5.11.08

All Your Barack Are Belong To Us


Presidential Nominee Barack Obama became President Elect last night. With potential to change the world good or bad we can only wait and watch now as more history unveils itself. Below are a few things Obama has suggested doing when he gets in the White House.

Health care -- Obama has made it clear that expanding health-care coverage to the uninsured would be at the top of his domestic agenda. It's a longtime Democratic priority. Clinton, with the help of then-first lady Hillary Clinton, pushed it hard in 1993. An emboldened Republican minority called the plan too costly and too heavy-handed and defeated it. This time around -- with a more modest plan and a bigger Democratic majority -- Democrats believe they can get it done.

Taxes -- Most of the tax cuts that Bush signed into law expire in the next two years. For now, the era of across-the-board tax cuts is over. Obama will seek to replace them with a mix of tax cuts for the middle class and tax hikes on businesses and individuals with incomes of more than $200,000 a year.

The Iraq War -- Democrats have been stymied in repeated efforts to force a U.S. withdrawal from Iraq. Now they will have the votes to force the issue and a president who has promised to withdraw all combat troops within 16 months. If Obama backs away from that promise, anti-war Democrats may have the votes to force the issue.