Why aren't you supporting John Edwards?

[yardwork]

If you are an Obama supporter, and all you can say about Obama's support of those who torture young people is that "Hillary does it too!" then why aren't you supporting Edwards?

I can understand why Obama supporters might not want to support Hillary Clinton. For some reasons, you guys hate her. This doesn't bother me that much, because I don't see a lot of difference between the policies proposed by Clinton and Obama.

I do see a big difference with the policies proposed by Edwards. He is the most progressive candidate left in the field. Why aren't you supporting him?

If defeating Clinton is your main goal, think of how effective it would be if every Obama supporter threw their support behind Edwards right now. Why not?

[peoli]

1. he doesnt inspire me at all. quite the opposite.

[yardwork]

2. Why not? He's the candidate who is advocating for change?

He's the candidate who wants to take on the corporations and the stranglehold they have on this country.

Why would anyone support Obama or Hillary over Edwards? Please explain.

[MadBadger]

3. His record on actually changing things leaves a lot to be desirable.

Wasnt exactly a true liberal in the senate.

[yardwork]

13. What has Obama changed?

I'm very concerned that Obama will bring blatant homophobes into his inner circle of advisers. They're already part of his campaign. Also, his campaign's attitude toward women worries me.

I look at Edwards's policies and I see someone who understands that corporations have too much power. I see someone who fought corporations and won for decades before getting into politics.

What's not to like?

[MadBadger]

15. Im going to ignore your first point about homophobes. What's his attitude twards women?

[peoli]

20. That he honors them completely and wouldnt be who he is today without them

[yardwork]

23. If you don't care about homophobia then you aren't progressive.

That's all I needed to know.

[peoli]

16. all I can say to this is, dot, dot, dot ...

[Hieronymus]

24. With the exception of one or two, there are no Liberals in the Congress now.

[peoli]

4. Im too tired to explain.

Obama

Biden

Walken

Edwards

Thats my prefrence.

[FrenchieCat]

8. This for starters.....

Delivered on October 7, 2002 in the Halls of power-
This week, the U.S. Senate will have an historic debate on the most difficult decision a country ever makes: whether to send American soldiers into harm's way to defend our nation. The President will address these issues in his speech tonight.

My position is very clear: The time has come for decisive action to eliminate the threat posed by Saddam Hussein's weapons of mass destruction. I am a co-sponsor of the bipartisan resolution we're currently considering.

Saddam Hussein's regime is a grave threat to America and our allies -- including our vital ally, Israel.
snip

After 11 years of watching Saddam play shell games with his weapons programs, there is no reason to believe he has any real intention to disarm.

At the end of the day, there must be no question that America and our allies are willing to use force to eliminate the threat of Saddam Hussein's weapons of mass destruction once and for all. And I believe if America leads, the world will join us.

Eliminating Iraq's destructive capacity is only part one of our responsibility, however.

We must make a genuine commitment to help build a democratic Iraq after the fall of Saddam. And let's be clear: a genuine commitment means a real commitment of time, resources, and yes, leadership. Democracy will not spring up by itself or overnight in a multi-ethnic, complicated, society that has suffered under one repressive regime after another for generations. The Iraqi people deserve and need our help to rebuild their lives and to create a prosperous, thriving, open society. All Iraqis — including Sunnis, Shia and Kurds — deserve to be represented.

This is not just a moral imperative. It is a security imperative. It is in America's national interest to help build an Iraq at peace with itself and its neighbors, because a democratic, tolerant and accountable Iraq will be a peaceful regional partner. And such an Iraq could serve as a model for the entire Arab world.
snip
We must also remember why disarming Saddam is critical to American security – because halting the spread of weapons of mass destruction, and ensuring they don't fall into the wrong hands, including terrorist hands, is critical to American security. This is a problem much bigger than Iraq.
snip
Even as we lead the world to eliminate the Iraqi weapons threat in particular and global proliferation in general, we must maintain our resolve in the long-term fight against terrorist groups like al-Qaeda.

I reject the notion that this is an either-or choice. Our national security requires us to do both, and we are up to the challenge. We fought World War II on four continents simultaneously. America worked to rebuild Germany and Japan at the same time, under the Marshall Plan. We waged the Cold War in every corner of the globe, and we won. --John Edwards
http://www.cfr.org/publication/5441/americas_role_in_the_world.html?breadcrumb=%2Fbios%2F9641%2Fjohn_edwards%3Fgroupby%3D3%26hide%3D1%26id%3D9641%26filter%3D2002

VERSUS...

Delivered on 26 October 2002 at an anti-war rally

I don’t oppose all wars. And I know that in this crowd today, there is no shortage of patriots, or of patriotism. What I am opposed to is a dumb war. What I am opposed to is a rash war. What I am opposed to is the cynical attempt by Richard Perle and Paul Wolfowitz and other arm-chair, weekend warriors in this Administration to shove their own ideological agendas down our throats, irrespective of the costs in lives lost and in hardships borne.

What I am opposed to is the attempt by political hacks like Karl Rove to distract us from a rise in the uninsured, a rise in the poverty rate, a drop in the median income – to distract us from corporate scandals and a stock market that has just gone through the worst month since the Great Depression.

That’s what I’m opposed to. A dumb war. A rash war. A war based not on reason but on passion, not on principle but on politics.

Now let me be clear – I suffer no illusions about Saddam Hussein. He is a brutal man. A ruthless man. A man who butchers his own people to secure his own power. He has repeatedly defied UN resolutions, thwarted UN inspection teams, developed chemical and biological weapons, and coveted nuclear capacity.

He’s a bad guy. The world, and the Iraqi people, would be better off without him.

But I also know that Saddam poses no imminent and direct threat to the United States, or to his neighbors, that the Iraqi economy is in shambles, that the Iraqi military a fraction of its former strength, and that in concert with the international community he can be contained until, in the way of all petty dictators, he falls away into the dustbin of history.

I know that even a successful war against Iraq will require a US occupation of undetermined length, at undetermined cost, with undetermined consequences. I know that an invasion of Iraq without a clear rationale and without strong international support will only fan the flames of the Middle East, and encourage the worst, rather than best, impulses of the Arab world, and strengthen the recruitment arm of al-Qaeda.

I am not opposed to all wars. I’m opposed to dumb wars.

So for those of us who seek a more just and secure world for our children, let us send a clear message to the president today. You want a fight, President Bush? Let’s finish the fight with Bin Laden and al-Qaeda, through effective, coordinated intelligence, and a shutting down of the financial networks that support terrorism, and a homeland security program that involves more than color-coded warnings.

