2008 Presidential Candidates on: Budget & Economy

[EMUJeff]

In an attempt to help us all become more informed citizens in regards to the upcoming November 4th, 2008 Presidential election and with the start of the general campaign upon us I will present some threads on specific topics. They will include some quotations with sources. These are chosen from the non-partisan group ontheissues.org. In each of the 24 threads one issue will be highlighted with a rotating order of candidate presentation for the major candidates nominated by parties or expected to have impact on the election. Wherever possible, we will quote the candidate over time so any changes in opinion are notable.
At this time they include Senator John McCain (Republican), Senator Barack Obama (Democrat), Representative Bob Barr (Libertarian), Cynthia McKinney (Green), Ralph Nader (Independent), and any other candidate who is registered in enough states to carry a majority of the Electoral college (Alan Keyes on the Constitution Party ticket may be eligible later as the party is in 14 states and counting).
This thread's topic: the National Budget & the Economy
EMUJeff

[EMUJeff]

Representative Cynthia McKinney

We have plenty of money for programs; it's just misallocated

Q: What can we do about the budget deficit and under-funded mandates?

A: There is enough money to supply those under-funded and unfunded [programs]. When the Pentagon spends $60 million buying Tamiflu, at a time when the Secretary of Defense owns stock in the company that makes Tamiflu, and Tamiflu doesn't even prevent bird flu because it mutates; When the Pentagon spends $700 billion, and the Pentagon admits that they lost $2.3 billion; There is no dearth of money, it is a question of political will. Source: 2008 Green Presidential Debate moderated by Cindy Sheehan Jan 13, 2008
Get minorities into home ownership & global marketplace.

McKinney adopted the CBC principles:

The CBC is focused on economic empowerment issues including:
New Markets and Small and Minority Business Development. The CBC will seek to increase opportunities for minority and small and disadvantaged businesses by expanding contracting opportunities in the public and private sectors, increasing access to capital, creating tax incentives for capital improvements, removing outdated and restrictive regulatory barriers, and streamlining and enhancing procurement tools to encourage minority and small business utilization.
Trade and Global Economic Empowerment. The CBC will work to ensure that the benefits of the dynamic global marketplace extend to minority businesses, and Africa and developing countries. To this end, the CBC will propose and support trade and investment initiatives designed to bridge the global digital divide, create jobs, improve infrastructure, promote sustainable development, and raise living and work standards for people of color around the globe. Moreover, the CBC will work to ensure that America’s international trade agenda and priorities also meet these goals.
Increasing Affordable Housing Opportunities. The CBC’s goal is to increase the nation’s homeownership rates. Home ownership is one of the best wealth creation vehicles for minority families. We will work with lending institutions and community organizations to ensure that minorities are afforded every opportunity to realize the dream of owning a home.
Source: Congressional Black Caucus press release 01-CBC10 (http://www.ontheissues.org/Notebook/Note_01-CBC10.htm) on Jan 6, 2001

[EMUJeff]

Senator John McCain

Bailing out Bear Stearns necessary to protect economy

Q: You said, "It's not the duty of government to bail out and reward those who act irresponsibly, whether they're big banks or small borrowers." What about Bear-Stearns?

A: On the issue of Bear Stearns, every financial expert I know says that if it had failed, it would have rippled throughout the entire financial community and would have caused greater problems which eventually would have come down on the average citizen if our economy continues to decline the way that it's been doing. Source: Fox News Sunday: 2008 "Choosing the President" interviews Apr 6, 2008
Key is to not to bail out homeowners who speculated

Q: You gave a speech recently in which you said, "It's not the duty of government to bail out & reward those who act irresponsibly, whether they're big banks or small borrowers." What would you do to help the thousands of Americans who right now are in the process of losing their homes? Or do you feel, as you said in your speech, that's not the duty of government?

A: Look, Americans are hurting right now. They don't know if they have to get another job. The challenges are enormous right now. The key to it is not to bail out people who speculated or people who engaged in unsavory practices. The key to it is get the lender and the borrower together. We know how hard that is because of identifying the lender, but there's ways to do it. Of course there's a role for government, but it's not to reward greedy speculators. It is not to reward people who misbehave. And it certainly isn't a huge expenditure of taxpayers' dollars which, in the long run, could exacerbate the problems that exist Source: Fox News Sunday: 2008 "Choosing the President" interviews (http://www.ontheissues.org/2008_Fox_News_Sunday.htm) Apr 6, 2008
Things are tough now, but we're better off than in 2000

Q: Are Americans better off than they were eight years ago?

A: You could argue that Americans overall are better off, because we have had a pretty good prosperous time, with low unemployment and low inflation and a lot of good things have happened. A lot of jobs have been created. But let's have some straight talk. Things are tough right now. Americans are uncertain about this housing crisis. Americans are uncertain about the economy, as we see the stock market bounce up and down. But I think what we're trying to do to fix this economy is important. We've got to address the subprime housing problem. We need to make the Bush tax cuts permanent, which I voted for twice to do so. I think we need to eliminate the alternate minimum tax.

[EMUJeff]

A: I think we are better off overall if you look at the entire eight-year period, when you look at the millions of jobs that have been created, the improvement in the economy, etc.
Source: 2008 Republican debate at Reagan Library in Simi Valley (http://www.ontheissues.org/2008_GOP_Super_Tuesday.htm) Jan 30, 2008
May have to go further to fix the subprime lending situation

Q: Do you have a plan to help people with bad credit get lower interest rates so they can keep those homes and avoid foreclosure?
A: Yes, and it's tough here in California, it's tough in Arizona, it's tough particularly all over, but it's very tough particularly in the high growth states. The efforts that have been made so far are laudable. We may have to go further, but the fact that the FHA and the other organizations of government under Secretary Paulson's direction, and he is doing a good job of sitting down and fixing at least a significant number of these problems. We've got to return to the principal that you don't lend money that can't pay it back. There's some greedy people on Wall Street that perhaps need to be punished. There's got to be a huge amount more of transparency as to how this whole thing came about so we can prevent it from happening again. If necessary, we're going to have to take additional actions and particularly in cleaning up a mortgage.
Source: 2008 Republican debate at Reagan Library in Simi Valley (http://www.ontheissues.org/2008_GOP_Super_Tuesday.htm) Jan 30, 2008
Recession is partly psychological and not inevitable

