*does happy dance*
Best decision he could have made.
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*does happy dance*
Best decision he could have made.
Yaaaaaaaaaaay, McCain wins!!!
Best decision he could have made... for the Republicans.:D
I wonder if he will be Obama's puppeteer once (If) they win? We might have the first presidency where the office is run by the Vice.
Rogue, you would have said that no matter who he picked.
Tell you what...the republicans are clearly on the threshold of a major change. The alliance of Fiscal, Moral, Paleo and now Neo-Conservatives that has existed since they kicked out all the Rockerfeller repubs out is fracturing.
So I'll see what comes out of it. And if it doesn't suck, I might even vote for it.
Until then, their platform and politicians get short shrift from me.
i was still hoping obama was going to pick me.
Not this time, I was concerned with who he picked as a running mate because it would make McCain's choice harder and Biden actually makes it easier. With Old Joe as the pick McCain can pick a woman without looking like he's doing a "me too".
Biden also suffers from foot in mouth disease so the chance of some self destruction is always pretty good.
It's going to be interesting to see what happens to the Dems as they also seem to have some fracturing in their base and fringe.
Bidden has HUGE foot and mouth disease.
Anyone remember him acting like a total ******* to the guy with the rifle at the Democratic debate. It became a big deal on youtube.
That is a spitting Irishman who hates the 2nd.
McCain for the win. It's getting better and better. A whole new world for my party may be on the horizon.
The man who can't say the word 'change' enough picked one the biggest career politician, Washington insider types around.
"A whole new world for my party may be on the horizon."
I agree.... 8 years of White House exile. ;)
In all seriousness though, I'm a bit disappointed in the responses here. Incredibly partisan. I fail to understand how, EVEN if you are against Obama, you could think Biden was not the best choice for him and his campaign in terms of both winning and governing.
He brings quite a bit of balance to the ticket, experience, FP expertise, etc. Does he have a loud mouth? Yup. But that will allow him to be the attack dog, and he's a **** good one. He looks and appears at his best when he has his hackles up, unlike BOTH McCain and Obama, who both appear grumpy and sullen when they are challenged. To top it off, he's a blue-collar democrat who can appeal to the working middle class in this country, where Obama comes off as "not one of them." That's a weakness for him, and Biden will/can go a long way towards shoring that up.
Further, he's a known quantity. There aren't going to be any surprises, and that's absolutely key. Whatever Biden is, (loudmouthed, cantakerous, clever...) he is in public, in the light of day.
Of course, watch that last statement be blown out of the water after an FBI release revealing that Biden was involved in a Shetland pony sex scandal or something...
Biden on Obama:
"I mean, you got the first mainstream African-American who is articulate and bright and clean and a nice-looking guy... I mean, that's a storybook, man."
"The more people learn about them (Obama and Hillary) and how they handle the pressure, the more their support will evaporate."
Biden speaking to Indian-Americans:
"I've had a great relationship [with East Indians in America]. In Delaware, the largest growth in population is Indian Americans - moving from India. You cannot go to a 7-11 or a Dunkin' Donuts unless you have a slight Indian accent. I'm not joking."
Biden on McCain:
"The only guy on the other side who's qualified is John McCain."
"I've been calling for more troops for over two years, along with John McCain and others subsequent to my saying that."
Biden on Iraq:
"Sen. Obama said he would do everything possible to end the war in Iraq and emphasized the need for a political solution yet he failed to show up to vote for Sen. Biden's critical amendment to provide a political solution in Iraq.
"Well, the point is, it turned out they didn't, but everyone in the world thought he had them. The weapons inspectors said he had them. He catalogued - they catalogued them. This was not some, some Cheney, you know, pipe dream. This was, in fact, catalogued."
And you wonder why Rush Limbaugh was hoping and praying Obama would choose Biden.
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Not a joke, just tossing one of my obscour perspectives out there. Here is my thinking;
Obama has no practical experience what so ever, and is clearly not qualified for the job. His ideas are those of a kid who think they have all the answers, but in reality the answers they have are not for questions beyond thier levels and would never work on a national, or world scale.
Unless Obama is Scripted, or teleprompted, he cannot give decisive answers. Rush Limbaugh's 7-1/2 studdering montage taken from a 40 minute speech clearly illuminates this.
In short, he's an actor playing the part someone else scripted for him.
