Required Reading

If you’re still up in the air about the election here are two articles you need to read. Now.

Make-Believe Maverick : Rolling Stone and The Choice : The New Yorker

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Reasons to Vote for Obama – Part 2: Economics

In the first installment I introduced some of the general reasons I’m voting for Barack Obama on November 4th. The feedback from the original note was positive so I wanted to dig deeper into some of my points.

A lot of you asked about Obama’s positions on various topics. With the attention shifting this week to important issues facing the US, like the economy and current financial mess, it seemed like an opportune time to dig in. As always, if you’re not interested just let me know and I’ll remove you from future emails.

Today I’d like to focus on elements of the Economy, Taxes, and Budget.

What’s Happening with the Economy?
In the last week we’ve had a painful reminder that this election is about more than mooseburgers and name calling. It’s about real issues facing the country both at home and around the world. The economy is once again at the forefront of people’s minds and for good reason.

I don’t presume to understand all the complicated aspects of the current situation but lets try to sum up the key points.

The U.S. government estimates that it will cost $500 billion to buy the risky investments of financial institutions in coming months. That is on top of the nearly $200 billion Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson Jr. said earlier this month that he is willing to spend on the government’s rescue of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
– Bailout Is As Big as Budget for Pentagon – Washington Post – Sep 20, 2008

That was a few days ago. Estimates are now reaching $1 TRILLION dollars! That amount of money is hard to imagine, but Ronald Regan had a good analogy.

I’ve been trying … to think of a way to illustrate how big a trillion is. The best that I could come up with is that if you had a stack of $1000 bills in your hand only four inches high, you would be a millionaire. A trillion dollars would be a stack of $1000-dollar bills 67 miles high.

These figures are in addition to the roughly $400 billion deficit (a near record) the US is expected to hit when the budget year ends later this month. [NPR]

Keep in mind, when Clinton took office in 1993 the total public debt was about $6.5 trillion. During his 2 terms he even managed to reduce is slightly. Since Bush has taken office he’s already added on $3.5 trillion in new debt. Add to that the 2008 budget deficit and another trillion in bailouts and you have one of the worst managed economies in the U.S’s history. [Deficit data available from the U.S. Budget Report (PDF) – Whitehouse.gov]

Lack of Oversight / Deregulation
While lack of oversight or sufficient regulation of the financial sector is largely being blamed for the mess we’re in, it’s interesting to see what the candidates and other economic experts have to say about it.

On the campaign trail on Monday, Mr. McCain, the Republican presidential nominee, struck a populist tone. Speaking in Florida, he said that the economy’s underlying fundamentals remained strong but were being threatened “because of the greed by some based in Wall Street and we have got to fix it.”

But his record on the issue, and the views of those he has always cited as his most influential advisers, suggest that he has never departed in any major way from his party’s embrace of deregulation and relying more on market forces than on the government to exert discipline.

While Mr. McCain has cited the need for additional oversight when it comes to specific situations, like the mortgage problems behind the current shocks on Wall Street, he has consistently characterized himself as fundamentally a deregulator and he has no history prior to the presidential campaign of advocating steps to tighten standards on investment firms.
– In Candidates, 2 Approaches to Wall Street – New York Times – Sep 16, 2008

John McCain’s recent comments on the economy aren’t just coming under fire from Barack Obama’s campaign: arguably the country’s most conservative editorial board said Friday the Arizona senator’s recent “populist rifting” was downright “un-presidential.” A Friday Wall Street Journal editorial sharply criticized McCain for his recent condemnation of Christopher Cox, the chairman of the Securities and Exchange Committee. The Republican presidential nominee told an Iowa crowd Thursday Cox had “betrayed the public trust” and should be fired.

“In a crisis, voters want steady, calm leadership, not easy, misleading answers that will do nothing to help. Mr. McCain is sounding like a candidate searching for a political foil rather than a genuine solution,” the editorial also said.
– Wall Street Journal editorial board skewers McCain – Via CNN

And where has Obama stood on this issue?

Ohh right. He proposed the critical need for “an overhaul of government regulation of the financial markets” back in March!

Obama said, “The American economy does not stand still, and neither should the rules that govern it. Old institutions cannot adequately oversee new practices. Old rules may not fit the roads where our economy is leading. Our free market was never meant to be a free license to take whatever you can get, however you can get it. That is why we have put in place rules of the road to make competition fair and open and honest. We have done this not to stifle, but rather to advance, prosperity and liberty.”

