As I promised a while back, here are my reasons for preferring McCain over Obama. Of course, I’d really prefer to be voting for Ron Paul.
Before I get into my specific reasons, let me tell you a little about my general political outlook. I like to say that I’m a pragmatic libertarian. I believe the government should play a much weaker role in our lives. I’m for personal responsibility. I’m also a big believer in pure, unadultered capitalism, with very few exceptions. If you’ve been paying attention to the Presidential race, then it should be obvious from just this paragraph who I prefer. Obama wants the government to play a bigger role in our lives. I don’t.
Government Spending and Taxation
I believe that the government should spend a lot loss money than it does. Neither party has done a good job reducing spending over the past several years, and I can’t say with any certainty that either of these candidates will either. However, with all the promises that Obama has made, I know for certain that he will not reduce government spending by any appreciable amount. McCain claims that he will, and I hope he follows through with it if elected.
The other side of the coin is taxation. I believe the government should tax us much less than they do now. I think ten percent is a good goal. While that goal will not be reached by either party anytime soon, I think McCain has the potential to take us closer to it, while Obama will take us further away.
I also take issue with Obama’s belief that the rich somehow owe society a large chunk of the money they have earned. It’s a popular belief these days, but it’s a very dangerous one. I refer to it as “Socialism lite.”
Health Care
Barack Obama believes that health care is a right. I don’t. It’s a popular sentiment, but as a libertarian I don’t believe that’s the government’s job. If I believed the government could do a good, efficient job of providing health care, I think I could get past my libertarian tendencies. Why should I believe that the government will handle health care more efficiently than say, Social Security, for instance?
Obama says he wants to open up the Federal employees health insurance program to all citizens. The reason health care for groups is generally cheaper than for individuals is because members of groups don’t self-select. People seeking to join the Federal employee health plan will tend to be sicker than the average person and the cost of the program will rise as a result. It’s simple economics, and Obama either doesn’t know this or chooses to ignore it. He’s a smart guy, so I tend to believe it’s the latter.
Obama also says insurance companies shouldn’t be able to discriminate against people with preexisting conditions. Unfortunately, in the real world, people that have pre-existing conditions cost more to care for. Ignoring that fact does not make it go away. Under Obama’s plan, the cost of my insurance would go up because I (a healthy person who has always had health insurance, even when it wasn’t convenient) will be treated the same as an unhealthy person who hasn’t been responsible enough to maintain health insurance.
For the record, I’m not a huge fan of McCain’s health care plan either, but it doesn’t scare me nearly as much as Obama’s.
Free Trade
Obama does not believe in free trade. I do, and I have a majority of economists on my side. Yes, free trade can be inconvenient at times, but in the end it is more efficient.
Gun Control
I do not believe in gun control, for both philosophical and pragmatic reasons. Obama wants stricter gun control, which is ineffective and possibly unconstitutional. There are already sufficient laws on the books to prohibit criminals from having guns. Anything further just takes guns out of the hands of lawful owners, leaving them defenseless against criminals.
Education
Obama is against vouchers. I see them as a simple and effective way to fix our poor excuse for an educational system.
Energy
McCain has proposed doing away with counterproductive subsidies on domestic ethanol and removing tariffs on cheap Brazilian ethanol. Obama has not because the corn lobby has him in their pocket.
Obama has also been non-commital on nuclear energy. If we were serious about getting off foreign oil, we’d be building nuclear power plants as fast as possible. It is highly efficient and safe.
Summary
McCain is far from perfect, but when I look at the issues, it’s obvious who my choice should be. That’s all I ask of you. Don’t vote for Obama because he’s “less like Bush.” If you vote for him, vote for him because you agree with him on the issues. You and I will disagree, but you will have my respect because you took the time and effort to have an opinion on the issues and find the candidate that most closely matches those opinions.
Please post comments, especially if you disagree with me. If you have a blog, write a post about why you’re voting for your candidate and post a link in the comments.
