Too Far? New Dem Attack Ad Portrays Elderly Man as Male Stripper

We're over a year away from the 2012 election, but the attack ads are already heating up, so to speak.

A new ad by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) tries to portray Republicans as ruthless budget cutters who, by voting for Paul Ryan's 2012 budget plan, just voted to abolish Medicare. The ad shows an elderly man trying to raise money through a series of odd jobs. After trying to sell lemonade and cut some grass, he eventually rings the doorbell at what seems to be a bachelorette party.

"Did someone call the fire department, because it's about to get hot in here!" he says. The ad then cuts to him in much less clothing while dancing around the room.

"Seniors will have to find $12,500 for health care," the ad goes on to say:

In a statement responding to the ad, National Republican Congressional Committee spokeswoman Joanna Burgos accusing Democrats of "shameless scare tactics:"

“The Democrats’ shameless scare tactics are merely a way to mislead voters and cover up the real Democrat plan to watch Medicare die a painful death, an unacceptable option for America’s seniors," Burgos said in the statement. "The reality is that the Republican budget blueprint saves Medicare for future generations with no disruption for those in and near retirement, while the Democrats’ plan cuts Medicare benefits and raises taxes on job creators and every person who receives a paycheck.”

"After House Republicans rammed through a disgraceful budget that would end Medicare -- while giving millionaires and billionaires another tax cut -- we knew we had to have an eye-popping response," DCCC Rep. Steve Israel Israel said in an e-mail to supporters.

But as PolitFact -- the fact checking website -- points out, the claim by Democrats (and liberal site Moveon.org) that Republicans voted to "end Medicare" is "false:"

MoveOn.org claimed that Ryan’s budget plan "abolishes Medicare within 10 years." The group provided no evidence that backs the claim. To be sure, the plan would change Medicare, significantly, starting in 2022. But for those who turn 65 before then, there would be no changes at all, even after 2022. And for the others, Medicare would change -- dramatically -- but it would still exist.

MoveOn.org went too far with its claim. We rate it False.

It looks like seniors can keep their clothes on.

You can watch a parody of this video over on the blogd.