Obama for America

"Need Education"
30-second ad run on national cable and in key states, Sept. 19, 2008




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Lily Ledbetter: I worked at this plant for 20 years before I learned the truth.

I'd been paid 40% less than men doing the same work.

John McCain opposed a law to give women equal pay for equal work. 

And he dismissed the wage gap, saying women just need education and training.

I had the same skills as the men at my plant.  My family needed that money.

On the economy, it's John McCain who needs an education.

Obama (voiceover): I'm Barack Obama and I approved this message.


Notes: This ad was released on the day that Obama outlined his "New Energy for America Plan" in a speech in Lansing, MI.  McCain campaign spokesman Tucker Bounds responded with this statement:

Notes: The press release describes this ad...

...featuring Lilly Ledbetter, the Alabama woman whose fight for equal pay led her to the United States Supreme Court and inspired the 2007 fair pay legislation that bears her name.  Ledbetter announced her support for the Obama-Biden ticket this week at an event with Michelle Obama, who has been holding roundtables with women all across the country for over a year. 
 
In the new ad called “Need Education,” Ledbetter tells her story of pay discrimination. Families are hurting under George Bush’s economic policies, and women are more squeezed than ever, working for less pay than men and juggling increasing family commitments. But even in 2008, John McCain opposes laws to fix the pay gap, and he doesn’t have a plan to help women manage these new challenges. Obama will support women and families in this shaky economy and continue to fight to close the pay gap that is hurting families across America.

Also note this Obama radio ad, which strikes many of the same themes, heard in No. VA in the latter part of Sept. 2008.

Response from the McCain campaign...

“Barack Obama claims he’s for equal pay for women, but women working in his Senate office earn an average of $9,000 less than men, while women in John McCain’s Senate office earn an average of nearly $2,000 more than men. American women understand that real leadership is about what you do, not just what you say.” — McCain-Palin spokeswoman Crystal Benton