Portrait for US Presidential Elections 2008: Why I vote for Obama, the winning candidate

Laurie Singh, writer-journalist, hailing from South Carolina but living in Brussels, Belgium for the last two years and having travelled widely across the globe, has voted for Barack Obama, whom she calls “the winning candidate.” She outlines her reasons for believing in the candidate of her choice who has promised change.

POLICY ISSUES:
TAXES: Obama would cut taxes for 95 percent of Americans (those earning less than USD 227,000 per year) and would raise taxes on five percent (those whose incomes exceed that amount). McCain would make Bush’s temporary tax cuts for the wealthy permanent and he would cut taxes on top earners. His other cuts would exceed Obama’s only for those earning between USD 112,000 and USD 227,000.Compared with current policy, Obama’s tax plan would increase government revenues by USD 627 billion over the next 10 years, while McCain’s plan would decrease revenues by USD 595 billion.

HEALTH CARE:
One-fourth of Americans lack health insurance and medical expenses are the number one cause of bankruptcy. Obama and McCain have completely different approaches to health care, with Obama believing health care (guaranteed in every developed nation but the US) should be a right, while McCain has stated that health care is a responsibility. Obama’s plan will drastically reduce the number of uninsured and requires children to be covered; McCain’s plan would have little effect on the uninsured population. Obama’s plan allows individuals to keep their employer-paid health insurance, while McCain’s plan would dismantle the entire employer-paid system. Additionally, Obama would create a public health plan that would give people without access to insurance guaranteed coverage.

IRAQ:
Obama, who was an early opponent of the invasion of Iraq and accurately predicted the consequences, plans to seek a phased withdrawal that would last until 2010 (depending on the facts on the ground.) McCain has declared that the United States will remain in Iraq until victory is achieved, even if it takes another 100 years.

VETERANS:
Obama has helped pass laws to assist homeless veterans and improve care for wounded veterans. He has received an 80 percent approval rating from the Disabled Veterans of America and a B+ rating from Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, whereas McCain received a D rating, and the Disabled American Veterans reports that McCain has voted for legislation benefiting veterans only 20 percent of the time.

ENERGY:
While Obama has pushed for renewables such as wind and solar, McCain has missed all eight votes this year in the Senate to support renewable energy. McCain strongly advocates nuclear power, pledging to build 45 new reactors by 2030, but scientists are calling for immediate action. A nuclear plant takes at least a decade to get on line and experts say more than 1,000 new reactors would be needed to influence climate change.

SEX EDUCATION:
McCain continues to support Bush’s failed abstinence-based programs, voting against proposals to fund teen-pregnancy prevention and sex education about contraceptives. Obama is a proponent of age-appropriate sex education and he co-sponsored the Prevention First Act to increase funding for family planning and sex-ed.

TRADE: Obama has criticised policies that “favours only the few” and has called for amending the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA,) if necessary, in order to protect American workers. He favors closing tax loopholes that reward companies which outsource jobs. He is supportive of firms that create US jobs and is in favour of assistance for workers displaced by foreign trade. McCain supports current trade policy.

VOTING RIGHTS:
 The Obama campaign believes in expanding the right to vote and has registered millions of new voters in 2008. The McCain campaign has criticised voter registration efforts and the GOP has been pursuing litigation in key swing states in order to create red tape for election officials, thus complicating the voting process and discouraging voters from casting ballots.

THE BIG PICTURE
BARACK OBAMA IS HOPE AND CHANGE INCARNATE:
As an American abroad, I have seen first-hand the disastrous consequences of the Bush administration on the world’s view of the US. The election of this brilliant, thoughtful man of mixed race holds the promise of inspiring people of all races and nations toward a higher purpose. His election will usher in a new era of progressive attitudes, environmental stewardship, international cooperation and a reversal of the destructive policies of the outgoing administration. The election of Barack Obama to the presidency of the United States marks the epilogue of a long and shameful era in American history. In 1776, Thomas Jefferson penned these lines of the preamble to the Declaration of Independence: We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness. It has taken America 232 years to live up to our forefathers’ ideals and to usher Jefferson’s declarations into reality, and the birth in 2008 of this new era, inconceivable only 50 years ago, brings a growth of humanity and a revolutionary change in attitude never before seen in the US.

JEFFERSON CONTINUED:
That to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. That whenever any form of government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organising its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Barack Obama, whose life and path to the white house is the embodiment of the story of America, spoke of this most basic fabric of American Democracy in his historic speech at the Democratic National Convention: “I stand before you tonight because all across America something is stirring. What the naysayers don’t understand is that this election has never been about me. It’s about you. It’s about you. For 18 long months, you have stood up, one by one, and said enough to the politics of the past. You understand that in this election, the greatest risk we can take is to try the same old politics with the same old players and expect a different result. You have shown what history teaches us — that at defining moments like this one, the change we need doesn’t come from Washington. Change comes to Washington. Change happens because the American people demand it — because they rise up and insist on new ideas and new leadership, a new politics for a new time. America, this is one of those moments.”