Promises Kept.

Filed in National by on March 30, 2009

While I may not agree totally with their methodology and definitions, PolitiFact does have an interesting site that has compiled about 500 promises that President Obama made during the campaign and is tracking their progress.

Here is a nifty chart they created to track promises kept.
obameter-2

Below the fold, you will see a HUGE list of promises kept, in the works, or stalled by others (i.e. Republicans). Meanwhile there are only three broken promises, which are:

No. 234: Allow five days of public comment before signing bills
No. 240: Tougher rules against revolving door for lobbyists and former officials
No. 505: Create a $3,000 tax credit for companies that add jobs officials

I quibble here. Obama created tougher rules, and harmed his administration as a result since he is having a hard time staffing it, so much so that waivers of those rules are now required. If you want to count those waivers as breaking the promise, then I suppose the promise is broken. But just technically speaking, the rules were put in place.

And here is the list:

PROMISES ALREADY KEPT:
No. 15: Create a foreclosure prevention fund for homeowners
No. 36: Expand loan programs for small businesses
No. 40: Extend and index the 2007 Alternative Minimum Tax patch
No. 58: Expand eligibility for State Children’s Health Insurance Fund (SCHIP)
No. 125: Direct military leaders to end war in Iraq
No. 134: Send two additional brigades to Afghanistan
No. 239: Release presidential records
No. 241: Require new hires to sign a form affirming their hiring was not due to political affiliation or contributions.
No. 278: Remove more brush, small trees and vegetation that fuel wildfires
No. 307: Create a White House Office on Urban Policy
No. 327: Support increased funding for the NEA
No. 411: Work to overturn Ledbetter vs. Goodyear
No. 427: Ban lobbyist gifts to executive employees
No. 452: Weatherize 1 million homes per year
No. 458: Invest in all types of alternative energy
No. 459: Enact tax credit for consumers for plug-in hybrid cars
No. 480: Support high-speed rail
No. 503: Appoint at least one Republican to the cabinet
No. 507: Extend unemployment insurance benefits and temporarily suspend taxes on these benefits
No. 513: Reverse restrictions on stem cell research

PROMISES COMPROMISED ON:
No. 3: Eliminate capital gains taxes for small businesses and start-ups
No. 5: Expand the earned income tax credit
No. 32: Create a tax credit of $500 for workers
No. 257: Create the American Opportunity Tax Credit to offset college costs
No. 434: Set a three-month moratorium on foreclosures
No. 512: Go “line by line” over earmarks to make sure money being spent wisely

STALLED (by others):
No. 24: End income tax for seniors making less than $50,000
No. 446: Enact windfall profits tax for oil companies
No. 508: Allow penalty-free hardship withdrawals from retirement accounts in 2008 and 2009

IN THE WORKS:
No. 1: Increase the capital gains and dividends taxes for higher-income taxpayers
No. 2: Eliminate all oil and gas tax loopholes
No. 4: Extend child tax credits and marriage-penalty fixes
No. 27: Change standards for determining broadband access
No. 31: Create a $60 billion bank to fund roads and bridges
No. 37: Extend the Bush tax cuts for lower incomes
No. 38: Repeal the Bush tax cuts for higher incomes
No. 39: Phase out exemptions and deductions for higher earners
No. 59: Invest in electronic health information systems
No. 70: Eliminate the higher subsidies to Medicare Advantage plans
No. 72: Prevent drug companies from blocking generic drugs
No. 84: Double federal funding for cancer research
No. 114: Reduce the Veterans Benefits Administration claims backlog
No. 117: Launch a supportive services-housing program for veterans to prevent homelessness
No. 126: Begin removing combat brigades from Iraq
No. 128: Launch robust diplomatic effort with Iraq and its neighbors
No. 135: Increase the size of the Army and Marine Corps
No. 144: End the “Stop-Loss” program of forcing troops to stay in service beyond their expected commitments
No. 159: Set standards for when the government should hire defense contractors
No. 161: End the abuse of supplemental budgets for war
No. 175: End the use of torture
No. 176: End the use of extreme rendition
No. 177: Close the Guantanamo Bay Detention Center
No. 178: Develop an alternative to President Bush’s Military Commissions Act on handling detainees
No. 203: Develop a comprehensive cyber security and response strategy
No. 218: Increase the size of the foreign service
No. 222: Grant Americans unrestricted rights to visit family and send money to Cuba
No. 259: Reduce subsidies to private student lenders and protect student borrowers
No. 275: Expand Pell grants for low-income students
No. 286: Secure the borders
No. 306: Push for a college football playoff system
No. 313: Allow bankruptcy judges to modify terms of a home mortgage
No. 373: Encourage community service through online outreach and social networking
No. 392: Expand broadband’s reach
No. 393: Double federal funding for basic science research over 10 years
No. 405: Create White House performance team and chief performance officer
No. 421: Appoint an American Indian policy adviser
No. 422: Create new financial regulations
No. 439: Create 5 million “green” jobs
No. 449: Raise fuel economy standards
No. 455: Work with UN on climate change
No. 456: Create cap and trade system with interim goals to reduce global warming
No. 463: Require more energy-efficient appliances
No. 464: Reduce energy consumption in federal buildings
No. 469: Require federal fleet to be half hybrids or electrical cars
No. 476: Modernize the nation’s electricity grid and use “smart grid” practices
No. 502: Get his daughters a puppy
No. 514: Ensure that stem cell research is conducted ethically and with vigorous oversight

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Comments (7)

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  1. Unstable Isotope says:

    LOL “Get his daughters a puppy” is one that is “in the works.”

    Some of them I don’t see as campaign promises, really:
    No. 306: Push for a college football playoff system
    How is he supposed to do that?

    We should talk to Tom Carper about this one:
    No. 313: Allow bankruptcy judges to modify terms of a home mortgage

  2. meatball says:

    I saw the head (?) of this organization talking this up on Washington Journal this weekend. He came off somewhat right leaning to me. When asked if he had plans to do similiar comparisons with past presidents, he replied that his organization simply did not have the resources.

    So, really there is no benchmark or baseline for comparison.

  3. a. price says:

    stop raining on my Obamamania parade!

  4. Miscreant says:

    President Obama had better get busy on this one.

    Seriously.

    http://us.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/03/03/cure.cancer.obama/index.html

  5. a. price says:

    he only has 7 and 3/4 years left to fix the world forever

  6. 7 years? Dude the guy has till tomorrow if you ask certain people