Barack Obama's Opinions
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Agree
Even a successful war against Iraq will require a US occupation of undetermined length, at undetermined cost, with undetermined consequences.
Disagree
I know that even a successful war against Iraq will require a US occupation of undetermined length, at undetermined cost, with undetermined consequences. I know that an invasion of Iraq without a clear rationale and without strong international support will only fan the flames of the Middle East, and encourage the worst, rather than best, impulses of the Arab world, and strengthen the recruitment arm of Al Qaeda. I am not opposed to all wars. I’m opposed to dumb wars.
Mostly Disagree
We should be more modest in our belief that we can impose democracy on a country through military force. In the past, it has been movements for freedom from within tyrannical regimes that have led to flourishing democracies; movements that continue today.
Neutral
[maybe, but] if that's the criteria by which we are making decisions on the deployment of U.S. forces, then by that argument you would have 300,000 troops in the Congo right now - where millions have been slaughtered as a consequence of ethnic strife - which we haven't done. ... We would be deploying unilaterally and occupying the Sudan, which we haven't done. Those of us who care about Darfur don't think it would be a good idea.
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Agree
...I think we need to rethink and decriminalize our marijuana laws...
Disagree
[Obama spokesman Tommy Vietor] Senator Obama does not believe in legalization of marijuana, but agrees with President Bush that long minimum sentences for first-time drug users may not be the best way to occupy jail space or heal people from their disease.
Disagree
I'm not someone who believes in legalization of marijuana.
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Disagree
I think that the war on drugs have been an utter failure.
Agree
At a time when the Mexican government has so courageously taken on the drug cartels that have plagued both sides of the borders, it is absolutely critical that the United States joins as a full partner in dealing with this issue.
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Agree
Hope in the face of difficulty, hope in the face of uncertainty, the audacity of hope. In the end, that is God's greatest gift to us, the bedrock of this nation; a belief in things not seen; a belief that there are better days ahead.
Agree
Kneeling beneath that cross on the South Side of Chicago, I felt God's spirit beckoning me. I submitted myself to His will, and dedicated myself to discovering His truth.
Agree
...my daughters should probably be treated by any admissions officer as folks who are pretty advantaged... [and] we should take into account white kids who have been disadvantaged.... [but] I think what we can say is that in our society race and class still intersect... I would like to think that ...affirmative action becomes a diminishing tool for us to achieve racial equality in this society.
Agree
I am a Christian, and I am a devout Christian. I believe in the redemptive death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. I believe that that faith gives me a path to be cleansed of sin and have eternal life.
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Agree
Globalization is not someone's political agenda. It is a technological revolution that is fundamentally changing the world's economy, producing winners and losers along the way. The question is not whether we can stop it, but how we respond to it. It's not whether we should protect our workers from competition, but what we can do to fully enable them to compete against workers all over the world.
Agree
Government policies can help, with little impact on market efficiency. We can raise the minimum wage. It may be true that any big jumps in the minimum wage discourage employers from hiring. But when the minimum wage has not been changed in nine years and has less purchasing power in real dollars than it did in 1955, so that someone working full-time today in a minimum wage job does not earn enough to raise out of poverty, such arguments carry less force.
Agree
The recovery plan and the financial stability plan are the immediate steps we're taking to revive our economy in the short-term. But the only way to fully restore America's economic strength is to make the long-term investments that will lead to new jobs, new industries, and a renewed ability to compete with the rest of the world. ... history tells us [that] government [shouldn't] supplant private enterprise; it [should] catalyze private enterprise.
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Disagree
The probabilities of some sort of pandemic striking in the next decade are extraordinarily high. ...if we make an investment now in creating the infrastructure for vaccine production, strengthening the distribution system and the relationship between federal, state and local governments, those investments won't be wasted even if we're lucky and this particular strain of avian flu doesn't mutate, because we'll then be in a position to deal with whatever pandemic comes down the road.
Disagree
...there are over 400,000 embryos being stored in over 400 facilities throughout the United States. The majority of these are reserved for infertile couples. However, many of these embryos will go unused, destined for permanent storage in a freezer or disposal. We should expand and accelerate research using these embryos...
Disagree
If condoms and potentially microbicides can prevent millions of deaths, they should be made more widely available. I know that there are those who, out of sincere religious conviction, oppose such measures. And with these folks, I must respectfully but unequivocally disagree. I do not accept the notion that those who make mistakes in their lives should be given an effective death sentence...
Agree
Universal health care for every single American must not be a question of whether, it must be a question of how. We have the ideas, we have the resources, and we will have universal health care in this country by the end of the next president's first term.
