Campaign Trail Results: Game #1428328
Play The Campaign Trail
This Game:
- Year: 2012
- Player Candidate: Barack Obama
- Running Mate: Joe Biden
- Difficulty Level: Impossible
- Winner Take All Mode?: Yes
- Game Played:
View overall results, or a specific state:
| Candidate | Electoral Votes | Popular Votes | Pop. Vote % |
|---|---|---|---|
| ---- Mitt Romney | 374 | 70,102,394 | 54.33 |
| ---- Barack Obama | 164 | 57,491,778 | 44.56 |
| ---- Gary Johnson | 0 | 1,002,394 | 0.78 |
| ---- Jill Stein | 0 | 422,940 | 0.33 |
Visits:
- Florida:6
- North Carolina:2
- Virginia:2
- Minnesota:1
- Ohio:1
Answers:
- A recent Supreme Court decision affirmed an Arizona law allowing officers to check suspected illegal immigrants for proof of immigration status. Do you think this law is a good idea?I don't want to comment on an issue that is best left to the voters of Arizona.
- Should the United States have been so quick to drop its support for Hosni Mubarak in 2011, given recent events in Egypt?That's a great question. It's hard to speculate on what might have been, but it at time it seemed clear that Mubarak had to go.
- In November 2011, Ohio voters rejected a law to limit collective bargaining power for public unions. Do public sector unions such as teachers' and police unions have too much bargaining power?Unions have been eviscerated by decades of outsourcing. Public unions are a necessary bulwark of the middle class and should have every right to bargain for fair wages and benefits.
- What is your position on gay marriage?Gay marriage should be protected at the federal level. The Defense of Marriage Act should be repealed.
- Do you support allowing the Bush Tax Cuts to expire for high-income households at the end of 2012?I support letting the cuts expire. It's time that wealthy Americans paid their fair share for the opportunities our society gives to them.
- Would you sign a bill to make English the Official Language of the United States?Yes I would.
- What is your opinion on directing some Department of Education funding towards a school voucher program?This is a good idea and it should be expanded.
- What is your opinion on the 'gunwalking' tactics that led to the 'Fast and Furious' scandal?This is a specialized occupational question that can best be answered by the ATF and the Department of Justice.
- The Affordable Care Act (i.e. 'Obamacare') will cap annual premiums, require minimum coverage levels, and outlaw discrimination against people with pre-existing conditions. What do you think?This is the wrong way to reform the American health care system. We should be focusing on malpractice reform and on cutting red tape for private insurers.
- Would you support a Constitutional Amendment to overturn some provisions of the Citizens United ruling, affecting campaign finance by PAC's?I would be happy to disavow the use of Super PAC advertising if my opponent would as well. Unfortunately the other side will do anything to win this election, regardless of how it aligns with the will of the public.
- Do you have any comment to make on the performance of Ben Bernanke as Chairman of the Federal Reserve?Ben Bernanke has been a disaster. The Fed's expansionist monetary policy caused this recession, and the continuance of that policy has delayed our recovery.
- Should the Social Security Trust Fund be purchasing U.S. Treasury bills? Should it be allowed to invest in other bonds and securities to potentially increase its rate of return? Or conversely, should the funds be held in a 'lockbox' to guarantee benefit payments?This is a corrupt, ludicrous practice which Congress uses to hide the true size of our budget and Social Security deficits.
- The budget for the Department of Housing and Urban Development was cut by nearly $4 billion in 2012. Do you think subsidized housing for the poor is a good place to begin reducing the federal deficit?$4 billion barely puts a dent in the size of the deficit. If we made a serious attempt to cut the size of the military our savings would be vastly greater.
- Are you satisfied with the provisions within the 2012 Federal Highway Bill that could salvage over two million jobs in the construction industry?Ideally we should be spending much more on our infrastructure. Doing so would increase overall employment and pave the way for future prosperity.
- How do you feel about capitalism and the free market?We need greater cooperation between government and corporations. I'm not opposed to government investments and even ownership of key industries, where appropriate.
- Who are the real job creators in this country -- hardworking American citizens or Washington bureaucrats?American small business, obviously. I will be their champion as President.
- The most recent poll showed you slipping by a couple of percentage points. Are you planning on making any changes in your campaign to address this?We don't pay attention to things like polls and focus groups. We just go out every day and present our message to the American people. Everything else will take care of itself.
- Some theorists have suggested that the government create guaranteed jobs at the federal minimum wage, to help support the labor market. Is this something that you would consider?This is a terrible idea. Can't you just picture twenty million employees performing make-work jobs at miniscule wages?
- Christina Romer -- formerly the Chairperson on your Council of Economic Advisors -- stated in 2009 that unemployment would be less than 6% by 2012 if the stimulus package was enacted. What went wrong, and did the results of the stimulus have any bearing on her resignation?First of all, this had no bearing on her decision to leave the Obama Administration. Secondly, the economy was in much worse shape in early 2009 than anyone realized. Since that time we have repeatedly tried to pass additional stimulus measures and have been thwarted by House Republicans at every opportunity.
- Many people speculate that the Affordable Health Care Act is the first step on the road to socialized medicine. Can you address these concerns?Can't we just be honest? The ad-hoc, emergency room system we have in place now is a form of socialized medicine in and of itself. I'm actually trying to bring us back from that system into something that can be managed more rationally.
- You have expressed support for increasing taxes on the rich to address our budget shortfall. However, almost half of Americans currently pay no income taxes. Are you sure this is a good idea?After further soul-searching, I've come to understand that balancing America's books on the backs of the rich is a mathematically futile endeavor. Taxes will also need to be increased on the middle-class.
- What will be the overriding theme of your nomination speech at the Democratic Convention?I will give an honest speech about the challenges I was facing in 2009, what I did to address them, what I tried to do that was blocked by Republican obstructionism, and what jobs policies I will continue to push for in my second term.
- Do FEMA insurance payouts encourage real estate developers to build in disaster prone areas?There is absolutely a danger of this happening. That's why we have a National Flood Insurance Program which provides strict guidelines on where people are permitted to build.
- What is your guiding foreign policy philosophy?Human Rights -- It's past time that we cut allegiances with dictators like the House of Saud and truly lived up to our ideals. I will only support or give aid to democratically elected leaders.
- In the most general terms, what will be your overall campaign strategy against Romney?I will promise a fresh start in overcoming the gridlock in Washington. In my second term I will reach out to moderates and sensible Republicans to find common, pragmatic solutions to our most pressing issues.