FOXNews.com: Unions, interest groups swiftly return to airways, now with ads to influence fiscal cliff talks

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Unions, interest groups swiftly return to airways, now with ads to influence fiscal cliff talks Nov 24th 2012, 15:16 Just when many Americas were returning to their TVs and radios without being bombarded by political ads, powerful interest groups are back on the airways protecting their interests and targeting Capitol Hill lawmakers trying to resolve the looming fiscal crisis.   Lawmakers return to Capitol Hill on Monday to try to reach a deal with the White House to avert a mix of $500 billion in tax increases and federal spending cuts to keep the country from going over a "fiscal cliff" by January 2. However, labor unions and such powerful interest groups as AARP are already running ads to protect tax breaks and entitlement programs targeted for cutting. In the negotiations to reduce the roughly $1.2 trillion federal deficit, Democrats essentially are calling for tax increases for the country's highest earners to generate revenue, while Republicans want cuts to entitlement programs like Medicare and Social Security to slash spending. The labor unions AFSCME, NEA and SEIU are running TV ads in Colorado, Virginia and Missouri urging Senate Democrats to protect Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid and education, as reported first by Politico. "How do we move our country forward and reduce the deficit? By creating jobs and growing our economy, not by cutting programs that families rely on most," begins the ad, targeting Sens. Michael Bennet and Mark Udall in Colorado, Mark Warner and Jim Webb in Virginia and Claire McCaskill in Missouri. Though so-called big labor traditionally backs Democrats, the three unions are also airing radio spots in the districts of Republican Reps. Jo Ann Emerson, Missouri, Don Young, Alaska, and Pat Meehan and Mike Fitzpatrick, Pennsylvania, that urge voters to keep the Bush-era tax cuts for "the 98 percent of Americans who make less than $250,000 a year." AARP, the lobby group for seniors, is running a national ad campaign arguing Capitol Hill and the White House shouldn't "cram decisions about the future of these programs into a last-minute budget deal." AARP Executive Vice President Nancy LeaMond told The Wall Street Journal: "Raiding Medicare and Social Security to pay for other government programs is shortsighted and harmful to seniors and their kids and grandkids." In addition, a major wholesaler and two of the country's biggest drug store chains have waded into the influence game. CVS Caremark Chief Executive Larry J. Merlo and Walgreens Chief Executive Greg Wasson are separately calling for a bipartisan solution to prevent broad tax increases and the across-the-board budget cuts. Their comments echoed those of Costco Wholesale Chief Executive Officer Craig Jelinek, who has urged President Obama to compromise with Congress in a way that avoids tax increases for the middle class.

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