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Books by and about 2020 presidential candidates |
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Crippled America,
by Donald J. Trump (2015) |
United,
by Cory Booker (2016) |
The Truths We Hold,
by Kamala Harris (2019) |
Smart on Crime,
by Kamala Harris (2010) |
Guide to Political Revolution,
by Bernie Sanders (2017) |
Where We Go From Here,
by Bernie Sanders (2018) |
Promise Me, Dad ,
by Joe Biden (2017) |
Conscience of a Conservative,
by Jeff Flake (2017) |
Two Paths,
by Gov. John Kasich (2017) |
Every Other Monday,
by Rep. John Kasich (2010) |
Courage is Contagious,
by John Kasich (1998) |
Shortest Way Home,
by Pete Buttigieg (2019) |
The Book of Joe ,
by Jeff Wilser (2019; biography of Joe Biden) |
Becoming,
by Michelle Obama (2018) |
Our Revolution,
by Bernie Sanders (2016) |
This Fight Is Our Fight,
by Elizabeth Warren (2017) |
Higher Loyalty,
by James Comey (2018) |
The Making of Donald Trump,
by David Cay Johnston (2017) |
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Books by and about the 2016 presidential election |
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What Happened ,
by Hillary Clinton (2017) |
Higher Loyalty ,
by James Comey (2018) |
Trump vs. Hillary On The Issues ,
by Jesse Gordon (2016) |
Hard Choices,
by Hillary Clinton (2014) |
Becoming ,
by Michelle Obama (2018) |
Outsider in the White House,
by Bernie Sanders (2015) |
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Book Reviews |
(from Amazon.com) |
(click a book cover for a review or other books by or about the presidency from Amazon.com)
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Obama vs. Paul On The Issues:
Side-by-side stances on the issues
by Jesse Gordon of OnTheIssues.org
(Click for Amazon book review)
Click on a participant to pop-up their full list of quotations
from Obama vs. Paul On the Issues, by Jesse Gordon (number of quotes indicated):
- Barack Obama (2)
- Ron Paul (2)
OR click on an issue category below for a subset. |
BOOK SUMMARY by OnTheIssues.org:
This book puts OnTheIssues' web content into book form -- a direct comparison of issue stances -- not personal biographies, not political horserace analysis, not scandal histories.
Each headline below is backed up with a referenced citation, in context, so you can compare for yourself what each candidate says.
The comparisons are made convenient in a side-by-side layout, with book reviews and a VoteMatch issue summary at the end.
Domestic Issues | Ron Paul | Barack Obama |
|---|
| Hate Crime: | Replace "hate crime" with equal penalties for equal assaults | Lack of enforcement sets tone for more hate crimes |
| Alternative Sentencing: | Funding for alternative sentencing instead of more prisons | Supports alternative sentencing and rehabilitation |
| Death Penalty: | Too many capital convictions have been proven errors | Battled legislatively against the death penalty |
| Gun Rights: | Opposes the DC Gun Ban; it's not just a "collective right" | Respect 2nd Amendment, but local gun bans ok |
| Drugs in Society: | We don't need laws to tell us to not use heroin | Expand drug courts; help prisoners with substance abuse |
| Marijuana Legalization: | Legalize industrial hemp | Not first candidate to use drugs, but first honest about it |
| Nuclear Waste: | No nuclear waste in Yucca Mt.; it's other states' garbage | Opposes Yucca Mountain for nuclear waste storage |
| Animal Rights: | Scored 14% on Humane Society Scorecard on animal protection | Scored 60% on Humane Society Scorecard on animal protection |
| Net Neutrality: | NO on establishing "network neutrality" (non-tiered Internet) | Ensure net neutrality: no corporate-tiered Internet |
| Outer Space Policy: | Militarizing outer space impoverishes America | Cancel moon program; develop human mission to Mars |
| Privacy Rights: | Gov't computer snooping makes National ID Card inevitable | Personal privacy must be protected even in terrorism age |
| Health Mandate: | States CAN mandate insurance, but it's a bad idea | Zero fines & no mandate for small business |
| Medicare: | Let people opt out of Medicare | Medicare is major driver of our long-term liabilities |
| ObamaCare: | ObamaCare is only as socialized as Bush's & Nixon's reforms | Repealing healthcare reform would cost $250B |
