Obama/McCain Voting records.

[Longshot]

Ok, I am getting very tired of listing to the media tell me what they feel is important, and likewise I am tired of listing to people spew media rhetoric, taking it as fact without doing any research. So I have been doing some research of my own, which I think every one should do as well. I am not looking for bs media articles or links, just their voting records. I really don't want this to turn into a debate on who is better, I just want people to make an informed decision. So contribute if you like.

http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LI...n=2&vote=00061


http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LI...n=1&vote=00219


This is what I have so far, I am going to be looking a lot deeper when I have time, You can see by clicking on the links as to how McCain voted, Right now I am just looking for things that I feel are relevant to their positions I will try to get as much up as possible on both of them.

[Longshot]

http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LI...n=2&vote=00043



http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LI...n=1&vote=00207 (you can see that McCain agreed with Obama here.


http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LI...n=1&vote=00284

[Longshot]

http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/...r109zjU6I9:e0: Obama and the Bird Flue.
Mr. OBAMA. Mr. President, I rise today in support of H.R. 3057, the Foreign Operations appropriation bill. I would also like to highlight one aspect of the bill.

Since coming to the Senate 6 months ago, one of the foreign policy and health issues I have focused on relates to the avian flu. I am pleased that this bill includes $10 million to combat the spread of this potential pandemic, adding to the $25 million that the Senate provided in the supplemental appropriations bill in April. (Continued at link above)


http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/...wtAExB:e20506:


AMENDMENT NO. 1264

Mr. OBAMA. Mr. President, I also want to make a brief statement on amendment No. 1264, which is offered on behalf of Senator Hagel, Senator Gregg, Senator Leahy, and myself.

It is a very simple amendment. It provides $13 million for the Special Court for Sierra Leone to help make up for a shortfall in international contributions to the Court.

While the amendment is simple, it is critically important to promoting the rule of law in Africa; helping advance security and stability in West Africa; and holding accountable some of the worst war criminals of the 20th century.

The Special Court was established by the United Nations Security Council with strong U.S. backing. The Court is working, as we speak, to bring to justice those most responsible for the atrocities committed in Sierra Leone during wars there in the 1990s.

The Court, however, currently has one major piece of unfinished business--Charles Taylor.

Although Mr. Taylor has been indicted by the Special Court on 17 counts of war crimes and crimes against humanity, he continues to live in exile in Nigeria, enjoying the protection of the Nigerian government.

What is worse is there are credible reports that Mr. Taylor has repeatedly broken the terms of his agreement with the Nigerian government, continues to meddle in the affairs of Liberia and other West African nations, is involved in a number of activities that threaten to destabilize the region, and has associations with al-Qaida.

There is no question that the United States and the international community owe the Nigerian government a debt of gratitude for helping to remove Mr. Taylor from power. However, the job of promoting regional peace and security cannot be completed until Mr. Taylor appears before the Special Court to answer to the charges against him.

I would also point out that transferring Charles Taylor to the Court also is widely supported within Nigeria. Prominent members of Nigeria's military and civil society have vigorously opposed the decision to shield Taylor.

This bipartisan amendment makes clear that bringing Mr. Taylor to justice is a top U.S. foreign policy priority. It makes clear that the Court is not going away anytime in the near future. It makes clear that the transfer of Mr. Taylor to the Court will help reduce transnational threats in West Africa, promote peace and security in the region, and enhance respect for the rule of law throughout Africa.

[Longshot]

http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LI...n=1&vote=00042


http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LI...n=1&vote=00041


http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LI...n=1&vote=00027

[Longshot]

http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/.../~r109H8JyvE::

FEDERAL HOUSING ENTERPRISE REGULATORY REFORM ACT OF 2005 -- (Senate - May 25, 2006)

[Page: S5217] GPO's PDF

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Mr. McCAIN. Mr. President, this week Fannie Mae's regulator reported that the company's quarterly reports of profit growth over the past few years were ``illusions deliberately and systematically created'' by the company's senior management, which resulted in a $10.6 billion accounting scandal.

The Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight's report goes on to say that Fannie Mae employees deliberately and intentionally manipulated financial reports to hit earnings targets in order to trigger bonuses for senior executives. In the case of Franklin Raines, Fannie Mae's former chief executive officer, OFHEO's report shows that over half of Mr. Raines' compensation for the 6 years through 2003 was directly tied to meeting earnings targets. The report of financial misconduct at Fannie Mae echoes the deeply troubling $5 billion profit restatement at Freddie Mac.

The OFHEO report also states that Fannie Mae used its political power to lobby Congress in an effort to interfere with the regulator's examination of the company's accounting problems. This report comes some weeks after Freddie Mac paid a record $3.8 million fine in a settlement with the Federal Election Commission and restated lobbying disclosure reports from 2004 to 2005. These are entities that have demonstrated over and over again that they are deeply in need of reform.

For years I have been concerned about the regulatory structure that governs Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac--known as Government-sponsored entities or GSEs--and the sheer magnitude of these companies and the role they play in the housing market. OFHEO's report this week does nothing to ease these concerns. In fact, the report does quite the contrary. OFHEO's report solidifies my view that the GSEs need to be reformed without delay.

I join as a cosponsor of the Federal Housing Enterprise Regulatory Reform Act of 2005, S. 190, to underscore my support for quick passage of GSE regulatory reform legislation. If Congress does not act, American taxpayers will continue to be exposed to the enormous risk that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac pose to the housing market, the overall financial system, and the economy as a whole.

I urge my colleagues to support swift action on this GSE reform legislation.


(the bill S. 190 which McCain Cosponserd) http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=s109-190

[Longshot]

http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/.../~r1102aQoy4::

SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 5--HONORING THE LIFE OF PERCY LAVON JULIAN, A PIONEER IN THE FIELD OF ORGANIC CHEMISTRY AND THE FIRST AND ONLY AFRICAN-AMERICAN CHEMIST TO BE INDUCTED INTO THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES -- (Senate - January 31, 2007)

[Page: S1463] GPO's PDF

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Mr. OBAMA (for himself, Mr. DURBIN, Mr. DODD, Mr. LUGAR, Mr. LIEBERMAN, and Mr. BAYH) submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary:

S. Con. Res. 5

Whereas Percy Julian was born on April 11, 1899 in Montgomery, Alabama, the son of a railway clerk and the first member of his family to attend college;

Whereas Percy Julian graduated from DePauw University in 1920 and received a M.S. degree from Harvard University in 1923 and a Ph.D. from the University of Vienna in 1931;

Whereas, in 1935, Dr. Julian became the first to discover a process to synthesize physostigmine, the drug used in the treatment of glaucoma;

Whereas Dr. Julian later pioneered a commercial process to synthesize cortisone from soy beans, enabling the widespread use of cortisone as an affordable treatment for arthritis;

Whereas Dr. Julian was the first African-American chemist elected to the National Academy of Sciences in 1973 for his lifetime of scientific accomplishments, held over 130 patents at the time of his death in 1975, and dedicated much of his life to the advancement of African Americans in the sciences; and

Whereas Dr. Julian's life story has been documented in the Public Broadcasting Service NOVA film ``Forgotten Genius'': Now, therefore, be it

Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives concurring), That the Congress honors the life of Percy Lavon Julian, a pioneer in the field of organic chemistry and the first and only African-American chemist to be inducted into the National Academy of Sciences.

[Longshot]

http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/.../~r110rSq8WQ::

GENETIC TESTING -- (Senate - May 11, 2007)

[Page: S6012] GPO's PDF

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Mr. OBAMA. Mr. President, I wish to comment about an amendment that I offered to the bill, S. 1082, that the Senate passed on Wednesday.