You want a fight, President Bush? Let’s fight to make sure that the UN inspectors can do their work, and that we vigorously enforce a non-proliferation treaty, and that former enemies and current allies like Russia safeguard and ultimately eliminate their stores of nuclear material, and that nations like Pakistan and India never use the terrible weapons already in their possession, and that the arms merchants in our own country stop feeding the countless wars that rage across the globe.

You want a fight, President Bush? Let’s fight to make sure our so-called allies in the Middle East, the Saudis and the Egyptians, stop oppressing their own people, and suppressing dissent, and tolerating corruption and inequality, and mismanaging their economies so that their youth grow up without education, without prospects, without hope, the ready recruits of terrorist cells.

You want a fight, President Bush? Let’s fight to wean ourselves off Middle East oil, through an energy policy that doesn’t simply serve the interests of Exxon and Mobil.

Those are the battles that we need to fight. Those are the battles that we willingly join. The battles against ignorance and intolerance. Corruption and greed. Poverty and despair.

The consequences of war are dire, the sacrifices immeasurable. We may have occasion in our lifetime to once again rise up in defense of our freedom, and pay the wages of war. But we ought not – we will not – travel down that hellish path blindly. Nor should we allow those who would march off and pay the ultimate sacrifice, who would prove the full measure of devotion with their blood, to make such an awful sacrifice in vain.
http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Barack_Obama's_Iraq_Speech

[yardwork]

14. I was totally against the war, too. But that was 2002 and this is now.

What has Obama done against the war lately?

[FrenchieCat]

27. Is there a statue of limitation against bad judgment dealing with a war

that we are still fighting and is largely to blame for a lot of our economic woes that Edwards keeps railing about?

If I were to judge Edwards the way that you want him judged....then nothing anyone does or say would mean anything. I need a little bit more order in my life than that. George Bush saying sorry tomorrow doesn't excuse him of the accountability that he deserves. Edwards writing a letter of apology 3 years after the fact doesn't do that for me either.

Especially since he seemed to continue to hold the same pro-war views for soooo long.

What exactly was thhe revelation that made him want to apologize? What happen in November of 2005, that was so clear to him at that time that hadn't been clear in 2002 or 2003 or 2004 or most of 2005? What was this epiphany that compeled hin to publicly say sorry. Please let me know of the event that turned his earlier beliefs.

[yardwork]

29. What has Obama done against the war since he was elected to the senate?

Why hasn't Obama led the charge to restore habeus corpus? Where is he on vote rigging? Why isn't he out in front against torture?

Seems to me that Obama has been silent since he was elected to the senate. Where's the action? Where are the progressive ideals? Where's the fight?

[FrenchieCat]

32. Obama has done plenty.....

maybe, you just aren't paying attention. :shrug:


Human Rights Should Be Bigger than Politics
Senator Barack Obama delivered this speech on the floor of the US Senate, in reaction to Senate passage of S. 3930, Military Commissions Act of 2006, which approved US torture of detainees and strips Constitutional rights away from detainees.
Senator Obama decries the placement of politics over human rights, and condemns S. 3930. He states, "This is not how a serious Administration would approach the problem of terrorism."
http://usliberals.about.com/od/extraordinaryspeeches/a/ObamaTorture.htm

excerpts from Obama's statement...

In the five years that the President's system of military tribunals has existed, not one terrorist has been tried. Not one has been convicted. And in the end, the Supreme Court of the United found the whole thing unconstitutional, which is why we're here today.

We could have fixed all of this in a way that allows us to detain and interrogate and try suspected terrorists while still protecting the accidentally accused from spending their lives locked away in Guantanamo Bay. Easily. This was not an either-or question.

Instead of allowing this President - or any President - to decide what does and does not constitute torture, we could have left the definition up to our own laws and to the Geneva Conventions, as we would have if we passed the bill that the Armed Services committee originally offered.

Instead of detainees arriving at Guantanamo and facing a Combatant Status Review Tribunal that allows them no real chance to prove their innocence with evidence or a lawyer, we could have developed a real military system of justice that would sort out the suspected terrorists from the accidentally accused.

And instead of not just suspending, but eliminating, the right of habeas corpus - the seven century-old right of individuals to challenge the terms of their own detention, we could have given the accused one chance - one single chance - to ask the government why they are being held and what they are being charged with.
http://usliberals.about.com/od/extraordinaryspeeches/a/ObamaTorture.htm

http://www.news.com/8301-10784_3-9845595-7.html
For one thing, under an Obama presidency, Americans will be able to leave behind the era of George W. Bush, Dick Cheney and "wiretaps without warrants," he said. (He was referring to the lingering legal fallout over reports that the National Security Agency scooped up Americans' phone and Internet activities without court orders, ostensibly to monitor terrorist plots, in the years after the September 11 attacks.)

It's hardly a new stance for Obama, who has made similar statements in previous campaign speeches, but mention of the issue in a stump speech, alongside more frequently discussed topics like Iraq and education, may give some clue to his priorities.

In our own Technology Voters' Guide, when asked whether he supports shielding telecommunications and Internet companies from lawsuits accusing them of illegal spying, Obama gave us a one-word response: "No."



Obama Says Gitmo Facility Should Close

The Democratic presidential hopeful pledged to work side-by-side with the rest of the world on issues like nuclear proliferation, poverty, economic development in Latin America and the violence in Darfur.

"While we're at it," he said, "we're going to close Guantanamo. And we're going to restore habeas corpus. ... We're going to lead by example _ by not just word but by deed. That's our vision for the future."

Habeas corpus is a tenet of the Constitution that protects people from unlawful imprisonment
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/06/24/AR2007062401046.html

[yardwork]

35. I don't call speeches doing "plenty."

People like Russ Feingold have been out in front. Where is Obama? Speeches and promises are easy.

Edwards has a proven history of going after corporations and winning.

[Egnever]

63. so your argument is

Edwards speeches mean he will do something but obamas speeches don't mean squat.


Edwards has a history of doing what benefits him. Suing corporations for monetary gain is not going after them. And voting for the bankruptcy bill pretty much puts a lie to him fighting the corporations.

[FrenchieCat]

34. And look at the bills he has sponsored.....in his short time in the Senate.....

these are not the bills that he has co-sponsored....but sponsored....which is different. Look at the subjects.

b]. OBAMA Senate bills sponsored :
http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/thomas
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S.CON.RES.53 : A concurrent resolution expressing the sense of Congress that any effort impose photo identification requirements for voting should be rejected.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 9/20/2005) Cosponsors (23)
Committees: Senate Rules and Administration
Latest Major Action: 9/20/2005 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Referred to the Committee on Rules and Administration.


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S.697 : A bill to amend the Higher Education Act of 1965 to improve higher education
, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 4/5/2005) Cosponsors (2)
Committees: Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
Latest Major Action: 4/5/2005 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.


