Dear John, 

          I hope you saw Sen. John McCain call on Americans to visit our website during all three presidential debates.

          It is further evidence of the preeminent role that, thanks to your support, we are playing in the national public policy debate.

          But more than that, it has placed a special burden on us.

          We have become THE SOURCE for bipartisan, independent information on the tax and spending records of both Sen. McCain and Sen. Barack Obama.

          National news outlets like ABC News, The Wall Street Journal, and USA Today and -- perhaps even more importantly -- countless local newspapers, talk radio broadcasts, reporters, columnists, and commentators are citing our earmark statistics and vote ratings for the two presidential candidates.

          Relying on our information, they are broadcasting how Sen. McCain has never requested a single special-interest, pork-barrel earmark in his 25 years in Congress, while Sen. Obama has requested $740 million in earmarks in just three years.

          They are also contrasting Sen. McCain’s status as a “Taxpayer Hero” with a CCAGW Lifetime Vote Rating of 88 percent with Sen. Obama’s Lifetime Rating of just 18 percent when it comes to cutting spending and voting to reduce taxes.

          By letting millions of Americans know where the two presidential candidates stand on spending and taxes, we are sending a powerful message to all the politicians in Washington in favor of a smaller, more efficient, less costly government.  We are also putting tremendous lobbying pressure on the candidates to commit now to cut spending immediately upon taking the oath of office.

          But to be frank, as we enter the final weeks of this election season, we are running short of funds to devote to this effort.  To keep pushing out the press kits, news releases, and fact sheets and continue responding to the non-stop demands for our CCAGW Experts’ insights and commentary will require a cash injection of at least $10,000 in the next few days.

          That is why with less than three weeks to go until the presidential election, I urgently need to ask you as never before to make a special contribution to CCAGW.

          If we are going to continue to provide this vital information, keep up the drumbeat for lower spending and taxes to enhance our lobbying efforts, and capitalize on our outstanding success to date in contrasting the voting records and proposals of Sens. McCain and Obama, I urgently need you to make a contribution today. 

          If you can contribute $25, $35, $50 or even as much as $100, it will provide a tremendous boost to all of our efforts.

          Time is short.  I hope I can count on you.

Sincerely,

Thomas A. Schatz
President

P.S. The U.S. Treasury Department has just reported that the federal deficit hit an all-time record of $454 billion in the fiscal year that ended on September 30.  With the new financial burdens the federal government is assuming in order to bail out Wall Street, some economists are predicting that the deficit could reach a shocking $1 trillion over the next 12 months.  That’s why it’s so important that Americans know where the presidential candidates stand on spending and taxes, so we can pressure them to take action on our waste-cutting recommendations immediately upon taking the oath of office.  Please help us continue to get out the word in these final weeks before the elections.  Support our nationwide media and lobbying drive with your largest possible contribution today!

***
The Council for Citizens Against Government Waste (CCAGW) is the lobbying arm of Citizens Against Government Waste (CAGW), the nation's largest taxpayer watchdog organization with more than one million members and supporters nationwide.  CCAGW is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that lobbies for legislation to eliminate waste, fraud, abuse, and mismanagement in government.  For more information about CCAGW, visit www.ccagw.org.  Help CCAGW wage this media and lobbying campaign to ensure Americans know where the presidential candidates stand on spending and taxes by making a contribution today.

Forward this message to a friend.