Jan 24 2009
And how about all those campaign promises?
Courtesy of the St. Petersburg Times - President Barack Obama made numerous campaign promises this election season, from capital gains and dividends taxes to creating a foreclosure prevention fund for homeowners, even a vow to establish a credit card bill of rights. With so many campaign promises to remember - how do we know if our new president is keeping his word or not?
And so I present to you, the Obameter.
The good folks over at PolitiFact have compiled a list of over 500 campaign promises made by our president. There are six categories for each promise - Promise Kept, Compromise, Promise Broken, Stalled, In the Works, and No Action. So how’s Barry shaping out so far?
Promises Kept (5): Direct military leaders to end war in Iraq; Release presidential records; Require new hires to sign a form affirming their hiring was not due to political affiliation or contributions; Ban lobbyist gifts to executive employees; and appoint at least one Republican to the cabinet.
Compromise (1): Tougher rules against revolving door for lobbyists and former officials.
Broken Promise (0): None yet :)
Stalled (1): Create a $3,000 tax credit for companies that add jobs.
In the Works (14): Get his daughters a puppy; Modernize the nation’s electricity grid and use “smart grid” practices; Extend unemployment insurance benefits and temporarily suspend taxes on these benefits; Weatherize 1 million homes per year; Create White House performance team and chief performance officer; Double federal funding for basic science research over 10 years; Expand broadband’s reach; Encourage community service through online outreach and social networking; Develop an alternative to President Bush’s Military Commissions Act on handling detainees; Close the Guantanamo Bay Detention Center; Invest in electronic health information systems; Expand eligibility for State Children’s Health Insurance Fund (SCHIP); Create a tax credit of $500 for workers; Change standards for determining broadband access.
There are some 488 promises that have yet to be evaluated. It will be interesting to see how many of these promises Obama is able to live up to.
Editors Note: While listening to NPR today I found out that the Obama family has selected its dogs - chalk another promise fulfilled!