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S.918 : A bill to provide for Flexible Fuel Vehicle (FFV) refueling capability at new and existing refueling station facilities to promote energy security and reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 4/27/2005) Cosponsors (5)
Committees: Senate Finance
Latest Major Action: 4/27/2005 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.


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S.969 : A bill to amend the Public Health Service Act with respect to preparation for an influenza pandemic, including an avian influenza pandemic
, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 4/28/2005) Cosponsors (9)
Committees: Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
Latest Major Action: 4/28/2005 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.


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S.1180 : A bill to amend title 38, United States Code, to reauthorize various programs servicing the needs of homeless veterans for fiscal years 2007 through 2011,
and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 6/7/2005) Cosponsors (6)
Committees: Senate Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 6/9/2005 Senate committee/subcommittee actions. Status: Committee on Veterans' Affairs. Hearings held.


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S.1194 : A bill to direct the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to establish guidelines and procedures for tracking, controlling, and accounting for individual spent fuel rods and segments.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 6/8/2005) Cosponsors (None)
Committees: Senate Environment and Public Works
Latest Major Action: 6/8/2005 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.


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S.1426 : A bill to amend the Safe Drinking Water Act to reauthorize and extend provisions relating to contaminant prevention detection, and response.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 7/19/2005) Cosponsors (None)
Committees: Senate Environment and Public Works
Latest Major Action: 7/19/2005 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.


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S.1630 : A bill to direct the Secretary of Homeland Security to establish the National Emergency Family Locator System.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 9/7/2005) Cosponsors (9)
Committees: Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
Latest Major Action: 9/7/2005 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.


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S1638 : A bill to provide for the establishment of programs and activities to assist in mobilizing an appropriate healthcare workforce in the event of a health emergency or natural disaster.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 9/8/2005) Cosponsors (6)
Committees: Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
Latest Major Action: 9/8/2005 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.

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S.1685 : A bill to ensure the evacuation of individuals with special needs in times of emergency.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 9/12/2005) Cosponsors (11)
Committees: Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
Latest Major Action: 9/12/2005 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.


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S.1770 : A bill to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide for advance payment of the earned income tax credit and the child tax credit for 2005 in order to provide needed funds to victims of Hurricane Katrina and to stimulate local economies.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 9/26/2005) Cosponsors (5)
Committees: Senate Finance
Latest Major Action: 9/26/2005 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.


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S.1920 : A bill to amend the Clean Air Ac t to establish a renewable diesel standard, and for other purposes.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 10/25/2005) Cosponsors (1)
Committees: Senate Environment and Public Works
Latest Major Action: 10/25/2005 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

S.1975 : A bill to prohibit deceptive practices in Federal elections.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 11/8/2005) Cosponsors (4)
Committees: Senate Rules and Administration
Latest Major Action: 11/8/2005 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Rules and Administration.


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S.2045 : A bill to provide incentives to the auto industry to accelerate efforts to develop more energy-efficient vehicles to lessen dependence on oil.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 11/17/2005) Cosponsors (1)
Committees: Senate Finance Latest Major Action: 11/17/2005 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

S.2047 : A bill to promote healthy communities.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 11/17/2005) Cosponsors (1)
Committees: Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
Latest Major Action: 11/17/2005 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.


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S.2048 : A bill to direct the Consumer Product Safety Commission to classify certain children's products containing lead to be banned hazardous substances.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 11/17/2005) Cosponsors (3)
Committees: Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation
Latest Major Action: 11/17/2005 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.


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S.2125 : A bill to promote relief, security, and democracy in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 12/16/2005) Cosponsors (12)
Committees: Senate Foreign Relations; House International Relations
Latest Major Action: Became Public Law No: 109-456


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S.2149 : A bill to authorize resources to provide students with opportunities for summer learning through summer learning grants.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 12/20/2005) Cosponsors (1)
Committees: Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
Latest Major Action: 12/20/2005 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.


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S.2179 : A bill to require openness in conference committee deliberations and full disclosure of the contents of conference reports and all other legislation.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 1/18/2006) Cosponsors (9) Committees: Senate Rules and Administration
Latest Major Action: 1/18/2006 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Rules and Administration.


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S.2201 : A bill to amend title 49, United States Code , to modify the mediation and implementation requirements of section 40122 regarding changes in the Federal Aviation Administration personnel management system, and for other purposes.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 1/26/2006) Cosponsors (38)
Committees: Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation
Latest Major Action: 1/26/2006 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.


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26. S.2247 : A bill to promote greater use of information technology in the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program under chapter 89 of title 5, United States Code, to increase efficiency and reduce costs.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 2/6/2006) Cosponsors (None)
Committees: Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
Latest Major Action: 3/28/2006 Referred to Senate subcommittee. Status: Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs referred to Subcommittee on Oversight of Government Management, the Federal Workforce, and the District of Columbia.


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27. S.2257 : A bill to provide for an enhanced refundable credit for families who resided in the Hurricane Katrina disaster area on August 28, 2005.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 2/8/2006) Cosponsors (3)
Committees: Senate Finance
Latest Major Action: 2/8/2006 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.


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28. S.2259 : A bill to establish an Office of Public Integrity in the Congress and a Congressional Ethics Enforcement Commission.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 2/8/2006) Cosponsors (2)
Committees: Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
Latest Major Action: 2/8/2006 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.

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29. S.2261 : A bill to provide transparency and integrity in the earmark process.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 2/8/2006) Cosponsors (1)
Committees: Senate Rules and Administration
Latest Major Action: 2/8/2006 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Rules and Administration.


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S.2280 : A bil l to stop transactions which operate to promote fraud, risk, and under-development, and for other purposes.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 2/14/2006) Cosponsors (2)
Committees: Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs
Latest Major Action: 2/14/2006 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

S.2286 : A bill to amend part A of title IV of the Social Security Act to eliminate the separate work participation rate for 2-parent families under the temporary assistance for needy families programs.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 2/14/2006) Cosponsors (1)
Committees: Senate Finance
Latest Major Action: 2/14/2006 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.


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32. S.2319 : A bill to provide for the recovery from Hurricane Katrina, and for other purposes.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 2/16/2006) Cosponsors (None)
Committees: Senate Finance
Latest Major Action: 2/16/2006 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.


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33. S.2348 : A bill to amend the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 to require a licensee to notify the Atomic Energy Commission, and the State and county in which a facility is located, whenever there is an unplanned release of fission products in excess of allowable limits.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 3/1/2006) Cosponsors (4) Committees: Senate Environment and Public Works
Senate Reports: 109-347
Latest Major Action: 9/25/2006 Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 637.


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34. S.2358 : A bill to amend title 38, United States Code, to establish a Hospital Quality Report Card Initiative to report on health care quality in Veterans Affairs hospitals.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 3/2/2006) Cosponsors (None)
Committees: Senate Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 3/2/2006 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.