A mortgage should be one page and there should be big letters at the bottom that says, "I understand this document." We ought to adjust the mortgages so people who were eligible for better terms, but were somehow convinced to accept the mortgages which were more onerous on them. We need to fix the rating systems, which clearly were erroneous in their ratings, which led people to believe that there were these institutions which were stable, which clearly were not. We may have to take further steps if this subprime lending situation continues to be serious. Part of the problem in any recession is psychological. I'm still optimistic that nothing is inevitable. I still rely on the innovation and the talent of the US. But we've got to make the tax cuts permanent. We need to get rid of the Alternative Minimum Tax. We need to give people a depreciation in one year for their business and investment. We need to encourage research and development and tax credits that are associated with it.
Source: 2008 Republican debate at Reagan Library in Simi Valley (http://www.ontheissues.org/2008_GOP_Super_Tuesday.htm) Jan 30, 2008
I'm well-versed in economics; I was at the Reagan Revolution

Q: Is it a problem for your campaign that the economy is now the most important issue, one that, by your own acknowledgement, you are not well versed on?
A: Actually, I don't know where you got that quote from. I'm very well versed in economics. I was there at the Reagan Revolution. I was there just after we enacted the first tax cuts and the restraints on spending. I was chairman of the Commerce Committee in the Senate, which addresses virtually every major economic issue that affects the US. I'm very well versed on economics. That's why I have a strong team around me that respect my views and my vision. And that's why The Wall Street Journal, in a survey of economists recently, that the majority of economists thought that I could handle the nation's economy best. And I have been a consistent fighter to restrain spending and to cut taxes. And my credentials & my experience & my knowledge of these economic issues, I think, are extensive. And I would match them against anybody who's running.
Source: 2008 GOP debate in Boca Raton Florida (http://www.ontheissues.org/2008_GOP_FL.htm) Jan 24, 2008
FactCheck: Said--then denied--he needed economics education

McCain cast doubt on moderator Tim Russert's assertion that the candidate had said he was no expert on economics. Russert claimed that McCain had repeatedly said, "I know a lot less about economics than I do about military and foreign policy issues. I still need to be educated." McCain responded, "Actually, I don't know where you got that quote from. I'm very well-versed in economics."
Russert's quote comes from a 2005 interview with the Wall Street Journal on Nov. 26, 2005: "I'm going to be honest: I know a lot less about economics than I do about military and foreign policy issues. I still need to be educated."
We could not find that McCain has said that quote "repeatedly," but he has made similar comments recently The Chicago Tribune quoted McCain talking to reporters on Dec. 18, 2007: "The issue of economics is something that I've really never understood as well as I should. I understand the basics, the fundamentals, the vision, all that kind of stuff."
Source: FactCheck.org on 2008 GOP debate in Boca Raton Florida (http://www.ontheissues.org/2008_GOP_FL.htm) Jan 24, 2008
Impose some fiscal discipline to revive the economy

Q: Why should we continue a Republican in the White House with the current kind of economic record?
A: I will, as president, veto every one of these big spending bills. I will impose some fiscal discipline. We will clean up our act and we will regain the confidence of the American people as being careful stewards of our tax dollars, and we will fix this problem with having to borrow money from China, then we will balance our budget, just like every governor in America has been required to do.
Source: 2008 GOP debate in Boca Raton Florida Jan 24, 2008
Will be able to reduce war costs & have a stable Middle East

Q: You would leave troops in Iraq for an indefinite period. How will you do this, both militarily & economically?
A: I know of no military leader, including Gen. Petraeus, who says we can't sustain our effort in Iraq. So you're wrong. The fact is, we are succeeding in Iraq. We're going back down to previous levels, and we will be able to withdraw troops over time if we succeed. We have American troops all over the world today & nobody complains about it because we're defending freedom That's one of the obligations of being the world's superpower. I'm proud to adopt the strategy that is succeeding, and that's happened. I'm the only one that said that. It is succeeding. We will be able to reduce our costs, and we will be able to have a stable Middle East, where our vital national interests, national security interests are at stake. I'm so proud of the job that the men and women in the military are doing there, and they don't want us to raise the white flag of surrender.
Source: 2008 GOP debate in Boca Raton Florida (http://www.ontheissues.org/2008_GOP_FL.htm) Jan 24, 2008
Reform insurance to cover violent weather patterns

As more and more violent weather patterns take place, people's homes are more and more in jeopardy. We can address it regionally. We can address it with the governors and the legislatures working with the federal government to have insurance spread across state lines, increasing the risk pool. We can reform insurance. I will call the regulators, the governors and the legislators and work together to provide every American that's in jeopardy to have the insurance that they need and deserve.
Source: 2008 GOP debate in Boca Raton Florida Jan 24, 2008
To avoid recession, stop out-of-control spending

Q: If we're talking about a recession in the next few months, in 2008, what kind of short-term, more immediate government fixes would you propose to try to keep the slowdown diminished or to reverse it? And would you support them even if they added to th government deficit?
A: The first thing we need to do is stop the out-of-control spending. Out-of-control spending is what caused the interest rates to rise. It causes people to be less able to afford to own their own homes. We need to stop the spending And the way we can get our budget under control is to have strong, fundamental fiscal underpinnings. The second thing that we need to do, of course, is stop spending $400 billion a year overseas to oil-producing countries that come right out of our economy immediately. Some of that money goes, unfortunately, to fund terrorist organizations. We've got to develop technologies to reduce this dependency on foreign oil, and eventually eliminate it, and stop this outflow of some $400 billion a year.
Source: 2008 GOP debate in S.C. sponsored by Fox News (http://www.ontheissues.org/2008_GOP_SC_Fox.htm) Jan 10, 2008
Loss of economic strength leads to losing military strength

Q: Does our country's financial situation creates a security risk?
A: Of course, any nation that no longer has economic strength sooner or later will lose its military strength, so it's a national security issue. We have many trillions of dollars of unfunded liability. Obviously, we've been on a spending spree. If oil reaches $100 a barrel, which many people think it may, $400 billion of America treasure will go to oil-producing countries. Some of those monies will go to terrorist organizations.
Source: 2007 Des Moines Register Republican debate Dec 12, 2007
Republicans have forgotten how to control spending

Q: Have Republicans forgotten how to control spending?
A: Absolutely. We let spending lurch completely out of control. As president of the United States, I'd take an old veto pen that Ronald Reagan gave me, and I'd veto every single pork barrel bill that comes across my desk. And we've got to stop it and stop it now. I look forward to it.
Source: 2007 GOP YouTube debate in St. Petersburg, Florida Nov 28, 2007
AdWatch: Outrageous to spend $233M for bridge to nowhere

[McCain ad, "Outrageous," which began running Nov. 12]
ANNOUNCER: $233 million for a bridge to nowhere. Outrageous. $3 million to study the DNA of bears in Montana. Unbelievable. A million dollars for a Woodstock museum in a bill sponsored by Hillary Clinton. Predictable. Who has the guts to stand up to wasteful government spending? One man, John McCain.
McCAIN: I'll stop wasteful spending by Congress and restore Americans' trust in their government. I'm John McCain and I approve this message.
Source: FactCheck.org: AdWatch of 2007 campaign ad, "Outrageous" Nov 20, 2007
FactCheck:Bridge-to-Nowhere never built; would serve 200,000

