Barack Obama - John McCain

Candidates

Presidential candidate Party Running mate Campaign site
John McCain Republican Sarah Palin johnmccain.com
Barack Obama Democratic Joe Biden barackobama.com

Biographical data

  John McCain Barack Obama
Gender Male Male
Age 72 47
Party Republican Party Democratic Party
Profession U.S. Senator, Naval Aviator U.S. Senator, Attorney, Professor of Constitutional Law
Undergraduate education B.S. United States Naval Academy (The Naval Academy had a fixed curriculum and did not allow Midshipmen to pick a major) B.A. Columbia University (Political Science, International Relations) 1983
Graduate education National War College J.D. Harvard Law (1991)
States/Countries lived in Arizona, Florida, Panama Canal Zone, North Vietnam, Washington, D.C. California, Hawaii, Illinois, Indonesia, Massachusetts, New York, Washington, D.C.
Last political office U.S. Senator (1987-present) U.S. Senator (2005-present)
Senate committee memberships Armed Services Committee; (Chairman of the) Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee; (Chairman of the) Indian Affairs Committee; Committee on POW/MIA Affairs Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions, Foreign Relations; Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs; Veterans' Affairs
Other political experience United States Congressman (1982-1986) Illinois State Senator (1996-2004)
House committee memberships Committee on the Judiciary, Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, Committee on Financial Services Judiciary Committee, Vice-Chairman of the Government Reform Committee, Committee on Financial Services, Committee on Veteran's Affairs
Management/Corporate experience Vice President of Public Relations for Hensley & Co. President of the Harvard Law Review; Junior editor for Business International Corporation; Associate Lawyer of Davis, Miner, Barnhill & Galland
Teaching experience Gave the 114th Landon Lecture on March 15, 1999 at Kansas State Lecturer in Constitutional Law at the University of Chicago Law School (1993-2004)
Armed Forces experience (1958-1981) Midshipman, US Naval Academy; Naval Aviator; Prisoner of War; Commander; Commanding Officer, VA-174 "Hellrazors" None
Armed Forces awards Silver Star, Legion of Merit, Bronze Star, Distinguished Flying Cross, Navy Commendation Medal and the National Order of Vietnam from South Vietnam None
Net worth (with spouse) $23–36 million (USD) $1-3 million (USD)
Spouse Cindy Hensley McCain (m. 1980) Michelle Obama (m. 1992)
Spouse’s undergraduate education B.A. in Education, University of Southern California Princeton University
Spouse's graduate education M.A. in Special Education, University of Southern California Harvard Law School
Spouse’s profession High School Teacher, Businessperson, Philanthropist Attorney, Executive

Economic issues

Tax policy

Projected Federal income tax changes in 2009 assuming all tax proposals were adopted by congress and the budget remains the same.

Yellow is for the projected tax change most favorable to people in that income bracket.
  McCain Obama
Income Average
tax bill		 Average
tax bill
Over $2.9M -$269,364 +$701,885
$603K and up -$45,361 +$115,974
$227K-$603K -$7,871 +$12
$161K-$227K -$4,380 -$2,789
$112K-$161K -$2,614 -$2,204
$66K-$112K -$1,009 -$1,290
$38K-$66K -$319 -$1,042
$19K-$38K -$113 -$892
Under $19K -$19 -$567
CNN, Tax Policy Center, BarackObama.com,, JohnMcCain.com, BobBarr2008.com , NPR , and Chicago Tribune
  • Note: Bob Barr supports replacing the income tax with a consumption tax. The details of his exact plan are not known but consumption taxes tend to be regressive unless accompanied by payments to offset necessary expenditures. Chuck Baldwin supports replacing the income tax with a 10% across-the-board tariff on imported goods.