Now, since Biden is a career politician, Obama is going to be really leaning on him to fill the many holes in his resume. Due to his own lack of experience, it stands to reason the Biden will be calling the shots, and Obama will just be his mouth piece.
No matter what, Obama is a puppet of someone else in the Democrat party. With Biden as VP, he will be the puppeteer.
HA!!!!
I was just listening to the announcement speach, EVEN OBAMA just accidentally called him the next President!!!
I am right, Biden is running the show already!!!
I prefer someone with executive experience, something the O/B ticket doesn't have.
When was the last time Biden was a member of the working blue collar middle class? What you see as Biden shining many others see another pol who thinks he's better than everybody else.
Now that would be cool.:D
BTW, If Obama wins, it's four and then out on his ear.
Supposedly Biden is only worth between 100,00 - 150,000. Dude better call Suze Orman.
I just hope the US can survive four years of Obama. Look how much damage Carter did in 4 years. And Obama's policies are almost identical to Carter's!
I was one of those disenchanted Conservatives, but within the last few months I've come to realize Obama is such a danger to the US, I have to vote for McCain.
in the back of you heads with a snake spear. this is a freaking kung fu forum for petes sake. just when i got use to RD's random OT discussions about anything that pops in his head, i have to deal with the disgust that is american politics, i'm truly sickened and saddened by this, this forum should be a safe haven from that crap. you should all feel ashamed for yourselfs, your masters, and your leanage. oh and BTW vote obama.:D
I was hoping for an Obama/Edwards Ticket. I think it would have solidified the Dem presidency, regardless of the affair and all the skeletons being drug out by the right wing media. Edwards had the Unions and Blue collar America in the East.
Sigh:( Now Obama had to go and choose a nimrod like Biden. I dont like him,never did. He certainly doesnt represent me or my values at all. I know MP likes him and all and i can respect that , but really now, i dont see Obama winning this, Obama should have just put Hillary on the Ticket(may have been a slightly better chance there of a win).
get ready for 4 more years of a republican run disaster. :(
Yay:( TWS
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Personally,it does not matter WHO gets in this time around, it's going to be a disaster...and has been every election since Reagan.
We are suffering from a gross ineptitude on a massive scale. It is SO bad, that anyone smart enough, and qualified enough to be President, is not Dumb enough to actually run for the job.
This leaves us with having to scrape the bottom of the barrel and voting for the least dangerous candidate.
In this case the least of the two evils is McCain.
Are you that lost? :eek:
Edwards political career is done. He was banging a staffer while his wife was fighting cancer! That's low, even for a douche like him.
He really did not have blue-collar and union support like you think. Once the story hit about his house literally being the most expensive in his county, he lost that support. The affair ruined the small support he had left.
Had he connected to core Democrat groups like you said, he would not have finished 3rd in a 3 person race, and that was BEFORE the affair story broke.
The tool that is Biden.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eW3ghj5HSkI
He reminds me of Richard Daley. Maybe that is why I can't stand him on a cellular level.
What he said about his own running mate was amazingly stupid.
Is he a good pick, not in my book. Tim Kaine would of been a better choice just to take his state.
wake up and smell the fascism... in god we trust, of course. :)
I find all this interesting since Obama is ahead in both the IEM and the intrade political markets. He is also ahead in the WSJ political market.
In fact, the WSJ has the contract price on an Obama victory at 62.5%
But hey, what do highly accurate predictive markets know ;)
Yes, I realize all this could change and it could be wrong. But they are pretty good markets, and behavioral economics is actually pretty close to voting in an election.
does anybody think that there is a really good chance we're going to see the next presidential assassination attempt with Obama as president?
that's honestly been the key though for me as I've been waiting to see who he picked. no matter who was on the republican side, they would have gotten my vote if THAT woman had been picked.
I like Biden simply because he has screwed up and showed real gut emotion to things at times. I agree that it at least seems as if he is what you see.
I like Biden simply because he has screwed up and showed real gut emotion to things at times. I agree that it at least seems as if he is what you see.
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Gee, just what we need, an emotional screw up running our country...:rolleyes:
Most of the the 'experts' predicted GW Bush losing the last 2 elections. :rolleyes: Hell, they predicted Hillary to easily win the Democratic nomination and Romney to win the Republican one. Sylvia Browne has a better hit percentage!
If Obama does not get a bounce with his VP pick and the convention, he is in big trouble. His poll numbers have been in a steady decline for awile, and he has had ALOT more media coverage than McCain. FYI, Hillary actually won the last few primary states too.