Agree
I trust women to make these decisions in conjunction with their doctors and their families and their clergy.
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Agree
There may still be disputes about exactly how much we're contributing to the warming of the earth's atmosphere and how much is naturally occurring, but what we can be scientifically certain of is that our continued use of fossil fuels is pushing us to a point of no return.
Agree
[My baptism] came about as a choice and not an epiphany; the questions I had did not magically disappear. But kneeling beneath that cross on the South Side of Chicago, I felt God's spirit beckoning me. I submitted myself to His will, and dedicated myself to discovering His truth.
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Agree
All across the world, in every kind of environment and region known to man, increasingly dangerous weather patterns and devastating storms are abruptly putting an end to the long-running debate over whether or not climate change is real. Not only is it real, it's here, and its effects are giving rise to a frighteningly new global phenomenon: the man-made natural disaster.
Agree
I think cap-and-trade system makes more sense. That’s why I proposed it because you can be very specific in terms of how we’re going to reduce the greenhouse gases by a particular level. ... [With] a carbon tax the cost will be passed onto consumers and that won’t happen with a cap-and-trade.
Agree
We will establish strong annual targets that set us on a course to reduce emissions to their 1990 levels by 2020 and reduce them an additional 80 percent by 2050.
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Disagree
Most of us do believe that gay couples should be able to visit each other in the hospital and share health care benefits; most of us do believe that they should be treated with dignity and have their privacy respected by the federal government. And we all know that if this amendment [constitutionally banning gay marriage] were to pass, it would close the door on much of this.
Agree
When it comes to federal rights, the over 1,100 rights that right now are not being given to same sex couples, I think that's unacceptable, and as president of the United States, I am going to fight hard to make sure that those rights are available.
Agree
...equality in relationship, family, and adoption rights is not some abstract principle; it’s about whether millions of LGBT Americans can finally live lives marked by dignity and freedom. That’s why we have to repeal laws like the Defense of Marriage Act. That’s why we have to eliminate discrimination against LGBT families. And that’s why we have to extend equal treatment in our family and adoption laws. I’ll be a president that stands up for American families – all of them.
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Mostly Disagree
...people would ask me... "why would you wanna go into something dirty and nasty like politics?" And I understood the question because it revealed the cynicism people feel about public life today. That even though we may get involved out of civic obligation every few years, we don't always have confidence that government can make a difference in our lives. ... Ladies and gentlemen, this is our time. Our time to make a mark on history.
Agree
I cannot imagine anything more abhorrent to a veteran than seeing the flag they fought for being burned to make a political point. ... I share outrage at the thought of it being disrespected. And though I have never seen anyone burn a flag, if I did, it would take every ounce of restraint I had not to haul off and hit them. But we live in a country of laws. Laws are what stop people from resorting to physical violence to settle disagreements, and laws are what protect free speech.
Agree
Success in Afghanistan is vital to the security of the United States, to all NATO members, and to the people of Afghanistan. NATO's leaders must therefore send an unambiguous message that every country in NATO will do whatever needs to be done to destroy terrorist networks in Afghanistan, to prevent the Taliban from returning to power, and to bring greater security and well-being to the Afghan people.
Agree
[Our] values upon which our success depends, honesty and hard work, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism -- these things are old. These things are true. They have been the quiet force of progress throughout our history. What is demanded then is a return to these truths.
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Agree
I think it would be helpful to remember the critical role that the separation of church and state has played in preserving not only our democracy but also our religious practice.
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Agree
There has been only one conviction at Guantanamo. It was for a guilty plea on a -- on material support for terrorism. The sentence was nine months long. There has not been one conviction of a terrorist act. I have faith in America's courts, and I have faith in our JAGs. As President, I will close Guantanamo, reject the Military Commissions Act, and adhere to the Geneva Conventions. Our Constitution and our Uniform Code of Military Justice provide a framework for dealing with the terrorists.
Agree
It is precisely our ideals that give us the strength and the moral high ground to be able to effectively deal with the unthinking violence that we see emanating from terrorist organizations around the world.
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Mostly Disagree
While the evidence tells me that the death penalty does little to deter crime, I believe there are some crimes--mass murder, the rape and murder of a child--so heinous that the community is justified in expressing the full measure of its outrage by meting out the ultimate punishment. On the other hand, the way capital cases were tried in Illinois at the time was so rife with error, questionable police tactics, racial bias, and shoddy lawyering, that 13 death row inmates had been exonerated.