Financial Crisis & Bailout

John McCain Barack Obama
Supported bailout Supported bailout
Bob Barr Cynthia McKinney
Opposed bailout. Barr will seek to limit policies that permit political interference in the economy in favor of the exercise of a free-market economic model. This would include: formally and clearly end the bailouts which promote private economic retrenchment and corporate work-outs; limiting powers of the government to place sustained federal pressure to increase mortgage lending, through Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae; amending or revoking the Community Reinvestment Act; limiting the ability of the Federal Reserve to manipulate the currency for political purposes; Ensuring enforcement of the SEC regulations to insure solvency and transparency in the operation of major investment firms; Permanently lowering tax rates and simplifying taxes to more effectively reinforce long-term plans for hiring, inventory and production; cutting environmental rules such as Corporate Average Fuel Economy standards on vehicles; initiating a detailed audit of federal rules, relaxing or eliminating any regulations for which costs outweigh benefits; reducing penalties on people for delayed tax payments and premature withdrawals from IRAs; ending nonessential federal spending, particularly frivolous special interest outlays; Over the longer term, evaluate, plan, and implement for future federal liabilities and obligations—FDIC bank guarantees, Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation promises, Social Security and Medicare liabilities, and more. Opposed $700 billion bailout to Wall Street. Instead offered 14-point proposal including: a moratorium on foreclosures; elimination of all ARM mortgages and their renegotiation into 30- or 40-year loans; establishment of new mortgage lending practices to end predatory and discriminatory practices; establishment of criteria and construction goals for affordable housing; redefinition of credit and regulation of the credit industry so that discriminatory practices are completely eliminated; full funding for initiatives that eliminate racial and ethnic disparities in home ownership; recognition of shelter as a right according to the UN Declaration of Human Rights; target funds to cushion job loss and provide for retraining of those at the bottom of the income scale as the economy transitions; close all tax loopholes and repeal of the Bush tax cuts for the top 1% of income earners; fairly tax corporations, denying federal subsidies to those who relocate jobs overseas repeal NAFTA; appoint former Comptroller General David Walker to fully audit all recipients of taxpayer cash infusions, including JP Morgan, Bear Stearns, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and AIG, and to monitor their trading activities into the future; eliminate all derivatives trading; nationalize the Federal Reserve and establish a federally-owned, public banking system that makes credit available for small businesses, homeowners, manufacturing operations, renewable energy and infrastructure investments; and criminally prosecute any activities that violated the law, including conflicts of interest that led to the current crisis.

Trade

John McCain Barack Obama
McCain is a strong proponent of free trade. He supports the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), the existing General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, and U.S. participation in the World Trade Organization (WTO). He opposes including labor and environmental conditions to trade agreements. Obama supports expanding trade only if the United States' trade partners place labor and environmental standards on their industries to "level the playing field" for American interests. If elected President, Obama plans to renegotiate NAFTA to include stricter labor and environmental standards for Canada and Mexico. He has criticized the current agreement for not including such standards, and he also voted against and criticized the Central America Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) for similar reasons.

Health Care

John McCain Barack Obama
McCain favors tax credits of up to $5,000 for families that purchase health insurance. "We do not believe in coercion and the use of state power to mandate care, coverage or costs."His plan would reduce the number of uninsured by 1 million by 2009 and 5 million by 2013, while raising the national debt by $1.3 trillion over 10 years, according to one estimate. Obama's health care plan includes implementing guaranteed eligibility for affordable health care for all Americans. His plan would reduce the number of uninsured by 18 million by 2009 and 34 million by 2018, covering nearly all children, while raising the national debt by $1.6 trillion over 10 years, according to one estimate.

Taxation and Budget Deficit

John McCain Barack Obama
While McCain has historically favored deficit reduction over tax cuts, he has pledged not to rescind recent tax cuts in combination with reduced spending. McCain believes that lower taxes will stimulate the economy, and that the current deficit owes more to overspending than to tax cuts. McCain plans to balance the budget by the end of his first term.According to the Tax Policy Center, McCain's tax plans (by extending the Bush tax cuts and cutting corporate tax rates from 35% to 25% to increase investment, among other measures), would increase the national debt by nearly $5 trillion over 10 years, a nearly 50% increase. Obama advocates responding to the "precarious budget situation" by eliminating "tax credits that have outlived their usefulness", closing corporate tax loopholes, and restoring the PAYGO policy that prohibits increases in federal spending without a way to compensate for the lost revenue. Obama proposes extending the Bush tax cuts for low- and middle-income families, while letting taxes go back up for individuals earning over $200,000 or couples earning over $250,000. According to the Tax Policy Center this plan would increase the national debt by $3.5 trillion over 10 years, a nearly 35% increase.