1bad,
OK, but I'm not sure what your point about the experts in the last couple of elections being wrong has to do with anything. Prediction markets run on the same engine that powers economies - and has powered them - since bartering began: Behavioral Economics.
They are, in fact, remarkably accurate.
Sooooooo.... since they don't rely on the individual opinion of experts, but on the collective opinion of the entire set of market participants (ie... VOTING) I'd say your comment re: experts doesn't really translate here. Completely different issues.
LOL at the idea that Obama-Biden will somehow be more liberal than Carter or McGovern. That's junk designed to preach to the choir and/or scare the stupid. Clearly, you haven't taken a look at Obama's economic policy proposals. Have you read them at all?
From a Behavioral Economics standpoint. I really think a lot of people, from a cognitive science view, are using a confirmation or belief bias to view Obama in a way that confirms their own preconceptions on what he is and should be.
With a strong confirmation bias people tend in general to avoid information and interpretations which could contradict any prior beliefs. Obama fits into this category very well, that selective "blue" crowd does not want to apply rigorous critical scrutiny to their "chosen one".
Personally, if he get's in, and I really hope he does not. I give him four years.
I just hope he does not totally deep throat the system as bad as some predicate.
Barack Obama's Plan
Jumpstart the Economy
* Provide Additional Tax Rebates to American Workers: The economy has continued to weaken significantly, despite congressional action to provide immediate tax rebates to American consumers. Stimulus: $20 billion.
* Establish a $10 billion Foreclosure Prevention Fund: Given the downturn in the economy, Obama is calling for immediate creation of his Foreclosure Prevention Fund that will dramatically increase emergency pre-foreclosure counseling, and will help families facing foreclosure to responsibly refinance their mortgages or sell their homes. Obama’s plan will not help speculators, people buying vacation homes or people that falsely represented their incomes. It is meant to help responsible homeowners through this difficult period. Stimulus: $10 billion.
* Provide $10 billion in Relief for State and Local Governments Hardest-Hit by the Housing Crisis to Prevent Cuts in Vital Services: Because of the housing crisis and the weakening economy, many state and local governments are facing significant revenue shortfalls. Barack Obama believes that in the areas hardest-hit by the housing crisis we should provide immediate, temporary funding to state and local governments so that the decline in property values does not cause them to slash critical public services and cut vital infrastructure spending. Stimulus: $10 billion.
* Extend and Expand Unemployment Insurance: Barack Obama believes we must extend and strengthen the Unemployment Insurance (UI) program to address the needs of the long-term unemployed, who currently make up nearly one-fifth of the unemployed and are often older workers who have lost their jobs in manufacturing or other industries and have a difficult time finding new employment. Expanding UI is one of the most effective ways to combat economic turmoil; every dollar invested in UI benefits results in $1.73 in economic output. Obama is calling for a temporary expansion of the UI program for those who have exhausted their current eligibility. Stimulus: $10 billion.
Provide Middle Class Americans Tax Relief
Obama will cut income taxes by $1,000 for working families to offset the payroll tax they pay.
* Provide a Tax Cut for Working Families: Obama will restore fairness to the tax code and provide 150 million workers the tax relief they need. Obama will create a new "Making Work Pay" tax credit of up to $500 per person, or $1,000 per working family. The "Making Work Pay" tax credit will completely eliminate income taxes for 10 million Americans.
* Eliminate Income Taxes for Seniors Making Less than $50,000: Barack Obama will eliminate all income taxation of seniors making less than $50,000 per year. This proposal will eliminate income taxes for 7 million seniors and provide these seniors with an average savings of $1,400 each year. Under the Obama plan, 27 million American seniors will also not need to file an income tax return.
* Simplify Tax Filings for Middle Class Americans: Obama will dramatically simplify tax filings so that millions of Americans will be able to do their taxes in less than five minutes. Obama will ensure that the IRS uses the information it already gets from banks and employers to give taxpayers the option of pre-filled tax forms to verify, sign and return. Experts estimate that the Obama proposal will save Americans up to 200 million total hours of work and aggravation and up to $2 billion in tax preparer fees.
But where we these taxes be made up?
Trade
Obama believes that trade with foreign nations should strengthen the American economy and create more American jobs. He will stand firm against agreements that undermine our economic security.