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35. S.2359 : A bill to amend title XVIII of the Social Security Act to establish a Hospital Quality Report Card Initiative under the Medicare program to assess and report on health care quality in hospitals.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 3/2/2006) Cosponsors (None)
Committees: Senate Finance
Latest Major Action: 3/2/2006 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.


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36. S.2441 : A bill to authorize resources for a grant program for local educational agencies to create innovation districts.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 3/16/2006) Cosponsors (None)
Committees: Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
Latest Major Action: 3/16/2006 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.


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37. S.2446 : A bill to promote the national security and stability of the economy of the United States by reducing the dependence of the United States on oil through the use of alternative fuels and new technology, and for other purposes.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 3/16/2006) Cosponsors (2)
Committees: Senate Finance
Latest Major Action: 3/16/2006 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.

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38. S.2484 : A bill to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to prohibit the disclosure of tax return information by tax return preparers to third parties.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 3/30/2006) Cosponsors (8)
Committees: Senate Finance
Latest Major Action: 3/30/2006 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.


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S.2506 : A bill to require Federal agencies to support health impact assessments and take other actions to improve health and the environmental quality of communities, and for other purposes.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 4/4/2006) Cosponsors (6)
Committees: Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions
Latest Major Action: 4/4/2006 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions.


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S.2984 : A bill to require certain profitable oil companies to expend 1 percent of recent quarterly profits to install E-85 fuel pumps in the United States.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 5/23/2006) Cosponsors (None)
Committees: Senate Energy and Natural Resources
Latest Major Action: 5/23/2006 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.


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S.3475 : A bill to provide housing assistance for very low-income veterans.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 6/7/2006) Cosponsors (3)
Committees: Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs
Latest Major Action: 6/7/2006 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.


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S.3554 : A bill to establish an alternative diesel standard,
and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 6/21/2006) Cosponsors (4)
Committees: Senate Environment and Public Works
Latest Major Action: 6/21/2006 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.

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S.3627 : A bill to prohibit the Department of Defense and the Department of Energy from selling, distributing, or transferring elemental mercury, to prohibit the export of elemental mercury, and for other purposes.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 6/29/2006) Cosponsors (None)
Committees: Senate Environment and Public Works
Latest Major Action: 6/29/2006 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.


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S.3631 : A bill to amend the Toxic Substances Control Act to phase out the use of mercury in the manufacture of chlorine and caustic soda, and for other purposes.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 7/11/2006) Cosponsors (None)
Committees: Senate Environment and Public Works
Latest Major Action: 7/11/2006 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
S.3694 : A bill to increase fuel economy standards for automobiles,
and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 7/19/2006) Cosponsors (10)
Committees: Senate Finance
Latest Major Action: 7/19/2006 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.


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S.3757 : A bill to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 950 Missouri Avenue in East St. Louis, Illinois, as the "Katherine Dunham Post Office Building".

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 7/27/2006) Cosponsors (1)
Committees: Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
Latest Major Action: 7/27/2006 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
Note: For further action, see H.R.5929, which became Public Law 109-333 on 10/12/2006.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

S.3822 : A bill to improve access to and appropriate utilization of valid, reliable and accurate molecular genetic tests by all populations thus helping to secure the promise of personalized medicine for all Americans.
Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 8/3/2006) Cosponsors (None)
Committees: Senate Finance
Latest Major Action: 8/3/2006 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

S.3969 : A bill to amend the Toxic Substances Control Act to assess and reduce the levels of lead found in child-occupied facilities in the United States,
and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 9/28/2006) Cosponsors (1)
Committees: Senate Environment and Public Works
Latest Major Action: 9/28/2006 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

64. S.3988 : A bill to amend title 10 and 38, United States Code, to improve benefits and services for members of the Armed Forces, veterans of the Global War on Terrorism, and other veterans, to require reports on the effects of the Global War on Terrorism
, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 9/28/2006) Cosponsors (None)
Committees: Senate Veterans' Affairs
Latest Major Action: 9/28/2006 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

S.4069 : A bill to prohibit deceptive practices in Federal elections.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 11/16/2006) Cosponsors (4)
Committees: Senate Rules and Administration
Latest Major Action: 11/16/2006 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Rules and Administration.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

S.4102 : A bill to amend the Communications Act of 1934 to prohibit the use of telecommunications devices for the purposes of preventing or obstructing the broadcast or exchange of election-related information.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 12/7/2006) Cosponsors (None)
Committees: Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation
Latest Major Action: 12/7/2006 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

S.AMDT.159 to S.CON.RES.18 To prevent and, if necessary, respond to an international outbreak of the avian flu.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 3/15/2005) Cosponsors (2)
Latest Major Action: 3/17/2005 Senate amendment agreed to. Status: Amendment SA 159 agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


S.AMDT.390 to H.R.1268 To provide meal and telephone benefits for members of the Armed Forces who are recuperating from injuries incurred on active duty in Operation Iraqi Freedom or Operation Enduring Freedom.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 4/13/2005) Cosponsors (3)
Latest Major Action: 4/14/2005 Senate amendment agreed to. Status: Amendment SA 390 agreed to in Senate by Voice Vote.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

S.AMDT.670 to H.R.3 To provide for Flexible Fuel Vehicle (FFV) refueling capability at new and existing refueling station facilities to promote energy security and reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 5/11/2005) Cosponsors (9)
Latest Major Action: 5/12/2005 Senate amendment agreed to. Status: Amendment SA 670 as modified agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
S.AMDT.808 to H.R.6 To establish a program to develop Fischer-Tropsch transportation fuels from Illinois basin coal.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 6/20/2005) Cosponsors (1)
Latest Major Action: 6/23/2005 Senate amendment agreed to. Status: Amendment SA 808 agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

S.AMDT.851 to H.R.6 To require the Secretary to establish a Joint Flexible Fuel/Hybrid Vehicle Commercialization Initiative, and for other purposes.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 6/22/2005) Cosponsors (1)
Latest Major Action: 6/23/2005 Senate amendment agreed to. Status: Amendment SA 851 as modified agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.


