA Guarantee Act to ensure seniors on Social Security receive a guaranteed minimum COLA increase,” said Heck spokesperson Brian Baluta. “Harry Reid has tried making this bogus charge stick in previous elections and twice now this year. Nevadans know the attack is not true because Joe Heck has spent his life putting Nevadans first while Catherine Cortez Masto has been called a ‘loyal Democratic foot soldier’ and ‘partisan bully.’” (Las Vegas Review-Journal, 10/20/2010; Las Vegas Sun, 12/11/2009)
Heck wants to preserve Social Security for future generations and is the only candidate for this U.S. Senate race who is willing to heed the warnings being issued by the Medicare and Social Security trustees. Those warnings are clear: Medicare and Social Security, upon which thousands of Nevada seniors rely, are not on sound financial footing and need to be strengthened if they are to provide the health and income security our seniors deserve. Ignoring those challenges, which would be Cortez Masto’s approach, will result in benefit cuts and uncertainty for those near retirement age.
Reid, Cortez Masto incredible hypocrisy continues
According to Opensecrets.org, Cortez Masto has accepted nearly $300,000 from Wall Street. Among the largest contributors to Harry Reid’s Senate Majority PAC is billionaire hedge-fund manager James Simons. (Politico, 9/24/14)
Reid and Cortez Masto enthusiastically support Hillary Clinton for president who received $9,680,000 for speaking engagements in 2013, including 14 paid by Wall Street firms such as Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Deutsche Bank, Fidelity Investments UBS and Bank of America. Her benefactors also include hedge funds and private equity firms like Apollo Management and Kohlberg, Kravis, Roberts. (Huffington Post, 2/8/16)
“Nevadans should not be surprised by Cortez Masto’s rank hypocrisy. She has always had ‘Different standards for politicians, different standards for Democrats, different standards for Nevada,’” said Baluta, referring to Cortez Masto’s long record of putting her party before Nevada.
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