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DES MOINES, Iowa: The main issues addressed by candidates in the
2008 US presidential campaign: Iraq Democratic candidates promise to
bring an end to the war in Iraq and to begin withdrawing troops
“immediately.” New York Senator and former first lady Hillary
Clinton’s 2002 vote authorizing the war is frequently criticized
by her rivals, including Illinois Senator Barack Obama and 2004 vice
presidential candidate John Edwards. Long-shot candidate Joseph
Biden, who chairs the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, advocates
a federal system for Iraq.
Most Republican candidates say the US engagement
in Iraq will eventually succeed and reject all calls for a timetable
for withdrawal. Libertarian candidate Ron Paul sets himself apart by
proposing an immediate end to the war. Senator John McCain, a sharp
critic of former defense secretary Donald Rumsfeld, has long
advocated sending more soldiers to Iraq, and praises the apparent
success of the troop “surge” begun one year ago.
The economy
Polls show that health insurance is a top
concern among voters, and Democrats play up the issue, promising
universal coverage. They propose reversing the Bush
administration’s tax cuts for the rich but preserving those that
benefit the middle class.
Republicans call for additional tax cuts or
promise to at least maintain tax cuts put in place by Bush. Former
Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee advocates replacing all federal
income and payroll taxes with a federal sales tax.
Diplomacy
John Edwards plays down the “war on
terrorism,” which he calls a political slogan. His main rivals
consider it real but say the Bush administration has managed it
badly. Democrats favor direct contacts with Iran, Syria and North
Korea. Clinton’s rivals criticize her Senate vote to designate
Iran’s Revolutionary Guard a terrorist organization, saying it is
an implicit green light for an attack on Iran.
Among Republicans, Huckabee slams what he says
is an “arrogant bunker mentality” on the part of the Bush
administration. Former Massachusetts’s governor Mitt Romney
praises Bush’s foreign policy, while former New York Mayor Rudy
Giuliani promises to “win the war on terror” and to hold Iran
and Syria accountable for their support of Hezbollah and Hamas.
Immigration
Democrats support immigration reform along the
lines of a bill rejected by Congress in 2006 that would have
reinforced borders, penalized employers who use illegal labor and
regularize some 12 million illegal immigrants.
Republicans for the most part advocate more
repressive aspects of immigration reform. McCain, by contrast,
embraces the Democratic approach; he was a sponsor of the
immigration reform bill that failed in the Senate. Huckabee, who as
governor of Arkansas gave scholarships to the children of illegal
immigrants, calls for a “humane” approach to the problem
combined with stepped-up border patrols.
Social issues
Democrats agree that abortion should remain
legal, safe and rare, and that homosexual couples have the right to
form civil unions, a status that would give them the same rights as
married couples. They do not espouse gay marriage.
Among Republicans, Giuliani says he personally
opposes abortion but is against making it illegal at the federal
level. Other Republicans are staunchly anti-abortion, even Romney,
who was “pro-choice” when he was running for governor of
Massachusetts. Gay marriage is anathema to Republican candidates
except libertarian Ron Paul.
Almost all the candidates, Republican and
Democrat alike, profess religious faith. Huckabee, a Baptist
preacher, has referred to himself as a “Christian leader.”
International trade
Hillary Clinton proposes reevaluating major
trade agreements such as the North America Free Trade Agreement and
a “time out” on new trade deals. Obama wants to see trade deals
do more to protect labor rights and the environment. Edwards, in a
more aggressive tack, decries the “hemorrhaging” of US jobs
due to globalization, and accuses China of manipulating its
currency.
On the Republican side, top-tier candidates
reject protectionism and promote free trade.
-- AFP
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