McCain's TV ad cites "$233 million for a bridge to nowhere," calling the cost "outrageous." Funding for the "bridge to nowhere," also known as the Gravina Island bridge in Alaska, was tacked on to a 2005 transportation bill.
Whether it was truly a "bridge to nowhere" is debatable: Gravina Island, while it has almost no permanent population, is also home to the Ketchikan International Airport, which processes about 200,000 passengers a year. Alaskan officials hoped that the bridge would simplify airport access and allow development on Gravina. The bridge was not the only or the most expensive project attached to the transportation bill, and it may not have been the most frivolous. But it became a symbol for government pork.
In light of the furor over the "bridge to nowhere," Alaska's governor opted to use the money for other pursuits. The bridge was never built, but McCain has been using it as his prime pork example since 2005.
Source: FactCheck.org: AdWatch of 2007 campaign ad, "Outrageous" (http://www.ontheissues.org/2007_AdWatch.htm) Nov 20, 2007
FactCheck: Criticized "Woodstock museum," but skipped vote

One earmark McCain highlights in his TV ad is $1 million for a Woodstock museum, which, he mentions not-so-subtly, was proposed by Sen. Hillary Clinton, the leading Democratic presidential contender. The earmark would have allotted $1 million to New York state's Bethel Woods Center for the Arts, future site of a museum celebrating the 1969 Woodstock music festival and its effect on American culture.
But McCain wasn't present for the vote on an amendment he co-sponsored to remove the stipulated funding for the museum and reroute about a third of it to maternal and child health services. He was out on the campaign trail.
It's true, as the McCain campaign points out, that McCain's vote would not have changed the outcome. Still, we wonder whether voters might have a different view of McCain's ridiculing of the museum not just in this ad but in two others, as well as a presidential debate, if they knew of his absence for the key votes.
Source: FactCheck.org: AdWatch of 2007 campaign ad, "Outrageous" (http://www.ontheissues.org/2007_AdWatch.htm) Nov 20, 2007
Congress spends money like a drunken sailor

We lost the election in 2006 because we lost our way. We began to value principle over power, and spending got out of control. Spending lurched completely out of control. Ronald Reagan used to say, we spend money like a drunken sailor. I never knew a sailor, drunk or sober, with the imagination of the Congress. I received an e-mail recently from a guy who said, "As a former drunken sailor, I resent being compared to members of Congress."
Source: 2007 GOP primary debate, at Reagan library, hosted by MSNBC May 3, 2007
Veto all pork-barrel bills and announce pork spenders

Q: How will you be different, in any way, from Pres. Bush?
A: I would have vetoed spending bill after spending bill after pork-barrel project after pork-barrel project, in the tradition of President Reagan. The first pork-barrel bill that crosses my desk, I'm going to veto it and make the authors of those pork-barrel items famous all over America. We're going to stop it.
Q: What specific programs would you cut if you were president?
A: Line-item veto is the best tool. We need it very badly.
Source: 2007 GOP primary debate, at Reagan library, hosted by MSNBC May 3, 2007
Use veto power to reduce government spending

McCAIN [to Bush]: You seem to depict the role of the president as a hapless bystander. [Clinton] is threatening to shut down the government and vetoing bills to force the congress to spend more money. An active president, i.e. me, will veto bills and threaten to shut down the government to make them spend less money.
Bush: It’s the president’s job to make sure Congress doesn’t have the money to spend in the first place. It is the president’s job to stand up to express the will of the people, advocate and fight for a meaningful real tax cut. And that’s what I’m going to do.
Source: (X-ref to Bush) GOP Debate in Manchester NH (http://www.ontheissues.org/GOP_Manchester.htm) Jan 26, 2000
Distribute surplus: 23% tax cuts; 62% Social Security

McCain says he would dedicate just 23% of [the federal budget surplus] to a tax-cutting plan. For the rest of the surplus, McCain says 62% would bolster Social Security, 10% would go to Medicare, and 5% would pay down the national debt. “John McCain has never voted for a tax increase, but he thinks saving Social Security is the issue,” McCain’s campaign manager said.
Source: Associated Press, in The Enterprise (Brockton MA), p. A9 Jan 4, 2000
$9B of pork in current budget bills; cut subsidies

McCain said he has found at least “$9 billion worth of pork and wasteful spending” in the appropriations bills now being considered by Congress that could fill the budget gaps. He specified subsidies for oil, ethanol and sugar as examples. “Congress has found the funds to raise their own salaries but they can’t find enough to help and lower and middle-income Americans,” said McCain.
Source: Will Lester, AP/LA Times Oct 1, 1999
For Balanced Budget Amend., & off-budget Social Security

McCain was one of only two Republicans who voted twice, in 1995 and again in 1997, to take Social Security “off-budget” - removing it from balanced budget calculations as part of a constitutional balanced budget amendment - which would have prevented the government from filling the trust fund with “IOU’s”.
Source: McCain for President web Site Jul 2, 1999
List of budgetary spending priorities

McCain would “maintain status” on spending for:

AIDS programs
Environmental programs
Foreign aid
Housing projects
Job training programs
Medicaid & Medicare
Student loan programs
McCain would “slightly increase” spending for:

Education (K-12)
Law enforcement
Military & Veterans Benefits
Border Control
McCain would “slightly decrease” spending for:

NASA
Welfare
McCain would eliminate spending for:

Arts funding
Source: Project Vote Smart, 1998, www.vote-smart.org Jul 2, 1998
Supports Balanced Budget Amendment

McCain supports amending the US Constitution to require an annual balanced federal budget.
Source: Project Vote Smart, 1998, www.vote-smart.org Jul 2, 1998
Apply surplus to Social Security, Medicare, tax cuts & debt

McCain would would apply the expected federal budget surplus to:

Social Security
Medicare
Tax cuts
Federal debt reduction
Source: Project Vote Smart, 1998, www.vote-smart.org Jul 2, 1998

[EMUJeff]

Here are some of the candidate’s voting records where the main topic of the legislation was foreign policy...

Voted YES on $40B in reduced federal overall spending.

Vote to pass a bill that reduces federal spending by $40 billion over five years by decreasing the amount of funds spent on Medicaid, Medicare, agriculture, employee pensions, conservation, and student loans. The bill also provides a down-payment toward hurricane recovery and reconstruction costs.
Reference: Work, Marriage, and Family Promotion Reconciliation Act; Bill S. 1932 (http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d109:SN1932:) ; vote number 2005-363 (http://www.ontheissues.org/SenateVote/Party_2005-363.htm) on Dec 21, 2005
Voted NO on prioritizing national debt reduction below tax cuts.

