Obama or McCain

[maat55]

GovWatch: didn't vote to raise taxes 94 times; at most 54. (Jul 2008)
I'm running against failed policy of profligate GOP spending. (May 2008)
I will raise CEO taxes, no doubt about it. (May 2008)
Under Bill Clinton, rich people didn't feel oppressed. (Apr 2008)
No tax increase if earning under $250K; tax cuts under $75K. (Apr 2008)
Raise capital gains tax for fairness, not for revenue. (Apr 2008)
Tax cut for seniors and those making $75,000 a year or less. (Feb 2008)
I'm not bashful about it: wealthy will pay more taxes. (Jan 2008)
Stimulus package: $500 tax cut, & Social Security supplement. (Jan 2008)
Restore progressive tax; close loopholes; relief to seniors. (Oct 2007)
Trillion dollar giveaway: the Paris Hilton Tax Break. (Oct 2007)
Reduce Bush tax cuts to pay for health care & other programs. (Jun 2007)
Estate tax only affects the wealthiest 1/2 of 1%. (Oct 2006)
Specific tax relief for families making $75,000 or less now. (Jan 2006)
Bush tax cuts help corporations but not middle class. (Jun 2004)
Tax incentives to create jobs at home instead of offshore. (Jun 2004)
Last thing we need now is a permanent tax cut. (Jan 2008)
Voted YES on increasing tax rate for people earning over $1 million. (Mar 2008)
Voted NO on allowing AMT reduction without budget offset. (Mar 2008)
Voted NO on raising the Death Tax exemption to $5M from $1M. (Feb 2008)
Voted NO on repealing the Alternative Minimum Tax. (Mar 2007)
Voted NO on raising estate tax exemption to $5 million. (Mar 2007)
Voted NO on supporting permanence of estate tax cuts. (Aug 2006)
Voted NO on permanently repealing the `death tax`. (Jun 2006)
Voted YES on $47B for military by repealing capital gains tax cut. (Feb 2006)
Voted NO on retaining reduced taxes on capital gains & dividends. (Feb 2006)
Voted NO on extending the tax cuts on capital gains and dividends. (Nov 2005)
Rated 100% by the CTJ, indicating support of progressive taxation. (Dec 2006)

I found a website that is fair. It has good and bad and a lot of information. I'll be back with McCain.

Barack Obama on the Issues -

John McCain on the Issues

I don't think either are the best we can get, but having info can't hurt.

[JimInOK]

I'm undecided at this point.

If I was to vote my personal pocketbook, it would be Obama. My income range fares better under his plan than McCain's, though that's not true for everybody.

I'm also blessed with an excellent health insurance plan and my employer pays all of the premiums for it (Rural telecom industry, best benefits in the world). McCain's proposal to tax employer health benefits would impact my finances very negatively in this regard, even considering the credit he's proposed. The caveat is that we will still have a Democratic-controlled Congress, so McCain's healthcare plan has zero chance of seeing the light of day.

However, I try not to vote strictly my pocketbook.

My mind is completely open to both candidates at this point.

[zooracer]

I like McCain because of the democratic controlled congress. Hopefully this would lead us to a stalemate and NOTHING would get done.

This is the best we can all hope for when it comes to our federal govt.

This was truly the best thing about Clinton's two terms. Total gridlock....

[cptacek]

I like McCain because of the democratic controlled congress. Hopefully this would lead us to a stalemate and NOTHING would get done.

This is the best we can all hope for when it comes to our federal govt.

This was truly the best thing about Clinton's two terms. Total gridlock....

As sad as it is, I have said this before, too. I'm undecided between McCain and Bob Barr. Barr isn't a kook libertarian (sorry princess perky), was a republican but left because the republicans are spending too much. Kinda like me.

But, if Romney is the VP, I'll vote for McCain.

[genchan]

I really can't see how anyone who cares about their money can vote for McCain. Until we leave Iraq things will our economy are just going to get worse because we are spending so much money there. No matter what he says, if he is not willing to leave Iraq, none of the other things he proposes will work. In my mind, it's as simple as that.

