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Barack Obama: Reforming Washington

Yesterday at a rally in Green Bay, Wisconsin, Barack Obama outlined his plans for instituting economic reform.

This was more than a standard stump speech, it was a new vision for government. The content of the speech, not necessary the delivery, was what impressed me, although he speaks with tremendous power and confidence about his ideas. He listed one idea after the other, spelling out his intentions to overhaul the current practices and open up the door to new and better ones.

The way he is looking to open government to the American people to participate and review what he is doing sounds like a dream, but the chance that this could be reality really does excite me.

He truly seems to be on a mission to dismantle the old way of Washington, but will they let him?

There's a lot at stake and the ideas he's putting forward will threaten the status quo tremendously. He's spelling it out clearly and putting them on notice, as of now.

John McCain couldn't hold a candle to this.

Please take 22 minutes of your time (less time than it takes to watch a sitcom) and see what this man is all about:

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Here's a summary of the speech:

*Members of the administration will not be able to work on regulation related to the work of previous employers, and when they leave they will not be able to lobby the administration at all.

*Transparency. Make pork barelling impossible. Put bills online for five days before they are passed by the president. Meetings between lobbyists and government agencies should be put online. Tax bills should mention which corporations will benefit and by how much.

*Makes mention of improving health care access, college affordability and energy independence (no details on implementation).

*We are spending $10 billion a month in Iraq, we should be using that money to improve infrastructure here in the US. No mention of how he intends to reduce costs of war in Iraq.

*Reduce Medicare fraud (equals about $15 billion a year). Use money to make prescription drugs affordable.

*End $3 billion in government subsidies to banks for providing student loans.

*Reduce farm subsidies

*Reduce waste - promised to cut government programs that don't work (mentions only the Bush reading program but nothing else). Wants government bodies to work better at a lower cost by improving efficiency (by firing underperforming managers and using technology).

*Private contracts are inefficient. Metions story of Haliburton printing logo on towels for the US military because the government is willing to pay whatever it costs.

*Shut down corporate abuse in tax system. Close loopholes and offshore tax havens.

*Income tax - 95% will get tax cut. Anyone under $250,000 will not pay more tax. Seniors earning < $50,000 will not pay any income tax.

*Financial Regulation: If the government is going to lend money to the banks, they must subject themselves to greater government oversight. Credit rating agencies must disclose conflicts of interest. Streamline overlapping government agencies (which ones?). Regulation needs to be reformed (Mortgage brokers have less regulation than Thrift and Savings with regard to the same things). Stop market manipulation, toughen up SEC. Establish agency that evaluates risk and advises congress and the president so that financial disasters are avoided.

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This isn't going to be easy.

All the Republicans have to do is mention abortion, gays, and remind their drooling supporters that they alone have a monopoly on patriotism and morality. The US has been split in half over the past 8 years and reason has been cast aside.

Where is John McCain's detailed plan?  He is probably too busy worrying about how he is going to try to pass the lie that he is a regulator and reformer when his entire campaign is crawling with asshole lobbyists and his record is riddled with deregulation (google McCain Keating 5).

In the last couple weeks it has been CLEAR that McCain's strategy is to play both sides of every argument so he can later say that he was for or against something (whenever it is convenient).  This way he can appeal to both is drooling neocon supporters and try to pander to national audiences.  I really hope that 51% of my country is smart enough to see this... but  I'm not holding my breath.

I'm voting Obama but I'm close to despairing for much of my fellow Americans.  They've all gone stupid crazy.

If this guy doesn't make it... the US as a country has failed.