Vote to table [kill] an amendment that would increase the amount of the budget that would be used to reduce the national debt by $75 billion over 5 year. The debt reduction would be offset by reducing the tax cut in the budget framework from $150 billion
Reference: Bill S Con Res 101 (http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c10X:S.9999:) ; vote number 2000-55 (http://www.ontheissues.org/SenateVote/Party_2000-55.htm) on Apr 5, 2000
Voted YES on 1998 GOP budget.

Approval of the 1998 GOP Budget which would cut spending and taxes.
Status: CR Agreed to Y)78; N)22
Reference: H. Con. Res. 84 as amended; Bill H. Con. Res. 84 (http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c105:H.CON.RES.84:) ; vote number 1997-92 (http://www.ontheissues.org/SenateVote/Party_1997-92.htm) on May 23, 1997
Voted YES on Balanced-budget constitutional amendment.

Approval of the balanced-budget constitutional amendment.
Status: Joint Resolution Defeated Y)66; N)34
Reference: S. J. Res. 1; Bill S. J. Res. 1 (http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c105:S.J.RES.1:) ; vote number 1997-24 (http://www.ontheissues.org/SenateVote/Party_1997-24.htm) on Mar 4, 1997
Maintain & enforce existing spending caps in the future.

McCain adopted the Republican Main Street Partnership issue stance:
What we offer today are not the precise spending decisions of a given year's budget; rather, we call upon the Congress and the nation to adopt the following guidelines for our fiscal policy over the next decade. This long-term blueprint is essential for maintaining both the immediate public-sector goal of balancing the budget and the private-sector goal of a healthy economy. This can be achieved through the following steps:

A commitment to maintaining and enforcing existing spending caps in the future, when such discipline becomes more difficult to achieve;
A careful and considerate re-definition of the federal role in society (what should be the legitimate and proper role of the federal government in the twenty-first century, and how do we prioritize competing demands?); and
An evaluation of implementing tax cuts based on their social fairness.
Source: Republican Main St. Partnership Issue Paper: Fiscal Policy 98-RMSP5 (http://www.ontheissues.org/Notebook/Note_98-RMSP5.htm) on Sep 9, 1998

[EMUJeff]

Representative Bob Barr

Earmarks are an outrageous abuse by Congressmen to buy votes

Government spending at all levels is out of control. Most Americans understand the problem of "earmarks," commonly used by pork-minded congressmen to buy votes. But while earmarks are an outrageous abuse of the taxpayer's money, they account for a very small percentage of federal spending. Over the past decade, total government spending (state, local and federal) has increased from $2.9 trillion to an astonishing $5.1 trillion in 2008. The $3.1 trillion federal budget submitted by President Bush for next year was greater than the combined 1998 spending of the federal government, all 50 states and over 87,000 local governments.

The federal government must take the lead in making significant cuts in spending. Focusing on earmarks risks distracting attention from the broader problem of a government wildly wasting the money of hard-working Americans. Source: Campaign website, www.bobbarr2008.com, "Issues" Apr 22, 2008
Remove both earmarks and cut the underlying spending

Barr's speech to the Heartland audience touched on the issues the candidates for the two major status quo parties have not addressed sufficiently, namely: the urgent need for truly cutting the size of the federal government, protecting our civil liberties, securing our borders, and fundamentally reforming our tax code.

"Removing 'earmarks' but not cutting the underlying spending is simply government as usual and is nothing more than a cynical shell game," Barr stated; adding, "and that's the high water mark in the debate thus far." Barr said this is not adequate, and that "America's voters deserve better than a choice between the lesser of two evils." Source: Press release, "Presidential Exploratory Committee" Apr 5, 2008
Allow $3 on 1040 form to pay off National Debt.

Barr co-sponsored allowing $3 on 1040 form to pay off National Debt

OFFICIAL CONGRESSIONAL SUMMARY: Amends the Internal Revenue Code to permit an individual to designate three dollars on his or her income tax return (six dollars on a joint return) to be used to reduce the public debt of the United States.
SPONSOR'S INTRODUCTORY STATEMENT: Pres. Eisenhower apparently once said that he believed that there could be no surplus as long as our Nation was in debt. I come from that school of thought, and yet that is not exactly where we are right now in Washington.
Where we are right now is debating whether or not 90 percent or 50 percent, or some number in between, of these projected future surpluses should be allocated to the debt. What struck me is the fact that really more than just the Congress should be involved in that debate. It is for that reason that I introduce today the Taxpayers' Choice Debt Reduction Act.
What this bill would do would be to simply take the 1040, the tax return as we now know it. And right now, we can send $3 to the presidential campaign. This would create another box wherein we could send 3 bucks to debt reduction. That is not enough money to change our national debt, but it is enough money to make a small step in an important debate that we all ought to be a part of.
LEGISLATIVE OUTCOME: Referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means; never called for a House vote. Source: Taxpayers' Choice Debt Reduction Act (H.R.5349) 00-HR5349 (http://www.ontheissues.org/Notebook/Note_00-HR5349.htm) on Sep 29, 2000
Supports balanced budget amendment & line item veto.

Barr signed the Contract with America:

[As part of the Contract with America, within 100 days we pledge to bring to the House Floor the following bill]: The Fiscal Responsibility Act:
A balanced budget/tax limitation amendment and a legislative line-item veto to restore fiscal responsibility to an out-of-control Congress, requiring them to live under the same budget constraints as families and businesses.Source: Contract with America 93-CWA3 (http://www.ontheissues.org/Notebook/Note_93-CWA3.htm) on Sep 27, 1994

[EMUJeff]

Senator Barack Obama

Can't do anything at home with $12 billion a month on Iraq

The fact that we're spending $12 billion every month in Iraq means that we can't engage in the kind of infrastructure improvements that are going to make us more competitive, we can't deliver on the kinds of health care reforms that Clinton and I are looking for. McCain is willing to have these troops over there for 100 years. The notion that we would sustain that kind of effort and neglect not only making us more secure here at home, more competitive here at home, allow our economy to sink.
Source: 2008 Democratic debate at University of Texas in Austin Feb 21, 2008
Protect consumers with Credit Card Bill of Rights



Create a Credit Card Rating System to Improve Disclosure:Provide consumers an easily identifiable 1-star to 5-star ranking of credit cards, based on the card's features. Credit card companies will be required to display the rating on all application and contract materials.
Establish a Credit Card Bill of Rights to Protect Consumers:Obama will create a Credit Card Bill of Rights to protect consumers. The Obama plan will:

