Fair Economy Guide to Presidential Candidates 2008
Engaging in electoral politics remains an important way to influence the economy. The leaders we vote for will help change or reinforce the rules that govern the economy – from tax laws and trade agreements to regulating corporations.
To help voters who care about economic justice make an informed choice, we offer the following information. Undecided voters can consider the principles that we propose and then evaluate which candidate seems more likely to work effectively towards those principles. (Click on the candidate's name to go to that section of their website.)
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John McCain |
Barack Obama |
McCain's tax policy would make permanent most of the Bush tax cuts, increase deductions for taxpayers with dependents, and lower corporate tax rates from 35% to 25%. He proposes an estate tax with a $5 million exemption per spouse and 15% tax rate. |
Obama would make the Bush tax cuts permanent for people earning under $250,000, and increase taxes on people making over $250,000. He would enact new and expanded tax cuts for workers, retirees, homeowners, savers, students, and new farmers. He proposes an estate tax with a $3.5 million exemption per spouse and 45% tax rate. |
Ralph Nader |
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McKinney wants to repeal the Bush tax cuts for the top 1% of income earners, close all corporate tax loopholes and deny federal subsidies to those that relocate jobs overseas. |
Nader wants a fundamental reappraisal of tax laws working from the principle that taxes be applied first to behavior and conditions we favor least and pinch basic necessities last. He also wants to retain the estate tax and wants earned income (such as wages) to not be taxed more than unearned income (dividends, interest, capital gains). |
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John McCain |
Barack Obama |
McCain makes very few references to race in speeches and on his website. |
While Obama has spoken strongly on the topic of race, he doesn't mention race explicitly in policy proposals. |
Ralph Nader |
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McKinney supports public policies specifically designed to resolve racial economic disparities. For example she supports establishing new mortgage lending practices to end predatory and discriminatory practices, and full funding for initiatives that eliminate racial and ethnic disparities in home ownership. |
Nader wants affirmative action for people of color to offset enduring historic wrongs and present-day inequalities. Cases of racial discrimination should be prosecuted. He supports the enforcement of Executive Order 11246, which forbids any organization from receiving federal money if they practice discrimination. |
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John McCain |
Barack Obama |
McCain plans to implement temporary worker programs intended to address the labor needs of the United States in both the high-tech and low-skilled sectors. He opposes the Employee Free Choice Act, which would allow unions to form more easily and negotiate more effectively. McCain has voted more than a dozen times over 20 years against increasing the minimum wage. |
Obama plans to raise the minimum wage and index it for inflation. He supports the Employee Free Choice Act, which would allow unions to form more easily and negotiate more effectively. |
Cynthia McKinney |
Ralph Nader |
McKinney wants to implement an economic policy that provides an opportunity for every family to have gainful employment at a guaranteed income. She supports massive infrastructure investments and a greening of our economy, as well as a complete overhaul of the country's labor laws. |
Nader wants to enhance workers' rights by developing an Employee Bill of Rights, including the right to organize unions and earn a living wage for full-time workers. He also wants to increase the minimum wage to $8 per hour, from its current $5.25 per hour, and to $10 per hour two years after that increase. |
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John McCain |
Barack Obama |
McCain wants to increase security along US borders, impose more punishments on employers who hire undocumented immigrants, and also supports creating paths for undocumented workers to change their status. He believes the US should engage in multilateral, regional and bilateral efforts to reduce barriers to trade, and wants to build effective enforcement of global trading rules. |
Obama wants to increase security along US borders, impose more punishments on employers who hire undocumented immigrants, create paths for undocumented workers to change their status, and work with Mexico to develop their economy more. He also wants to open up foreign markets, reform NAFTA and other trade agreements by including labor and environmental standards, end tax breaks for companies that outsource jobs overseas, and reward companies that support American workers. |
| Ralph Nader |
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McKinney wants to repeal NAFTA, CAFTA, the Caribbean FTA, and the US-Peru FTA. She also wants to end the current guest-worker program, and supports immigration reform that includes amnesty and a path to documentation. |
Nader wants to increase control of immigration and borders, but supports immigrant workers, even undocumented, being given all fair-labor standards, rights and benefits through a reformed limited duration admissions program. |