Social Security

John McCain Barack Obama
In June 1999, McCain said "The only way to increase the yield on Social Security dollars is by allowing workers to make investment decisions for themselves; by empowering American families to invest, in most robust portfolios, a portion of their earnings for Social Security that they would otherwise pay in taxes to Social Security." In January 2000, he repeated his strong support for creating private Social Security accounts.Partial privatization, or diverting payroll taxes to private accounts, would reduce available funds for current retirees significantly, requiring large debt increases to cover the transition. Obama has said that Social Security's funding problem is "real but manageable." He has proposed to fund Social Security by applying payroll taxes to individual income above $250,000 per year, and says that these high-income earners should "pay their fair share." When asked if he would consider raising the retirement age or cutting benefits, Obama did not rule these approaches out entirely, saying, "everything should be on the table." However, he has said that he would not push for either of those approaches, and says that an increase in tax revenue is necessary to stabilize the system. Obama opposes adding personal accounts to Social Security.

Network Neutrality

John McCain Barack Obama
McCain is against government regulation of network neutrality unless evidence of abuse exists. He is quoted in May 2007 as saying, "let's see how this thing all turns out, rather than anticipate a problem that so far has not arisen in any significant way," and, "When you control the pipe you should be able to get profit from your investment." Obama is "a strong supporter of Net neutrality," saying that regulations are required to prevent the telecom companies from changing "the internet as we know it." Promoting net neutrality would be a priority in his first year as president.

Lobbying

John McCain Barack Obama
McCain does not allow his staffers to hold positions as lobbyists. Obama does not take contributions from federally registered lobbyists or PACs, though he does accept money from non-federal lobbyists and unregistered lobbyists.

Transportation

John McCain Barack Obama
McCain is opposed to federal funding of Amtrak. He considers it to be a "pork barrel project", particularly as far as longer distance trains are concerned.

He has also argued for more stringent safety standards with respect to cars.

  

Labor

John McCain Barack Obama
John McCain voted for the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 which granted workers the right to take 12 weeks of unpaid leave for family medical reasons without being penalized by their employer. McCain sponsored the Family Friendly Workplace Act which sought to allow employers to provide more flexible work schedules to help balance work and family.  

NASA and Space Exploration

John McCain Barack Obama
John McCain has sponsored legislation to support the commercial space industry and led the Senate's efforts to implement improvements to NASA after the Columbia accident. McCain has pledged that as president he would ensure that space exploration is top priority and that the U.S. remains a leader and is committed to funding the NASA Constellation program to ensure it has the resources it needs to begin a new era of human space exploration. "As president, Obama will support the development of this vital new platform Crew Exploration Vehicle to ensure that the United States' reliance on foreign space capabilities is limited to the minimum possible time period."

Foreign policy

Arab-Israeli Conflict

John McCain Barack Obama
In a speech to AIPAC on April 23, 2002, McCain said that "no American leader should be expected to sell a false peace to our ally, consider Israel's right to self-defense less legitimate than ours, or insist that Israel negotiate a political settlement while terrorism remains the Palestinians' preferred bargaining tool."[84] Obama supports a two-state solution.Referring to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in January 2006, Obama denounced Hamas while praising former Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. At a meeting with then Israeli Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom on the eve of Hamas' sweeping election victory, Obama stated that Sharon's role in the conflict had always been "absolutely important and constructive."