* Fight for Fair Trade: Obama will fight for a trade policy that opens up foreign markets to support good American jobs. He will use trade agreements to spread good labor and environmental standards around the world and stand firm against agreements like the Central American Free Trade Agreement that fail to live up to those important benchmarks. Obama will also pressure the World Trade Organization to enforce trade agreements and stop countries from continuing unfair government subsidies to foreign exporters and nontariff barriers on U.S. exports.
* Amend the North American Free Trade Agreement: Obama believes that NAFTA and its potential were oversold to the American people. Obama will work with the leaders of Canada and Mexico to fix NAFTA so that it works for American workers.
* Improve Transition Assistance: To help all workers adapt to a rapidly changing economy, Obama would update the existing system of Trade Adjustment Assistance by extending it to service industries, creating flexible education accounts to help workers retrain, and providing retraining assistance for workers in sectors of the economy vulnerable to dislocation before they lose their jobs.
Invest in the Manufacturing Sector and Create 5 Million New Green Jobs
* Invest in our Next Generation Innovators and Job Creators: Obama will create an Advanced Manufacturing Fund to identify and invest in the most compelling advanced manufacturing strategies. The Fund will have a peer-review selection and award process based on the Michigan 21st Century Jobs Fund, a state-level initiative that has awarded over $125 million to Michigan businesses with the most innovative proposals to create new products and new jobs in the state.
* Double Funding for the Manufacturing Extension Partnership: The Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) works with manufacturers across the country to improve efficiency, implement new technology and strengthen company growth. This highly-successful program has engaged in more than 350,000 projects across the country and in 2006 alone, helped create and protect over 50,000 jobs. But despite this success, funding for MEP has been slashed by the Bush administration. Barack Obama will double funding for the MEP so its training centers can continue to bolster the competitiveness of U.S. manufacturers.
* Invest In A Clean Energy Economy And Create 5 Million New Green Jobs: Obama will invest $150 billion over 10 years to advance the next generation of biofuels and fuel infrastructure, accelerate the commercialization of plug-in hybrids, promote development of commercial scale renewable energy, invest in low emissions coal plants, and begin transition to a new digital electricity grid. The plan will also invest in America's highly-skilled manufacturing workforce and manufacturing centers to ensure that American workers have the skills and tools they need to pioneer the first wave of green technologies that will be in high demand throughout the world.
* Create New Job Training Programs for Clean Technologies: The Obama plan will increase funding for federal workforce training programs and direct these programs to incorporate green technologies training, such as advanced manufacturing and weatherization training, into their efforts to help Americans find and retain stable, high-paying jobs. Obama will also create an energy-focused youth jobs program to invest in disconnected and disadvantaged youth.
* Boost the Renewable Energy Sector and Create New Jobs: The Obama plan will create new federal policies, and expand existing ones, that have been proven to create new American jobs. Obama will create a federal Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) that will require 25 percent of American electricity be derived from renewable sources by 2025, which has the potential to create hundreds of thousands of new jobs on its own. Obama will also extend the Production Tax Credit, a credit used successfully by American farmers and investors to increase renewable energy production and create new local jobs.
New Jobs Through National Infrastructure Investment
Barack Obama believes that it is critically important for the United States to rebuild its national transportation infrastructure – its highways, bridges, roads, ports, air, and train systems – to strengthen user safety, bolster our long-term competitiveness and ensure our economy continues to grow.
* Create a National Infrastructure Reinvestment Bank: Barack Obama will address the infrastructure challenge by creating a National Infrastructure Reinvestment Bank to expand and enhance, not supplant, existing federal transportation investments. This independent entity will be directed to invest in our nation’s most challenging transportation infrastructure needs. The Bank will receive an infusion of federal money, $60 billion over 10 years, to provide financing to transportation infrastructure projects across the nation. These projects will create up to two million new direct and indirect jobs per year and stimulate approximately $35 billion per year in new economic activity.
Technology, Innovation and Creating Jobs
Barack Obama will increase federal support for research, technology and innovation for companies and universities so that American families can lead the world in creating new advanced jobs and products.
* Invest in the Sciences: Barack Obama supports doubling federal funding for basic research and changing the posture of our federal government from being one of the most anti-science administrations in American history to one that embraces science and technology. This will foster home-grown innovation, help ensure the competitiveness of US technology-based businesses, and ensure that 21st century jobs can and will grow in America.