The Democratic presidential candidate said rapidly changing financial markets, coupled with increased government deregulation, have led to a cycle of economic bubbles and sudden declines that endanger Americans and threaten businesses.
– Obama: Fix market regulation – USA Today – Mar 27, 2008

As always, you can also read plenty more about Obama’s Economics policy’s on his website.

Trickle Down vs. Trickle Up Economics
The biggest difference between Obama and McCain is perhaps best seen in their tax proposals. First, a picture:

As reported by the independent Tax Policy Center it’s easy to see the difference here.

Obama would give larger tax cuts to low- and moderate-income households and pay some of the cost by raising taxes on high-income taxpayers. In contrast, McCain would cut taxes across the board and give the biggest cuts to the highest-income households.

So McCain’s plan is to renew Bush’s tax cuts and then give even more breaks to the wealthiest 1% while Obama would try to give more money directly where it’s needed. To add insult to injury, the Tax Policy Center also found that McCain’s proposals would cost $4.2 trillion over 10 years while Obama’s would cost $2.9 trillion during that time. So despite McCain trying to portray Democrats as “pork-barrel spenders”, his proposals actually end up hurting the budget more than Obama’s!

Thanks
Well that’s more than enough for now so thanks for tuning in. As always, comments and questions are welcome so please do let me know what you think. I encourage you to dig into the links here in more detail or read up on the issues elsewhere, but let’s decide this election on sound positions and policies not pigs with lipstick and whatnot.

And Remember…
– It’s not too late to Register to Vote at voteforchange.com. You can also, confirm your registration status, find your polling place, and even vote early so check it out today.

– The first Presidential Debate will be held this Friday at 9:30pm EDT. Don’t miss it!

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Reasons to Vote for Obama – Part 1: Introduction

Family, Friends, and anyone else who cares to listen,

Over the next few weeks I will be writing a series of posts as to why I feel it’s so important to vote for Barack Obama for President. I understand we’re all probably being barraged by TV ads and other media, but for what it’s worth, I wanted to make my voice heard directly. If you’re not interested, please feel free to let me know and I won’t send anything further.

Over the last 8 years I’ve gradually been turned off to politics and what’s been happening in the world around me. The system has felt out of control to myself and lots of regular American’s who’s voices weren’t being heard. Today… after years of missteps, we the American people get to choose new management. You don’t normally have the opportunity to pick a new boss at work, but thank goodness we get to in the USA. The trick is not to blow it.

Now we each have to draw from our own unique thoughts and perspectives to make that choice. For me it’s clear and simple, Barack Obama and Joe Biden are my pick all the way.

My basic reasons are listed here but I’ll go into each in more detail in a later post.

Inspiration
Getting tens of millions of people interested and participating in the future of their Country again, has to be worth something. From the beginning, Obama’s campaign has been about us, the people. It is powered by the people volunteering, registering new voters, and donating hard earned money to someone they believe in, all because we’ve been encouraged once again to believe in the promise, hopes, and dreams of America.

Proven Record and Experience
With how inspirational Obama is, it is sometimes easy to forget that his experience is equally strong. After college he started his career by passing on a high-paying Wall Street job to instead focus on fighting for lower income communities in Chicago. He later was elected President of the prestigious Harvard Law Review while attending Harvard Law. Since then he’s served as an Illinois State Senator for 8 years and most recently as a US Senator for nearly 4 more while fighting to reform ethics and health care legislation, and fighting against nuclear proliferation and predatory lending.
Biography – Barack Obama

Policies on Energy, Healthcare, Taxes, and Women’s Rights
There couldn’t be more contrast between the parties this year. Obama has proposed ways to develop US energy independence that creates jobs, provided a health care plan for the uninsured, supported a woman’s right to choose, and offered a tax plan that, among other things, gives a $500 tax cut per person to 150 million middle and low income workers. Contrast this with McCain who’s “actual energy plan contains no new money for renewable energy”, who’s health care proposal was found to leave 17 million more American’s uninsured than Obama’s, who is opposed to insurance covering contraception [YouTube video] and to abortion in ALL situations, not to mention who continues to propose tax cuts for the wealthiest 1% of Americans.
References: New York Times & FactCheck.org

Bringing People Together Rather Than Tearing Them Apart
Obama’s campaign and convention focused on the issues and bringing people together whereas McCain and the republican’s just slung mud. Look around the next time they’re on TV. For Obama you’ll see young, old, Black, White, Asian, Hispanic, north, south, etc. For McCain it’s almost always white and older. and in a humorous note, the photos of Blacks that were featured in McCain’s convention speech were from stock photography found online… not real supporters. You can’t make this stuff up!