---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

S.AMDT.1264 to H.R.3057 To support a United States contribution to the Special Court for Sierra Leone.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 7/18/2005) Cosponsors (3)
Latest Major Action: 7/19/2005 Senate amendment agreed to. Status: Amendment SA 1264 agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

S.AMDT.1362 to S.1042 To require a report on the Department of Defense Composite Health Care System II.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 7/21/2005) Cosponsors (None)
Latest Major Action: 11/8/2005 Senate amendment agreed to. Status: Amendment SA 1362 as modified agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


S.AMDT.1453 to S.1042 To ensure the protection of military and civilian personnel in the Department of Defense from an influenza pandemic, including an avian influenza pandemic.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 7/25/2005) Cosponsors (2)
Latest Major Action: 11/8/2005 Senate amendment agreed to. Status: Amendment SA 1453 as modified agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


S.AMDT.2301 to H.R.3010 To increase funds to the Thurgood Marshall Legal Educational Opportunity Program and to the Office of Special Education Programs of the Department of Education for the purposes of expanding positive behavioral interventions and supports.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 10/26/2005) Cosponsors (6)
Latest Major Action: 10/27/2005 Senate amendment agreed to. Status: Amendment SA 2301 agreed to in Senate by Voice Vote.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

S.AMDT.2605 to S.2020 Expressing the sense of the Senate that the Federal Emergency Management Agency should immediately address issues relating to no-bid contracting.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 11/17/2005) Cosponsors (5)
Latest Major Action: 11/17/2005 Senate amendment agreed to. Status: Amendment SA 2605 agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

S.AMDT.2930 to S.2349 To clarify tha t availability of legislation does not include nonbusiness days.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 3/7/2006) Cosponsors (1)
Latest Major Action: 3/29/2006 Senate amendment agreed to. Status: Amendment SA 2930 agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

S.AMDT.2965 to S.2349 To ban employment negotiations to become lobbyists by Members of Congress and required recusal for senior congressional staff while in office.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 3/8/2006) Cosponsors (2)
Latest Major Action: 3/29/2006 Amendment SA 2965 ruled out of order by the chair.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

S.AMDT.2995 to S.2349 To expand the prohibition on lobbying in the year after leaving service to the Senate to include a prohibition on paid coordination activities.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 3/9/2006) Cosponsors (None)
Latest Major Action: 3/29/2006 Amendment SA 2995 ruled out of order by the chair.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

S.AMDT.3144 to S.CON.RES.83 To provide a $40 million increase in FY 2007 for the Homeless Veterans Reintegration Program and to improve job services for hard-to-place veterans.

Sponsor: Sen Obama, Barack (introduced 3/16/2006) Cosponsors (2)
Latest Major Action: 3/16/2006 Senate amendment agreed to. Status: Amendment SA 3144 agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.

[yardwork]

37. Some of those are good bills, and some of them worry me.

Why is Obama pushing all this disaster relief instead of universal healthcare? A lot of those bills sound like business as usual to me. Sure, they're better than the Republicans, but who isn't?

[FrenchieCat]

47. Why don't we discuss what you are worried about......

since you keep moving the goal post?

And you are showing nothing to me that equals Obama's record other than what John Edwards says lately... now that he's on the sidelines.

[FrenchieCat]

57. Oh, and here's a peek at Obama's state senate record...

Including this:
In 1992, was the Director of Illinois Project VOTE, which registered approximately 150,000 mostly Democratic voters in Chicago's Cook County
Opposes the death penalty and school vouchers
http://www.discoverthenetworks.org/individualProfile.asp?indid=1511

Obama noted that he sponsored successful death-penalty-reform legislation as a lawmaker in Springfield. That legislation, among other things, required the videotaping of homicide interrogations, and he promised to advocate for similar reforms on a national scale.

He backed federal legislation that would ban citizens from carrying weapons, except for law enforcement. He cited Texas as an example of a place where a law allowing people to carry weapons has "malfunctioned" because hundreds of people granted licenses had prior convictions.

said mandatory sentencing laws should be overturned to give judges more discretion and provide more equitable treatment for minorities.
http://www.icadp.org/page236.html
--------------------
Obama cites role in death penalty reform
Barack Obama can honestly claim to have made a difference on a matter of life and death.

While an Illinois state senator, Obama was key in getting the state's notorious death penalty laws changed, including a requirement that in most cases police interrogations involving capital crimes must be recorded.

The changes enacted in 2003 reformed a system that had sent 13 people to death row, only to have them released because they were later determine to be innocent or had been convicted using improper methods.

"Without Barack's energy, imagination and commitment I do not believe the very substantial and meaningful reforms that became law in Illinois would have taken place," said author Scott Turow, a member of the state commission that recommended many of the changes.
http://www.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/11/12/obama.death.penalty.ap/

[peoli]

39. OMG Frenchie you are the link master! This one is awesome!

Totally saving this!

[yardwork]

41. I'm glad that you love it. Show me where it is particularly progressive.

A lot of these bills fall into my personal category of "right wing." Where's the real change? Where's universal healthcare? Where's campaign reform? Opposition to rigged machines? What's this b.s. about preparing for pandemics - sounds like rounding people up and quarantining them to me. Bushco would love it.

I'm not seeing progressive action.

[peoli]

42. I got bored of you 15 minutes ago.

Your words are falling to the floor.

[Sarah Ibarruri]

65. You keep getting tired and exhausted, but you keep posting lolol nt

[peoli]

67. What kind of name is Ibarruri?

I cant figure it out.

[Sarah Ibarruri]

69. I'm afraid if I tell you, you'll end up too tired and exhausted to deal with it LOL!!

:-P

But it's Basque. :)

[peoli]

72. Wow. That is rare. Very nice.

:)

[Sarah Ibarruri]

75. Thanks! :) nt

[ClericJohnPreston]

66. There is a term for your condition

COGNITIVE DISSONANCE!

[Name removed]

51. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[yardwork]

56. As a voter, it's Obama's responsibility to win my vote. He's failed.

And your rudeness, unfortunately, is all too characteristic of his campaign.

[FrenchieCat]

62. Where's Edwards "accomplishments" while 6 years on the Govt dole?

Since you seem to feel like Obamas got a responsibility.

Where is your information to fulfill the responsibility that Edwards has beyond his lip service?

[Beartracks]

43. I wonder the same thing...

I also wonder what people mean when they say "He doesn't inspire me." I've seen other posts to that effect. "Inspiration" is a rather emotional response, when what we really need right now is logic, reason, and a hard turn on the national steering wheel. John Edwards will bring what we need. How can that NOT be inspirational?

Remember when folks voted for Bush because they felt they could sit and have a beer with him? That, too, was emotional, and not at all related to how Bush could/would govern.

Maybe I just don't understand the nature of the inspiration that people claim to be waiting for. What is it that they feel a candidate must inspire them to do?

[FrenchieCat]

73. Here's a video of Obama being perfectly clear on other than inspiration.....

that uses logic and reason and a hard turn on the national steering wheel, as you call it.
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/object/article?f=/c/a/2008/01/18/MNSNUH7GC.DTL&o=0&type=politics


and I don't get the "Edwards will bring what we need" statement.
What does that mean, exactly? :shrug:

[Beartracks]

89. Thanks for the video link.

That's the most I've ever seen Obama in a non-debate setting.