* Make the Research and Development Tax Credit Permanent: Barack Obama wants investments in a skilled research and development workforce and technology infrastructure to be supported here in America so that American workers and communities will benefit. Obama wants to make the Research and Development tax credit permanent so that firms can rely on it when making decisions to invest in domestic R&D over multi-year timeframes.
* Deploy Next-Generation Broadband: Barack Obama believes we can get broadband to every community in America through a combination of reform of the Universal Service Fund, better use of the nation's wireless spectrum, promotion of next-generation facilities, technologies and applications, and new tax and loan incentives.
Support Small Business
* Provide Tax Relief for Small Businesses and Start Up Companies: Barack Obama will eliminate all capital gains taxes on start-up and small businesses to encourage innovation and job creation. Obama will also support small business owners by providing a $500 “Making Work Pay” tax credit to almost every worker in America. Self-employed small business owners pay both the employee and the employer side of the payroll tax, and this measure will reduce the burdens of this double taxation.
* Create a National Network of Public-Private Business Incubators: Barack Obama will support entrepreneurship and spur job growth by creating a national network of public-private business incubators. Business incubators facilitate the critical work of entrepreneurs in creating start-up companies. Obama will invest $250 million per year to increase the number and size of incubators in disadvantaged communities throughout the country.
Labor
Obama will strengthen the ability of workers to organize unions. He will fight for passage of the Employee Free Choice Act. Obama will ensure that his labor appointees support workers' rights and will work to ban the permanent replacement of striking workers. Obama will also increase the minimum wage and index it to inflation to ensure it rises every year.
* Ensure Freedom to Unionize: Obama believes that workers should have the freedom to choose whether to join a union without harassment or intimidation from their employers. Obama cosponsored and is strong advocate for the Employee Free Choice Act, a bipartisan effort to assure that workers can exercise their right to organize. He will continue to fight for EFCA's passage and sign it into law.
* Fight Attacks on Workers' Right to Organize: Obama has fought the Bush National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) efforts to strip workers of their right to organize. He is a cosponsor of legislation to overturn the NLRB's "Kentucky River" decisions classifying hundreds of thousands of nurses, construction, and professional workers as "supervisors" who are not protected by federal labor laws.
* Protect Striking Workers: Obama supports the right of workers to bargain collectively and strike if necessary. He will work to ban the permanent replacement of striking workers, so workers can stand up for themselves without worrying about losing their livelihoods.
* Raise the Minimum Wage: Barack Obama will raise the minimum wage, index it to inflation and increase the Earned Income Tax Credit to make sure that full-time workers earn a living wage that allows them to raise their families and pay for basic needs.
Protect Homeownership and Crack Down on Mortgage Fraud
Obama will crack down on fraudulent brokers and lenders. He will also make sure homebuyers have honest and complete information about their mortgage options, and he will give a tax credit to all middle-class homeowners.
* Create a New FHA Housing Security Program: Barack Obama strongly supports the efforts of Senate Banking Committee Chair Chris Dodd (D–CT) to create a new Federal Housing Administration (FHA) program that will provide meaningful incentives for lenders to buy or refinance existing mortgages and convert them into stable 30-year fixed mortgages. This plan provides an important federal backstop – not a bailout – to this growing national problem. Neither lenders nor homeowners would receive a windfall from this plan.
* Create a Universal Mortgage Credit: Obama will create a 10 percent universal mortgage credit to provide homeowners who do not itemize tax relief. This credit will provide an average of $500 to 10 million homeowners, the majority of whom earn less than $50,000 per year.
* Ensure More Accountability in the Subprime Mortgage Industry: Obama has been closely monitoring the subprime mortgage situation for years, and introduced comprehensive legislation over a year ago to fight mortgage fraud and protect consumers against abusive lending practices. Obama's STOP FRAUD Act provides the first federal definition of mortgage fraud, increases funding for federal and state law enforcement programs, creates new criminal penalties for mortgage professionals found guilty of fraud, and requires industry insiders to report suspicious activity.
* 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.
* Create Fund to Help Homeowners Avoid Foreclosures: Obama will create a fund to help people refinance their mortgages and provide comprehensive supports to innocent homeowners. The fund will be partially paid for by Obama's increased penalties on lenders who act irresponsibly and commit fraud.
