10 Things I want Obama to do

[Onlooker]

1. Get us out of Iraq and Afghanistan.
2. Spend money on foreign aide as generously as we spend it on war. (Let's try giving aid to educate and heal the damage of war and poverty so as to expand our influence.)
3. Bring back JFK income tax rates, with a maximum tax of 70%. (This will fix our economy and create an economic climate that will attract investors.)
4. Attempt to recoup some of the money stolen by market and regime corruption during the last 8 years.
5. Publicly state terms for America's continued backing of Israel, e.g., Israel must give up East Jerusalem and all settlements).
6. Implement a single-payer health care system.
7. Give John Edwards a powerful and very public anti-poverty position.
8. Lift the embargo against Cuba and establish formal relations.
9. End Don't Ask/Don't Tell and other forms federally sanctioned discrimination against gays.
10. Have an infrastructure proposal that gets the government directly involved in creating jobs, rather than just giving the money to private enterprise. This is the way things were done prior to the Reagan Revulsion.

Is there a chance he'll do any of them?

[annabanana]

1. I love your wish list.

The thing I would add to it is repair to the Justice Department. I think that can only be managed by prosecutions. No one in this Country should be above the law.

[Sebastian Doyle]

2. Hell, he should be able to get that done within the first week

Not saying he will, just saying it wouldn't be that difficult.

[disndat]

3. No problem!

I believe in Obama, but don't expect him to do everything at once as some of his disappointed supporters who have already thrown in the towel. Hey guys! Obama's not in office yet!

[FirstLight]

4. I can barely wait til Jan 20th!!!

This is a great list, I love your #1 !!!

I would put the poverty issue & infrastructure/stimulus plan more towards the top, (and I doubt that John Edwards wiLl do much to be realistic.) But I DO believe that our PE is on it in a way that nobody else has been in decades!


you know, this year feels better already, knowing that we will have our NEW PRESIDENT very soon!!! I didn't really celebrate the New Year, but Inaugurion day will be the dayI feel I can breathe freely again!

[Uzybone]

5. To hell with John Edwards

Al Gore didn't need a government appointment to make Climate Change a top issue. IF JE was really serious about anti-poverty, he could still do something about it.

Fucking huckster.

As for the rest of your wish list.

1. He has always said he will ramp up Afghanistan. Thinking the opposite will happen is dreaming.
2. Probably not. I hope he increases foreign aid spending but not to the levels of war spending. We need to decrease war spending dramatically.
3. Never gonna happen. Dumb idea. If you think our economy was balanced during the JFK years is uneducated on the issue. The poverty levels were higher in the 60's than they are now. 70% tax rates on the very rich in this global economy only means they will find ways to dodge taxes even more.
4. I agree
5. Don't know enough to comment
6. Not his plan, so it wont happen.
7. LOL
8. I agree, I believe we will get there by the end of his 1st term.
9. I agree, and thats what he is going to do.
10. I agree, and thats what he is going to do.

[Onlooker]

18. The economy did great during JFK

Though he did cut taxes, the fact is the economy was very strong despite the highly progressive tax rate. The success of Bush and Reagan, whose tax cuts you apparently admire, is an illusion. They cut taxes but then massively deficit spent in order to drive up tax revenues. Sure, you can feel rich if you deficit spend, but it's not real. Obama should raise taxes on the wealthy and reduce federal deficits. Kennedy, like Clinton, had less than half the deficit spending of any of the Republicans, and Kennedy, like Clinton, promoted new business sectors (primarily technology) to get the economy moving again.

You sound like you bought into Reaganomics and ought to read up on taxes prior to Reagan before accusing anyone of being uneducated on the issue!

[ecstatic]

22. Yep.What he said ^^^^. nt

[Capt. America]

6. Can I add restore the Constitution, repeal the Patriot Act, and prosecute the Bush war ciminals?

[NYC_SKP]

7. I recommend going to Change.gov and voting on these issues.

I'm sure each one is there, which questions rise to the top depends upon how people vote.

I don't know what it will lead to, but voicing your opinions cannot hurt.