Iraq

John McCain Barack Obama
McCain supported the invasion of Iraq and has stated that he would keep troops in Iraq for as long as needed, dependent on agreement from the Iraqi government. "It's not a matter of how long we're in Iraq, it's if we succeed or not." John McCain was an early supporter of the Surge. Obama opposed the Iraq war as early as 2002 and has pledged a responsible, phased withdrawal.Obama was a strong opponent of the Surge and up until July of 2008, he continued to call it a failure. and he wrote and introduced the Iraq War De-Escalation Act of 2007 which would have stopped the Surge and started to pull American troops out of Iraq in 2007. He continues to criticize the Surge because he says it has not achieved political reconciliation, has overtaxed the military and diverted focus from Afghanistan and Pakistan, which he considers to be the central front in the War on Terror.

Iran

John McCain Barack Obama
John McCain has called the crisis with Iran "the most serious crisis we have faced - outside of the entire war on terror - since the end of the Cold War." "Nuclear capability in Iran is unacceptable," said McCain. McCain has criticized Russia and China for causing "gridlock" in the UN Security Council and preventing the sanctioning of Iran as well as other areas of conflict such as Darfur and Burma. If elected, McCain pledges to create a "league of democracies" with the purpose of addressing those conflicts without the approval of China and Russia. Obama stated he regards Iran's government as "a threat to all of us," stating that the US "should take no option, including military action, off the table. Sustained and aggressive diplomacy combined with tough sanctions should be our primary means to prevent Iran from building nuclear weapons."

Darfur

John McCain Barack Obama
McCain has called upon the United States to reject Sudan's demand that the AU peacekeeping force leave or be bullied. McCain believes that America must convince our allies in the region and friendly Arab nations to abandon their support for Sudan and force them to accept more peacekeepers. On a more immediate time-frame McCain has called for the use of NATO air-power to establish a no-fly zone and the use of intelligence assets to gather evidence of genocide and build cases against its perpetrators. In a December 2005 Washington Post opinion column, and at the Save Darfur rally in April 2006, Obama called for more assertive action to oppose genocide in the Darfur region of Sudan. He has divested $180,000 in personal holdings of Sudan-related stock, and has urged divestment from companies doing business in Iran.

Nuclear Weapons

John McCain Barack Obama
McCain voted in favor of the Nunn-Lugar Cooperative Threat Reduction in 1991. He voted to ratify the START II strategic arms limitation treaty in 1996. McCain voted against the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty in 1999. In March 2008, McCain said that United States should reduce its nuclear arsenal to encourage other nations to reduce their arsenals. Obama has spoken out against nuclear proliferation. According to his campaign website, Obama will "crack down on nuclear proliferation by strengthening the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty." Obama has also vowed to stop the development of new American nuclear arms, pursuing an ultimate goal of "a world without nuclear weapons."

North Korea

John McCain Barack Obama
In October 2006, McCain said that he believed the former President Bill Clinton and his administration were to blame for the North Korea's weapons of mass destruction. He said that the U.S. had "concluded an unenforceable and untransparent agreement", allowing North Korea to keep plutonium rods in a reactor.  

Pakistan

John McCain Barack Obama
McCain maintains a relatively moderate stance concerning Pakistan, although he has recognized the South Asian nation as an important part of US Foreign Policy. In the aftermath of Pakistan's former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto's assassination (in December 2007) McCain appeared to rule out the option of US forces entering Pakistan, saying that it was not an appropriate time to "threaten" Pakistan. On August 1, 2007, Obama declared in a foreign policy speech that the United States must be willing to strike al Qaeda targets inside Pakistan, with or without the consent of the Pakistani government. He claimed that if elected, "If we have actionable intelligence about high value terrorist targets and President Musharraf won't act, we will".