Ban Unilateral Changes
Apply Interest Rate Increases Only to Future Debt
Prohibit Interest on Fees
Prohibit "Universal Defaults"
Require Prompt and Fair Crediting of Cardholder Payments

Cap Outlandish Interest Rates on Payday Loans and Improve Disclosure:Obama supports extending a 36% interest cap to all Americans. Obama will require lenders to provide clear and simplified information about loan fees, payments and penalties, and he'll require them to provide this information during the application process.
Source: Campaign booklet, "Blueprint for Change", p. 10-15 (http://www.ontheissues.org/Blueprint_Obama.htm) Feb 2, 2008
More accountability in subprime mortgages



Ensure More Accountability in the Subprime Mortgage Industry:Obama introduced comprehensive legislation over a year ago to protect consumers against abusive lending practices. Obama's STOP FRAUD Act provides the first federal definition of mortgage fraud, increases funding for law enforcement, and creates new criminal penalties for mortgage fraud.
Create a Universal Mortgage Credit:Obama will create a 10% universal mortgage credit to provide tax relief to homeowners who do not itemize. This credit will provide an average of $500 to 10 million homeowners, the majority of whom earn less than $50,000 per year.
Mandate Accurate Loan Disclosure: Obama will create a Homeowner Obligation Made Explicit (HOME) score, which will provide potential borrowers with a simplified, standardized borrower metric (similar to APR) for home mortgages. The HOME score will allow individuals to easily compare various mortgage products and understand the full cost of the loan.
Source: Campaign booklet, "Blueprint for Change", p. 10-15 (http://www.ontheissues.org/Blueprint_Obama.htm) Feb 2, 2008
Bush stimulus plan leaves out seniors & unemployed

We heard the President say he has a stimulus plan to boost our economy, but we know his plan leaves out seniors and fails to expand unemployment insurance, and we know it was George Bush's Washington that let the banks and financial institutions run amok, and take our economy down this dangerous road. What we need to do now is put more money in the pockets of workers and seniors, and expand unemployment insurance for more people and more time. And I have a plan that to do just that.
Source: Response to 2008 State of the Union address Jan 28, 2008
Voted against limiting credit to 30%, because 30% too high

Clinton and Obama battled over their votes on bankruptcy bills and an amendment to cap interest charged on credit, at 30%. Obama claimed, "I thought 30% potentially was too high of a ceiling."

Obama did vote against--and Clinton voted for--an amendment that would have placed a 30% cap on the interest rate that could be charged on any extension of credit. The amendment failed by a vote of 74 to 24 in 2005. When the amendment came up for a vote, Obama was standing next to Sen. Paul Sarbanes, D-MD, the senior Democrat on the banking committee and the leader of those opposing the landmark bill, which would make it harder for Americans to get rid of debt.
As for whether the 30% cap was too high, that's certainly a matter of opinion. Sen. Mark Dayton of Minnesota, sponsor of the amendment, said on the Senate floor that such a cap "is still consumer abuse" but is much better than rates of more than 300%, which he said were being charged by some loan operations in the country. Source: FactCheck.org on 2008 Congressional Black Caucus Dem. Debate (http://www.ontheissues.org/2008_CBC_Dems.htm) Jan 21, 2008
Account for every single dollar for new proposed programs

Q: You have some $50 billion worth of new programs that you cannot account for.

A: We account for every single dollar that we propose. This is one of the things that's happened during the course of this campaign, that there's a set of assertions made b Clinton and her husband, that are not factually accurate. Part of what the people are looking for right now is somebody who's going to solve problems and not resort to the same typical politics that we've seen in Washington. That is something that I hear all across the country. So when Clinton says I wasn't opposed to the war from the start or says it's a fairytale that I opposed the war, that is simply not true. Clinton asserts that I said that the Republicans had better economic policies since 1980. That is not the case. The viewers are concerned about is who's actually going to help the get health care, how are they going to get their kids going to college, and that's the kind of campaign I've tried to run. Source: 2008 Congressional Black Caucus Democratic debate (http://www.ontheissues.org/2008_CBC_Dems.htm) Jan 21, 2008
Help the homeowners actually living in their homes

It is important to make sure that we're not helping out the speculators, but instead are helping out the homeowners who are actually living in their homes, who have the capacity to make the payments if they're not seeing a huge increase in their mortgage payments. But understand this, this is not new. We have a history in this country of preying on low-income peoples because they don't have access to banks. The Community Reinvestment Act is oftentimes not enforced as it should be. We've got to open up bank branches. We've got to give people access to financing so that they're not going to a payday loan operation. I two years ago introduced a provision that would eliminate predatory lending, something that I had already helped to get passed at the state level. We've got to give ordinary working people access to financing. Part of the reason that they are borrowing on their homes, they're borrowing on credit cards, is that the banks and financial institutions have dominated policy in Washington.
Source: 2008 Congressional Black Caucus Democratic debate (http://www.ontheissues.org/2008_CBC_Dems.htm) Jan 21, 2008
Bankruptcy bill pushed by banks &

OBAMA: When we talked a while back, we talked about the bankruptcy bill, which had been pushed by the banks and the financial institutions, that said, basically, it will be harder for folks who have been lured into these teaser rates and then see their credit cards go up to 30%, that they would have a tougher time getting out of bankruptcy. In the last debate, Clinton said she voted for it but hoped that it wouldn't pass. Now, I don't understand that approach to legislation.

CLINTON: I regretted voting for the bankruptcy bill and I was happy that it didn't get into law. By 2005, there was another run at a bankruptcy reform, motivated by the credit card companies and the other big lenders. I opposed that bill. There was a particular amendment that is very telling. It was an amendment to prohibit credit card companies from charging more than 30% interest. It was one of the biggest lobbyist victories on that very bad bill that the bankruptcy bill represented. Source: 2008 Congressional Black Caucus Democratic debate (http://www.ontheissues.org/2008_CBC_Dems.htm) Jan 21, 2008
Lack of an energy policy is a financial burden

Part of the reason that Kuwait and others are able to come in and purchase, or at least bail out, some of our financial institutions is because we don't have an energy policy. We are sending close to a billion dollars a day. A realistic plan is going to reduce our dependence on foreign oil, and to invest in solar & wind & biodiesel. That would make a substantial difference in our balance of payments, and that would make a substantial difference in terms of their capacity to purchase our assets.
Source: 2008 Democratic debate in Las Vegas Jan 15, 2008
Bush & GOP dug budget hole; need years to dig out

Q: Would it be a priority of your administration to balance the federal budget every year?

