Presented by Religious Freedom Coalition

Senator Gordon Smith like others we called, stated that her position is that Christianity is the only "real" religion and in fact all other religions are evil cults.  What is a real religion, Mr. Smith?  What you have been practicing?  Read the following and remember: "By their Works may they be known."  This is a summary of information collected from several sources about Gordon Smith.

(Remember it is best to investigate on your own when looking at allegations about anyone.     Don't believe us, think for yourself and investigate for yourself!  And remember, the First Amendment Coalition does not represent any political party nor do we recommend any political candidate, nor are we involving ourselves in the political process.  This information is only for students of Senator Gordon Smith. )

Smith Takes Money from Big Oil, Drug Industries, and then Votes their Way 

Republican Senator Gordon Smith began airing an ad yesterday attacking Democratic Senate candidates Jeff Merkley and Steve Novick in an election year attempt to distract from his own record of taking money from the oil and pharmaceutical industries and then voting against lower gas and drug prices for consumers.  While Jeff Merkley passed historic legislation to reform ethics rules in the Oregon state legislature, Gordon Smith has distinguished himself as one of the special interests’ most reliable friends in Washington.  The ad, which comes before Oregon Democrats have even selected a nominee, launches direct personal attacks on Merkley and makes it clear that Smith is more afraid to take him on in a fall election than any of the other Democratic candidates.   

“Gordon Smith takes money from the big oil and drug industries and then votes to protect their profits instead of giving lower prices to consumers,” Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee spokesman Matthew Miller said.  “When Oregonians pay higher prices at the pump or the drugstore, they have Gordon Smith and his special interests pals to thank.  He’s taken hundreds of thousands of dollars in special interest contributions to pay for his negative ads attacking Democrats, but Oregonians know that if they want change in Washington, they have to vote to replace Gordon Smith.”

Gordon Smith and his Friends in the Oil Industry

• Smith Has Taken Over $276,000 From the Oil and Gas Industry.  Over his career Smith has taken $276,825 in campaign contributions from the oil and gas industry.  [Center for Responsive Politics]

• Smith Has Voted to Protect Oil Company Profits and Give Them Tax Breaks Seven Times.  Since coming to Congress, Smith has voted at least seven times to protect billions of dollars in tax breaks and subsidies for oil companies already reaping record profits. Smith’s votes included a vote last year that would have gutted a provision of the energy bill that rolled back oil and gas tax breaks in favor of renewable fuels. In 2006, Smith voted for provide $5 billion in tax breaks and subsidies for the oil and gas industry and in 2005 Smith voted for a bill that contained $9 billion in tax breaks and subsidies.  Smith also twice voted against imposing a windfall profits tax on the sale of crude oil above $40 a barrel.   Smith even voted for the 2003 energy bill which contained $11.9 billion in tax breaks to the oil and gas industry.  [Vote 222, 6/21/07; Senate Finance Committee Markup, 6/19/07; Dow Jones, 6/19/07; AP, 6/19/07; Vote 118, 5/11/06;Vote 331, 11/17/05; Vote 341, 11/17/05; Vote 213, 7/29/05; Houston Chronicle, 11/17/05; Las Vegas Review-Journal, 11/18/05; Environment and Energy Daily¸ 11/18/05; Vote 456, 11/21/03]

• Smith Voted to Gut Big Oil Tax Package And Let Big Oil Keep Their Billions.  In June 2007, the Senate considered a bipartisan package to provide tax incentives for alternative energy development by taxing big oil and gas companies. Smith voted to impose a trigger that gutted the package and let the big oil companies keep the $29 billion they would have been forced to give up to fund alternative energy. [Senate Finance Committee Markup, 6/19/07; Dow Jones, 6/19/07; AP, 6/19/07; Chicago Tribune, 6/21/07; Vote 222, 6/21/07]

• Smith Voted Against Collecting Nearly $11 Billion From Big Oil Companies to Fund Alternative Energy. In June 2007, the Senate Finance Committee approved a bill to provide $32.1 billion in tax incentives for alternative energy development by taxing big oil and gas companies. Before the package passed, though, Smith voted for an amendment that would have allowed the oil and gas companies, who are already reaping record profits, to keep $10.7 billion of that revenue.  [Senate Finance Committee Markup, 6/19/07; Dow Jones, 6/19/07; AP, 6/19/07]