Extrajudical Prisoners

John McCain Barack Obama
In October 2005, McCain, a former POW, introduced the McCain Detainee Amendment to the Defense Appropriations bill for 2005. That month, the U.S. Senate voted 90-9 to support the amendment. In October 2007, McCain said of waterboarding that, "They [other presidential candidates] should know what it is. It is not a complicated procedure. It is torture." However, in February 2008 he voted against HR 2082, the Intelligence Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008, which included provisions that would have prevented the CIA from waterboarding prisoners. Obama voted against the Military Commissions Act of 2006 and later voted to restore habeas corpus to those detained by the U.S. (which had been stripped by the Military Commissions Act). He has advocated closing the Guantanamo Bay detention camp, but has not supported two specific bills that would have done so. Obama opposes the use of torture

Armenian Genocide

John McCain Barack Obama
At a town hall meeting January 6, 2008 McCain was reported to have answered a question on the Armenian Genocide by noting that he recognizes the Armenian Genocide, but opposes the Armenian Genocide Resolution due to the Turkish government's sensitivities and the importance of their continued contribution to the war on terror. On September 29, 2008, in an open letter to the Armenian-American Community of the United States he stated, that "it is fair to say that one of the greatest tragedies of the 20th century, the brutal murder of as many as one and a half million Armenians under the rule of the Ottoman Empire, has also been one of the most neglected" and that "it is our responsibility to recognize those tragic events". On January 19, 2008 Obama announced that as a U.S. Senator, he has stood with the Armenian American community in calling for Turkey's acknowledgement of the Armenian Genocide, and supports its recognition. In 2006, Obama criticized Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice for firing United States Ambassador to Armenia, John Evans, after he used the term "genocide" to describe Turkey's killing of hundreds of thousands of Armenians. On June, 2008 Obama restated his commitment to U.S. recognition of the Armenian Genocide in a letter to ANCA Chairman Ken Hachikian.. Obama supported House Resolution 106 which recognized the killings as genocide.

China

John McCain Barack Obama
John McCain believes America should continue to work to secure an independent Taiwan and opposes the ability of corporations owned by the Chinese People's Liberation Army to make financial contributions to American political campaigns.  

Foreign Aid

John McCain Barack Obama
Though John McCain plans to expand foreign aid, specifically targeting malaria in Africa he has expressed concern that too much American aid money is embezzled or outright stolen by corrupt foreign governments. Obama would double foreign aid to $50 Billion dollars by 2012.

Georgia

John McCain Barack Obama
John McCain has said that what is most critical now is to avoid further confrontation between Russian and Georgian forces. McCain wants to work with the EU and the OSCE to pressure Russia to withdraw from all sovereign Georgian territory.  

United Nations

John McCain Barack Obama
John McCain has stated that the oil-for-food scandal and perennial failure to uphold Human Rights has demonstrated a "crying need for reform" in the UN.  
Chuck Baldwin Bob Barr Cynthia McKinney Ralph Nader
Baldwin would withdraw the US from the United Nations, perceiving it to be a threat to American sovereignty. Barr calls the United Nations "an enormous disappointment" and asserts that "[t]he U.S. should push to roll back the UN’s functions and slash America’s financial contribution".    

Energy and environmental issues

The Environment

John McCain Barack Obama
McCain's stances on global warming and other environmental issues have often put him at odds with the Bush administration and other Republicans. For example, he has generally opposed drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. According to the League of Conservation Voters' 2006 National Environmental Scorecard, McCain took an "anti-environment" stance on four of seven environmental resolutions during the second session of the 109th congress. The four resolutions dealt with issues such as offshore drilling, an Arctic national wildlife refuge, low-income energy assistance, and environmental funding. McCain's measures to lower auto emissions include higher fines for not complying with CAFE standards, calling for a level playing field for all alcohol-based biofuels, issuing a Clean Car Challenge to automakers (a US$5,000 dollar tax credit for each and every customer who buys a zero-emissions car) and awarding a substantial prize to the auto company that develops a next-generation car battery. Obama has a New Energy for America plan and he has pledged to cut greenhouse gas emissions 80 percent below 1990 levels by 2050 by forcing a market-based cap-and-trade system, recommitting federal resources to public mass transportation and carbon sequestration (incentives to plant trees, restore grasslands or undertake farming practices). Obama also has plans for improving air and water quality through reduced carbon emissions. Obama worked as a member of the US Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works during the 109th Congress. At least 30 percent of federal government´s electricity would come from renewable sources by 2020. Create Global Energy Forum of the largest energy consuming nations (G8+5). The League of Conservation Voters has given Obama the highest lifetime rating of anyone currently running for president.