Disagree
Now, I have a Secret Service detail at this point. So it's hard to pretend that you don't have big guys who are packing around you at all times. [...] it's not something that I that I am thinking about on an ongoing basis. I think that every presidential candidate, certainly every president these days is a potential target. And that comes with the job. And you take the precautions that are necessary and then you go about your business.
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Agree
We can and we should help Israelis and Palestinians both fulfill their national goals: two states living side by side in peace and security.
Disagree
To this day, there are those who insist that the Holocaust never happened -- a denial of fact and truth that is baseless and ignorant and hateful.
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Agree
The world must work to stop Iran’s uranium enrichment program and prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons. It is far too dangerous to have nuclear weapons in the hands of a radical theocracy. And while we should take no option, including military action, off the table, sustained and aggressive diplomacy combined with tough sanctions should be our primary means to prevent Iran from building nuclear weapons.
Agree
...if we show ourselves willing to talk and to offer carrots and sticks in order to deal with these pressing problems [then] if Iran then rejects any overtures of that sort, it puts us in a stronger position to mobilize the international community to ratchet up the pressure on Iran. Our unwillingness to talk or the perception that we are trying to bully our way through negotiations, that's eliminated as an excuse for them not dealing with these issues in an appropriate way.
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Agree
For the last twenty years, U.S. foreign aid funding has done little more than keep pace with inflation. Doubling our foreign assistance spending by 2012 will help meet the challenge laid out by Tony Blair at the 2005 G-8 conference, and it will help push the rest of the developed world to invest in security and opportunity. As we have seen recently with large increases in funding for our AIDS programs, we have the capacity to make sure this funding makes a real difference.
Mostly Agree
If Iran fails to change course when presented with this choice by the US, it will be clear — to the people of Iran, and to the world — that the Iranian regime is the author of its own isolation. That will strengthen our hand with Russia and China as we insist on stronger sanctions in the Security Council. And we should work with Europe, Japan and the Gulf states to find every avenue outside the U.N. to isolate the Iranian regime [such as] expanding financial sanctions...
Agree
The auto industry is the backbone of American manufacturing and a critical part of our attempt to reduce our dependence on foreign oil. ... I have made it a high priority for my transition team to work on additional policy options to help the auto industry adjust, weather the financial crisis, and succeed in producing fuel-efficient cars here in the United States.
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Disagree
A couple weeks ago, cops found an AK-47 near a West Side school... ...That type of weapon belongs on a battlefield, not on the streets of Chicago.
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Disagree
I will end the notion of Yucca Mountain because it has not been based on the sort of sound science that can assure people that they're going to be safe. ... I've been clear from the start that Yucca was a misconceived project.
Agree
Let me be as clear as possible... I think people's families are off-limits, and people's children are especially off-limits. This shouldn't be part of our politics. It has no relevance to Gov. Palin's performance as governor or her potential performance as a vice president. ... How a family deals with issues and teenage children, that shouldn't be the topic of our politics...
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Agree
I believe in evolution, and I believe there's a difference between science and faith. That doesn't make faith any less important than science. It just means they're two different things. And I think it's a mistake to try to cloud the teaching of science with theories that frankly don't hold up to scientific inquiry.
Disagree
I believe in evolution, and I believe there's a difference between science and faith. That doesn't make faith any less important than science. It just means they're two different things. And I think it's a mistake to try to cloud the teaching of science with theories that frankly don't hold up to scientific inquiry.
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Disagree
Russia must back up its commitment to stop its violence and violation of Georgia's sovereignty.
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Disagree
I was clear throughout this campaign and was clear throughout this transition that under my administration the United States does not torture. ... We will abide by the Geneva Conventions. We will uphold our highest ideals.
Agree
...in this country, we treat everybody equally in accordance with the law. Regardless of race. Regardless of religion. I ... will not comment on the wisdom of making a decision to put a mosque there. I was commenting very specifically on the right that people have that dates back to our founding. That's what our country's about and I think it's very important that as difficult as some of these issues are, we stay focused on who we are as a people and what our values are all about.
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Comparisons with Other Experts and Influencers
The similarity between
Barack Obama
and each expert and influencer is calculated by looking at how the same questions
were answered. These figures are used to calculate conforming, nonconforming,
and projected opinions. The accuracy of the analysis depends on
Barack Obama's coverage, which grows with
the number of their opinions entered into TakeOnIt.
Barack Obama's conforming opinions are opinions
that align with the group of experts and influencers Barack Obama typically agrees with.
Barack Obama's nonconforming opinions are opinions
that contradict the group of experts and influencers Barack Obama typically agrees with.
Projected Opinions
Barack Obama's projected opinions are opinions
Barack Obama is expected to have if their opinions align with the
experts and influencers that they typically agree with.
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