|
Issue |
McCain |
Obama |
| Civil Rights
For more information: |
Voted against recognition of Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday as a holiday in Arizona in 1983. (But during a speech in Memphis in April, he expressed his full support for the holiday admitting, “I was wrong.”)
Believes same-sex marriage is an issue for states to decide, not the federal government Opposes landmark Roe v. Wade decision legalizing abortion |
Wants to pass the Fair Pay Act to ensure that women receive equal pay for equal work and the Employment Nondiscrimination Act to prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation |
| Defense/National Security For more information: |
Would set up “new civil military agency” patterned after the Office of Strategic Services in WWII. Supported FISA Act, an illegal warrantless wiretap program by the Bush administration | Would introduce integrated Mobile Development Teams that bring together personnel from State Department, Pentagon, and United States Agency for International Development
Wants to create a Shared Security Program to forge an international intelligence and law enforcement infrastructure to take down terrorist networks |
| Disabilities
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Co-sponsored the Americans with Disabilities Act in 1990. The Act prohibited discrimination against people with disabilities in employment, public service, and public accommodations. Wants to update the law to clearly define “disability.”
Supported the ADA Amendment Act of 2008 that passed through the House. |
Supports Sen. Thomas Harkin’s (D-IA) Americans with Disabilities Restoration Act that would overturn a Supreme Court decision that narrowly defines “disability” as it was written in the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. Also wants to enact a four-prong plan including: educational opportunities for people with disabilities; end to discrimination and promotion of equal opportunity; increase employment rate; support of independent, community-based living by increasing funding to the EEOC and Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs. |
| Education
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Will support increased funding for the Bush Administrations No Child Left Behind plan.
Wants a merit system for teachers based on student performance, and supports vouchers for students to attend charter schools. He would also increase focus on students who perform poorly on standardized tests. |
Proposes the Zero to Five Plan to focus on early childcare and education, as well as quadruple Early Head Start funding.
Plans a modification of current performance assessment in No Child Left Behind. Instead of a benchmark evaluation, schools would follow a growth model” where progress is tracked and rewarded year over year. |
| Energy
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Supports off-shore drilling of American oil reserves to lessen dependency on foreign oil. During an Aug. 4 South Dakota speech, McCain adamantly proclaimed, “We need to drill here, and we need to drill now.” | Wants to enact a Windfall Profits Tax on oil companies making record profits.
Would also provide a $1,000 Emergency Energy Rebate to American families. Supports releasing light oil from the United States’ Strategic Petroleum Reserve and replacing it later with heavier crude oil. |
| Healthcare
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Would offer a direct refundable tax credit of $2,500 for individuals and $5,000 for families to offset cost of private healthcare coverage.
Though families would have the option of employee-based coverage, they would also be able to choose their insurance provider. |
Proposes to establish a national health plan by funding a comprehensive benefits package that covers all essential medical services including preventive, maternity and mental health care.
Wants to create a National Health Insurance Exchange that will act as a watchdog and make private insurance more affordable. |
| Ethics
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Has continuously worked toward public disclosure of lobbyists and the prohibiting of providing gifts to elected officials.
Co-sponsored the McCain-Feingold Act in 2002, a bipartisan campaign reform act prohibiting the spending of funds not subject to federal limits. |
Supports creating a centralized Internet database of lobbying reports, ethics records, and campaign finance filings in a searchable, sortable, and downloadable format.
Proposes an independent watchdog agency to oversee the investigation of congressional ethics violations. |
| Immigration
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Supports an increase in the number of border patrol agents up to 20,000 and the implementation of temporary worker programs including caps on the number of foreign workers.
Wants to work toward completing a border fencing and 200 miles of vehicle barriers, and have unmanned aerial systems, and cameras along the Mexico-U.S. border. Wants to implement temporary worker reform to discourage illegal immigration. |
Would hold employers accountable for hiring undocumented workers.