A: Over the last seven years, what we've seen is an economy that's out of balance because of the policies of George Bush and the Republicans in Congress. Not only do we have fiscal problems, but we've got growing inequality. People are working harder for less and they're seeing costs go up. So what I want to do is get the long-term fundamentals right. That means that we are investing in education & infrastructure, structuring fair trade deals, and also ending the war in Iraq. That is money that can be applied at home for critical issues.
Q: So a priority to balance the federal budget, or not?
A: We are not going to be able to dig ourselves out of that hole in 1 or 2 years. But if we can get on a path of sustained growth, end the war in Iraq, end some of the special interest loopholes and earmarks that have been clogging up the system, then I think we can return to a path of a balanced budget. Source: 2007 Des Moines Register Democratic debate (http://www.ontheissues.org/2007_Dems_DMR.htm) Dec 13, 2007
Save $150 billion in tax cuts for people who don't need them

Every proposal I've put forward during this campaign we have paid for, and we have specified where that money is going to come from. Let's just look at our tax code because it's a great example of how we could provide relief to ordinary citizens who are struggling to get by. Right now we've got a whole host of corporate loopholes and tax havens. There's a building in the Cayman Islands that houses supposedly 12,000 US-based corporations. That's either the biggest building in the world or the biggest tax scam in the world, and we know which one it is. If we close some of those loopholes, we've put forward tax relief plans, that will not only restore fairness to our tax code, but it also puts money into the pockets of hard-working Americans who need it right now, who will spend it, and will actually improve our economic growth over time, particularly at a time when we're seeing a credit crunch. But it requires leadership from the white house that restores that sense that we're all in this together.
Source: 2007 Des Moines Register Democratic Debate (http://www.ontheissues.org/2007_Dems_DMR.htm) Dec 13, 2007
Take China "to the mat" about currency manipulation

Q: You had said that if China is actually manipulating their currency, the US needs to "take them to the mat." What exactly did you mean by that?

A: We have legislation that says that if, in fact, they are manipulating their currency--and I think there's no dispute that they are--that we need to take strong action. It's in the Banking Committee. I will say that it's actually a blunt tool. I'd prefer not doing this legislatively. The problem is we've had a president that has shown no leadership on it. So when I am in the White House, I will meet directly with the Chinese leadership and indicate we have to restore balance. And, by the way, we have to mobilize our allies, such as the European Union, to have that conversation with us. This is an imbalance that is not good for any economy over time. It's not sustainable, the trade imbalances that we have. Source: 2007 Democratic radio debate on NPR (http://www.ontheissues.org/2007_Dems_NPR.htm) Dec 4, 2007
Rejects free market vision of government

In a 2005 commencement address, Obama described the conservative philosophy of government as "to give everyone one big refund on their government, divvy it up by individual portions, in the form of tax breaks, hand it out, and encourage everyone to use their share to go buy their own health care, their own retirement plan, their own child care, their own education, and so on. In Washington, they call this the Ownership Society. But in our past there has been another term for it, Social Darwinism, every man or woman for him or herself. It's a tempting idea, because it doesn't require much thought or ingenuity." Obama has rejected this free market vision of government, preferring to see the power of the state as something that can serve the public interest. According to Obama, "We're going to put more money into education than we have. WE have to invest in human capital."
Source: The Improbable Quest, by John K. Wilson, p.155 (http://www.ontheissues.org/Improbable_Quest.htm) Oct 30, 2007
Regulate financial instruments to protect home mortgages

Q: [to Dodd]: The Fed lowered the discount rate for banks to address the mortgage crisis. Should they lower rates for everyone else?

DODD: Yes, but we also need more liquidity in the market. It has seized up. You can't get a mortgage in America today.
OBAMA: We do need more liquidity, but we're going to have to not only help home owners who are going to be losing their homes as a consequence of this; we're going to have to make sure that we've got the kinds of tough regulation when it comes to financial instruments to make sure that people who have saved and are trying to get their own home for the first time are not hoodwinked out of it. And, unfortunately, the reason that we haven't had tougher regulation in part goes back to the issue of lobbying. This is where special interests have been driving the agenda. We have not had the kinds of consumer protections that are in place. That's why, when we have this debate about lobbying, we have to remind ourselves it has very real consequences. Source: 2007 Democratic primary debate on "This Week" (http://www.ontheissues.org/2007_Stephanopoulos_Dems.htm) Aug 19, 2007
Government regulation needed for when markets fail

In the era of George Bush's running up huge federal deficits, Obama advocated fiscal restraints, calling for pay-as-you-go government. He waxed on about the power of the free market to create wealth and change lives. But he also had an afterthought on a market-based economy straight from liberal economist Paul Krugman: "Sometimes markets fail, and that's when labor laws and government regulation are necessary correctives." In other words, he was saying that capitalism is magnificent, but it does have its drawbacks. It would be hard for anyone to argue with such a balanced statement. "Obama figures out ways to present himself like a conservative to conservatives." Said [one advisor]. "He has the whole venture capital industry here in Chicago, nothing but Republicans, thinking he is their champion. He has supported entrepreneurship. It is a pro-growth message."
Source: From Promise to Power, by David Mendell, p.248-249 (http://www.ontheissues.org/Promise_to_Power.htm) Aug 14, 2007
Return to PayGo: compensate for all new spending

We were told by our President that we could fight two wars, increase our military budget by 74%, spend more on education, initiate a prescription drug plan, have tax cuts, all at the same time. We were told by Congress that they could make up for lost revenue by cutting government waste.

The result is the most precarious budget situation we have seen in years. We now have an annual budget deficit of almost $300 billion, not counting more than $180 billion we borrow every year from the Social Security Trust Fund.
It is not the debt that is most troubling. The bulk of the debt is a direct result of the President's tax cuts, 47.4% of which went to the top 5% income bracket.
We can eliminate tax credits that have outlived their usefulness & close loopholes that let corporations get away without paying taxes. We can restore a law that was in place during the Clinton presidency--called Paygo--that prohibits money from leaving the treasury without some way of compensating for the lost revenue. Source: The Audacity of Hope, by Barack Obama, p.187-189 (http://www.ontheissues.org/Audacity_of_Hope.htm) Oct 1, 2006
Bush's economic policies are not working

Obama believes that there is no such thing as a "jobless recovery." When millions of Americans aren't working, neither are the Bush Administration's economic policies. As US Senator, Obama will champion policies that get our economy moving and people working instead of short-sighted tax-cuts for the rich that have failed to spark a recovery.
Source: Campaign website, ObamaForIllinois.com May 2, 2004
Supports federal programs to protect rural economy

Our rural communities are the backbone of Illinois. Yet, factories have closed, jobs have disappeared, and homes and farms have been foreclosed upon. Effective federal programs are necessary to protect the rural economy.
Source: Campaign website, ObamaForIllinois.com, ?On The Issues? May 2, 2004

[EMUJeff]

Here are some of the candidate’s voting records where the main topic of the legislation was foreign policy...