[Newbie]

Umm, Obama. I actually like McCain a lot (well a bit less after these latest attack ads) but he just seems so uninformed on pretty much everything.

I know they'll both have advisers and stuff but it'd be nice to have a president who actually has a clue again..

[maat55]

I will vote for McCain for three reasons.

I believe he will defend the country.

He is pro life.

He's for lower taxes.

I also do not want to have the potential for another Jimmy Carter.

[genchan]

I will vote for McCain for three reasons.

1. He is pro life.

Agreed. This is a definite difference between the two. With two supreme court justices likely to be replaced during the next 4 years, whoever is president will decide women's reproductive rights. If McCain becomes president, Roe vs Wade will likely be overturned. If Obama is elected, the right for a women to choose will stay intact. Since I'm pro choice, I strongly support Obama on this issue and anyone that is should seriously consider this point.

2. I believe he will defend the country.

I believe that either of the two will defend the country (it really bothers me that people use this as a divisive issue. We may disagree on what is the best way to defend our country, but for anyone to say you hate the country or you will defend it less if you don't do it my way is way out of line -- from both sides), but Obama has made better judgements on protecting us in my opinion. Iraq had nothing to do with 9-11 and distracted us from pursuing the real culprits in Afghanistan. I just believe we went to war on lies and to the wrong country. It also says something to me when the military personal is donating more to Obama's campaign than to McCain's (source) although I will concede polls show that overall military support leans toward McCain.

He's for lower taxes.

This is a slippery one. Yes, McCain is for lower taxes if you make over $111,000 a year, so if you are rich, you may be a little better off (if you make under that, you will get a better tax break from Obama), but both would lower taxes for anyone that makes under $225,000 and neither would raise taxes on anyone that makes less than $600,000 (source) which I assume include most of us in this forum. That means nobody here is going to have their taxes raised.

My beef with this is that how the hell is McCain going to cut taxes if he keeps us in Iraq? There is no way those numbers will ever balance. I'm not sure Obama can do it either, but at least there is an opportunity if we leave Iraq.

[maat55]

1. My beef with this is that how the hell is McCain going to cut taxes if he keeps us in Iraq? There is no way those numbers will ever balance. I'm not sure Obama can do it either, but at least there is an opportunity if we leave Iraq.

As important as Abortion is, I don't think voting one issue is a good idea. McCain does make allowances for rape and insest, which I also agree on. Abortion, IMO, as a birth control, is societally degrading.

As for getting out of Irag, I think that issue is coming to an end. It's too late for right or wrong judgement, the job has to finished and I believe it is near that point. Even Obama, knows we have to do this. As for taking on other possible threats, I'm not so sure he is the man. I am confident in McCain.

Jimmy Carter was a disaster, I'm afraid Obama could cause the same havic. Maybe, maybe not.

[genchan]

As important as Abortion is, I don't think voting one issue is a good idea. McCain does make allowances for rape and incest, which I also agree on. Abortion, IMO, as a birth control, is societally degrading.

I don't see this as a single issue, I see it as a women's right issue:

You say that you don't support abortion as birth control, but McCain also opposes birth control:

McCain opposed to requiring contraceptive coverage by health plans and favors abstinence-only sex education. (source)

He's voted against funding teen pregnancy programs:

Nancy Keenan, president of NARAL Pro-Choice America, says her group has always considered McCain pro-life as well. And it's not just abortion, she says.

"He voted against family planning, he voted against the freedom of access to clinic entrances — that was about violence against women in clinics," Keenan says, adding, "He voted against funding for teen pregnancy-prevention programs, and making sure that abstinence only was medically accurate. This is very, very extreme." (source

So I tend to see it as a bigger issue of women's rights, but this is an issue that people can see his record and decide whether they support it or not. I think we agree here that McCain and Obama have fundemental differences on this issue and we just have different opinions on which is correct, but that these are extremely important for this election because of the likely retirement of 2 Supreme Court justices which will make the views whoever is President the law in the US. If you are against choice, sex education and a woman's right to use birth control, you should vote for McCain. I happen to believe these are women's rights and that is why I support Obama.