Now I'd like to find some good, substantive footage of both Edwards and Clinton. Have they also been interviewed by the Chronicle?

And I'll be honest: I don't actually know what I meant with my "Edwards will bring what we need" statement -- It was late, and *I* was going on an emotional, gut-level response myself. Sheesh. I'm Sorry. :blush:

[FrenchieCat]

5. Edwards' done too many about face on issues....

said he fought for 54 years....but 6 years in the senate doesn't detail any of this fight at all.

John is not as effective in communication as Obama is.

and John Edwards has exhibed flawed judgement time and time again.

With Obama, his record stands up to what he says....and his policies are sound.

John reminds me of a boy, while Obama reminds me of a man.

[peoli]

7. I agree with everything FrenchieCat says

[yardwork]

Edwards has fought corporations and won. That alone makes me his admirer.

I'm not at all impressed with the communication of Obama's campaign. It's characterized by rudeness and homophobia. I don't see any of that coming from Edwards.

Obama is exhibiting severely flawed judgement by bringing those people who torture young people over being gay into his campaign. That's just awful. Edwards isn't doing that.

Obama's policies don't say anything about fighting corporations. It's easy to say "his policies are sound." What does that mean? Where's the meat?

[FrenchieCat]

31. Edwards fought corporation and was paid Millions upon Millions......

Obama fought by the people for the people with very little pay, although his opportunities were greater than those of John Edwards by the time each finished Law School.

That also makes a difference.

One has to say, it wasn't the money that attracted him to his cause.
The other one doesn't, because it is evident.

See, Edwards mentions that he took that $500,000 paid to him by Fortress because as he said, he needed a salary primarily (see Charlie Rose Interview-Edwards' last one)--Yet the man is worth 54 million dollars. Square that.

[yardwork]

33. I don't care what anyone was paid for their job. Edwards knows how to fight corporations.

Obama's platform says nothing about taking on corporations. How would Obama change the way things are being done now?

[FrenchieCat]

44. Well I care...even if you don't.

Words: Obama believes that corporations should be responsible for work conditions and pensions and that there should be tax incentives for corporate responsibility. He feels we should close tax loopholes for companies that relocate abroad and end tax breaks for companies that outsource jobs.

Actions: Obama voted AGAINST reforming bankruptcy to include means testing and restrictions (2005) and FOR repealing the tax subsidy for companies that move jobs offshore (2005).
http://www.issue2008.com/obama-on-corporationsregulation/

US presidential hopeful Obama targets hedge funds with tax haven bill
http://www.hedgeweek.com/articles/detail.jsp?content_id=49947&livehome=true

Levin, Coleman, Obama Introduce Stop Tax Haven Abuse Act
Bill targets $100 billion in lost tax revenue each year from offshore tax dodges

WASHINGTON – Today, citing $100 billion in revenue drained from the U.S. Treasury at the expense of honest, hardworking American families who pay their fair share, Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., Sen. Norm Coleman, R-Minn., and Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., introduced comprehensive legislation to stop offshore tax haven and tax shelter abuses.
...
The Stop Tax Haven Abuse Act is a strengthened version of a tax reform bill that Levin, Coleman, and Obama introduced in the last Congress. The legislation was strengthened as a result of a year-long Subcommittee investigation which resulted in a hearing and report on August 1, 2006, examining a series of case studies showing how U.S. taxpayers are using offshore secrecy jurisdictions to dodge U.S. taxes.

the 68-page bill would:

ESTABLISH PRESUMPTIONS TO COMBAT OFFSHORE SECRECY by allowing U.S. tax and securities law enforcement to presume that non-publicly traded, offshore corporations and trusts are controlled by the U.S. taxpayers who formed them or sent them assets, unless the taxpayer proves otherwise;

IMPOSE TOUGHER REQUIREMENTS ON U.S. TAXPAYERS USING OFFSHORE SECRECY JURISDICTIONS by listing 34 jurisdictions which have already been named in IRS court filings as probable locations for U.S. tax evasion;

AUTHORIZE SPECIAL MEASURES TO STOP OFFSHORE TAX ABUSES by giving Treasury authority to take special measures against foreign jurisdictions and financial institutions that impede U.S. tax enforcement;

STRENGTHEN DETECTION OF OFFSHORE ACTIVITIES by requiring U.S. financial institutions that open accounts for foreign entities controlled by U.S. clients, open accounts in offshore secrecy jurisdictions for U.S. clients, or establish entities in offshore secrecy jurisdictions for U.S. clients, to report such actions to the IRS;

CLOSE OFFSHORE TRUST LOOPHOLES by taxing offshore trust income used to buy real estate, artwork and jewelry for U.S. persons, and treating as trust beneficiaries those persons who actually receive offshore trust assets;

STRENGTHEN PENALTIES on tax shelter promoters by increasing the maximum fine to 150% of their ill-gotten gains, and on corporate insiders who hide offshore stock holdings by increasing the maximum fine on them to $1 million per violation of U.S. securities laws;

STOP TAX SHELTER PATENTS by prohibiting the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office from issuing patents for “inventions designed to minimize, avoid, defer, or otherwise affect liability for Federal, State, local, or foreign tax”; and

REQUIRE HEDGE FUNDS AND COMPANY FORMATION AGENTS TO KNOW THEIR OFFSHORE CLIENTS by requiring them to establish anti-money laundering programs like other U.S. financial institutions, under regulations to be issued by the Treasury Department.
http://www.senate.gov/~levin/newsroom/release.cfm?id=269479

[robbedvoter]

6. Left the 2004 theft unknown, IWR, his record opposite of his words

[More Than A Feeling]

9. Those who hold Edwards' senate record against him should read this:

http://www.openleft.com/showDiary.do?diaryId=2967

[Egnever]

53. That is exactly what is wrong with him

This is a fight i feel in my gut! except it isnt really is it or his record would be consistent and its clearly not according to your very own link.

Who knows what he will be next year?

Obama on the other hand has been consisten his whole life. Contiuously standing up for civil rights and ethics reform among other things.

[More Than A Feeling]

61. Then I direct you to this thread:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=132&topic_id=4121521&mesg_id=4121521

[Egnever]

82. Why?

again you arte basing your judgement on what you think will happen not on what has happened. My bet is as soon as he is out of the race he goes right back to his job at the Hedge fund. I guess we will know in ten years.

[LittleBlue]

10. He was against going in to Iraq

That's it.

[MadBadger]

11. You mean for?

[LittleBlue]

12. He = Obama

Sorry. That's why I support Obama.

[zulchzulu]

17. I tend to believe Russ Feingold's assessment

When asked about the presidential candidates recently, Russ Feingold replied about John Edwards and the current Democratic presidential candidates:

The one that is the most problematic is (John) Edwards, who voted for the Patriot Act, campaigns against it.

