Readers submitted dozens of questions by e-mail to The Herald they hoped would be answered in Tuesday night’s second presidential debate.
Several subjects raised did get touched on at some point during the 90-minute town hall featuring Republican Sen. John McCain and Democratic Sen. Barack Obama.
Here is a sampling of what readers submitted and what relevant comments emerged:
Question: How the heck is this bailout supposed to help regular people?
That’s one of the questions from one of heraldnet.com readers.
It was also the first topic of the night. Obama and McCain responded mostly in generalities, with each insisting they will work to ensure the “middle class” is helped and not executives of defunct Wall Street firms.
McCain said, “Until we stabilize home values in America, we’re never going to start turning around and creating jobs and fixing our economy and we’ve got to get some trust and confidence back to America.”
Obama said the credit crisis “could end up having an adverse effect on everybody.” He said as he has before the situation today is “the final verdict of the failed economic policies of the last eight years” of the Bush administration.
Q: What plan do you have to help people who are facing foreclosure to keep their homes?
This is a subject on the minds of many, including reader LaTanja Lyons, who didn’t provide where she’s from.
McCain pledged to require the federal government renegotiate the mortgages of individual homeowners who are in trouble. The renegotiated loans would be replaced with fixed-rate mortgages, ostensibly at a loss to the government.
Obama said one of the goals of the financial rescue plan approved by Congress is to strengthen homeowners’ ability to keep their property. He vowed strong oversight of the spending of the money from the bailout and said the middle class needs a “rescue package” that would include tax cuts.
Q: What are your plans to slow global warming?
Global warming didn’t get the spotlight as Bill McLaughlin of Everett hoped. But the two candidates offered some of their most specific comments on the subjects of climate change and energy policy.
Obama said, “This is one of the biggest challenges of our time. If we create a new energy economy it can be an engine that can drive us into the future.”
He said he would invest in developing solar, geothermal, wind and other sources of alternative energy. Under fire from McCain, he said he did favor building nuclear power plants and pursuing clean coal technology as components of an energy plan.
He said oil drilling should occur in existing undeveloped leases but not be a priority for the government to push. “We’re not going to be able to get out of the climate crisis if we keep using fossil fuels,” he said. McCain said he’s long spoken of the dangers of climate change and the need to address it. He said he supports producing and distributing alternative energies.
He said offshore oil drilling is vitally necessary now and nuclear power must be pursued aggressively in the immediate future.
McCain said: “What’s the best way to fix (climate change)? Nuclear power. Nuclear power is safe and it’s clean and it creates hundreds of thousands of jobs.”
Q: Will you guarantee that you will not raise taxes on anyone making under $250,000?
Reader Glen Glosser, who didn’t share where he lives, wanted to know that.
Obama said he wants to provide a tax cut for “95 percent of Americans.” He said if you make less than $250,000 “you will not see a single dime” of increase in taxes.
McCain said he would not raise taxes on anybody.
Q: What about small business owners. Sen. Obama’s plan to raise taxes on people who earn more than $250,000 will impact them. The plan will cost some business owners their livelihoods. What are you going to do to help small businesses from closing due to this tax raise?
Small businesses did get attention as Cindy Snider of Chester, Ill., said she wanted.
Sen. Obama said only a few businesses in the country make more than $250,000 and would be subject to paying higher taxes under his plan. And he said his is proposing a tax break on health care costs for all small businesses.
McCain said he would not raise any business taxes. He’s been very critical of Obama on this issue, contending the Democratic candidate’s plan will raise taxes on “50 percent of small businesses in America.”
Obama said that was wrong. “I think the Straight Talk Express lost a wheel on that one.”
Q: When will you two candidates stop attacking one another?
This specific question came from Fred Fortenberry from Florida, though several readers wanted to know the same thing.
Candidates didn’t have to deal with the specific inquiry. They each could sense the bickering is frustrating voters.
In one exchange on energy policy, McCain noted: “I know you grow a little bit weary of the back and forth.”
At another juncture, as the two bantered on each others’ ties with people involved with Wall Street firms whose failure helped to cause the current crisis, Obama looked into the audience and said: “You’re not interested in politicians pointing fingers. You’re interested in the impact on you.”
Reporter Jerry Cornfield: 360-352-8623 or jcornfield@heraldnet.com.
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