* Close Bankruptcy Loophole for Mortgage Companies: Obama will work to eliminate the provision that prevents bankruptcy courts from modifying an individual's mortgage payments. Obama believes that the subprime mortgage industry, which has engaged in dangerous and sometimes unscrupulous business practices, should not be shielded by outdated federal law.
Address Predatory Credit Card Practices
Obama will establish a five-star rating system so that every consumer knows the risk involved in every credit card. He also will establish a Credit Card Bill of Rights to stop credit card companies from exploiting consumers with unfair practices.
* Create a Credit Card Rating System to Improve Disclosure: Obama will create a credit card rating system, modeled on five-star systems used for other consumer products, to provide consumers an easily identifiable 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, enabling consumers to quickly understand all of the major provisions of a credit card without having to rely exclusively on fine print in lengthy documents.
* 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:
o Ban Unilateral Changes
o Apply Interest Rate Increases Only to Future Debt
o Prohibit Interest on Fees
o Prohibit "Universal Defaults"
o Require Prompt and Fair Crediting of Cardholder Payments
Reform Bankruptcy Laws
Obama will reform our bankruptcy laws to protect working people, ban executive bonuses for bankrupt companies, and require disclosure of all pension investments.
* Cap Outlandish Interest Rates on Payday Loans and Improve Disclosure: Obama supports extending a 36 percent interest cap to all Americans. Obama will require lenders to provide clear and simplified information about loan fees, payments and penalties, which is why he'll require lenders to provide this information during the application process.
* Encourage Responsible Lending Institutions to Make Small Consumer Loans: Obama will encourage banks, credit unions and Community Development Financial Institutions to provide affordable short-term and small-dollar loans and to drive unscrupulous lenders out of business.
* Reform Bankruptcy Laws to Protect Families Facing a Medical Crisis: Obama will create an exemption in bankruptcy law for individuals who can prove they filed for bankruptcy because of medical expenses. This exemption will create a process that forgives the debt and lets the individuals get back on their feet.
Work/Family Balance
Obama will double funding for after-school programs, expand the Family Medical Leave Act, provide low-income families with a refundable tax credit to help with their child-care expenses, and encourage flexible work schedules.
* Expand the Family and Medical Leave Act: The FMLA covers only certain employees of employers with 50 or more employees. Obama will expand it to cover businesses with 25 or more employees. He will expand the FMLA to cover more purposes as well, including allowing workers to take leave for elder care needs; allowing parents up to 24 hours of leave each year to participate in their children's academic activities; and expanding FMLA to cover leave for employees to address domestic violence.
* Encourage States to Adopt Paid Leave: As president, Obama will initiate a strategy to encourage all 50 states to adopt paid-leave systems. Obama will provide a $1.5 billion fund to assist states with start-up costs and to help states offset the costs for employees and employers.
* Expand High-Quality Afterschool Opportunities: Obama will double funding for the main federal support for afterschool programs, the 21st Century Learning Centers program, to serve a million more children. Obama will include measures to maximize performance and effectiveness across grantees nationwide.
* Expand the Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit: The Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit provides too little relief to families that struggle to afford child care expenses. Obama will reform the Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit by making it refundable and allowing low-income families to receive up to a 50 percent credit for their child care expenses.
* Protect Against Caregiver Discrimination: Workers with family obligations often are discriminated against in the workplace. Obama will enforce the recently-enacted Equal Employment Opportunity Commission guidelines on caregiver discrimination.
* Expand Flexible Work Arrangements: Obama will create a program to inform businesses about the benefits of flexible work schedules; help businesses create flexible work opportunities; and increase federal incentives for telecommuting. Obama will also make the federal government a model employer in terms of adopting flexible work schedules and permitting employees to request flexible arrangements.
Barack Obama's Record
* Housing: In the U.S. Senate, Obama introduced the STOP FRAUD Act to increase penalties for mortgage fraud and provide more protections for low-income homebuyers, well before the current subprime crisis began.
* Predatory Lending: In the Illinois State Senate, Obama called attention to predatory lending issues. Obama sponsored legislation to combat predatory payday loans, and he also was credited with lobbying the state to more closely regulate some of the most egregious predatory lending practices.
* American Jobs: Barack Obama introduced the Patriot Employer Act of 2007 to provide a tax credit to companies that maintain or increase the number of full-time workers in America relative to those outside the US; maintain their corporate headquarters in America; pay decent wages; prepare workers for retirement; provide health insurance; and support employees who serve in the military.
Not much of a record.
Hold onto your wallets folks.