| AIDS Policy: | Distribute sterile syringes to reduce AIDS and hepatitis | Advocated condom use to avoid AIDS at Saddleback Church |
Economic Issues | Ron Paul | Barack Obama |
|---|
| CEO Compensation: | Inflated currency benefits some industry's CEO salaries | I will raise CEO taxes, no doubt about it |
| Financial Bailout: | Don't bail out banks; bail out homeowners | We all hated the bank bailout; but it was necessary |
| Wall Street Reform: | Go after crony capitalism; defend real capitalism | Pay attention to Main Street, not just Wall Street |
| Economic Stimulus: | Stimulus package means more printing & devaluing the dollar | $1T avoided Depression; but I took office with $8T debt |
| Trickle-Down Economics: | 1980s had huge deficits, despite Reagan's message | Not enough to help those at the top: it doesn't trickle down |
| National Debt: | We've come to accept government debt & wealth confiscation | Freeze annual domestic spending for next five years |
| Balanced Budget: | Supports Balanced Budget & on-budget accounting | Appoint bipartisan fiscal commission and re-establish PAYGO |
| Earmarks: | Put 65 projects into 2006 bills, worth $4B to his district | Some earmarks are defensible, if done in full light of day |
| Unions: | Right to organize; but no special benefits for unions | FactCheck: Yes, wants to limit secret balloting for unions |
| Unemployment Extension: | No extending unemployment benefits from 39 to 59 weeks | $4,000 tax credit for companies who hire unemployed workers |
| Social Security Privatization: | System is broke; allow young people to get out | What do we do with the losers of privatizing? |
| Trust Fund: | Never voted to spend one penny of Social Security money | Must capture new revenue; no new Social Security Commission |
| Tax-and-Spend Policies: | Tax code is the symptom; spending is the problem | We need a tax code where everybody pays their fair share |
| Death Tax: | Phaseout the death tax | 2011 budget proposed to raise Death Tax to 45% |
| Ron Paul on Social Issues | Social Issues |
Social Issues | Ron Paul | Barack Obama |
|---|
| Abortion Morality: | Abortion causes inconsistent moral basis for value of life | Moral accusations from pro-lifers are counterproductive |
| Stem Cells: | Embryonic stem cell programs not constitutionally authorized | Stem cells hold promise to cure 70 major diseases |
| Judicial Activism: | Nominate only judges who refuse to legislate from the bench | No litmus test; nominate to Court based on their fairness |
| Welfare State: | Welfare state isn't in the Constitution | Cut poverty in half in 10 years, with faith-based help |
| Don't-Ask-Don't-Tell: | Don't ask, don't tell is a decent policy for gays in army | Repeal Don't-Ask-Don't-Tell |
| Defense of Marriage Act: | No need for Marriage Amendment; DOMA is enough | Decisions about marriage should be left to the states |
| Affirmative Action: | No affirmative action for any group | Include class-based affirmative action with race-based |
| College Loans: | Student loan program is a total failure and unconstitutional | $10K college tax credit; forgive loans for public service |
| Religious Values: | School prayer is not a federal issue | Listening to evangelicals bridges major political fault line |
| Evolution: | Evolution doesn't support atheism nor diminish God | Evolution & science aren't incompatible with Christian faith |
| School Vouchers: | Competition helps, but vouchers invite bureaucratic control | Vouchers don't solve the problems of our schools |
| Parental Leave: | NO on four weeks of paid parental leave for federal employees | Help families with paid sick days and better family leave |
| Tea Party: | Breaks one-day fundraising record: $6M at "Boston Tea Party" | 92% of Tea Partiers: "Obama is moving US toward socialism" |
| Principles of Liberty: | Liberty promotes peace, and peace promotes prosperity | No Obama Doctrine; just democracy, security, liberty |
| Racism: | Accused of racist remarks in 1980s newsletters | Speaks about racial anxiety from personal experience |
| Ron Paul on International Issues | International Issues |
International Issues | Ron Paul | Barack Obama |
|---|
| Climate Change: | Absurd to let global bureaucrats try to manipulate climate | Aggressively address accelerating climate change |
