'08AMA on the issues

[Taco John]

I'm tired of people saying that they don't know where '08AMA (thanks Jensen) stands on the issues... It's not difficult in this day and age to actually do the miniscule amount of work to actually educate yourself on any candidate's position on the issues, so I thought I'd put in some miniscule effort to pull them up so that everybody has to make even less of an effort to get knowledgeable on his actual positions.

So without delay...

Iraq
Since 2002, and now, as a U.S. Senator, Senator Obama has continued to critique the Administration's mishandling of this war, and believes that while our troops have done an outstanding job in Iraq, there can be no military solution to what is inherently a political conflict between Iraq's warring factions. The only hope to end this burgeoning civil war is for Shiites, Sunnis, and Kurds to come together and resolve their differences, and that's why Senator Obama agrees with the Iraq Study Group's conclusion that we must begin a phased redeployment of American troops to signal to the government and people of Iraq that ours is not an open-ended commitment.

For more on his Iraq positions:
http://obama.senate.gov/issues/iraq/index.html


Defense
With the nation facing unprecedented threats, our military needs to remain the world's best. We must adapt the Pentagon to face 21st century threats such as global terrorists and loose nuclear weapons in the former Soviet states. Senator Obama is working to ensure that the nation's defense capabilities are strong, agile, and prepared and that our troops are provided with the equipment they need.

For more on his defense positions:
http://obama.senate.gov/issues/defense/index.html


Seniors
As we transition to an increasingly global economy, many Americans are at risk of being left behind through no fault of their own. Among those most affected by these changes are senior citizens, many of whom are on fixed incomes. We need to modernize our social safety net to help senior citizens meet these new challenges, but we also must preserve those elements, such as Social Security and Medicare, that have enabled us to fulfill our moral commitments to our parents and grandparents.

For more on his Seniors positions:
http://obama.senate.gov/issues/seniors/index.html


Crime
Senator Obama is a strong proponent of tougher measures to fight crime, in particular the growing problem of methamphetamines, which has ravaged many communities in Illinois. He has also advocated providing more resources to local law enforcement officers.

For more on his positions on crime:
http://obama.senate.gov/issues/crime/index.html


Environment
As a member of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, Senator Obama has worked to ensure our nation's environmental laws and policies balance America's needs for a healthy, sustainable environment with economic growth.


For more on his environmental policy:
http://obama.senate.gov/issues/environment/index.html


Homeland Security
Senator Obama believes that greater attention needs to be paid to the nation’s homeland security. To that end, he has supported efforts to distribute more funds to cities like Chicago most at risk of a terrorist attack. He has also introduced legislation to strength chemical plant and drinking water security and to enhance disaster preparedness.

For more on his homeland security policy:
http://obama.senate.gov/issues/homeland_security/index.html



Immigration
Senator Obama shares the growing public concern about illegal immigration in the United States. The challenge facing President Bush and Congress is how to effectively stop the flow of illegal immigrants across our borders, better manage immigration flows going forward, and deal with illegal aliens who are already living and working in this country.

More on Obama's take on Immigration:
http://obama.senate.gov/issues/immigration/index.html


Education
Senator Obama is committed to providing every American with the opportunity to receive a quality education, from pre-kindergarten to college or vocational school to job retraining programs.


More Obama on Education:
http://obama.senate.gov/issues/education/index.html


Health Care
Promoting affordable, accessible, and high-quality health care was a priority for Barack Obama in the Illinois State Senate and is a priority for him in the United States Senate. He believes firmly that health care should be a right for everyone, not a privilege for the few.

'08AMA on Healthcare:
http://obama.senate.gov/issues/health_care/index.html


Veterans
As a member of the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee, Senator Obama is committed to helping the heroes who defend our nation today and the veterans who fought in years past.

More Obama on Veterans:
http://obama.senate.gov/issues/veterans/index.html



Ethics and Lobbying Reform
Throughout his political career, Barack Obama has been a leader in fighting for open and honest government. During his first year as an Illinois State Senator, he helped lead the fight to pass Illinois' first ethics reform bill in 25 years. As a U.S. Senator, he has spearheaded the effort to clean up Washington in the wake of the Jack Abramoff scandal.