Researchers and clinicians continue to make significant advancements in personalized medicine. The ability to diagnose, evaluate disease susceptibility, and provide medical treatment at an individual level is made possible by powerful tools such as genetic testing, an essential component of personalized medicine. Given the complex nature of genetic testing, I am pleased that my amendment, No. 1041, to the bill was accepted. This amendment provides for a study by the highly regarded Institute of Medicine, which will give independent, renowned, and respected experts in genetics,

[Page: S6013] GPO's PDF

genomics, and related fields the opportunity to provide their thoughtful recommendations on the best ways to further the promise of personalized medicine.

I thank the bill managers and their staffs for their assistance.

[Longshot]

http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/.../~r110rSq8WQ::

SENATE RESOLUTION 133--CELEBRATING THE LIFE OF BISHOP GILBERT EARL PATTERSON -- (Senate - March 28, 2007)

[Page: S4062] GPO's PDF

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Mr. OBAMA (for himself, Mr. LEVIN, Mr. KERRY, Mr. ALEXANDER, and Mr. CORKER) submitted the following resolution; which was considered and agreed to:

S. Res. 133

Whereas Bishop Gilbert Earl Patterson was born in 1939 to Bishop W.A. and Mrs. Mary Patterson, Sr., in Humboldt, Tennessee;

Whereas Bishop Patterson was reared in Memphis, Tennessee, and Detroit, Michigan, and ordained as an elder in the Church of God in Christ in 1958 by Bishop J.S. Bailey;

Whereas Bishop Patterson grew in wisdom at the Detroit Bible Institute and LeMoyne Owen College in Memphis, Tennessee;

[Page: S4063] GPO's PDF

Whereas, in 1962, Bishop Patterson became co-pastor with his father of Holy Temple Church of God in Christ in Memphis, Tennessee;

Whereas, in 1975, Bishop Patterson founded Temple of Deliverance, the Cathedral of the Bountiful Blessings;

Whereas Temple of Deliverance is now a shining star of both the Church of God in Christ and all of the Nation's communities of faith;

Whereas Temple of Deliverance, under Bishop Patterson's wise leadership, continues to touch the entire Nation through its Bountiful Blessings Ministry;

Whereas Bishop Patterson reached millions across the globe with his direct and spirit-filled messages, encouraging the world to ``be healed, be delivered, and be set free'';

Whereas Bishop Patterson served as the international leader of the Church of God in Christ since November 2000, ably leading this denomination of over 6,000,000 members;

Whereas Bishop Patterson passed away on Tuesday, March 20, 2007, in Memphis, Tennessee, surrounded by his wife, Mrs. Louise Patterson, and his family;

Whereas Bishop Patterson will be celebrated as an invigorating spiritual leader; and

Whereas the family of Bishop Patterson, the Temple of Deliverance congregation, the Church of God in Christ, and indeed the entire Nation are deeply saddened by the loss of this great man: Now, therefore, be it

Resolved, That the Senate--

(1) expresses the condolences of the Nation to the family of Bishop Gilbert Earl Patterson, the Temple of Deliverance Congregation, and the Church of God in Christ; and

(2) recognizes the life and accomplishments of Bishop Gilbert Earl Patterson, who guided a church, led a denomination, and influenced a nation.

[Longshot]

http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/...qZRPi:e894157:

By Mr. OBAMA (for himself, Mr. Lugar, and Mr. Harkin):

S. 133. A bill to promote the national security and stability of the economy of the United States by reducing the dependence of the United States on oil through the use of alternative fuels and new technology, and for other purposes; to the Committee on Finance.

Mr. OBAMA. Mr. President, in 2005, Congress enacted the Renewable Fuels Standard, RFS, as part of the Energy Policy Act. The RFS is a commitment by the United States government that, henceforth, ethanol must comprise a substantial part of the national vehicle fuel supply, with a goal of 7.5 billion gallons of ethanol in our gasoline by 2012.

Ethanol production has responded vigorously to this national policy. In fact, in only two years, ethanol production has boomed to where it now far exceeds the RFS target for this year. It is

[Page: S128] GPO's PDF

widely anticipated that ethanol production will surpass the target for the year 2012 by the end of this year, five years early.