Voted NO on paying down federal debt by rating programs' effectiveness.

Amendment intends to pay down the Federal debt and eliminate government waste by reducing spending on programs rated ineffective by the Program Assessment Rating Tool (PART).

Proponents recommend voting YES because:
My amendment says we are going to take about $18 billion as a strong signal from the Congress that we want to support effective programs and we want the taxpayer dollars spent in a responsible way. My amendment doesn't take all of the $88 billion for the programs found by PART, realizing there may be points in time when another program is not meeting its goals and needs more money. So that flexibility is allowed in this particular amendment. It doesn't target any specific program. Almost worse than being rated ineffective, we have programs out there that have made absolutely no effort at all to measure their results. I believe these are the worst offenders. In the following years, I hope Congress will look at those programs to create accountability.
Opponents recommend voting NO because:
The effect of this amendment will simply be to cut domestic discretionary spending $18 billion. Understand the programs that have been identified in the PART program are results not proven. Here are programs affected: Border Patrol, Coast Guard search and rescue, high-intensity drug trafficking areas, LIHEAP, rural education, child abuse prevention, and treatment. If there is a problem in those programs, they ought to be fixed. We ought not to be cutting Border Patrol, Coast Guard search and rescue, high-intensity drug trafficking areas, LIHEAP, rural education, and the rest. I urge a "no" vote. Reference: Allard Amendment (http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d110:SP491:); Bill S.Amdt.491 on S.Con.Res.21 (http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d110:SC00021:) ; vote number 2007-090 (http://www.ontheissues.org/SenateVote/Party_2007-090.htm) on Mar 22, 2007
Voted NO on $40B in reduced federal overall spending.

Vote to pass a bill that reduces federal spending by $40 billion over five years by decreasing the amount of funds spent on Medicaid, Medicare, agriculture, employee pensions, conservation, and student loans. The bill also provides a down-payment toward hurricane recovery and reconstruction costs.
Reference: Work, Marriage, and Family Promotion Reconciliation Act; Bill S. 1932 (http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d109:SN1932:) ; vote number 2005-363 (http://www.ontheissues.org/SenateVote/Party_2005-363.htm) on Dec 21, 2005
Get minorities into home ownership & global marketplace.

Obama adopted the CBC principles:

The CBC is focused on economic empowerment issues including:
New Markets and Small and Minority Business Development. The CBC will seek to increase opportunities for minority and small and disadvantaged businesses by expanding contracting opportunities in the public and private sectors, increasing access to capital, creating tax incentives for capital improvements, removing outdated and restrictive regulatory barriers, and streamlining and enhancing procurement tools to encourage minority and small business utilization.
Trade and Global Economic Empowerment. The CBC will work to ensure that the benefits of the dynamic global marketplace extend to minority businesses, and Africa and developing countries. To this end, the CBC will propose and support trade and investment initiatives designed to bridge the global digital divide, create jobs, improve infrastructure, promote sustainable development, and raise living and work standards for people of color around the globe. Moreover, the CBC will work to ensure that America’s international trade agenda and priorities also meet these goals.
Increasing Affordable Housing Opportunities. The CBC’s goal is to increase the nation’s homeownership rates. Home ownership is one of the best wealth creation vehicles for minority families. We will work with lending institutions and community organizations to ensure that minorities are afforded every opportunity to realize the dream of owning a home.
Source: Congressional Black Caucus press release 01-CBC10 (http://www.ontheissues.org/Notebook/Note_01-CBC10.htm) on Jan 6, 2001
Require full disclosure about subprime mortgages.

Obama co-sponsored requiring full disclosure about subprime mortgages

Sen. DODD: Today we are facing a crisis in the mortgage markets on a scale that has not been seen since the Great Depression: over 2 million homeowners face foreclosure at a loss of over $160 billion in hard-earned home equity; over one out of every 5 subprime loans is currently delinquent. These high default rates have frozen the subprime and jumbo mortgage markets and infected the capital markets to the point where central banks around the world have had to inject liquidity into the system to avoid the crisis from spreading to other segments of the market.
One of the fundamental causes of this serious crisis is abusive and predatory subprime mortgage lending. The Homeownership Preservation and Protection Act of 2007 is designed to protect American homeowners from these practices, and prevent this disaster from happening again. The legislation will:

realign the interests of the mortgage industry with borrowers to insure the availability of mortgage capital on fair terms both for the creation and sustainability of homeownership;
establish new lending standards to ensure that loans are affordable and fair, and
provide for adequate remedies to make sure the standards are met; and create a transparent set of rules for the mortgage industry so that capital can safely return to the market without bad lending practices driving out the good.
It is important to keep in mind that only about 10% of subprime mortgages have been made to first time home buyers. This market has not been primarily about creating a new set of homeowners; a majority of subprime loans have been refinances. While maintaining access to subprime credit on fair terms is important, too much of the subprime market has actually put the homes and home equity of American families at risk.

In the coming months, the housing crisis is going to get worse. We will need to continue to press lenders and servicers to provide real relief for homeowners threatened with foreclosure. Source: Homeownership Preservation and Protection Act (S.2452 ) 2007-S2452 (http://www.ontheissues.org/Notebook/Note_2007-S2452.htm) on Dec 12, 2007

[EMUJeff]

Ralph Nader

Half of federal budget is now military spending

Half of our federal operating budget is now military spending. There's no more Soviet Union. Communist China is not our threat--they want our jobs and industry, and our corporations are obliging.

Who says not to health care to all? It's the health insurance industry, the drug companies and HMOs.
Who's against a living wage? It's McDonalds; it's Burger King; i 's Wal-Mart.
Who's against fair taxation, and against taxing speculation? It's the corporations.
Who's opposing cleaning up pollution? It's the corporate polluters.
Who's against world peace and waging peace? The Lockheed-Martins. It's the military-industrial complex.
Just ask, "Who keeps saying no?" The problems are clear; the injustices are there; and it's getting worse.
Source: 2008 Green Presidential Debate moderated by Cindy Sheehan (http://www.ontheissues.org/2008_Green_Sheehan.htm) Jan 13, 2008
Jobs lost may not be replaced by new ones

[The US] has lost 2.6 million jobs since February 2001. Someday the Pollyanna belief that the US economy always replaces the jobs it loses overseas with new jobs here, as we keep racing ahead of other countries with modern technology and new or redundant services, may run into a contrary riptide that no set of spurious statistics can obscure.
Source: In the Public Interest, "The Job Export Machine" Jul 9, 2003
47 million full-time workers make less than $10 an hour

There is little reference to the working poor. 47 million full-time workers are making less than $10/hr. The lack of affordable housing, the number of children who go to bed hungry, and the more than 32 million Americans who live in poverty put the lie to the Gore claim of broad-based prosperity under the current administration’s regime. Much like their GOP counterparts, Gore has faith in the discredited concept of trickle down economics.
Source: Speech to National Press Club Oct 26, 2000
Use surplus to rebuild country & provide for communal needs

Q: How would you handle the projected surplus?