And last but not least:
http://obama.senate.gov/issues/ethics_and_lobbying_reform/index.html




And here is a link to the page which it is all found, which undoubtedly will be updated throughout his campaign:
http://obama.senate.gov/issues/

[recxjake]

Every Democrat says this exact same crap... nothing new

[recxjake]

He has no acutal solution for any of these problems listed above...

This is what I'm thinking:

To fix the the deficit... raise taxes
To fix SS.... raise taxes

[patteeu]

I hate to be too much of a wet blanket, but that's a great list of the seemingly satisfying but insubstantial generalities I was talking about in the other thread. I don't have time tonight to click on each of the links so maybe he has very detailed descriptions of his positions on those sub-pages, but on this page here is a comprehensive list of the positions I was able to get out of what you posted:

1) He wants to implement the ISG recommendations on Iraq.

2) He's hawkish on meth.

3) He wants to spend more money on lots of other good sounding but unspecific stuff.

I'll take a look at some of the sub-pages tomorrow. Have a nice night.

[Jenson71]

I hate to be too much of a wet blanket, but that's a great list of the seemingly satisfying but insubstantial generalities I was talking about in the other thread.

Every senator has a page like that. Check on your own guys.

[Mr. Kotter]

I applaud your efforts and intentions, TJ. Seriously.

I consider Obama's "platform" to be a good start; it leaves me wanting to hear more. And that's more than I can say about the agenda and rhetoric of many politicians.

I'm eager to hear his detailed proposals and the specific legislative agenda he thinks can accomplish some of the things he has so far spoken of, mostly in general terms.

IMO, he will make the race with Hillary very, very interesting. It will be fascinating seeing Hillary attempt to position herself against what he says.

[recxjake]

Every senator has a page like that. Check on your own guys.

Agreed.

[banyon]

I agree. I'll check links later as well, but most of these issue positions are little more than "Senator Obama is concerned about 'x' issue."

Of course it is January 2007, so he has some time to spell out these positions in a little more detail.

[CRONUS]

I hate to be too much of a wet blanket, but that's a great list of the seemingly satisfying but insubstantial generalities I was talking about in the other thread. I don't have time tonight to click on each of the links so maybe he has very detailed descriptions of his positions on those sub-pages, but on this page here is a comprehensive list of the positions I was able to get out of what you posted:

1) He wants to implement the ISG recommendations on Iraq.

2) He's hawkish on meth.

3) He wants to spend more money on lots of other good sounding but unspecific stuff.

I'll take a look at some of the sub-pages tomorrow. Have a nice night.I don't have time to read them all tonight but I sampled a few of them and there are some very specific solutions in a couple and not so specific in a couple of others. I would say it is typical platform material of any national candidate in terms of specificity.

[Taco John]

I consider Obama's "platform" to be a good start; it leaves me wanting to hear more.


Yep. Exactly.

It's why he's going to win the election. People want to learn more about him, unlike other politicians. Nobody wants to learn more about Hillary. In fact, they want to hear less. She doesn't stand a chance.

[NewPhin]

It doesn't matter. You could have video of him giving step-by-step instructions to his plan on every issue, and people would still say, "What I still want to know is what is Obama's plan? At least our guy has a plan!" It's a really weird phenomena which I became familiar with during the last presidential election.

[Mr. Kotter]

Yep. Exactly.

It's why he's going to win the election. People want to learn more about him, unlike other politicians. Nobody wants to learn more about Hillary. In fact, they want to hear less. She doesn't stand a chance.I've been saying, basically, the same thing for awhile now....

http://www.chiefsplanet.com/BB/showthread.php?p=3269748#post3269748

Our difference may be you have more faith in American's abilities to resist the inevitable demagoguery and to let go of their prejudices. I think he could win the nomination; my real skepticism would come in the general election.

In a ChiefsPlanet first, I have to say...I hope I'm wrong, and I hope you are right. :)

[Mr. Kotter]

It doesn't matter. You could have video of him giving step-by-step instructions to his plan on every issue, and people would still say, "What I still want to know is what is Obama's plan? At least our guy has a plan!" It's a really weird phenomena which I became familiar with during the last presidential election.