Clearly, it is time to increase the RFS targets. I am pleased to be an original cosponsor of the bill introduced today by my colleagues, Senator HARKIN and Senator LUGAR, that will increase those targets to 30 billion gallons by the year 2020 and 60 billion gallons by the year 2030. I hope my colleagues will support the provisions of that bill.

But for an expanded RFS to be successful, we must lay further groundwork. We cannot meet the targets and deadlines of an expanded RFS without a robust package of policies that set the stage for the next decade.

So far, we've met our biofuels goals by producing ethanol made from sugars that come from corn. This approach, by itself, has been profoundly successful in many rural communities but will eventually reach its maximum capacity. While that day is still several years away, we must begin preparations now. We must build upon our current path. We must continue our pursuit in cracking the code for corn cellulosics. We must pour the foundation for the next generation of biofuels made from the broadest range of agriculture feedstocks. Our vocabulary must expand to cellulosics and biobut- anols, manure and miscanthus.

The American Fuels Act, which I introduce today, breathes life into an expanded RFS. The American Fuels Act is the heart, the centerpiece, the key to ensuring that an expanded RFS is successful. That's why I am pleased to be joined today by my esteemed colleagues, Senator LUGAR and Senator HARKIN, in the introduction of this bill.

The premise of the American Fuels Act is to create a ``Biofuels Triangle'' that focuses on (1). production, (2). distribution, and (3) consumption.

To expand production, we create an ``Alternative Diesel Standard'' for diesels that complements the RFS for gasoline. The Alternative Diesel Standard requires 2 billion gallons of alternative diesels into the 40 billion gallon domestic diesel supply by the year 2016, encouraging greater use of biofuel feedstocks like vegetable oils, animal fats, coal-to-liquids, manure, and municipal waste. We call for the establishment of a cellulosic biomass fuels credit of an additional 76.5 cents per gallon so that first-generation cellulosic plants can be built to meet the 250 million gallon production goals by 2012.

To expand distribution, the American Fuels Act provides a tax credit for ethanol producers to invest in on-site blending equipment, bypassing oil refineries so that E-85 can be transported directly to the pump at your local gas station. Our bill also provides freedom for fuel franchisers by making it illegal for oil companies to stop their branded franchises from selling biofuels should these local businessmen wish to respond to their customer's request for biofuels. This bill also gives franchisers the power to sue oil companies for imposing any restrictions.

And to expand consumption, the American Fuels Act encourages the manufacture of more vehicles that can function on higher ethanol blends like E-85 so that more passenger cars to be flexible fuel vehicles. We provide a $100 tax credit to automakers for each ethanol-capable vehicle produced beyond the CAFE credit or any other government requirement. We require that 100 percent of the Federal fleet must be ethanol-capable or hybrids in the next 7 years. And we require that any public transit agency that uses Federal dollars to upgrade bus fleets must purchase an alternative fuel bus, or pledge to use alternative fuels in those buses.

To oversee these efforts, we create a Director of Energy Security in the Office of the President to ensure that our massive investment in domestically produced fuels get the national security leadership and coordination it requires.

Our dependence on oil is hurting our economy and jeopardizing our national security by keeping us tied to the world's most dangerous and unstable regimes. It's the fossil fuels we insist on burning--particularly oil--that are the single greatest cause of climate change and the damaging weather patterns that have been its result. Never has the failure to take on a single challenge so detrimentally affected nearly every aspect of our well-being as Nation. And never have the possible solutions had the potential to do so much good for so many generations to come.

That's why I urge my colleagues to join us in cosponsoring the American Fuels Act. I ask for their support, and for the swift enactment of this bill. I ask unanimous consent that the text of the American Fuels Act be printed in the Record.

There being no objection, the text of the bill was ordered to be printed in the RECORD, as follows:

[Caeser2001]

''present''