Energy

John McCain Barack Obama
McCain gave a major speech on his energy policy at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. He connected energy independence with national security, climate change, and the environment. McCain proposed increasing ethanol imports and moving from exploration to production of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles. He said that US dependence on foreign oil is "a major strategic vulnerability, a serious threat to our security, our economy and the well being of our planet." He is co-sponsor of a Senate cap-and-trade bill designed to limit greenhouse gas emissions, and is seen as a bipartisan leader on the issue.

McCain supports the increased use of nuclear energy in the US and reduce renewable sources to produce electricity. He has promoted the expanded use of nuclear power, calling for 45 new nuclear reactors to be built by 2030.

 Obama has presented a New Energy for America plan to achieve a low carbon economy, subsidizing 5 million new green jobs. He proposes $150 billion over 10 years to accelerate the commercialization of plug-in hybrids, promote development of commercial scale renewable energy (establishing a 100% federal RPS to require that 10 percent of electricity be derived from renewable sources by 2012 and 25% in 2025), encourage energy efficiency, advance the next generation of biofuels (requiring 60 billion gallons by 2030) and fuel infrastructure, and begin transition to a new digital electricity grid (smart metering, demand response, distributed generation and electricity storage systems).[142] He also plans to reduce overall U.S. oil consumption by at least 35%, or 10 million barrels per day, by 2030 to offset imports from OPEC nations. Obama and other Senators introduced the BioFuels Security Act in 2006. Regarding the domestic use of nuclear power, Obama declared himself flatly opposed to building a nuclear waste repository in Nevada and has called for the facility's closure . However, Obama voted for the Energy Policy Act of 2005, which allocated $4.3 billion in tax credits to the nuclear energy sector. Obama and other Senators introduced a bill in 2007 to promote the development of commercially viable plug-in hybrids and other electric-drive vehicles in order to shift away from petroleum fuels and "toward much cleaner – and cheaper – electricity for transportation". In his plan, related with transportation, he proposes increase fuel economy standards 4 percent per each year, specific focus on R&D in advanced battery technology and a $7,000 tax credit for the purchase of advanced technology vehicles as well as conversion tax credits and $4 billion retooling tax credits and loan guarantees for domestic auto plants and parts manufacturers; the entire White House fleet would be converted to plug-ins and half of cars purchased by the federal government will be plug-in (hybrids or all-electric) vehicles by 2012.

Domestic issues

Judiciary

John McCain Barack Obama
John McCain voted for the appointment of Justice Roberts. McCain favors a more Constructionist standpoint and says he would work to safeguard against Judicial activism. Barack Obama was 1 of 22 Senators to vote against the appointment of Justice Roberts.

Same-sex Marriage

John McCain Barack Obama
In 2004, McCain voted against the Federal Marriage Amendment, arguing that each state should be able to choose whether to recognize same-sex marriages. He supported the 2006 Arizona initiative to ban homosexual marriage. Obama voted against the Federal Marriage Amendment which would have defined marriage as between one man and one woman, but personally believes that marriage is a religious bond between a man and a woman. He supports civil unions for same-sex couples which would be homosexual marriage in all but name, but believes that decisions about the name marriage should be left to the states.