Please tell me that you arent' really suggesting that Kerry had anything truly specific and substantive to offer, that made his "plan" better than what Bush was offering. Because clearly the American people didn't see it that way. :spock:

And I mean, substantively. At least on issues that Americans really care about....:hmmm:

[NewPhin]

Please tell me that you arent' really suggesting that Kerry had anything truly specific and substantive to offer, that made his "plan" better than what Bush was offering. Because clearly the American people didn't see it that way. :spock:

And I mean, substantively. At least on issues that Americans really care about....:hmmm:

I'm not saying his plan was better. I'm not even really commenting on Kerry specifically. I'm commenting on a general trend that I've noticed in DC from both sides. People would say, "Kerry doesn't have a plan." Link of said plan would be provided. People would still insist there was no plan.

As others have pointed out, what constitutes a "plan" for any candidate (left or right) is usually nothing more than a fluffed up talking points PR campaign. That plan is good enough for people if it's from the candidate they support. If it's from a candidate they oppose, they label the plan without any substance or claim it's not a plan at all.

[stevieray]

He's being thrust to play Jesus to the leper of slavery in people's heads.

[pikesome]

As others have pointed out, what constitutes a "plan" for any candidate (left or right) is usually nothing more than a fluffed up talking points PR campaign. That plan is good enough for people if it's from the candidate they support. If it's from a candidate they oppose, they label the plan without any substance or claim it's not a plan at all.

I agree 100% with this post, its one of the major problems with politics currently.

[patteeu]

It's probably not worth going through this, because it's pretty clear that I won't be interested in Obama and that, given our ideological differences, it would be foolish for me to give him the benefit of the doubt, but...

(BTW, I looked at each of these pages along with his Senate voting record at Project Vote Smart (http://www.vote-smart.org/voting_category.php?can_id=BS030017&type=category&category=National%2BSecurity%2BIssues&go.x=11&go.y=5)).

I'm tired of people saying that they don't know where '08AMA (thanks Jensen) stands on the issues... It's not difficult in this day and age to actually do the miniscule amount of work to actually educate yourself on any candidate's position on the issues, so I thought I'd put in some miniscule effort to pull them up so that everybody has to make even less of an effort to get knowledgeable on his actual positions.

So without delay...

Iraq

Obama's position is pretty clear on Iraq. He wants to redeploy per ISG recommendations. To his credit, he's been consistent in his opposition to the war. To his detriment, at least from my POV, I see this as surrender and it's a huge mark against him.


Defense

The details provided by Obama on his attitude toward defense are unsatisfying to me. When healthcare, armored vehicles (which I consider a demagogic issue), traumatic brain injury, and avian flu are the highlights of your defense statement, it doesn't reassure me that his expressed interest in a strong, agile and prepared military can be counted on as a core principle.

His votes against the Bush Guantanamo policy are also strikes against him in my book.


Seniors

He's against even minor SS privatization, for a more costly prescription drug entitlement (that would remove the so-called donut hole), for empowering the government to negotiate (i.e. dictate) prescription drug prices, and for the vacant idea of letting US citizens buy "cheaper" drugs from Canada. The only positive I can spin out of this mess is that he expresses an interest in addressing SS. That's thin gruel compared to the list of specifics that I find objectionable. I'd summarize his policies as more taxes, more spending, lower SS benefits (probably), and heavy-handed attempt to shift a part of the burden of the drug plan to pharmaceutical companies.


Crime

I don't see this as a very important issue, but to the extent that he wants to increase the role of the federal government in local law enforcement and to the extent that he wants to continue fighting the federal war on drugs, I'm not a fan. This would probably be my position for almost any candidate on either side of the aisle though so it's not a big discriminator for me.


Environment

He's against drilling in ANWR which puts him at odds with me on that issue, but the rest of his environmental interests don't seem terribly out of line. I don't know enough to support or oppose his views on mercury and lead and I'm not sure what the McCain/Lieberman initiative on climate change entailed so, while I suspect I oppose it, I don't really know. Obama doesn't say anything that is obviously outrageous to me like expressing support for Kyoto. He does have specifics here, but I'm not interested enough in this subject to read about them to figure out what they mean.

Homeland Security

He wants to inspect 100% of all shipping cargo which I oppose. We shouldn't need to do that and it would add unnecessary cost and would create friction in our trade mechanisms.