Voted for No Child Left Behind, campaigns against it.

Voted for the China trade deal, campaigns against it.

Voted for the Iraq war … He uses my voting record exactly as his platform, even though he had the opposite voting record.

When you had the opportunity to vote a certain way in the Senate and you didn't, and obviously there are times when you make a mistake, the notion that you sort of vote one way when you're playing the game in Washington and another way when you're running for president, there's some of that going on.

http://www.thenation.com/blogs/campaignmatters?bid=45&pid=272604

I had a pretty similar assessment to what Russ stated.

As for defeating Hillary, it's more than that. It's getting this country moved into a different direction with fresh leadership, not the 1990's 2.0. In my view, Obama is a much better candidate than eith Clinton or Edwards by a long shot. Is he perfect? No. Will he be an incredible President? Absolutely.

[sandnsea]

26. Probably the easiest way to state it n/t

[DJ13]

18. I like Edwards but his ideas for change are too drastic to implement

.....when our economy is this weak (thanks to Bush).

His ideas would have been just what this country needed if he had ran on the same platform right after Clinton left office.

Still, I would happily vote for him as a second choice to Obama, as I believe his positions would by neccesity be moderated should he win the election.

[yardwork]

21. I strongly disagree. The only way to save the global economy is to take on the corporations.

Edwards's ideas for change are the most progressive of any candidate. He's the only one advocating real change. We need that now - emergency.

[JVS]

19. I'm not a fan of his IWR vote

[yardwork]

22. I'm not either, but he's said that that was a mistake.

[JVS]

25. He's fucking right that was a mistake. A mistake that cost him my support

[yardwork]

28. Well, Obama's support for homophobes has cost him my support.

What's Obama done against the war in Iraq lately? What's he done to restore habeus corpus? What's Obama done since he got elected to the senate?

Why should I trust Obama any more than Edwards? Seems to me that if I have to trust someone, it might as well be the one with the most progressive platform. That's Edwards. Besides, I love his wife.

[peoli]

30. dude, fucking vote for him then. you asked the question, cant get mad at the answers.

[yardwork]

38. I'm not a dude and I'm not mad at your answer.

I'm puzzled by it.

[peoli]

49. you make me feel like I'm talking to Spongebob Squarepants

but it's not making me laugh.

[Skittles]

78. there's nothing to be puzzled by

some of us find it sickening to support someone who co-sponsored the invasion of Iraq :puke:

[cali]

84. you shouldn't be. There has been plenty of substantive

material posted that makes it crystal clear why some of us prefer Obama to Edwards. For myself, I'll only add that I will never vote for someone in the primary who had the bad judgment to vote for the IWR. And of them all, Edwards was far and away the worst; shilling for bushco, teaming up with Lieberman, advcating bypassing the UN to bomb away. And his apology means zip to me. I don't trust him because there's no reason to trust him.

[Skittles]

77. a mistake is when you screw up balancing your checkbook

a hideous decision that has cost millions of lives and trillions of dollars is not a mistake that can be rectified with an apology

[jlake]

36. Edwards is a phony whose schtick many are not buying.

[yardwork]

40. Ok, that's easy to say, and lots of folks say it about your candidate too.

So where does that leave us?

Hurling accusations of "phony" don't get us anywhere except a divided electorate.

[jlake]

50. I don't dislike Edwards. But that is why many do not support him.

[tigereye]

45. I feel like he had his chance with Kerry

I like his populism, but I guess for some reason his campaign just isn't resonating with me. I don't really have another explanation at this point. I don't think it has anything to do with all the spin.

[Egnever]

46. I don't believe him

Even If I did One issue isn't the whole gamut. I agree with his general theme but his past record and campaign last go around is almost a 180 from who he claims to be today.

If I could put aside my mistrust of him, I would still be unconvinced he could lead. His senate record includes 2 bills he sponsored on his own. While I cant stand Hillary she has offered up over 100 bills Obama the same. I might disagree with what hillary leads on but she is at least doing it.

In the end though it comes down to his IWR support. He was completely unapologetic about it until the polls turned against it and then amazingly converted. It leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

[totodeinhere]

48. Why Edwards?

Why not the other way around? Why don't all Edwards supporters throw their support to Obama? Think how effective that would be.

[More Than A Feeling]

52. Because of McClurkin/Caldwell. That was the prelude to this thread.

I for one, could never support Obama in the primary now, and I am very close to refusing him my support in the general. I could leave my presidential slot blank, or go Green.

[yardwork]

54. That is correct. Obama shows himself again and again to be suspect.

Edwards is the progressive.

[Egnever]

55. Garbage, Obama attracts a wide swath of supporters

Some of which have questionable views on gays. That does not equate to Obama being anti gay in anyway except in the minds of pinheads. Obama's record on gay rights is as good as or better than any other candidate in the race.

[More Than A Feeling]

60. Garbage yourself, Obama's actively making them a part of his campaign.

It's really sad that you would lower yourself like this. Obama doesn't deserve this effort you are making on his behalf, not on this issue anyway. Your candidate has screwed up, twice now, and he shows no signs of having learned anything.

[totodeinhere]

70. You are not going to find a perfect candidate on gay issues no matter where you look.

If I were Obama, I would not accept any endorsements from anti gay ministers. But if I were either Edwards or Clinton I would support full fledged gay marriage, which of course neither of them does.

You have to look at the some total of a candidate's stands on the issues, rather than cherry picking one issue. And all told, I really think that Obama has a better chance than Edwards does to unite this country, gay and straight, and move it forward.

And does anyone in their right mind doubt that Obama would be light years ahead of either Bush or any or the major Repug contenders when it comes to gay issues?

[More Than A Feeling]

74. Ex-gays are beyond the pale.

As I said elsewhere, its about the worst movement you could associate yourself with and still be politically viable. Obama has had two chances now to reject them by getting them out of his campaign, and he's blown it both times.

[FrenchieCat]

79. That makes you a one issue voter, and its not even an issue but a person.

but whatever!

A call for full equality

by Sen. Barack Obama
Published Thursday, 08-Nov-2007 in issue 1037
Gay and Lesbian Times

Over the last several weeks, the question of GLBT equality was placed on center stage by the appearance of Donnie McClurkin at one of my campaign events. McClurkin is a talented performer and a beloved figure among many African Americans and Christians around the country. At the same time, he espouses beliefs about homosexuality that I completely reject.

The events of the last several weeks are not the occasion that I would have chosen to discuss America’s divisions on gay rights and my own deep commitment to GLBT equality. Now that the issue is before us, however, I do not intend to run away from it. These events have provided an important opportunity for us to confront a difficult fact: There are good, decent, moral people in this country who do not yet embrace their gay brothers and sisters as full members of our shared community.

