Campaign Trail Results: Game #970201
Play The Campaign Trail
This Game:
- Year: 2012
- Player Candidate: Barack Obama
- Running Mate: Hillary Clinton
- Difficulty Level: Normal
- Winner Take All Mode?: Yes
- Game Played:
View overall results, or a specific state:
| Candidate | Electoral Votes | Popular Votes | Pop. Vote % |
|---|---|---|---|
| ---- Barack Obama | 303 | 66,111,605 | 50.53 |
| ---- Mitt Romney | 235 | 63,513,458 | 48.55 |
| ---- Gary Johnson | 0 | 887,980 | 0.68 |
| ---- Jill Stein | 0 | 317,631 | 0.24 |
Visits:
- Florida:7
- Ohio:4
- North Carolina:1
Answers:
- What is your opinion on the detention center at Guantanamo Bay? Would you consider closing it after the election?I would like to close it, but we need to figure out an alternative way to detain these people.
- Some observers have argued that an embargo of Cuba makes little sense in a post Cold War environment. What do you think?I dislike Fidel Castro as much as anyone. We should keep the embargo but also look for other ways to democratize that country.
- 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?This is an unconscionable violation of civil rights and will certainly lead to racial profiling.
- To what extent should offshore drilling be permitted in the Gulf of Mexico?The drilling we have in place now is sufficient. What the fiasco with BP proves is that as we reach further and further down for more marginal sources, we increase the risk of accidents.
- Should the United States contribute funds to help stabilize the European Union's sovereign debt problems, in order to prevent a possible debt contagion?We need to focus on getting our own house in order, or we will soon find ourselves in their condition.
- How long should U.S. troops remain in Afghanistan?The U.S. presence should be scaled down to the minimum necessary to prevent a Taliban takeover. Hopefully we can withdraw all of our troops within a couple of years.
- 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 The Defense of Marriage Act should be repealed.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.
- We have now had 10 years to analyze the effects of the No Child Left Behind Act. Do you think it is time for a change?This is a good program overall. Perhaps some minor details can be fixed, but without standardized testing there is no way to monitor the quality of our educational system.
- Would it help our economy if government employment was increased? Or would this divert valuable resources from the private sector?Government employment should be increased during recessions to mitigate the effects of a drop in private sector output.
- 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?I'm convinced that this program will work. This is a good compromise allowing private insurers to conduct business, while securing access to health insurance for more Americans. If anything, the increased transparency will reduce insurance costs.
- Would you support a Constitutional Amendment to overturn some provisions of the Citizens United ruling, affecting campaign finance by PAC's?Perhaps not a Constitutional Amendment. These should be reserved for the most serious of issues. I think we can investigate maybe other ways to prevent money from having an undue influence in politics.
- Do you think reduced penalties and increased treatment for drug users would help reduce the flow of drugs from Latin America?Perhaps there is a role for this, but our primary focus should be on targeting the cartels overseas and on providing military and economic support to any government that will assist us in that endeavor.
- Should American workers have the right to invest their Social Security withholdings in private accounts?We definitely need to make some changes to the Social Security program, but this is going too far.
- What is your opinion on the Occupy Wall Street movement?I'm sympathetic to some of their demands, but perhaps there are better ways for them to get their point across.
- Should federal fuel taxes be slightly increased (they have been the same since 1993) to avoid another catastrophe like the Minnesota bridge collapse of 2007?I don't see a problem with a small increase. We should be encouraging other forms of transportation, and on top of that our highways are woefully underfunded.
- The Supreme Court will be deciding an affirmative action case this fall involving the University of Texas. Should colleges be allowed to consider the race of an applicant when deciding whether to admit them?Increased diversity is a valid goal for any administration. Students learn better when they are exposed to a variety of perspectives, and colleges should have a right to admit the best mix of students for their campus.
- After episodes such as the 'flash crash' in 2010, would you support a small financial transactions tax, with the sole purpose being to target high-frequency trading systems?I'm confident that the Financial Stability Oversight Council, created by the Dodd-Frank bill, will be effective in preventing excessive risk in the financial sector.
- Some on the left have criticized your reliance on drone strikes to project American interests, stating that they lead to unnecessary civilian casualties. What can you say to this?We are always mindful of the effect that these strikes may have on the local population. We only use them as a last resort, when targeting extremely dangerous individuals to the security of the United States.
- 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 is a very complex animal and we were doing the best we could with the charts and formulas we had available at the time.
- Many people speculate that the Affordable Health Care Act is the first step on the road to socialized medicine. Can you address these concerns?These fears are absolutely unfounded. The increased transparency and accountability of a private insurance marketplace will actually serve to reduce health care costs.
- What will be the overriding theme of your nomination speech at the Democratic Convention?I will talk about the myriad methods that the Republicans use to divide our country. I will remind everyone that Democrats are truly the party of the common person -- regardless of background or income level.
- What is your guiding foreign policy philosophy?Pragmatism -- Our foreign policy right now is effective. We need to guide foreign nations towards democracy and open markets. Doing so will increase the world's prosperity and decrease the chance of future wars.
- In the most general terms, what will be your overall campaign strategy against Romney?Behind the scenes my surrogates have plenty of dirt to spread about Romney and the Republicans. As President, I will stick to a message of optimism and hope in my own campaign speeches.
- Some on the left thought that you were not very vigorous in your opposition to the anti-union policies of Governor Scott Walker in Wisconsin. What do you have to say about this?Of course I am opposed to the policies of Scott Walker. The only reason I wasn't in Wisconsin on the day of his recall election was that I needed to campaign in more competitive states to maximize our chances of winning this fall.