I don't have a problem with his opposition to the Patriot Act reauthorization or his support of the subsequent compromise reauthorization (although I don't like the fact that it is now permanent).

As with the environment issues, he has lots of specifics here in terms of legislation he has supported, but I don't have the expertise on the underlying legislation to form an opinion on them.


Immigration

He supports a comprehensive plan similar to what the President supports. Personally, I don't have any big problem with this approach although I can understand why many would want to seal the border BEFORE accommodating the illegals who are already here. I don't agree with his opposition to English as a national language, but all in all, it's hard for me to be real critical of his immigration position.


Education

He has a specific proposal for some kind of pilot program within the public school system where the feds would take proposals from districts around the country on how they can use an innovative approach to improve education results and then they would fund these innovation programs to see how well they work out. It's the kind of increased federal involvement that I oppose, but it's not he worst of ideas.

He also proposes more money for college aid because of the rising cost of tuition. My belief is that college aid is a big part of the cause of rising tuition so I oppose this plan.


Health Care

He lists a lot of narrow-focus spending programs and reporting requirement programs to address a variety of miscellaneous medical issues, but he doesn't have anything specific to say about healthcare entitlements (aside from what I mentioned above about prescription drugs). The narrow-focus programs may or may not be good ideas as far as big government solutions go, but the big questions are what he would do with the looming medicare/medicaid financing crisis and how he would go about insuring what he sees as a "right" to healthcare.

Ethics and Lobbying Reform

He's got a few specific proposals in this section, but I'm not sure any of them would be very effective. He seems to be against earmarks which is good. I don't like his outside commission to investigate complaints against Congressmen though. It sounds good, but I think Congress should be accountable to themselves and to the voters.


All in all, I'd say Obama has plenty of specifics on this website, (although he falls short on some of the most important areas like defense and entitlements, IMO). Not too unusual for a politician.

[Radar Chief]

Thanks for the link, Teej, I sent it to the wife. She’s an Obama fan but doesn’t know much ‘bout’im ‘cept that “he looks good on camera” and “is well spoken”.

[BIG_DADDY]

War on Drugs?
Gun Laws?
Taxes?
Patriot Act?

[patteeu]

War on Drugs?
Gun Laws?
Taxes?
Patriot Act?

He probably hates dogs too. :Poke:

[CRONUS]

He's being thrust to play Jesus to the leper of slavery in people's heads.

Wow

[NewPhin]

Wow

Heh. It's a bastardization of a U2 song lyric.

[stevieray]

Heh. It's a bastardization of a U2 song lyric.

exactly. I didn't mean it negatively.

[dirk digler]

Time magazine just released a poll that shows Hillary up 19% on Obama. IMO that is way to high. It also a virtual tie between Hillary and McCain.

I honestly don't see Hillary winning but what do I know.

I like Obama and he is my favorite right now and Edwards is 2nd.

The one thing people need to keep in mind and I know it may sound funny but it is the Oprah factor. Oprah can probably single handley deliver Obama the win.

[NewPhin]

Time magazine just released a poll that shows Hillary up 19% on Obama. IMO that is way to high. It also a virtual tie between Hillary and McCain.


I call BS. I can't find anyone that supports her, much less a majority that support her over Obama. That being said, it's been interesting watching my usual liberal websites starting to pick sides. Salon.com seems to have solidly come down in the Hillary camp, writing two somewhat negative articles about Obama in a row. It's starting to piss me off.

[stevieray]

The one thing people need to keep in mind and I know it may sound funny but it is the Oprah factor. Oprah can probably single handley deliver Obama the win.

That's not funny..it's true...women have the power in this country..I knew the outcome of the election before the results..based on gender representation at the polls.

[dirk digler]

I call BS. I can't find anyone that supports her, much less a majority that support her over Obama. That being said, it's been interesting watching my usual liberal websites starting to pick sides. Salon.com seems to have solidly come down in the Hillary camp, writing two somewhat negative articles about Obama in a row. It's starting to piss me off.

I agree. See for yourself.

http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1582130,00.html

[dirk digler]

That's not funny..it's true...women have the power in this country..

Don't say that to loud. :)

I hope Oprah uses her influence to help Obama win.

