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Presidential Elections 2008

August 2007  |  Issue #1  |  Christina Manalo

Presidential Elections are looming, ladies and gentlemen; and the time has come for us to evaluate how these candidates will affect our very existence. When it comes to matters of our surroundings, we must be astute. No doubt, these fine people are all proactive in the betterment of our society. But, which one caters to your needs?

Democratic Party
Hillary Clinton
Education: Clinton's education proposals lower classroom size, hire more qualified teachers, and start a national teacher corps for recruitment. She has taken a solemn vow never to abandon public schools (though is against vouchers) and advocates the necessity of arts education in schools. Clinton voted yes on $200 million in funding for student testing rather than private tutors (2001), and yes on spending $448 billion of our $1.6 trillion tax cut on education.
Socialized Healthcare: Clinton will work for affordable universal healthcare through universal coverage, cost containment, more primary care physicians, and managed competition. She calls for expanding eligibility for the Children's Health Insurance Program , voted for expanding enrollment for Medicare part D prescription drugs (2006), and for increasing Medicaid rebates for producing generic drugs (2005). She sponsored the Nurse Reinvestment Act of 2001 to remedy nurse shortages, and voted no on $40 billion per year to create Medicare prescription drug benefit.
*Scores 100% by the American Public Health Association (APHA) on health issues

Air: Clinton is for clean air, and has worked for children's health and the environment in the administration. She voted YES on the EPA's Clean Air Mercury Rule in 2005, which limits smokestack emissions and calls for the "first cap" to limit mercury emissions to 38 tons by 2010.

Water: Clinton signed letters to the EPA to remove Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs) from the Hudson River to improve mercury clean up of power plants, and in May of 2007 announced a pledge of $25 million for Water Resources Development in New York.

Oil: She calls for a "Strategic Energy Fund," directing investment and research in clean energy to reduce oil imports 50% by 2025. Clinton is also in favor of ratifying the Kyoto Treaty and on disallowing an oil leasing program in Alaska's Coastal Plain.
*Rated 89% by the League of Conservation Voters (LCV)

Barack Obama
Education: Obama proposes a national network of teaching academies that will add 25,000 new teachers to high-need urban and rural schools, and will address the growing achievement gap between middle and low-income students. Obama voted Yes for $53 million on 21st century community learning centers, $5 in grants to local educational agencies, and Yes on shifting $11 billion from corporate tax loopholes to education funding.

Socialized Healthcare: Obama aims to promote high-quality accessible healthcare that is affordable by restoring the funding of Medicare and Medicaid programs. He is a cosponsor of the Medicare Informed Choice Act, which extends enrollment without penality; he voted Yes on expanding enrollment for Medicare part D, and is a member of the Senate's Medicaid Working Group. Obama also introduced the National Medic Act that promotes patient safety initiatives and the Hospital Quality Report Card Act, which requires federal hospital to use quality reports.
*Scores 56% by the APHA on health issues

Air: Obama's strong support for the Clean Air Act is reinforced by his plan to establish a National Low Carbon Fuel Standard, which would essentially provoke significant investment in renewable fuels and reduce annual greenhouse gas emissions "by about 180 million metric tons in 2020."

Water: Obama supports funding of the Clean Water Act.

Oil: Obama leads the Obama-Lugar-Biden bill, a bipartisan effort to raise Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards, which would increase energy efficiency. He was chief co-sponsor of the Energy Efficiency Building Act and is an advocate of US energy independence: his goal being to make 20% of our power supply come from renewable energy sources by 2020.
*Named 2004 Environmental Champion by the LCV.

Republican Party
Rudy Giuliani
Education: Giuliani's approach to improve schools is to put the citizens over the unions and open schools on weekends for remedial instruction. He sponsored a successful Project Read (1999), which currently reaches over 130,000 students. Giuliani led Project Arts, which allocates $50 more for art programs in schools (1999), and aims to privatize failing schools (2000). He also proposed fighting for a voucher program in New York City (1999).

Socialized healthcare: Giuliani has led the HealthStat Initiative in NYC, which to date has given 96,000 eligible children health insurance. He is against socialized medicine and universal health care and instead is for putting money back into the private economy: To cover poor people, "give them vouchers."
*not rated by APHA

Air: Giuliani's personal wealth is unfortunately detrimental to his clean air platform. His law firm, Bracewell & Giuliani, is not only one of the nation's most prominent, but according to the NY Times "the nation's most aggressive lobbyist for coal-fired power plants, heavy emitters of air pollutants and carbon dioxide."

Water: No stance

Oil: Giuliani supports developing energy-independent technology, but is in favor of opening part of the nation's Strategic Petroleum Reserve to battle high oil prices. His law firm is a strong legal and lobbying supporter of "higher-profile defenders of the oil, gas, and energy industries" (NY Times).
*Rated 5% by the LCV

John McCain
Education: McCain is for educational spending to be decided on a state rather than on a federal level, and is for using tax breaks not public school funds to sponsor charter schools. He voted against spending $52 million on 21st century community learning center, against $5 billion for grants to local education agencies, against using $11 billion from corporate tax loopholes on education, and against funding smaller classes over private tutors (2001). He, however supported the Reading Excellence Act to combat illiteracy and co-sponsored the Educational Excellence Act, which rewards schools for academic achievement.

Socialized Healthcare: McCain strives for affordable health care for all Americans without a mandated universal system because it would raise taxes and propose expansion of the children's health insurance program. He supports legislation that enforces the insured patients' rights, keeps health care promises to aging veterans, and expands eligibility for tax-free medical savings accounts. McCain voted against Bill HR-4490 (2000), an amendment that includes prescription drugs under Medicare.
*Scores 25% by the APHA on health issues

Air: McCain is an active clean air advocate. He voted YES on the Clean Air Mercury Rule in 2005, and supports targeting Department of Energy's plan to target 100,000 hydrogen-powered vehicles by 2015. In 1999, however, he voted against funding renewable and solar energy.

Water: He supports the strengthening of the Clean Water Act and signed letter to EPA to improve mercury clean-up of power plants to prevent toxic mercury contamination.

Oil: McCain is against oil drilling and allowing gas and oil development in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. He is for alternative fuels, and strengthening emission controls on all gasoline powered engines. He however voted NO on the Energy Policy Act to reduce oil usage 40% by 2025.
*Rated 54% by the LCV
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