As for getting out of Irag, I think that issue is coming to an end. It's too late for right or wrong judgement, the job has to finished and I believe it is near that point. Even Obama, knows we have to do this. As for taking on other possible threats, I'm not so sure he is the man. I am confident in McCain.

McCain doesn't see the Iraq issue coming to an end, at least from the statements he's made. While I do believe his "maybe for 100 more years" comment about staying in Iraq has been taken out of context, he wants a permanent presence in Iraq so I'm not sure where you come with this idea that the issue is coming to an end in his opinion. He has been adamant that we stay there, but hasn't given specific circumstances when we would be ready to leave except "when we have won" which he refuses to define. Obama has always said we should focus on Afghanistan and the people that committed 9-11. McCain was against this until recently.

I think we just disagree on what is better judgement. I base my judgement that Obama would be better because Obama got Iraq right saying we should have not gone there in the first place and Afghanistan right (where we said we should be concentrating) while McCain didn't.

Jimmy Carter was a disaster, I'm afraid Obama could cause the same havic. Maybe, maybe not.

This is an argument that really iritrates me. Obama is not Carter. I could just as easily say the same thing about McCain is another Bush (and I hope we can agree that Bush has been a disaster), but I hate this from both sides. Each man is their own person and you have to judge him by what he has said and done, not to what some other person has done. I hope we can refrain from comments in this thread like this from now on and stick to what their policies are.

[beebop25blue25]

I'm voting for Obama........never thought i'd vote this way but when I have a choice and it's up against McCain I just can't see voting for another Bush impersonator!

[Blue Leader]

As good as the mantra "change" sounds right about now, I just can't vote for Obama.

He actually said if we inflate our tires properly, we won't have to drill for oil. Basically, if you inflate your tires, our energy problems are all but resolved...enjoy your $4/gal gas, Soviet Russia...er, America.

Plus a lot of the "change" he wants to bring about is SOCIALISM...and several comments he has made have had a nice smattering of Marxism.

YouTube - Glenn Beck on Michelle Obama's Marxist agenda

[genchan]

He actually said if we inflate our tires properly, we won't have to drill for oil. Basically, if you inflate your tires, our energy problems are all but resolved...

This is false. What he said was that if everyone inflated their tires correctly, the amount of oil saved would be the same as drilling for oil off the coasts which is true. The theme was that drilling isn't going to solve gas prices (especially since it will take over 10 years for them to produce any oil) so we need to be doing other things if we want to bring prices down. I think that fits in well with standard personal finance philosophy.

Glenn beck is not a objective source. I thought we agreed to try and stop with that crap in this thread. Show me somewhere on an objective site like factcheck.org where its says Obama is a socialist. Those again are nothing but scare tactics (and I know both sides use them so I'll call out Obama people that use them as well) Can we please keep the propoganda out and go by their policies?

[b4freedom]

Ron Paul! Oh wait, he's out. Cr%p. Or is he? I can't tell, the media refuses to cover him.
Hillary! Is she out yet? lol, j/k.

8 years ago I would have voted for McCain. Not anymore. He's compromised himself too much to get to where he's at today. I'm also very very tired of the Republican machine. Gas is so high because the dollar is plumitting. (BTW, we buy more oil from CANADA then we do from any other country.) The $dollar is plummiting because we're spending and borrowing too much money. We have too much debt. It doesn't really matter if they lower taxes or raise taxes. What matters is how much money they spend. Me to government: "Stop spending money please!!!" Neither party is likely to cut spending much. Ironically, Republicans have always outspent Democrates.

I'll vote Carter... ooops, I mean, I'll vote Obama. No seriously. I don't think he'll win but I'll vote for him. I just can't stand old people.

[ActYourWage]

Moral issues are my number one priority on which I vote. Abortion is a deal breaker for me. I am very Pro Life. May God help us.