Wants to allow undocumented immigrants to pay a fine, learn English and go to the back of the line for the opportunity to become citizens. Would also strengthen the promotion of economic development in Mexico to decrease illegal immigration. |
| Veterans
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Wants to expand retirement benefits for reservists. Would provide all military retirees, even if they are not eligible with access to VA healthcare. During a 2007 speech McCain apologized for Walter Reed conditions saying, “I will take full responsibility for being a member of the Armed Services Committee and not knowing about it” | Supports an expansion of the GI bill that would provide full college scholarships for those who serve in the military for at least three years. Wants to allow all veterans back into the VA regardless of income level. . Obama discretely made a trip to the Walter Reed Army Medical Center in June to visit wounded veterans. |
| Second Amendment Rights
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Wants strict, mandatory penalties for criminals who use a firearm in the commission of a crime or illegally posses a firearm. Opposes a ban on firearms. Opposes “waiting periods” for lawful citizens purchase of firearms. | Wants to permanently reinstate assault weapons ban. Says, “gun owners rights are constrained and bound by the needs of the community.” |
| Iraq
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In 2002 voted on favor of Iraqi invasion. Has been an ardent proponent of troop surge. Has said he hopes to defeat Al-Qaeda by 2013 and hopes for Iraq to have a functioning democracy by the same year. | In January 2007 he introduced legislation to end the war In Iraq with a phased withdrawal of troops engaged in combat operations. Supports a UN-led Iraqi constitutional convention. Though he has always been an opponent of the war, Obama was not yet elected during the 2002 Congressional authorization of the war. During a July tour of Iraq German newspapers inaccurately reported that Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki had supported Obama’s plan to withdrawal troops within 16 months of taking office. |
| Iran
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Has expressed support for the Kyl-Lieberman amendment naming the Iranian Revolutionary Guard a terrorist organization. Is not opposed to taking military action against Iran. Does not support direct diplomatic talks with Iran. | Supports tough sanctions on Iran to stop proliferation of uranium enrichment. Wants to engage Iran diplomatically. Wants to develop a cooperative security framework with foreign countries including Iran. |
| Social Security
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Would develop bipartisan plan to “fix” social security system. Supports private savings accounts for individuals. Has called current Social Security system “a disgrace.” | Supports an increase the maximum amount of earnings covered by Social Security. Wants to work with Congress to develop a payroll tax reform package that will keep social security buoyant for the next 50 years. |
| Housing Crisis
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Wants to enable home owners to get 30 year FHA loan at new value of home rather than accelerated value of home.
Would enact the HOME plan that allows homeowners to trade In burdensome mortgages for manageable loans. Calls for Department of Justice task force to investigate criminal wrongdoing in mortgage lending and securitization industry. Does not support government bailout for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. |
Supports FHA Housing Security Program providing incentives for lenders to buy or refinance existing mortgages, and to convert them into stable 30-year fixed mortgages.
Has not directly opposed or supported government bailout for lenders. |
| Tax policy
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Proposes a doubling of the child exemption tax from $3,500 to $7,000 Will propose a middle class tax cut –a phase out of the Alternative Minimum Tax.
Would reduce the corporate tax rate from 35% to 25%. Wants to raise the exemption from taxation on estates up to $10 million while cutting the tax rate to 15 percent. |
Supports a middle class tax cut and proposes eliminating income taxes for seniors making under $50,000 a year.
Wants to extend a “Making Work Pay” tax credit of up to $500 for American workers, and $1,000 for working families. |
| Small Businesses
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Wants a law to permit the first-year expensing of new equipment and technology.
Wants to retain low rate on capital gains tax and cut estate tax 15%. |
Will eliminate all capital gains taxes on start-up and small businesses to encourage innovation and job creation. |
| Trade
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Voted for North American Free Tree Agreement in 1994. Has been a continuous supporter of free trade and believes free trade and national security go hand in hand. | Supports responsible free trade and opposes agreements that do not include labor and environmental protections. Does not support NAFTA and has proposed meeting with Canadian and Mexican officials to amend the agreement. |
| Domestic Intelligence
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Has been a continuous supporter of Foreign Intelligence Security Act.
Voted in favor of an amended version of FISA that gave telecommunications companies that cooperated with the government immunity, and says it is important to U.S. security. |
Though he once adamantly spoke out against FISA, he’s recently supported the act during Congress’ vote extend it. |