Compare and Contrast

by CoRev and Rdan

Let’s compare the two candidates policies, major component by major component. It will not be easy because they are both extensive but modestly detailed. Furthermore, you the reader will have to do some work by reading their plans. So let’s get started with “Energy” because it is, to my mind the core of what must happen to implement most of their other policies. Here are the specific links to the candidates Web sites policy on energy in alphabetical order.
McCain
Obama

McCains preamble:
Our nation’s future security and prosperity depends on the next President making the hard choices that will break our nation’s strategic dependence on foreign sources of energy and will ensure our economic prosperity by meeting tomorrow’s demands for a clean portfolio. John McCain has made the necessary choices – producing more power, pushing technology to help free our transportation sector from its use of foreign oil, cleaning up our air and addressing climate change, and ensuring that Americans have dependable energy sources. John McCain will lead the effort to develop advanced transportation technologies and alternative fuels to promote energy independence and cut off the flow of oil wealth to repressive dictatorships like Iran.

Major components of McCain’s energy policy
— Expanding Domestic Oil And Natural Gas Exploration And Production
— Taking Action Now To Break Our Dependency On Foreign Oil By Reforming Our Transportation Sector
— Investing In Clean, Alternative Sources Of Energy
— Protecting Our Environment And Addressing Climate Change: A Sound Energy Strategy Must Include A Solid Environmental Foundation
— Promoting Energy Efficiency
— Addressing Speculative Pricing Of Oil

Obama’s preamble:
Obama’s comprehensive New Energy for America plan will:
* Provide short-term relief to American families facing pain at the pump
* Help create five million new jobs by strategically investing $150 billion over the next ten years to catalyze private efforts to build a clean energy future.
* Within 10 years save more oil than we currently import from the Middle East and Venezuela combined.
* Put 1 million Plug-In Hybrid cars — cars that can get up to 150 miles per gallon — on the road by 2015, cars that we will work to make sure are built here in America.
* Ensure 10 percent of our electricity comes from renewable sources by 2012, and 25 percent by 2025.
* Implement an economy-wide cap-and-trade program to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 80 percent by 2050.

Major components of Obama’s energy policy
— Provide Short-term Relief to American Families
— Eliminate Our Need for Middle Eastern and Venezuelan Oil within 10 Years
— Create Millions of New Green Jobs
— Reduce our Greenhouse Gas Emissions 80 Percent by 2050
— Barack’s environmental plan
— Barack’s plan to crack down on excessive energy speculation

CoRev put this together. If other sources are available please link in comments. I am sure there are good data sources as well. Tom would also be good at this. There will still be posts on campaign spin.