• Smith Voted for $5 Billion Tax Break for Big Oil in 2006. In May 2006, Smith voted to provide $5 billion in tax breaks to big oil companies over five years. This money could have been used to provide tax cuts to the middle class that were instead eliminated. [Vote 118, 5/11/06; Washington Post, 4/26/06; Center for Budget and Policy Priorities, 5/11/06; New York Times, 12/9/05]

• Smith Provided More than $9 Billion in Tax Breaks to Big Oil in 2005. In July 2005, Smith voted for a pork-riddled energy bill that gave billions to the oil and gas industries, which were already making more than enough money as gas prices were rising. Oil and utility companies such spent at least $367 million pushing Congress to pass the energy bill, which the St. Louis Post-Dispatch criticized as “unlikely to affect prices now.” [Vote 213, 7/29/05; CNN, 7/28/05; Wall Street Journal, 7/18/06; AP, 7/21/06; New York Times, 3/27/06; Bloomberg, 7/27/05; St. Louis Post-Dispatch, 7/31/05]

• Smith Twice Rejected Windfall Profits Tax for Big Oil in 2005. In November 2005, Smith voted against imposing a temporary 50% tax on oil company profits from the sale of any crude oil above $40 a barrel. Revenues from the tax would be used to provide income tax rebates to consumers. The same day, Smith voted against a separate but similar windfall tax amendment that would use the revenue to provide a $100 income tax credit for every personal exemption. [Vote 331, 11/17/05; Vote 341, 11/17/05; Houston Chronicle, 11/17/05; Las Vegas Review-Journal, 11/18/05; Environment and Energy Daily¸ 11/18/05]

• Smith Voted for an Energy Bill that Gave the Energy Companies Big Tax Breaks, While Shortchanging Renewables. Smith voted to invoke cloture on a Bush-backed energy bill that gave $11.9 billion in tax breaks to the oil and gas industry, $2.5 billion to encourage “clean coal” plants and provide liability protection for ethanol producers for using the dangerous additive MTBE.   The bill would also make it easier for utility mergers and ease ownership on who could own a power-generating utility.  [Vote 456, 11/21/03]

• Smith Voted Against Measures to Promote Reduction of Greenhouse Gas Emissions or at Least Three Times.  Since coming to Congress Smith has voted against measures to reduce greenhouse gas emissions at least three times.   [Vote 148, 6/22/05; Vote 149, 6/22/05; Vote 420, 10/30/03]

• Smith Has Voted Against Measures to Increase Fuel Economy Standards or to Encourage Fuel Efficiency Four Times.  Since coming to Congress Smith has voted against measures to increase fuel economy standards at least four times.  Smith’s votes included a vote against an amendment to boost Café standards by 40 MPG in both 2005 and 2003 and a vote to halve the subsidies for car companies to research fuel efficient engines.  [Vote 157, 6/23/05; Vote 309, 7/29/03; Washington Times, 7/30/03; www.LCV.org; Vote 309, 7/29/03; Vote 48, 3/13/02]

• Smith Voted to Allow Drilling in ANWR Three Times. Since coming to Congress Smith has voted to allow drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge at least three times.    [Vote 74, 3/16/06; Anchorage Daily News, 3/17/06; Vote 364, 12/21/05; AP, 12/20/05; Vote 303, 11/3/05; Los Angeles Times, 11/4/05]

Gordon Smith and his Friends in the Big Drug Industry

• Smith Has Taken Over $271,000 From the Pharmaceuticals Industry.  Over his career Smith has taken $271,959 in campaign contributions from the pharmaceuticals industry.  [Center for Responsive Politics]

