The word has been coming from the campaign of Hillary Clinton and Hillary Clinton herself for some time now: sure, that Barack Obama fella can talk good, but he’s all polish and no substance. Where’s the substance? Where’s the substance?
Yes, indeed, where’s the substance? Let’s compare Barack Obama’s speech on the night of the Wisconsin primary to Hillary Clinton’s speech on the night of the Wisconsin primary:
| Barack Obama on tax policy: We’re here because there are workers in Youngstown, Ohio, who’ve watched job after job after job disappear because of bad trade deals like NAFTA, who’ve worked in factories — who’ve worked in factories for 20 years, and then one day they come in and literally see the equipment unbolted from the floor and sent to China. They need us to end those tax breaks that go to companies that ship jobs overseas and give them to companies that invest in jobs right here in the United States of America, that pay well, provide a pension, provide health care. That’s the change they need… If you are ready for change, if you’re really ready, then we can start restoring some balance to our economy. I believe in the free market. I know Texans believe in entrepreneurship. We are an independent and a self-reliant people. We don’t believe in government doing what we can do for ourselves. But when we’ve got CEOs making more in 10 minutes than ordinary workers are making in a year and it’s the CEOs who are getting a tax break and workers are left with nothing, then something is wrong, and something has to change. So I want to — I want to take away those tax breaks to companies that are shipping jobs overseas. We’re going to give them to companies that invest right here in America. And we’re going to rollback those Bush tax cuts that went to all the wealthy people, and we’re going to give tax cuts to ordinary families, people who are making less than $75,000. We will offset your payroll tax. Senior citizens who make less than $50,000, we want to say to them: You don’t have to pay an income tax. You’re already having a hard time making ends meet. |
Hillary Clinton on tax policy: |
| Barack Obama on health insurance: If you are ready for change, Houston, then we can stop talking about the outrage of 47 million people without health insurance and start doing something about it. I put forward a plan that says everybody will be able to get health insurance that is at least as good as the plan I’ve got as a member of Congress. And if you already have health insurance, we will lower your premiums by $2,500 per family, per year. And if you can’t afford it, we will subsidize your care, and we will emphasize prevention so we have a health care system instead of a disease-care system. And we won’t do this 20 years from now or 10 years from now. We will do it by the end of my first term as president of the United States of America. |
Hillary Clinton on health insurance: One of us has a plan to provide health care for every single American, no one left out. And I believe — I believe health care is a right, not a privilege. And I will not rest until every American is covered. That is my solemn promise to you. My opponent leaves out at least 15 million Americans. The question is: Who would we leave out? Would we leave out the mother I met who grabbed my arm and said the insurance company wouldn’t pay for the treatment that her son needed? Will we leave that family out? And who will pay for those we leave out? I don’t want to leave anyone out. I am not running to put Band-Aids on our problems; I’m running to solve our problems. |
| Barack Obama on a moral economy: We want to promote trade and we embrace globalization, but we also want our trade deals to have labor standards and environmental standards and safety standards so our workers aren’t undermined and our children aren’t playing with toys based in lead paint. That’s the change we want. And I will raise the minimum wage not every 10 years, but to keep pace with inflation, because if you work in America you should not be poor. And that’s a goal that we should set for ourselves when I am president of the United States of America. |
Hillary Clinton on a moral economy: One of us has a plan to actually address the growing foreclosure crisis, which is so terrible here in Ohio. I’ve called for a freeze on subprime foreclosures and interest rates to ensure that millions of families across the country won’t be receiving that grim letter from the bank. I proposed $30 billion in assistance to help families avoid foreclosures and to help communities rebound from this housing crisis, because no one should foreclose on the American dream. And we’re going to stop it. |
| Barack Obama on education: If you’re ready for change, we can assure that every child in America has the best education this country has to offer from the day that child is born to the day that child graduates from college. The problem is not the lack of plans, the lack of good ideas. The problem is a lack of political will, a lack of urgency. We think that those children in inner-city Houston, those are those children. Those are somebody else’s problem. We think that the child in south Texas, that’s somebody else’s problem. That’s not our problem; that’s not our child. We think that that child in rural east Texas, where there’s a low property tax base and they can’t afford to buy new textbooks or put into computers, that’s somebody else’s problem. Houston, I am here to tell you that every child is our problem, every child is our responsibility. Every child needs to be nurtured and embraced. And so we are going to invest in early childhood education to close the achievement gap. And I won’t just talk about how great teachers are; I will reward them for their greatness by giving them higher salaries and giving them more support. And I want the highest standards in our schools. We have to have high standards, standards of excellence in order to compete in this global economy. But I don’t want our standards measured just by a single high-stakes standardized test, because I don’t want our teachers teaching to the tests. I want our students learning art, and music, and science, and literature, and social studies. And I don’t know about you, but I think it’s about time we made college affordable for every young person in America. So we’re going to provide a $4,000 tuition credit, every student, every year, but, students, you’re going to have to give back something in return. You’re going to have to participate in community service. You’re going to have to work in a homeless shelter, or a veteran’s home, or an underserved school, or join the Peace Corps. |
Hillary Clinton on education: |
