Barack Obama's Stance on...
Iraq
War
Health Care: Role of Government
Taxes
Embryonic Stem Cell Research
Federal Marriage Amendment
Immigration
Roe v. Wade and the Supreme Court
IRAQ
WAR – THE TROOPS
“If there
are still large troop presences in when
I take office, then the first thing I
will do is call together the Joint
Chiefs of Staff and initiate a phased
redeployment. We’ve got to be as
careful getting out as we were careless
getting in. But military personnel
indicate we can get one brigade to two
brigades out per month. I would
immediately begin that process. We
would get combat troops out of Iraq. The
only troops that would remain would be
those that have to protect U.S. bases
and U.S. civilians, as well as to engage
in counter-terrorism activities in
Iraq.” 1
HEALTH CARE: ROLE OF FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
“Obama’s Plan to Cover the Uninsured:
Obama will create a new national health
plan to allow individuals without access
to affordable insurance coverage to buy
coverage similar to that available to
members of Congress. The Obama
plan will have: Guaranteed
eligibility. No American will be
turned away from any insurance plan
because of illness or pre-existing
conditions.”
2
TAXES: INHERITANCE TAX AND TAX CUTS
HR
4297, Tax Increase Prevention and
Reconciliation Act of 2005, which
extends the tax cuts from President
Bush’s first term through the end of the
decade. Roll Call Vote #118, 5/11/2006,
Senator Obama voted – NO
EMBRYONIC STEM CELL RESEARCH
“My
hope, and the hope of so many in this
country, is to provide our researchers
with the means to explore the uses of
embryonic stem cells so that we can
begin to turn the tide on the
devastating diseases affecting our
nation and the world.”
3
HR 810, The Stem Cell Research
Enhancement Act of 2005, a bill to amend
the Public Health Service Act to provide
[federal funding] for human embryonic
stem cell research. Roll Call Vote #206,
July 18, 2006, Senator Obama voted – YES
S 5, The Stem Cell Research Enhancement
Act of 2007, a bill to amend the Public
Health Service Act to provide [federal
funding] for human embryonic stem cell
research. Roll Call Vote #127,
4/11/2007, Senator Obama voted – YES
FEDERAL MARRIAGE AMENDMENT
Obama voted against the Federal Marriage
Amendment, which would have defined
marriage as between a man and a woman
and prevented judicial extension of
marriage-like rights to same sex or
other unmarried couples.
4
S.J. Res. 1, Roll Call Vote #163, 6/7/06
(cloture motion) Senator Obama
voted – NO. On this procedural motion, a
“yes” vote would have permitted the
federal marriage amendment to come to
the floor of the U.S. Senate for a vote.
IMMIGRATION
Isakson Amendment (S.Amdt. 3961) to S.
2611, Comprehensive Immigration Reform
Act of 2006, which would have prohibited
granting legal status, or adjustment of
current status, to any individual who
enters or entered the United States in
violation of Federal law unless the
border security measures authorized
under Title I and section 233 are fully
completed and fully operational. Roll
Call Vote #121, 5/16/06, Senator Obama
voted - NO
Sessions Amendment (S.Amdt. 3979) to S.
2611, Comprehensive Immigration Reform
Act of 2006, to increase the amount of
fencing and improve vehicle barriers
installed along the southwest border of
the United States. Roll Call #126,
5/17/06, Senator Obama voted – NO
“To remove incentives to enter the
country illegally, we need to crack down
on employers that hire undocumented
immigrants. Barack Obama has championed
a proposal with Senators Charles
Grassley (R-IA), Ted Kennedy (D-MA) and
Max Baucus (D-MT) to create a new
employment eligibility verification
system so employers can verify that
their employees are legally eligible to
work in the U.S.”
5
“There are millions of people living in the shadows who would like to
fully embrace our values and become full
members of our democracy. For the
millions living here illegally but
otherwise playing by the rules, we must
encourage them to come out of hiding and
get right with the law...”
5
ROE v. WADE AND THE SUPREME COURT
“I
would not appoint somebody who doesn’t
believe in the right to privacy.”
6
SOURCES:
1.
Democratic Presidential Debate
transcript, 9/26/07, Hanover, NH
2.
http://www.barackobama.com/issues/healthcare/
3.
http://obama.senate.gov/press/070411-obama_renews_su/index.php
4.
http://www.barackobama.com/pdf/lgbt.pdf
5.
http://www.barackobama.com/issues/pdf/ImmigrationFactSheet.pdf
6. Democratic Presidential Debate,
transcript, 11/15/07, Las Vegas, NV
