The Obama promises for a better future
November 12th 2008 00:30
We list some of the promises of the Barack Obama presidential campaign. As stated in this letter to Mr Obama, his rousingly presented proposals won him the election. But were they, like so many political hopefuls aspiring to high office, promises aimed at winning the election, or were they sincere promises of a better future?
Reading the list, it is tempting to ask why so many of these things aren't already in place. And it is logical to wonder how many times they have been promised by previous political hopefuls, only to be thrown later on to the pile of political expediency.
The promised land. President Obama will:
Social and political change
Reduce the power of lobbyists
Restore objectivity to the executive branch
Increase public access to information
Foreign policy
Pull all US combat forces out of Iraq within 16 months
Get a faster and firmer start on Middle East peacemaking
Boost US efforts against extremists along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border
Engage both allies and adversaries to repair America's image abroad
Energy
Implement a "crash" program to begin weaning America off of its oil dependence
Invest $15 billion a year over the next 10 years to spur commercial development of alternative energy
Offer a short-term rebate of $1,000 per couple to help with rising energy costs
Education
Improve high school graduation rates
Improve early childhood education
Close the achievement gap
Health care
Mandate that all children have health insurance
Subsidise health cover for low and middle-income families
Require employers not offering health coverage to pay a percentage of their payroll toward a national health plan
Taxes and the economy
Deliver economic recovery
Offer new tax breaks for lower-income families
Exempt seniors making less than $50,000 a year from paying income taxes
Obamaspeak
Some words from the campaign trail, and from history:
Barack Obama: "We need a president who sees government not as a tool to enrich well-connected friends and high-priced lobbyists, but as the defender of fairness and opportunity for every American."
Barack Obama: "It's time to renew a people's politics in this country -- to ensure that the hopes and concerns of average Americans speak louder in Washington than the hallway whispers of high-priced lobbyists." Under the (Bush) administration, Washington lobbyists have turned government "into a game only they can afford to play".
Barack Obama quoting Teddy Roosevelt: "The welfare of each of us is dependent fundamentally upon the welfare of all of us."
Barack Obama: "It's easy to be cynical -- to believe that change isn't possible; that the odds are too great; that this year is bound to be no different from the last. But I also know what I've seen and what I've done. I know that for me, reform isn't just the rhetoric of a campaign; it's been a cause of my career."
Unnamed Obama adviser: "Every president is tempted to take on too much. On the other hand, there’s the Roosevelt example and the LBJ examples, which suggest an extraordinary president can do an awful lot. So that’s the question: is it too risky for the president to be ambitious?”
Reading the list, it is tempting to ask why so many of these things aren't already in place. And it is logical to wonder how many times they have been promised by previous political hopefuls, only to be thrown later on to the pile of political expediency.
The promised land. President Obama will:
Social and political change
Reduce the power of lobbyists
Restore objectivity to the executive branch
Increase public access to information
Foreign policy
Pull all US combat forces out of Iraq within 16 months
Get a faster and firmer start on Middle East peacemaking
Boost US efforts against extremists along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border
Engage both allies and adversaries to repair America's image abroad
Energy
Implement a "crash" program to begin weaning America off of its oil dependence
Invest $15 billion a year over the next 10 years to spur commercial development of alternative energy
Offer a short-term rebate of $1,000 per couple to help with rising energy costs
Education
Improve high school graduation rates
Improve early childhood education
Close the achievement gap
Health care
Mandate that all children have health insurance
Require employers not offering health coverage to pay a percentage of their payroll toward a national health plan
Taxes and the economy
Deliver economic recovery
Offer new tax breaks for lower-income families
Exempt seniors making less than $50,000 a year from paying income taxes
Obamaspeak
Some words from the campaign trail, and from history:
Barack Obama: "We need a president who sees government not as a tool to enrich well-connected friends and high-priced lobbyists, but as the defender of fairness and opportunity for every American."
Barack Obama: "It's time to renew a people's politics in this country -- to ensure that the hopes and concerns of average Americans speak louder in Washington than the hallway whispers of high-priced lobbyists." Under the (Bush) administration, Washington lobbyists have turned government "into a game only they can afford to play".
Barack Obama quoting Teddy Roosevelt: "The welfare of each of us is dependent fundamentally upon the welfare of all of us."
Barack Obama: "It's easy to be cynical -- to believe that change isn't possible; that the odds are too great; that this year is bound to be no different from the last. But I also know what I've seen and what I've done. I know that for me, reform isn't just the rhetoric of a campaign; it's been a cause of my career."
Unnamed Obama adviser: "Every president is tempted to take on too much. On the other hand, there’s the Roosevelt example and the LBJ examples, which suggest an extraordinary president can do an awful lot. So that’s the question: is it too risky for the president to be ambitious?”
Associated Press, nytimes.com, barackobama.com, chronicle.com, aina.org
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