• Smith Twice Voted To Kill Amendments to Allow Government to Negotiate Drug Prices Through Medicare.  Smith has voted against lowering drug prices by allowing Medicare to negotiate with drug companies for lower prices at least twice. In November 2005, Smith voted to kill an amendment that would have allowed the federal government to negotiate drug prices.  The amendment which was introduced by Maine Republican Olympia Snowe, would have authorized the Secretary of HHS to negotiate prescription drug prices through Medicare, but specifically not have allowed him to set prices.  In March 2005, Smith voted against a similar measure.   [Vote 302, 11/3/05; Vote 60, 3/17/05]

• Smith Opposed Every Attempt to Fix Flawed Medicare Part-D Plan…

• Smith Voted to Kill Amendment that Would have Required Part-D Enrollees to be Made Aware of Doughnut Hole. In November 2005, Smith voted to kill an amendment to the Budget Reconciliation bill that would have required enrollees in the Medicare Part D to be made aware of possible coverage gaps.   The amendment would have required enrollees to sign a statement before enrolling that stated they were aware of the potential gap in coverage created by the “doughnut hole” in between levels of coverage, causing many enrollees to shoulder the full burden of the prescription drug costs.  [Vote 297, 11/3/05]

• Smith Voted To Kill An Amendment That Provided $60 Billion to Eliminate Gap in Coverage for Drug Costs Between $4,500 and $5,800 Annually.  In 2003, Smith voted to kill an amendment that aimed to eliminate a feature of the prescription drug bill that denied coverage for drug costs between $4,500 and $5,800 annually.  The amendment would extend prescription drug cost sharing between Medicare and beneficiaries up to $5,800, when full catastrophic coverage would take over.  “We should not have a plan that stops and starts,” Boxer said, advocating an extra $60 billion to close the gap.  [Vote 236, 6/24/03; AP, 6/24/03]

• Smith Voted Against Extension of Medicare Part-D Enrollment Four Times.  Since 2003, Smith has voted to block attempts to extend the enrolment deadline for Medicare Part-D four times.  In March 2006, Smith voted against an amendment that would have created a deficit-neutral reserve fund to adjust the budget and pay for the impact of any legislation to extend Medicare’s prescription drug program open enrollment period to the end of 2006 and allow a one-time change of plan enrollment during 2006.  Earlier in 2006 and in 2005 Smith voted against other amendments that would have removed the penalty for seniors who did not sigh up for the drug plan by the deadline.  [Vote 49, 3/15/06; Vote 5, 2/2/06; Vote 342, 11/17/05; Vote 234, 6/24/03; Hartford Courant, 6/25/03]

• Smith Voted Against Creation of Fund to Pay for Extension of Medicare Part D Enrollment Deadline.  In March 2006, Smith voted against an amendment that would have created a deficit-neutral reserve fund to adjust the budget and pay for the impact of any legislation to extend Medicare’s prescription drug program open enrollment period to the end of 2006 and allow a one-time change of plan enrollment during 2006.  [Vote 49, 3/15/06]

• Smith Voted Against Improvements to Medicare Part D, Including Extending the Enrolment Period.  In February 2006, Smith voted to kill and amendment that would have made several changes to the Medicare Part D prescription drug plan.  The amendment would have extended the initial enrollment period for the Medicare prescription drug benefit through 2006. It also would have made program changes, including providing for federal reimbursement to pharmacies, states and individuals, costs that should have been covered by the prescription drug benefit but were incorrectly charged during rollout. [Vote 5, 2/2/06]

• Smith Voted To Kill Amendment that Would Have Extended Medicare Prescription Drug Enrolment Deadline.  In November 2005 Smith voted to kill an amendment to the Tax Reconciliation Bill that would have extended the enrollment period for the Medicare Prescription Drug plan.  The amendment offered by Senator Nelson of Florida, would have extended the deadline by six months, giving seniors until the end of 2006 to enroll.  [Vote 342, 11/17/05]

• Smith Voted Against Allowing Open Enrollment in Medicare Drug Plans Through 2008.  In 2003, Smith voted to kill an amendment that allowed open enrollment in Medicare drug plans through 2008.   The amendment extended, until the end of 2007, the period for beneficiaries to enter or exit the Medicare prescription drug plans and Medicare Advantage plan.  The amendment failed 55-42. [Vote 234, 6/24/03]