As we all know, a few weeks ago Democratic Nominee for President, Sen. Barack Obama selected Sen. Joe Biden as his running mate. However, since the announcement was made, Joe Biden has not received much attention in the media. The upcoming election has by deemed by many as a crucial point in modern American history, and when you head to the polls this November it is important to make an informed decision. To help all of the readers of our blog fully understand the positions of the two gentlemen running on the Democratic ticket we have put together the following blog entry comparing the similarities and difference in Barack Obama’s and Joe Biden’s tax views.
The War in Iraq
Obama:
The increasingly large national debt is no secret to Obama, and he is not afraid to read between every line in the budget to find the problems. By ending the war in Iraq, Obama hopes to stop spending the billions that go into the war every year and put it towards education, healthcare, and other needs at home.
Biden:
In recent months, Biden has been very strong on his opposition to the war. He has claimed that he would also like to end the war and use the money here in the states. However, Biden had originally backed the war in Iraq and was quite vocal about his support. A few months before the war was officially endorsed by Congress, Biden was criticized for using propaganda tactics to convince other members of Congress to follow. Biden has since changed his view on the war, like many other politicians, and know predicts that our economy can save $100 billion a year just by ending it.
The Difference:
Both Obama and Biden now support ending the war immediately and bringing home troops quickly, as well as using the extra money to put into our own economy. However, at first Biden was strongly in favor of the war and many supporters of Obama have not forgotten that. There is concern among a few Democrats that Biden's opposition to the war is not as strong as Obama’s and that he might not follow through with plans to withdrawal troops.
Progressive Tax System
Obama:
Revising the American tax system, including tax increases on the richest Americans, has been one of the major components of Obama’s campaign. However, recently the Senator has seemed to reduce his desire to shake up the tax system. Pending worse economic conditions, Obama would like to let the Bush tax cuts expire, and hopes for better distribution of wealth from the top 1% to other working families. Obama has claimed that the amount distributed could be as much $131 billion and would like to use this revenue to fund his health care plans.
Biden:
The Bush tax cuts have been at the forefront of Biden's economic views. Biden has been very vocal about his opposed both Bush’s tax cuts for years, claiming the trickle down effect is not working and never will. Biden would like to end the Alternative Minimum Tax, but wants to levy other taxes to make up for the lost revenue. However, Biden noticed that repealing it entirely would surely put us into deficit, decrease government revenue, and unbalance the budget even more. He claims that the tax does need fixing and hoes to adjust it so that it does not affect struggling families.
The Difference:
While Obama would rather just wait for the Bush tax cuts to expire, Biden would rather repeal them entirely. Biden also sees no reason to leave unnecessary tax cuts in the economy as long as they are not doing what they were established to do. Both candidates are against the Alternative Minimum Tax, but have slightly different plans on what to do about it. While Obama thinks we should just leave it as it is, Biden would like to replace or adjust it to better suit the country’s needs.
Capital Gains
Obama:
Capital Gains has become a large part of Obama’s campaign. Originally, Obama had claimed that he would like to nearly double the tax rate, from 15% to over 28%. However, after winning the Democratic nomination Obama has revised his plans for Capital Gains and settled on a more realistic increase to around 20%. When questioned about his decision Obama said he would like to the tax rates back to levels experienced during Clinton’s time in office, though at that time rates were actually only 20%, not the 28% Obama initially proposed. Obama also voted for raising $47 billion by repealing the capital gains tax cut for military funding.
Biden:
During his time in the Senate, Biden has frequently voted against cutting the Capital Gains tax rate. He spoke out publicly in 2003 when the rate was reduced to its current 15%, and voted against cutting rates in 2005 and 2006. Although there is evidence to show that Capital Gains tax increases actually reduce federal revenue, Biden has stated that raising the tax could create an additional $195 billion in revenue.
The Difference:
Both Barack Obama and Joe Biden have been vocal of their support for Capital Gain rate increases. However, Obama’s seems to have been more about winning the Democratic nomination as he has reduced his desire to double the tax rates, and has even recently claimed that he might hold off on all tax increases if he was elected. Biden on the other hand, has long been a supporter of increasing the tax rate and has not changed his view since getting the Vice Presidential nomination.