Truth Squad to Hit 10 Battleground States in Seven Weeks

Workers to Directly Question McCain on New Website

WASHINGTON, D.C. – A new campaign by the seven unions and six million members of Change to Win is telling working families about John McCain’s anti-worker agenda.

In a multifaceted, multimedia effort, Change to Win is launching a McCain Truth Squad tour; starting a new website, www.worsethanbush.org, that allows workers to directly question McCain and his agenda; and premiering after Labor Day, a two-part online comedy video series showcasing McCain’s anti-worker policies through humor.

The Squad of 9 workers starts its journey today in Nevada and will travel through three states using direct action and creative events to educate members on controversial McCain positions on America’s mortgage crisis, Yucca Mountain, Nevada Governor Jim Gibbons and McCain’s own negligence in the Senate.

“It’s time for some truth about who John McCain really is and what a McCain presidency would mean for America’s workers,” said Anna Burger, chair of Change to Win. “Change to Win’s Truth Squad is standing up to John McCain’s campaign of distortion, which disguises a Bush-inspired agenda that will bankrupt our economy for four more years. At the same time, the Squad is standing up for Barack Obama whose presidency will help build a new American Dream for working families by delivering the change our members desperately need on the issues that matter most – the economy and jobs, health care and workers’ rights.”

The Change to Win Truth Squad is comprised of workers from Nevada, Illinois and Florida, including waitresses, cashiers, dishwashers, homecare workers and government employees. The Squad will highlight McCain’s agenda through dramatic demonstrations such as:

• Foreclosure funerals in Reno and Las Vegas: These memorials symbolize the disastrous effect the mortgage crisis has had on Nevada and the completely inadequate response of John McCain. The events will feature speeches by workers who have lost their home, a coffin filled with mortgage statements and workers dressed up as the “McCain Mortgage Reapers.” The Foreclosure Funerals will take place at Washoe County Republican Party headquarters and John McCain’s Nevada campaign headquarters.
• Jim Gibbons Rally in Carson City: John McCain has called Nevada Governor Jim Gibbons a “Great Governor” despite an FBI investigation into Gibbons’ congressional past, allegations that he got his property taxes lowered from $5,000 to $15, and using a state cell phone to text his mistress 860 times. The Squad will highlight McCain’s dedication to the embattled governor with a mock rally at the Nevada State capital featuring the “True McCain” explaining his support for Jim Gibbons based on their united anti-worker agenda.
• Yucca Mountain Disaster Prep in Pahrump: To highlight John McCain’s strong support of storing nuclear waste in Yucca Mountain, the Squad will hold a disaster preparation rally. The event will feature the “Truth McCain” demonstrating procedures and outfits workers will need to use on the job in the event of a nuclear spill to prevent side effects such as cancer and radiation poisoning.

The Squad’s mission is also spread online through www.worsethanbush.org. A main feature of the site is called “Ask McCain” – videos of workers across the country telling their stories of what life has been like over the last seven years and asking John McCain questions about his record and agenda. In addition, www.worsethanbush.org is a hub for videos featuring candid and entertaining McCain moments, up-to-date news on McCain flaps, and “Who Said It?,” an interactive game featuring prominent, and comic, McCain quotes.

The website will also host an online comedy video series highlighting through parody the consequences of McCain’s agenda for working families. The videos will be produced by Olde English, a New York-based comedy group formerly of Turner’s SuperDeluxe.com and featured monthly at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater.

The following is the schedule for the Truth Squad’s three tours:

Tour 1	Tour 2	Tour 3
8.18 - Reno, NV	9.5 - St. Paul, MN	9.26 - Grand Rapids, MI
8.19 - Carson City, NV	9.6 - La Crosse, WI	9.27 - Lansing, MI
8.20 - Las Vegas, NV	9.7 - Cedar Rapids, IA	9.28 - Detroit, MI
8.21 - Pahrump, NV	9.9 - Kansas City, MO	9.29 - Toledo, OH
8.22 - Phoenix, AZ	9.11 - St. Louis, MO	9.30 - Cleveland, OH
8.24 - Denver, CO		10.1 – Pittsburgh, PA
		10.3 – Scranton, PA

On February 21, 2008, Change to Win endorsed Senator Barack Obama for president of the United States of America. The Change to Win political program is conducting a comprehensive mail, phone and canvass effort in 13 battleground states: Ohio, Pennsylvania, New Hampshire, Iowa, Missouri, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Nevada, Colorado, Michigan, Indiana, North Carolina and Virginia. Change to Win plans to send 10 million pieces of direct mail, make 20 million phone calls, and run a full-time, coordinated member-to-member canvass with 1,500 member organizers. Change to Win unions also plan to recruit over 50,000 volunteers for Election Day.

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About Change to Win
Change to Win is a six million member partnership of seven unions founded in 2005 to represent workers in the industries and occupations of the 21st century economy. Change to Win committed to restoring the American Dream for a new generation of workers – wages that can support a family, affordable health care, a secure retirement, and the opportunity for the future. The seven affiliated unions are: Service Employees International Union, UNITE HERE, United Food and Commercial Workers International Union, International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Laborers' International Union of North America, United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America and United Farm Workers of America.