A: First of all, the surpluses are very hypothetical. The economy could turn down. Second, the surpluses involve a lot of Social Security surpluses, which must be secured. Third, we’ve got priorities. Abolishing child poverty should be one. Rebuilding and repairing America, the public works, the drinking water systems; public transit systems, schools, clinics are crumbling. And third, we really need to focus on a universal health insurance that’s accessible with an emphasis on prevention. Those are communal needs of the American people as a community. They’re overwhelmingly desired. The Bush tax cut is basically to make the rich richer, including himself after taking advantage of a Texas Ranger stadium subsidy boondoggle that turned a $600,000 investment that he borrowed in the Texas Rangers into a $14 million profit. He knows about corporate welfare. He’s a corporate welfare king. Source: Nader-Buchanan debate on ‘Meet the Press’ (http://www.ontheissues.org/Nader-Buchanan.htm) Oct 1, 2000
Top priorities: Infrastructure; poverty; preventive health

Q: If on your first day in office as president, you had one trillion dollars to spend, what would be your priorities?
A: [My priorities would be]:
I’d rebuild public works - all those things underground. Mass transit andpublic transit should be built in city after city.
I’d do more to abolish child poverty.
I’d upgrade preventive health care.

Source: National Press Club interview (aired on NPR) Jul 23, 2000
High gas prices are the fruit of corporate power

Nader joined in Bush’s attack on Gore and the Clinton administration for what he called their lack of a policy to address rising gas prices. The administration has “simply been asleep at the wheel,” Nader said. He charged that the Justice Department’s failure to challenge oil company mergers has allowed the concentration “of the oil industry’s economic power in fewer hands and gives these merged companies greater opportunity to manipulate prices.” Source: Terry M. Neal & Thomas B. Edsall, Washington Post, p. A04 Jun 29, 2000
People indicators are down despite good economic indicators

Q: Clinton-Gore put out statistics in 1996, and again this year, saying, “Lowest unemployment in this century, 3.9%, 20 million new jobs created. Deficits turned to surpluses. Mr. Nader,” they’ll say, “the economy is doing great. No one’s going to listen to your message of doom & gloom.”
A: They didn’t create 22 million jobs. That was created overwhelmingly by the private economy. They didn’t have much of a fiscal policy. Yeah, you have nine years of growth, nine years of corporate profits, nine years of stock market prices. But let’s look at people indicators. A majority of the workers making less today in inflation and adjusted dollars than they did 25 years ago and they’re working 160 hours more a year on the average. 20% child poverty, the highest percentage of poverty by far in the Western world. People having trouble making ends meet, even with two incomes because they’re not having a livable wage. And so they have to go deeper in debt. Consumer debt now has soared over $ 6.2 trillion. Source: Interview on ‘Meet the Press’ May 7, 2000
Two-tiered economy is unhealthy & troubling

There is a two-tier economy where the top 10% is doing quite well, the top 1% spectacularly. But the top 1% of the richest people in this country have financial wealth equal to the combined 95% of the American people. That’s a very unhealthy inequality which is even troubling Alan Greenspan. Source: Interview on ‘Meet the Press’ May 7, 2000
Allow citizen lawsuits for waste in govt spending

Citizens must have full legal standing to challenge in the courts the waste, fraud, and abuse of government spending. Overly complex, mystifying jargon in our laws and procedures must be simplified and clarified so that the general public is not shut out from readily understanding and challenging them. Source: The Concord Principles, An Agenda for a New Democracy, # 5 Feb 21, 2000
The economy is down, when measured by human yardsticks

Business commentators say the economy could scarcely be better. If, instead of corporate yardsticks, we use human yardsticks to measure the performance of the economy and go beyond the quantitative indices of annual economic growth, structural deficiencies become readily evident. Despite record economic growth, corporate profits, and stock market highs year after year, a stunning array of deplorable conditions still prevails year after year. For example:
A majority of workers are making less now, inflation adjusted, than in 1979
Over 20% of children were growing up in poverty during the past decade
The minimum wage is lower today, inflation-adjusted, than in 1979
American workers are working longer and longer hours with less time for family and community
Consumer debt is at an all time high
Personal bankruptcies are at a record level
Personal savings are dropping to record lows
Source: Green Party Announcement Speech Feb 21, 2000
Fed worries wrongly about wage inflation over profits

Alan Greenspan, chairman of the Federal Reserve, is remarkably selective in what kind of inflation he is against. The Fed Chairman does show consistent concern about one inflationary indicator -- any rise in ordinary wages -- and he is regularly relieved to see that they have been “stable,” even though labor’s productivity has been up sharply recently. It is clear that he loses little sleep over workers not sharing in the massive profits that their companies are reaping. Source: In the Public Interest: “Inflation & the Federal Reserve” Nov 15, 1999
Spend surplus on public works & infrastructure

Strikingly absent from the debate [on spending the surplus] are recommendations on investing in a public works program. At no time in recent history has a program to construct, rebuild or repair crumbling bridges, schools, sewer lines, docks, parks, mass transit systems, libraries, clinics, courthouses and other public amenities and infrastructure been so urgent or achievable. This-an era of burgeoning private wealth and large projected public surplus-is the time to reinvigorate our public investments. Source: Article, “Perspectives On Federal Spending” Jul 27, 1999
GNP fails to measure quality of life

Why don’t we analyze our economy qualitatively? And why are almost all the economic indices quantitative and oriented toward the corporate way of defining economic progress? Like the GNP: it has been going up in our country gradually for over twenty years, but 80% of the people’s standard of living has been going down. That’s because we’re not looking at the qualitative aspects of these economic activities.
For instance, if you have a lot of street crime or a lot of pollution, [dealing with those] generates a lot of economic activity, profits, jobs, and sales. But that’s not something we really want an economy to spend its time doing. It’s necessary that it be done, but it doesn’t really advance the ability of people to buy homes or to pay for their children’s education.
We don’t measure whether an economy is developing. We just measure whether companies are selling more, whether inventories are up or down, not whether the health, safety and economic well-being of people are being advanced. Source: Alternative Radio, interview by David Barsamian Dec 9, 1995
This candidate has no voting record as he has never been a member of the House or Senate.

[Harrison]

Thank you for all your work on the political posts!