Candidates
Democratic	Republican	Independent	Libertarian
President Barack Obama Vice President Joe Biden	President John McCain Vice Presiden Sarah Palin	President Ralph Nader Vice President Matt Gonzalez	President Bob Barr Vice President Wayne Root

Democrat

BARACK OBAMA

Chicago, Ill.
Age: 46
Occupation: U.S. senator for Illinois
Education: Columbia University, Harvard Law School.
Background: Community organizer; attorney; Illinois State senator, 1997-2004; Elected to U.S. Senate in 2004.

Question 1:
What should be done at the federal level, if anything, to combat the high cost of health care?
Answer: My health-care plan will make aggressive investments in cost-cutting technologies and will place more focus on prevention and chronic-care management. The net result will be to bring down the costs of health-care spending by $2,500 for a typical family, annually, and lower the expense of Medicare’s services.
Economy: I will cut taxes for the middle class and roll back some of the Bush tax cuts for those making over $250,000 to restore fairness to the tax code. I will make long-term public investments in R&D [research and development], clean energy, infrastructure and manufacturing to create millions of good-paying jobs.

 

Question 2:
What, if anything, should the federal government do about the growing economic disparity between the middle class and the well-to-do?

Answer: I will cut taxes for the middle class and roll back some of the Bush tax cuts for those making over $250,000 to restore fairness to the tax code. I will make long-term public investments in R&D [research and development], clean energy, infrastructure and manufacturing to create millions of good-paying jobs.

Web site: www.barackobama.com

 

Republican

JOHN McCAIN

Phoenix, Ariz.
Age: 71
Occupation: U.S. senator from Arizona
Education: U.S. Naval Academy
Background: Naval aviator, prisoner of war in Vietnam; elected to U.S. House of Representatives in 1982; elected to U.S. Senate in 1986.

Question 1:
What should be done at the federal level, if anything, to combat the high cost of health care?
Answer: Under my plan, American families will receive $5,000 tax credits to purchase insurance, either through employers or the private market — insurance that can follow them if they change jobs or leave the workforce. I will work for reforms to lower costs and provide coverage to Americans with pre-existing conditions.
Economy: We must spur growth, create jobs, improve educational attainment and enhance financial security. My plan will keep income and payroll taxes low, reduce the price of gas, double the dependent exemption, bring down health-care costs, give deserving homeowners new fixed mortgages, slash our high business taxes and expand trade.

 

Question 2:
What, if anything, should the federal government do about the growing economic disparity between the middle class and the well-to-do?

Answer: We must spur growth, create jobs, improve educational attainment and enhance financial security. My plan will keep income and payroll taxes low, reduce the price of gas, double the dependent exemption, bring down health-care costs, give deserving homeowners new fixed mortgages, slash our high business taxes and expand trade.

Web site: www.johnmccain.com

 

Independent

Ralph Nader

Winsted, CT
Age: 74
Occupation: Attorney, author and consumer advocate
Education: AB Magna cum laude, Woodrow Wilson School of International Affairs Princeton University; Harvard Law School
Background: Named by Time magazine one of the “100 Most Influential Americans in the 20th Century.”
More than four decades of public service. Helped establish the Occupational Safety & Hazard Administration (OSHA), Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Consumer Product Safety Commission, the Safe Drinking Water Act, Motor Vehicle Safety Act and Freedom of Information Act.

Question 1:
What should be done at the federal level, if anything, to combat the high cost of health care?
Answer: Adopt a private delivery, free choice of hospital and doctor, single-payer public health-insurance system. This would save $350 billion annually by eliminating exorbitant executive pay, advertising, computerized billing fraud and abuse, and apply those savings to comprehensively cover everyone without increasing taxpayer costs. Lower costs through bulk purchasing.

 

Question 2:
What, if anything, should the federal government do about the growing economic disparity between the middle class and the well-to-do?
Answer: Unfair legislation allows the middle class to suffer while the rich entrench their status. To correct this we should enact a living $10 wage, adopt a fair tax and provide equal pay for women. We must end corporate subsidies and bailouts. Repeal NAFTA and the anti-union Taft/Hartley Law.

Web site: www.votenader.org

Libertarian

Bob Barr

Atlanta, Ga.
Age: 59.
Occupation: Attorney, former congressman
Education: B.A. University of Southern California; M.A. George Washington University; Georgetown Law School

 

Answers to questions

No response received.

Web site: www.bobbarr2008.com

---