McCain/Clinton/Obama (living in, law, moving)

[Humanoid]

IMO he's better than our current "uniter"

Well, yeah. But that isn't saying much. Obama isn't all bad though, I'm a little paranoid about voting someone so liberal during the economic down cycle. Socialism tends to take root in these periods.

But I don't know if I can vote for McCain either. It will be interesting to see who they pick as their running mates.

[BrianTH]

Originally Posted by Humanoid

Well, yeah. But that isn't saying much. Obama isn't all bad though, I'm a little paranoid about voting someone so liberal during the economic down cycle. Socialism tends to take root in these periods.

But I don't know if I can vote for McCain either. It will be interesting to see who they pick as their running mates.

For what it is worth, Obama had a reputation for being "reasonable" among the libertarian/free-market types at the University of Chicago. Which is not to say he was one of them, but rather that they thought he was economically literate and willing to accept at least some elements of their critiques of heavy-handed government, and generally to consider policies with a little less government and a little more private activity if a solid case for that approach could be made.

[zip95]

Originally Posted by Humanoid

Well, yeah. But that isn't saying much. Obama isn't all bad though, I'm a little paranoid about voting someone so liberal during the economic down cycle. Socialism tends to take root in these periods.

But I don't know if I can vote for McCain either. It will be interesting to see who they pick as their running mates.

Who cares if he seems liberal on TV. See who his economic advisors are and read their policy papers.

[BrianTH]

Originally Posted by zip95

Who cares if he seems liberal on TV. See who his economic advisors are and read their policy papers.

If you are an econ geek, probably the most important piece of information is that Richard Thaler is informally advising him. Thaler is a founder of behavioralist economics, and one of the interesting things about behavioralists is that they are more or less equal opportunity critics of both sides of the old markets versus governments debate. On the positive side, they try to use insights from psychological research to figure out how to best structure programs and policies. So, they are the sort of people who came up with ideas like making 401Ks opt-out rather than opt-in, which seems like a minor issue but in practice can make a large difference in the contribution rate.

[Katiana]

Chicago/Illinois politicians have a reputation for being "sketchy". In my adulthood, three former governors of Illinois have gone to jail. I heard a story on NPR once that said that there are members of the Chicago city council who have been in jail. I once listened to a political debate where a chair was left vacant to represent a candidate who couldn't be present b/c he was in jail. I'm not saying Obama is a crook, but he was involved with that system and that is my concern.

[BrianTH]

Originally Posted by Katiana

I'm not saying Obama is a crook, but he was involved with that system and that is my concern.

I might note that Obama never worked for the City of Chicago or held an elected office at the city level. It also might be worth noting he wasn't the pick of the Chicago machine in the 2004 Democratic primaries for his U.S. Senate seat (that would be Dan Hynes).

Of course he will have some sort of ties with Chicago politicians, which is inevitable if you are a statewide politician in Illinois. But in terms of actual influence, his mentors were people like the late Paul Simon, who was a Downstate guy.

[Humanoid]

See who his economic advisors are and read their policy papers.

Sure, I will spend more time reading when it gets closer to the election. I haven't spent too much time reading the details of either candidate, but what I have heard hasn't been particularly interesting.

Richard Thaler is informally advising him.

That is interesting, I've been meaning to read more about behavioral finance/economics but haven't gotten the chance. Not sure what I think about it yet.

Regardless, not sure if that is the most important piece of information. A politician that will do something regardless of their political future is rather rare. So if the people are crying for socialized this and socialized that its unlikely he will refuse them. Do you know whether he is for or against the housing bill that is being pushed their the house?

[BrianTH]

Originally Posted by Humanoid

A politician that will do something regardless of their political future is rather rare.

I agree, and I wouldn't claim Obama is an exception. But I do think he sees a connection between his personal success and being a person who supports smart policies. Of course, I can't promise that you and he (or he and I) will always have the same ideas about what policies are smart.

[ElliotGrey]

Obama, of course. Who else? The time for change is now. Of the three, he is by far the only one with a plan to get us out of Iraq and out of the recession.

[londonbarcelona]

Originally Posted by Humanoid

It will be interesting to see who they pick as their running mates.

It will be interesting! I haven't decided who I think will be a good running mate for either. Have you?