Respected Leader in the World
The US hasn’t been doing so well on the world stage lately. Obama has advocated for more collaboration with our allies rather than always trying to go it alone. “America, we are better than these last eight years. We are a better country than this”, he said in his acceptance speech. With our military stretched thin and blowing about 4 billion dollars a week in Iraq we need someone who can work with the leaders of the world to solve the problems of today, not create new ones.

Understands the World Today
This one is near and dear to my heart. Obama’s proposals often involve taking advantage of improvements in technology to do something better, whether it’s reducing the cost of health care or improving the US’s energy independence. John McCain on the other hand, has admitted he doesn’t do email and is only just starting to use the internet but “will have that down fairly soon.” It’s hard for me to picture him really understanding how to solve the problems of today when he hasn’t kept up with what’s changed in the world over the years.

Reasonableness
No matter who we vote for, we’re bound to have a difference of opinion on some of the issues as there are just too many for us all to agree. I’ve always been impressed however, that when taking a side on an issue, Obama doesn’t just dismiss the other view. To me, he always comes across as willing to listen to what others think so that common ground can be found, and common goals achieved.

He had this to say about abortion:

“I am pro choice and I believe in Roe v. Wade and I come to that conclusion not because I’m pro abortion but because ultimately I don’t think women make these decisions casually. I think they wrestle with these things in profound ways. For me the goal right now should be how do we reduce the number of abortions. If you believe that life begins at conception then I can’t argue with you on that. What I can do is say, are there ways we can work together to reduce the number of unwanted pregnancies?”

Change
Last but not least, Obama truly represents a much needed change of leadership in Washington. Despite McCain trying to portray himself as being an agent of change, he seems to have forgotten that he’s been in Washington these last couple of decades. If he hasn’t made the changes we need by now, why should we think he will in the next 4 years?

—
That’s it for today, thanks for reading. If you want to dig more I’ve linked to other articles and references throughout this introduction.

Don’t forget. Regardless of your preference… Register to Vote.

Previous posts:
Barack Obama: Debunking the Conservative Propaganda
Here’s your chance Ohio. Make it count.

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Jon Stewart: Juxtapostion Genius

http://www.comedycentral.com/sitewide/video_player/view/default/swf.jhtml

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It Wouldn’t Be Appropriate

From McCain’s lips yesterday:

“You know it just wouldn’t be appropriate to have a festive occasion while a near tragedy or a terrible challenge is presented in the form of a natural disaster.”

Of course, where were you 3 years ago on the day Katrina was devastating New Orleans? Ohh right… now I remember. No, seriously. You can’t make this stuff up.

McCain’s 69th Birthday Celebration.
The same day Hurricane Katrina made landfall in New Orleans.

[Via DailyKos]

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But this is truly disgusting…

Could this be any more transparent, pathetic, or desperate? She has a year and a half of political experience as governor and she’s running for VP? You’re going to gamble the COUNTRY with her as the VP so you can still have a shot? Ohh my god…

Updated
At least one of the ‘Analysts’ at CNN is thinking clearly:

I think John McCain probably shook up the race a lot today, only I think the way he shook it up is he almost made Joe Biden and Barack Obama a safer pick, you know a more known pick and that’s not what he intended to do but I think it is what they ended up doing today.

Look at the speeches. She directly invited a comparison with Hillary Clinton, I think that’s a mistake. The reason women liked Hillary Clinton was because they had the first qualified woman ever to be a presidential candidate. I don’t think you can just change skirts and put it on another woman and have it be an acceptable thing. In some respects it’s almost dismissive of women to suggest that it’s just about gender and she’s going to have to answer that and she’s invited that comparison herself.

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These are beautiful…

Hillary Clinton

Bill Clinton

Joe Biden

Word size is driven by the number of times it was said in each of their above speeches this week at the Democratic National Convention.

As seen on Daily Kos.

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Obama in Berlin

Aside from an amazing photograph of 200,000 people cheering on Obama… this was one of the first things I noticed in the photograph…

Ich bin ein Moblogger [Via Vanity Fair]

When will this video be available on YouTube!?

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Obama Claims Nomination!

Obama Claims Nomination!, originally uploaded by -DjD-.

Today is a great day to be an American!
Congratulations to Barack Obama, everyone that made this happen, and everyone that will benefit from a refreshing change of direction in the White House come January!

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Counting Down!

Counting Down!, originally uploaded by -DjD-.

Almost there…
Obama 2008!

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