Abortion

John McCain Barack Obama
On February 18, 2007, John McCain stated, "I do not support Roe versus Wade. It should be overturned." McCain believes that Roe v. Wade should be overturned and that the issue of abortion should be returned to the states. In his write-in response to a 1998 survey, Obama stated his abortion position as: "Abortions should be legally available in accordance with Roe v. Wade." While serving in the Illinois Senate, Obama voted against bills that included partial birth abortion bans. In the presidential debate of October 16, 2008, he argued that partial birth abortions were already illegal, and he does not support the practice in accordance with Illinois law. He has received a 100 percent rating from the Illinois Planned Parenthood Council

Gun Control

John McCain Barack Obama
John McCain believes that the right to keep and bear arms is a fundamental, individual Constitutional right. In the past he has voted to protect gun manufacturers from attempts to make them liable for crimes committed by third parties. McCain opposes restrictions on assault rifles and has voted against such bans. He has supported legislation requiring gun manufacturers to include gun safety devices such as trigger locks in product packaging. He cosponsored legislation to lift the DC gun ban. McCain has opposed "waiting periods" for the purchase of firearms. McCain also voted against the 1993 Brady Bill to restrict the availability of handguns. During a February 15, 2008 press conference, Obama stated, "I think there is an individual right to bear arms, but it's subject to commonsense regulation." He has generally opposed the Second Amendment, and supports the right of local municipalities to pass stricter rules than the federal government. Obama has also stated that he will work to reintroduce the expired Federal Assault Weapons Ban and to make it permanent. In Illinois, he backed changes to state law that included a ban on assault weapons sales and limiting handgun sales to one a month. In Congress, voted to leave gun-makers and dealers open to lawsuits for actions committed by third-parties.  Obama has proposed outlawing types of ammunition Obama has stated he does not believe states should be allowed to issue concealed carry licenses.

Immigration

John McCain Barack Obama
McCain has promoted the legislation and eventually the granting of citizenship to the estimated 12–20 million illegal aliens in the United States and the creation of an additional guest worker program with an option for permanent immigration. In his bid for the 2000 Presidential nomination, McCain supported expansion of the H-1B visa program, a temporary visa for skilled workers. In 2005, he co-sponsored a bill with Ted Kennedy that would expand use of guest worker visas. Obama's plan: 1) Improve border security; 2) Increase the number of legal immigrants; 3) Crack down on employers who hire illegal immigrants; 4) Enable undocumented workers to voluntarily pay a fine, learn English, and get in line for legal citizenship; 5) Fix the immigration bureaucracy; and 6) Provide additional economic assistance to Mexico. Obama also supports issuing driver's licenses to illegal immigrants.

Racial Justice

John McCain Barack Obama
Members of the McCain camp have pointed out that George Bush signed a federal directive in 2001 that outlawed racial profiling and ordered the Attorney General to look into the matter. Obama wants to eliminate racial profiling by federal law enforcement agencies. As state senator in Illinois, Obama helped bring about passage of the state’s first racial-profiling law. In October 2007, he asked Attorney General-Designate, Judge Michael Mukasey, to end the practice.

Federal Funding for Embryonic Stem Cell Research

John McCain Barack Obama
McCain is a member of The Republican Main Street Partnership and supports embryonic stem cell research despite his earlier opposition. He states that he believes that stem cell research, and indeed embryonic stem cell research, will continue whether or not the U.S. sanctions it, and so it would be the wisest course of action to support it to the extent that the United States will be able to regulate and monitor the use. Obama supports federal funding for embryonic stem cell research and was a co-sponsor of the 2005 Stem Cell Research Enhancement Act which was passed by both houses of Congress but vetoed by President George W. Bush.

Education

John McCain Barack Obama
McCain supports the use of school vouchers. In 2006 he said, "Should intelligent design be taught as a science class? Probably not." On July 29, 2007, McCain voted against increasing federal student loans and Pell grants and expanding eligibility for financial aid. During an October 2004 debate, Obama stated that he opposed education vouchers for use at private schools because he believes they would undermine public schools.

Patriot Act

John McCain Barack Obama
McCain voted to extend the wiretap provision in the Patriot Act. He also voted to reauthorize the Patriot Act in 2006. Obama called for the repeal of the Patriot Act in 2003. He voted for the reauthorization of the Patriot Act in 2006.  He supported recent FISA legislation giving telecommunications corporations immunity for cooperating with warrantless surveillance programs.

Links

This guide is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia.

Video: Third 2008 Presidential Debate (Full Video)

Technorati Tags:Technorati Tags: