IZZY’S NOTES: Obama’s State Of The Union Part 2/2: The Future
Here’s a nice way to keep his plans in mind and track their progress. 
OBAMA’S (detailed) PLAN FOR THE FUTURE
1.) “Now the House has passed a Jobs Bill….I urge the Senate to do the same and I know they will.”
2.) “Building a new generation of safe, clean, nuclear power plants….”
- Considering opening off shore areas for oil& gas development.
- Continued investment in advanced biofuels and clean coal technologies.
- Comprehensive Energy & Climate Bill
3.) “We need to export more of our goods” 2x our exports over 5yrs. will support 2 million jobs in America.
- Nat’l Export Initiative
- i. Help farmers and sm. Businesses increase their exports and reform control consistent w/ Nat’l Security
4.) Fourth, We need to invest in the skills and education of our people”
- Renew the Elementary and Secondary education act ( current version is No Child Left Behind.)
- I urge the Senate to follow the House and pass a bill that will revitalize our community colleges.
- i. “End unwarranted taxpayer subsidies that go to banks for student loans.”
- ii. Give families a $10,000 tax credit for 4yrs of college
- iii. Increase Pell Grants
OTHER OBAMA PROPOSALS
1.) propose a fee on the biggest banks in order to recover the rest of the money that was spent to save them.
2.) Use $30 billion of the money Wall Street banks have repaid to help community banks give small businesses credit they need.
3.) A new small business tax credit
4.) Eliminate all capital gains taxes on small business investment
5.) Tax incentive for large and small businesses to invest in new kinds of equipment.
6.) Slash tax breaks for companies who leave us and give them to those that create jobs here.
7.) “We will step up refinancing so that homeowners can move into more affordable mortgages.”
8.) A freeze on government spending for 3 years starting 2011 to pay for the $1trillion it took to save the economy.
- “Spending related to Nat’l Security, Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security will not be affected.”
- All others not mentioned above will be affected.
- “We will continue to go through the budget line by line, page by page to eliminate programs that we can’t afford and don’t work.”
9.) “We will not continue tax cuts for…”
- Oil companies
- Investment fund managers
- Those making over $250,000/yr
10.) “I’ve called for a Bipartisan Fiscal Commission…”
- To try to tackle deficit that was there when he took office
- Commission modeled on a proposal by Republican Judd Gregg and Democrat Kent Conrad
- A specific set of solutions by a certain deadline.
11.) “…Senate should restore the pay-as-you-go law….”
12.) Congress publish all earmark requests on a single website before there’s a vote so Americans can see how they’re spending money.
13.) Monthly meeting w/both Democrats & Republicans
IZZY’S NOTES: Obama’s State of the Union Address 1/2: Past & Progress
Really making up your own mind about what the officials are saying, proposing, or doing is damn near impossible to do without taking lots of time in your life away. Many of us don’t have ( or use) the time or even know where to start. I’m saving you the trouble of having to put so many questions up on google about it and/or looking through so many sources. Here’s my best attempt to make it all seem short and sweet.
Although this post is long overdue, I still felt it was important to put up. The State of the Union Address was pretty “meaty” in my opinion. It was a speech that went on for over hour so there’s no way I’m going to remember his many claims of the past, present, and his detailed plans for the future. And there’s no way you’re going to remember it either.
Since I was going to go through the trouble of researching the things I didn’t know or had questions about, why not make it into a blog post?
IZZY’S NOTES: OBAMA’S STATE OF THE UNION ADDRESS
The most important thing to point out is just about everything Obama said was true. When it came to talking about numbers he always gave the higher estimate which is why some sources consider the statements not fully true but mostly true like Politifact.com for example.
Here’s the rundown of the important things he said along with the fact checking sources.
OBAMA ON THE PAST
1.) The year 2000, budget surplus of over 200 billion dollars
- Politifact.com: Mostly true $236 billion.
2.) “ By the time I took office, We had a 1 year deficit of over 1 trillion dollars.”
- Politifact.com: Mostly true btwn 966 billion -$ 1.2 trillion. Depending on when a report was published.
3.) Estimated future deficits of 8 trillion dollars over the next decade if conditions remained.
- The Economists who agree give or take a few trillion dollars
i. Congressional Budget Office
ii. White House Office of Management and Budget
Difference in estimate dependent on how they calculated.
- CBO assumes future plans will take place.
- WHOMB calculates as if everything stays as is.
4.) “Most of this (deficit) was a result of not paying for two wars, two tax cuts, and an expensive prescription drug program.”
- Politifact.com says this is true ( Congressional Budget Office report)
5.) “Our efforts to prevent a second depression have added another 1 trillion dollars to the national debt. That too is a fact. I’m absolutely convinced that was the right thing to do.”
- The stimulus plan about $ 787 billion – $862 billion.
Sources: regarding the budget, surplus, deficit http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2010/jan/27/barack-obama/obama-claims-us-budget-went-surplus-deficit-ten-ye/
http://www.factcheck.org/2010/01/obamas-state-of-the-union-address/
OBAMA ON PRESENT PROGRESS
1.) “if we had allowed the meltdown of the financial system, unemployment might be double what it is today.
- There’s no real way to measure that kind of statement…at least he said “might”
2.) I supported the last administration’s efforts to create the financial rescue program. And when we took that program over we made it more transparent and more accountable.
- Recovery.gov
3.) “The markets are now stabilized and we’ve recovered most of the money we spent on the banks. Most but not all”
- Politifact.com talks about this in a June article ( source on the bottom)
- Obama put 200 billion dollars into the banks.The approved banks who don’t need help anymore according to the article are expected to pay collectively $ 68 billion.
4.) extended or increased unemployment benefits for more than 18 million Americans
- Politifact.com: yes through the Temporary Suspension of Taxation of Unemployment Benefits
5.) Made Health Insurance 65% cheaper for families who get their coverage through COBRA
6.) Passed 25 different tax cuts
7.) “Now let me repeat. We cut taxes. We cut taxes for 95% of working families
- True
8.) We cut taxes for small businesses
- Extension of Enhanced Small Business Expensing
- 5-Year Carryback of Net Operating Losses for Small Businesses
- Extension of Bonus Depreciation
- Exclusion of 75% of Small Business Capital Gains from Taxes
- Temporary Small Business Estimated Tax Payment Relief
- Temporary Reduction of S Corporation Built-In Gains Holding Period from 10 Years to 7 Years
9.) We cut taxes for first time home buyers.
- Refundable First-time Home Buyer Credit. (Sec. 1006, Page 202). This extended and increased the first-time home buyer tax credit from $7,500 to $8,000.
10.)We cut taxes for parents trying to care for their children.
- Increased Eligibility for the Refundable Portion of Child Credit (Sec. 1003, Page 199). In 2009 and 2010, families who don’t earn enough to pay income tax would be eligible to claim the $1,000 child credit.
11.)”We cut taxes for 8 million Americans paying for college.”
- Computers as Qualified Education Expenses in 529 Education Plans (Sec. 1005, Page 202). This allows college students to write off the expense of computers and software, provided it’s for educational purpose and not for games.
12.)And we haven’t raised Income taxes by a single dime on a single person. Not a single dime!
- Factcheck.org says that’s true according to Tax Policy Center
13.)Because of the steps we took there are about 2 million Americans working right now who would otherwise be unemployed.
- Factcheck.org says for the most part this is true but he state the higher estimate. It may be more around 1 million.
14.)“The plan that has made all of this possible, from the tax cuts, to the jobs is the Recovery Act. That’s right. The Recovery Act also known as the Stimulus Bill. Economists from the Left & the Right say this bill has helped save jobs and avert disaster.”
- Congressional Budget Office agrees. 600,000 -1.6 million. He used the much higher estimate ( bc of this politifact considers it a half truth)
15.)“After two years of recession the economy is growing again.”
16.)“The steps we took last year to shore up the housing market have allowed millions of Americans to take out new loans and save an average of 1500 dollars on mortgage payments.”
- Tax Credits For Energy- Efficient Improvements to Existing Homes (Sec. 1121, Page 208) This provides up to a $1500 tax credit for the qualified energy efficient improvements. ( politifact.com)
- Refundable First time home buyer Credit.
17.)(about healthcare) “ And according to the Congressional Budget Office, the independent organization that both parties have sited as the official scorekeeper for Congress, our approach would bring down the deficit by as much as $1 trillion over the next two decades”
- factcheck.org says it’s true but again it’s a give or take. Congressional Budget Office feels it could be more like half. And it all depends on whether or not the proposal ushers in quality care or not.
18.)“I want everyone to take another look at the plan we’ve proposed. There’s a reason why many doctors, nurses, and healthcare experts, who know our system best consider this approach a vast improvement over the status quo.”
19.)“We will have all of our combat troops out of Iraq by the end of August.”
20.)U.S. & Russia negotiating on “farthest reaching arms control treaty in nearly two decades.”
21.)April’s Nuclear Security Summit
- 44 nations
- goal: “securing all vulnerable nuclear materials around the world in 4 yrs so that they never fall into the hands of terrorists.
Sources: The 25 tax cuts in detail http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2010/feb/02/david-axelrod/axelrod-claims-democrats-passed-25-tax-cuts-last-y/
“We cut taxes for 95% of working families http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2010/jan/28/barack-obama/tax-cut-95-percent-stimulus-made-it-so/
Obama’s estimates: http://www.factcheck.org/2010/01/obamas-state-of-the-union-address/
Recovery act averted disaster?: http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2009/dec/14/barack-obama/obama-says-congressional-budget-office-found-econo/
Recovered Bank Money: http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2009/jun/10/barack-obama/obama-says-government-has-so-far-turned-profit-mon/