With thanks to good DUer, WinstonSmith4740 and this post:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x8050980

Follow the directions to sign in to Change.gov, and either add your question or vote for an existing one.

And Happy New Year! :party:

NYC_SKP

[patrice]

8. OP + #6 = me! nt

[SKKY]

9. Those are nice and all...

But I'd like to see a very aggressive alternative energy initiative placed somewhere between #1 and #2. That seems more important to me than #7 or #8.

[nsd]

10. Maybe 2 of 10.

1. Get us out of Iraq and Afghanistan.
You might get half. He'll draw down in Iraq over the next year (though probably not to zero), but he's likely to ramp up in Afghanistan.

2. Spend money on foreign aid as generously as we spend it on war. (Let's try giving aid to educate and heal the damage of war and poverty so as to expand our influence.)
Not a chance. There's no public support for increasing foreign aid.

3. Bring back JFK income tax rates, with a maximum tax of 70%. (This will fix our economy and create an economic climate that will attract investors.)
Nope. Terrible idea. There's no public support for that, and, besides which, ramping up income tax rates that much would hardly attract investors.

4. Attempt to recoup some of the money stolen by market and regime corruption during the last 8 years.
Would be nice, but impractical and no one would agree on what the term "market and regime corruption" means.

5. Publicly state terms for America's continued backing of Israel, e.g., Israel must give up East Jerusalem and all settlements).
No. Read Obama's AIPAC speech. Look at his national security appointments.

6. Implement a single-payer health care system.
Maybe but still unlikely. The deciding question is: what can Obama get through Congress?

7. Give John Edwards a powerful and very public anti-poverty position.
John Edwards is done in national politics.

8. Lift the embargo against Cuba and establish formal relations.
Maybe after both Castro brothers are dead.

9. End Don't Ask/Don't Tell and other forms federally sanctioned discrimination against gays.
Yes. This one you might get.

10. Have an infrastructure proposal that gets the government directly involved in creating jobs, rather than just giving the money to private enterprise. This is the way things were done prior to the Reagan Revulsion.
Yes. The stimulus package will undoubtedly include money for infrastructure, partly directly and partly by financial aid to the states. "Shovel-ready" is a phrase they're throwing around nowadays.

[Hutzpa]

11. 11. Get rid of weapons manufacturers

this is highly unlikely but hey....why not give it a try, they
are responsible for most war around the world by instigating
leaders so they can sell weapons.

Maybe a scale down might help.

[Captain Hilts]

12. Get the senate to ratify the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. nt

[styersc]

13. If internal polling supports any or all they will be attempted.

Obama's lead principle is a firm belief in swinging whichever way the popular wind blows.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

14. I agree with your wish list, but I would be astonished (though delighted) if

Obama actually did any of this.

[anonymous171]

15. No foreign aid, no foreign wars.

[PurityOfEssence]

16. Great list; a few more

Abolish all Faith-Based Organization funding
Back off on FISA
Stop wasting money on the Star Wars missile shield
Follow Hart's suggestion and unify the military to reduce redundancy
Convene a worldwide commission to address global climate change and POPULATION CONTROL
Establish a crash program on alternative energy research and development
Close Guantanamo and convert it back to a Naval Base

[Onlooker]

17. Yes! Excellent additions. n/t

[Capt. America]

20. I loved your ideas. To piggyback, lets set up an ombudsman to review all defense spending and

prosecute war profiteers.

[SpookyCat]

19. JOIN ME OR DIE!

CAN YOU DO ANY LESS?

[leftofthedial]

21. partially, he might do a token version of #10

the rest? no chance in hell.

[opihimoimoi]

23. Obama needs to do all of those....but....the real answers await him in the Higher Zones

The larger picture....the Planetary Problems trumps all else....

FOOD

AIR

WATER

SPACE/COMFORT/SAFETY

STABILITY

SUSTAINABILITY

LIVING CONDITIONS

POPULATION

ENERGY POLICIES/SOURCES

PEACE

These are the TRUMP CARDS