[recxjake]

The new Iowa poll has John Edwards up 10% on Hillary and 5 or 6 on Obama

[noa]

The new Iowa poll has John Edwards up 10% on Hillary and 5 or 6 on Obama


I think his populist message will play well in the Midwest.

[Mr. Kotter]

I think his populist message will play well in the Midwest.

His ambulance chasing career won't though.

[NewPhin]

His ambulance chasing career won't though.

Perhaps, but that's a wash. He was involved in some pretty legitimate lawsuits that were far from ambulance chasing. Here's a summary of his "big" cases from wikipedia


Edwards' first important case was a 1984 medical malpractice lawsuit. In that case, Edwards won a $3.7 million verdict on behalf of his client who suffered permanent brain and nerve damage after a doctor prescribed a drug overdose of anti-alcoholism drug Antabuse.[3] In 1985, Edwards obtained a $5.75 million settlement in a cerebral palsy case for medical malpractice during childbirth, representing Jennifer Campbell, a five-year-old cerebral palsy patient. This established the North Carolina precedent of physician and hospital liability for failing to determine if the patient understood risks of a particular procedure.[3] During the trial, it has been argued that Edwards relied more on his verbal skills as a trial lawyer than on actual science. While delivering his summary, Edwards said that "I have to tell you right now – I didn't plan to talk about this – right now I feel her [Jennifer], I feel her presence...[Jennifer's] inside me and she's talking to you."[4]

The biggest case of his legal career was a 1997 product liability lawsuit against Sta-Rite, the manufacturer of a defective pool drain cover. The case involved a Cary, North Carolina girl, Valerie Lakey, who was disemboweled by the suction power of the pool drain pump when she sat on an open pool drain whose protective cover other children at the pool had removed, after the swim club had failed to install the cover properly. Despite 12 prior suits with similar claims, Sta-Rite continued to make and sell drain covers lacking warnings. In his closing arguments, Edwards spoke to the jury for an hour and a half without referring to notes. It was an emotional appeal that made reference to his son, Wade, who had been killed shortly before testimony began in the trial. Mark Dayton, editor of North Carolina Lawyers Weekly, would later call it "the most impressive legal performance I have ever seen."[5] The jury awarded the Lakeys $25 million, the largest personal injury award in North Carolina history. The company settled for the $25 million while the jury was deliberating punitive damages, rather than risk appeal. For their part in this case, Edwards and law partner David Kirby earned the Association of Trial Lawyers of America's national award for public service.[3]

In December 2003, during his presidential campaign, Edwards (with John Auchard) published Four Trials, a biographical book focusing on cases from his legal career.


The real problem with him, imo, is the issue with the way he used tax loopholes to avoid paying Medicare taxes. Democrat bigwigs piss me off when they use tax loopholes.

[Mr. Kotter]

Perhaps, but that's a wash. He was involved in some pretty legitimate lawsuits that were far from ambulance chasing. Here's a summary of his "big" cases from wikipedia

The real problem with him, imo, is the issue with the way he used tax loopholes to avoid paying Medicare taxes. Democrat bigwigs piss me off when they use tax loopholes.
Agreed. I don't know how much traction it will have, but it's one of those issues that is easy to paint him with, it pisses a lot of people off, and it's hard for him to really defend well.

The issue you mention, is more compelling to me as well. Unfortunately, it's not the sort of thing that doesn't "surprises" many voters anymore...so I'm not sure what kind of lasting impact it will have either.

[StcChief]

Osama Obama in 08 that's a winner.

[bunnytrdr]

Poor Taco. What's the matter? Are you seeing your candidate going down in flames without even getting out of the box? How DARE he cross that mean eyed bitch and CALL himself a Democrat.

[Taco John]

His ambulance chasing career won't though.



Are you still trying to pass off the idea that you're som sort of Democrat, or did you drop that charade long ago?

[Taco John]

Poor Taco. What's the matter? Are you seeing your candidate going down in flames without even getting out of the box? How DARE he cross that mean eyed bitch and CALL himself a Democrat.



Huh? I don't get it? How is Obama going down in flames? The last poll I saw has Obama leading Hillary:

http://cbs2chicago.com/politics/local_story_018183134.html


Not that I think any poll matters at this point... We're still a year away from the primaries.

[Taco John]

Hmm... I just saw the Time poll...

No worries.