PolitiFact | Tracking politicians' promises
GOP Pledge-O-Meter
Tracking the promises of the GOP Leadership in Congress
The Obameter
Tracking Obama's Campaign Promises
Promises we’ve rated recently
Fund a major expansion of AmeriCorps
The Promise:
"Will expand and fund AmeriCorps from 75,000 slots today to 250,000 and they will focus this expansion on addressing the great challenges facing the nation." These additional slots will enable AmeriCorps to establish five new Corps: Classroom Corps to help teachers and students, with a priority placed on high-need and underserved schools; Health Corps to improve public health information and outreach to areas with inadequate health systems such as rural areas and inner cities; Clean Energy Corps to promote energy independence through efforts like weatherization, renewable energy projects and educational outreach; Veterans Corps to help keep America's sacred trust with its veterans; and Homeland Security Corps to help communities plan, prepare for and respond to emergencies.
Enact the Buffett rule
The Promise:
"We need to have a tax code where secretaries aren't paying a (higher) tax rate than their bosses. "
Offer states waivers to No Child Left Behind if they meet requirements
The Promise:
"The President will offer states committed to reform relief from the worst mandates of No Child Left Behind like incentives to teach to the test so they can craft local solutions."
Increase penalties against North Korea if it continues developing nuclear weapons
The Promise:
"President Obama will also continue to confront North Korea, another regime that ignores its international obligations by developing nuclear weapons and missile technology, with a stark choice: take verifiable steps toward denuclearization or face increasing isolation and costs from the United States and the international community."
Fix problems of voter access such as long lines on Election Day and on early voting days
The Promise:
"I want to thank every American who participated in this election, whether you voted for the very first time or waited in line for a very long time. By the way, we have to fix that."
End the war in Afghanistan in 2014
The Promise:
"President Obama responsibly ended the war in Iraq and will end the war in Afghanistan in 2014."
Better enforce gun laws
The Promise:
"My belief is that we have to enforce the laws we've already got, make sure that we're keeping guns out of the hands of criminals, those who are mentally ill. We've done a much better job in terms of background checks, but we've got more to do when it comes to enforcement. But weapons that were designed for soldiers in war theaters don't belong on our streets. Part of it is seeing if we can get an assault weapons ban reintroduced."
Provide a path to citizenship for undocumented immigrants
The Promise:
Will support "a system that allows undocumented immigrants who are in good standing to pay a fine, learn English, and go to the back of the line for the opportunity to become citizens."
Help victims of superstorm Sandy 'rebuild their lives'
The Promise:
For victims of Superstorm Sandy: "We are going to be with them every step of the way in helping them to rebuild their lives."
Work to renew the assault weapons ban
The Promise:
"My belief is that we have to enforce the laws we've already got, make sure that we're keeping guns out of the hands of criminals, those who are mentally ill. We've done a much better job in terms of background checks, but we've got more to do when it comes to enforcement. But weapons that were designed for soldiers in war theaters don't belong on our streets. Part of it is seeing if we can get an assault weapons ban reintroduced."
Equip troops to respond to new tactics
The Promise:
"Fully Equip Our Troops for the Missions They Face: We must listen to our ground commanders when they tell us what kinds of technology and skills they need to fight most effectively. We cannot repeat the failure to swiftly deploy up-armored vehicles in response to insurgent tactics. We must prioritize getting vitally needed equipment to our Soldiers and Marines before lives are lost."
Extend the American Opportunity Tax Credit
The Promise:
I’ve said I want to extend the college tax credit that my administration created so more families can save up to $10,000 on their tuition over four years.
Develop a comprehensive cyber security and response strategy
The Promise:
"Barack Obama and Joe Biden will ensure that his administration develops a Cyber Security Strategy that ensures that we have the ability to identify our attackers and a plan for how to respond that will be measured but effective."
Create loan sanctions to stop private creditors from lending to repressive regimes
The Promise:
"Barack Obama and Joe Biden will lead a multilateral effort to address the issue of 'odious debt' by investigating ways in which 'loan sanctions' might be employed to create disincentives for private creditors to lend money to repressive, authoritarian regimes."
Prevent corporate cyber-espionage
The Promise:
"Will work with industry to develop the systems necessary to protect our nation's trade secrets and our research and development."
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