The Presidential Election of 2008 ...
Thursday January 10, 2008
I'm relatively young, well educated, self-made, and pay a lot of taxes. I've made my fortune through investing in the stock market and owning businesses outright, working my way up from a middle class family, the first in my line to graduate from college. Yet, despite being a Republican, I've decided that I'm voting for Barack Obama. Some of his positions are going to have a direct impact on my (and your) portfolio, but overall, there are some economic issues, such as stopping credit card companies from applying interest increases to old balances or using universal default to justify massive increases in the cost of borrowing to people with great credit histories, that are more important. I'm going to suffer the dividend tax increase, the capital gains tax increase, because the other components of the plan make a lot of sense.
Lord knows if you had ever told me that I would vote for a Democrat, I would have said you were crazy. Just putting this out there since this blog has allowed us to communicate on almost every fiscal and investment matter in the past. I have no doubt that once the administration changes, the flurry of new rules, regulations, and guidelines for retirement products and investment taxes will keep me busy providing you with the same great content you've come to expect from About.com!
I admire your honesty and choice but let’s see if he gets the nomination first.
As for the companies you owned outright did you start them or did you buy them to add to your portfolio?
Why on earth are you a Republican? Take a look at economic histroy – by every kind of economic indicator (GDP, trade deficts, consumer confidence, etc) Democrats are better for the country than Republicans. Republicans offer corporate welfare to the well connected (Haliburton, Exxon) and plunder the middle class to do it. Republicans DO have the best PR. They get the middle class and working folks to vote against their own best interests. National debt balloons with the Republicans and constricts with Democrats, and that affects everyone.
I admire your conviction! Please help us out in the primaries if you want to see an Obama presidency.
I already had decided on Obama, but your comments made me look closer at the financial reasons why it made good sense. Thank you.
Though the longest shot at presidency, Ron Paul makes the most financial sense being that he wants to abolish the IRS. But, I know, I know, he’ll hardly make it past the primaries. Though, it’s worth looking at his platform.
I agree completely. Obama is the best choice for our economy.
Does the fact that Obama refuses to say the Pledge of Allegiance bother anyone else but me? He will actually turn away as the pledge is being said. Are you sure you want this type of person the be president of the United States. There are more important things than money you know.
“Oh what luck for rulers that men do not think”.
From an economic standpoint Obama is a socialists. If you like socialism he is your guy.
There are only three issues in this election;
Judges, Judges, and Judges. All of the issues we face today, war, economy, education, race, have always been part of the fabric of our country but we will have to live with the judges and their decisions for years to come. Take a look at some of the stupid decision the 9th circut has made in the last 20 years and where we would be if we had not had higher court judges to counter their stupid decisions, such as allowing schools to give our children birth control.
Are we talking about the same Barack Obama? I can think of a couple reasons to vote for Sen. Obama, but economic acumen is not one of them.
Welcome to the other side! What about Hillary though?
@Peter,
Can you please take a minute or two to at least Google your allegations? On January 15th 2008, long after you were supposed to have known that those claims have been debunked, you continue to make them.
Go ahead and check out the evidence. Google Obama’s name alongside “pledge of allegiance,” and look around. Visit couple of websites. If you still in the truth of your claims, I am afraid you are not honest enough to be a responsible voter.
I am not even a Barack Obama supporter. I am very much a Ron Paul supporter, and if there’s one thing I learned from Dr. Paul, it’s that you don’t attack others, especially on baseless grounds.
How could you vote for Obama if you want to protect your pocketbook?
Ron Paul’s your guy…
Paul regularly votes against almost all proposals for new government spending, initiatives, or taxes. He has pledged never to raise taxes, and he has never voted to approve a deficit budget. Paul would abolish the individual income tax by scaling back the federal budget to its 2000 spending levels.
Rather than taxing personal income, he prefers the federal government to be funded through excise taxes and/or uniform, non-protectionist tariffs. He would eliminate several federal government agencies which are unnecessary bureaucracies. He favors the individual states governing things like education, welfare and taking care of their own roads.
Paul is also vocal in his opposition to inflation, arguing that the longterm erosion of the dollar’s purchasing power arises from its lack of commodity (such as gold) backing, which would restrain excess “printing” of paper money and consequent devaluation. Paul says he “wouldn’t exactly go back on the gold standard,” but would push to legalize gold and silver as legal tender and remove the sales tax on them, so that gold-backed notes (or other types of hard money) and digital gold currencies can compete on a level playing field with fiat Federal Reserve notes, allowing individuals a choice whether to use “sound money” to protect their purchasing power or to continue using fiat money. He advocates gradual elimination of the Federal Reserve central bank for many reasons, believing that economic volatility is decreased when the free market determines interest rates and money supply.
It makes sense people!!
google Lowell Ponte article
“Democrats are Wrecking Our Economy”
That’s why I changed to GOP, and other issues, of course.
This country needs someone with experience, and the only candiate out there is Senator Clinton. This is a change.