| Barack Obama on energy policy: If you are ready for change, we can start having an energy policy that makes sense. We send a billion dollars to foreign nations every single day, and we’re melting the polar icecaps in the bargain. That has to change. And so we’re going to cap the emission of greenhouse gases. We are going to generate billions of dollars from polluters to invest in solar, in wind, and biodiesel. We are going to raise fuel efficiency standards on cars because that is the only way that we can actually bring down gas prices over the long term, and I know you need that. And, by the way, when I talked about increasing fuel efficiency standards, I didn’t do it in front of some environmental group. I did it in Detroit in front of the automakers. And I told them they had to change their ways. And when I said that, I’ve got to admit that the room was really quiet. Nobody clapped. But that’s OK, because part of what you need from the next president is somebody who will not just tell you what they think you want to hear, but will tell you what you need to hear, will tell you the truth. |
Hillary Clinton on energy policy: |
| Barack Obama on immigration: If you’re ready for change, we can stop using immigration as a political football and actually start solving the problem. We are a nation of laws and a nation of immigrants, and those two things we can join together. We can get serious about our borders and crack down on employers who are taking advantage of undocumented workers and undermining U.S. labor. But we can also provide a pathway for those who are living here. They can pay a fine and learn English and go to the back of the line, but we’ve got to give them an opportunity, too. We’re a nation of immigrants. |
Hillary Clinton on immigration: |
| Barack Obama on foreign policy: We can create the kind of foreign policy that will make us safe and will lead to renewed respect of America around the world. You know, as your commander-in-chief, my job will be to keep you safe. My job will be to keep you safe. And I will not hesitate to strike against any who would do us harm. I will do whatever is required. But part of keeping you safe is maintaining the finest military in the world, and that means providing our troops with the proper equipment and the proper training and the proper rotations. And it means caring for our troops when they come home, not forgetting about our troops. No more homeless veterans; no more begging for disability payments; no more waiting in line for the V.A. We have a solemn obligation to honor those who have served on our behalf. But part of keeping you safe is also deploying our military wisely. And the war in Iraq was unwise. It distracted us from the fight that needed to be fought in Afghanistan against Al Qaida. They’re the ones who killed 3,000 Americans. It fanned the flames of anti-American sentiment. It has cost us dearly in blood and in treasure. I opposed this war in 2002. I will bring this war to an end in 2009. It is time to bring our troops home. But I don’t want to just end the war; I want to end the mindset that got us into war. I want to end a politics based on fear that uses 9/11 as a way to scare up votes instead of a way to bring the country together against a common enemy. I want to rediscover the power of our diplomacy. I said early in this campaign I would meet not just with our friends, but also with our enemies. And there were those in Washington who said, “You can’t do that.” And I said, “Yes, I can,” because I remember what John F. Kennedy said. He said we should never negotiate out of fear, but we should never fear to negotiate. Strong countries and strong presidents talk to their adversaries, and tell them where America stands, and try to resolve differences without resort to war. And when we do that, I believe the world is waiting. I want to go before the world community and say, “America’s back, and we are ready to lead.” But we will lead not just with militarily. Yes, we will hunt down terrorists; yes, we will lock down loose nuclear weapons that could do us harm. But we are also going to lead on climate change. We’re also going to lead on helping poor countries deal with the devastation of HIV-AIDS. We’re also going to lead in bringing an end to the genocide in Darfur. |
Hillary Clinton on foreign policy: This is the choice we face. One of us is ready to be commander- in-chief in a dangerous world. Every day, around the world, situations arise that present new threats and new opportunities, situations like the change of leadership in Cuba today. I have served on the Armed Services Committee. I’ve been to more than 80 countries, worked with world leaders, stood up to the Chinese government to declare that women’s rights are human rights. And I am ready to end this war in Iraq and this era of cowboy diplomacy. I will restore our leadership and moral authority in the world without delays, without on-the-job training, from day one. |
| Barack Obama on civil rights: We are going to lead by example, by maintaining the highest standards of civil liberties and human rights, which is why I will close Guantanamo and restore habeas corpus and say no to torture. Because if you are ready for change, then you can elect a president who has taught the Constitution, and believes in the Constitution, and will obey the Constitution of the United States of America. |
Hillary Clinton on civil rights: I’ve been to more than 80 countries, worked with world leaders, stood up to the Chinese government to declare that women’s rights are human rights. |
Why won’t Barack Obama focus on substance like Hillary Clinton does? Oh, wait. He did. And that night, she didn’t.
Don’t fall for the line, because that’s all it is: a line. If the campaign of Hillary Clinton is disappointed that Barack Obama gives a sharper speech, then it ought to hire better speechwriters, and it ought to have Hillary Clinton work harder on her speaking skills. But compensating by saying that Barack Obama lacks substance is nonsense, and it insults our intelligence and capacity to notice what the candidates actually do. Is the insult justified? In order for Clinton’s line to work, you have to not be paying attention. Pay attention. Barack Obama has a long set of policy proposals, just as Hillary Clinton does. Read ‘em.
I don’t think you can judge who has more issues by who gives a longer speech. After all it was Muriel Humphrey who once told the long-winded Hubert, “A speech doesn’t have to be eternal to be immortal.”
Over on Hillary’s blog they are saying that Barack is plagiarizing Hillary’s issues point for point. The NYT supposedly analyzed their economic positions and said they were identical. Anyone can hire people to write stuff on their websites. I would be more interested in whether the candidate knows enough about a subject to talk intelligently about it without someone telling them what to say.
Debates, yes.
This all might be moot due to some financial worries that our media doesn’t report to us. Check out this article over at counterpunch.org
February 22, 2008
Less Money, More Pain
The Bonfire of Capital
By MIKE WHITNEY