| Oil Drilling: | Big Oil profits ok; Big Oil subsidies are not | We cannot drill our way out of our addiction to oil |
| China Trade: | China trade not contingent on human rights & product safety | China is a competitor but not an enemy |
| Illegal Alien Deportation: | No amnesty, but impractical to round up 12 million illegals | Stop expelling talented undocumented workers |
| Guest Workers: | Give illegals limbo status: a green card with an asterisk | Anti-immigrant bitterness stems from joblessness |
| American Exceptionalism: | Exceptionalism shouldn't mean using force around the world | American exceptionalism is same as any other exceptionalism |
| North Korea: | Get out of South Korea and let two Koreas unify | 2007: Pledged to meet with leaders of Iran & North Korea |
| Iranian Sanctions: | Israel won't attack Iran, and neither should we | Iran is more isolated and will face growing consequences |
| International Diplomacy: | Right to spread our values, but wrong to spread by force | The UN has succeeded in avoiding a Third World War |
| Foreign Aid: | Foreign aid wastes billions, with unintended consequences | Global Poverty Act: spend 0.7% of GDP on foreign aid |
| Patriot Act: | The Patriot Act is unpatriotic; it undermines our liberty | The politics of fear undermines basic civil liberties |
| Defense spending: | We can blow up the world 20 times and we can't cut a penny? | Grow size of military to maintain rotation schedules |
| Sources of Terrorism: | We believe Osama's threats, so why not believe his reasons? | Battling terrorism must go beyond belligerence vs. isolation |
| Iraq War: | The Iraq war was not worth the price in blood and treasure | Iraq has distracted us from Taliban in Afghanistan |
| Torture Policy: | Waterboarding is torture: illegal, uncivilized, and immoral | No torture; no renditions; no operating out of fear |
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| OnTheIssues.org excerpts: (click on issues for details)
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Budget & Economy
Ron Paul: Obama economic stances compared to Paul's.
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Education
Ron Paul: Obama's education stances compared to Paul's.
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Foreign Policy
Barack Obama: Obama's international stances compared to Ron Paul's.
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Health Care
Barack Obama: Ron Paul's healthcare stances compared to Obama.
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The above quotations are from Obama vs. Paul On The Issues:
Side-by-side stances on the issues
by Jesse Gordon of OnTheIssues.org.
VoteMatch Social Issues |
Paul |
vs. |
Obama |
|---|
| Abortion is a woman’s right | opposes | | strongly favors |
| Require companies to hire more women & minorities | strongly opposes | | strongly favors |
| Same-sex domestic partnership benefits | favors | | favors |
| Teacher-led prayer in public schools | favors | | opposes |
| Parents choose schools via vouchers | favors | | favors |
VoteMatch Domestic Issues |
Paul |
vs. |
Obama |
|---|
| More federal funding for health coverage | opposes | | strongly favors |
| Death Penalty | strongly opposes | | opposes |
| Mandatory Three Strikes sentencing laws | opposes | | opposes |
| Absolute right to gun ownership | favors | | opposes |
| Drug use is immoral: enforce laws against it | strongly opposes | | opposes |
VoteMatch Economic Issues |
Paul |
vs. |
Obama |
|---|
| Privatize Social Security | strongly favors | | strongly opposes |
| Make taxes more progressive | strongly opposes | | strongly favors |
| Stricter limits on political campaign funds | opposes | | strongly favors |
| Allow churches to provide welfare services | favors | | favors |
| Replace coal & oil with alternatives | strongly opposes | | strongly favors |
VoteMatch International Issues |
Paul |
vs. |
Obama |
|---|
| Illegal immigrants earn citizenship | strongly opposes | | favors |
| Support & expand free trade | opposes | | opposes |
| The Patriot Act harms civil liberties | strongly favors | | strongly favors |
| Expand the armed forces | opposes | | favors |
| US out of Iraq & Afghanistan | strongly favors | | favors |
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