We will not secure full equality for all GLBT Americans until we learn how to address that deep disagreement and move beyond it. To achieve that goal, we must state our beliefs boldly, bring the message of equality to audiences that have not yet accepted it, and listen to what those audiences have to say in return.

For my entire career in public life, I have brought the message of GLBT equality to skeptical audiences as well as friendly ones. No other leading candidate in the race for the Presidency has demonstrated the same commitment to the principle of full equality. I support the full and unqualified repeal of the federal Defense of Marriage Act. While some say we should repeal only part of the law, I believe we should get rid of that statute altogether. Federal law should not discriminate in any way against gay and lesbian couples. I will also fight to repeal the U.S. military’s Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy, a law that should never have been passed, and my Defense Department will work with top military leaders to implement that repeal.
http://www.gaylesbiantimes.com/?id=10906

Openly gay Latino mayor endorses Barack Obama
http://blabbeando.blogspot.com/2008/01/openly-gay-latino-mayor-to-endorse.html



Obama is best for gay rights

After more than a year of campaigning in the most wide-open primaries in decades, it’s finally time for voters to pick a president. On the Democratic side, the three hopefuls with a viable shot at the nomination have all signed on to almost every item on the so-called “gay agenda.”

That includes workplace rights and hate crime protection for gay and transgender Americans, repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” and opposition to a constitutional amendment banning gays from marrying.

The differences that do exist come on the politically dicey issue of legal recognition for our relationships. Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama and John Edwards all support repealing the provision of the infamous “Defense of Marriage Act” that blocks federal recognition of marriage licenses issued to gay couples. But only Obama and Edwards support full repeal of DOMA, including the provision that says each state can choose to ignore gay marriages from other states.

Hillary Clinton won’t go that far and has stopped short of criticizing her husband for signing DOMA and “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” into law. She and Obama have also declined to sponsor the Uniting American Families Act, which would extend to gay Americans the right to sponsor a non-American partner for citizenship. Then again, Edwards didn’t sign on to UAFA’s predecessor legislation during his Senate tenure, and all three say they support the idea of equal immigration rights in principle.
More: http://citizenchris.typepad.com/citizenchris/2008/01/obama-is-best-o.html

[Digit]

58. Because I belive he is best for our country at this time.

I believe he is the true progressive.

I worry that Obama would be over his head with all the issues that face us.

As for HRC. I fear things would not change.

These are only my own opinions, your opinions may differ.

[grantcart]

59. I like Edwards

but your question is aggressive. Why should anyone have to justify why they are not supporting someone.

[Jed Dilligan]

64. I wasn't crazy about his campaigning in '04

I'm hoping that Obama will usurp his message. If this doesn't happen I'm still voting DK on Feb. 5, even if I have to write him in.

[PinkTiger]

68. I think he must be a really great guy, but it doesn't come across that way.

There is something about him, in comparison with other candidates, that is downright boring, bland, and unexciting. He also seems insincere -- although I don't think he is. He just comes across that way.

[Samantha]

71. I like Edwards but one of the things that tremendously concerns me

is the planned reform of what Republicans like to call entitlement programs. As a baby boomer who has paid into Social Security and Medicare many years, I am concerned about how those programs might be reformed even by a Democratic administration. One difference between Obama and Edwards is that Obama does not support mandates. His response to criticism from others on this point has resulted in his saying what I believe is the literal truth: people who don't have health care are not going without because they do not wish to pay -- they can't afford to pay. His solution is to make it affordable for everyone. That word "affordable" has subjective standards. John Edwards does support mandates.

It is my feeling that it's entirely possible future National Health Care reform will eradicate Medicare if everyone MUST participate. That's entirely unfair to those who have paid this tax for 30 or 40 years. But it's ungodly to suggest that if one's premiums are not paid, enforcement can be exacted by attaching one's income. Suppose that income consists entirely of Social Security. Suppose one is barely existing on say $600 monthly, and that person's "affordable" health care premium is $400 monthly. Most people over 55 automatically are charged $500 monthly by PPO's. Let's assume, because of the large experience pool, that goes down $100. Still that $400 premium deducted from one's Social Security is financially devastating.

The Republicans have long advocated doing away with these programs. A National Health Care program that eradicates Medicare and exacts payment from Social Security seems to me to be a Republican dream come true. And every time I hear Hillary Clinton discussing Medicare being rift with fraud, I believe that one of the excuses that will be given to zap the program. The proper response, of course, is to cure the fraud; do not penalize the participants.

Obama has specifically said he would "fix" Social Security by raising on the cap on which the tax is assessed. That cap should have been raised a long time ago. Edwards, I do not think, has been specific.

John Edwards also supported the Iraq war in the beginning and I vowed at the time I would never support any candidate who did so for president. He has openly and repeatedly apologized for that, which Hillary has not done.

Edwards is a fine candidate, and his wife Elizabeth should be running as well! I understand why he has attracted the kind of quality support he has to date. My differences with him are minimal at this point. You did ask, however, so I am just trying to accommodate by responding.

Sam

PS Good luck in South Carolina!

[Skittles]

76. he co-sponsored the invasion of Iraq

he can be sorry all he wants for that travesty but his credibility is completely shot; for the record I don't care for Obama or HRC either

[gdaerin]

80. Honestly? I don't trust him

He seems like just another lawyer. I think he's Much more believable than Hillary, though. And, I wish he was doing better, because I'd really like to see and hear much more of him.

I think his running really does have to do with him wanting to help America.

[cali]

81. Obama is the one with the progressive record

not John Edwards. I don't say Clinton does it too re Obama. Obama stands apart for me as the only candidate who's walked the walk and not just talked it. He is the 10th most liberal Senator. He's worked on the grond for the disenfranchised, and there's very, very little difference in policy between the top three.

[Clark2008]

83. Because he only became "progressive" during this campaign.

Up until he started running again, he was still a conservative, DLC Democrat.

[Adelante]

85. There is too much blood on his hands

He doesn't deserve the presidency.

[MonkeyFunk]

86. uh..

I don't like him, I don't trust him, I think he's got "loser" written on him.

[elizm]

87. Because he probably won't win a single state???

:shrug:

[Crunchy Frog]

88. Because I don't believe Edwards is sincere in his professed convictions.

There is too much of a divergence between his campaign rhetoric and his actual record for my comfort. I feel that his apologies are self serving and were done out of political expediency, like most of the things he does. Apart from that, I also do not feel he is qualified for the presidency.

Obama is by no means my ideal candidate, but I hold him to be head and shoulders above Edwards.

[OzarkDem]

90. A lot of GDP posters are probably campaign staffers

They aren't likely to change...