Clark College students ‘Rock the Vote,’ share views

Cristin Rigney, 26

Political persuasion: Undecided.Republican.

Registered to vote: Yes.

Top issue: Family values, taxes: “I might be swayed to vote for Obama, but he wants to reduce the deficit by taxing us, and I can’t take on anything more.”

Barack Obama’s position: Would raise income taxes for families making more than $250,000; nobody else’s would go up, and most middle-income families’ taxes would fall.

John McCain’s position: Would extend tax cuts started under President Bush for all taxpayers, reduce estate taxes and cut corporate taxes.

Joe Jenkins, 38

Political persuasion: Democrat.

Registered to vote: Yes.

Top issue: American jobs. “I believe in the core fundamentals of family values, and it’s too hard for families to make it these days.”

Obama’s position: Stop giving tax breaks to companies that ship jobs overseas and give them to those creating jobs in the United States.

McCain’s position: “I want to cut that business tax. I want to cut it so that businesses will remain in the U.S. and create jobs,” he said in the first presidential debate.

Ciaran McCarthy, 19

Political persuasion: Supported Ron Paul, now voting for Barack Obama.

Registered to vote: Yes.

Top issue: Health care. “I look at all these Western nations and they all have health care. I see people in debt (due to medical bills), who pay off that debt for the rest of their lives. I don’t care if I have to pay a couple extra cents on a Coca-Cola.”

Obama’s position: Would mandate coverage for children and provide uninsured families with subsidies to buy health care through regional purchasing pools. Insurance companies would no longer be allowed to turn people down for preexisting conditions, though it is unclear if that would extend to other criteria, such as age. People satisfied with their current coverage would not be required to change.

McCain’s position: Would make companies pay taxes on health care premiums (currently companies do not as an incentive to provide workers with health care). Would, however, provide families with a $5,000 annual tax credit to purchase health insurance on free market (in Washington, health care costs $11,423 per family on average.) Supports “high risk pools” for those with preexisting conditions.

Alex Berezhnoy, 20

Registered to vote: Yes.

Top issues: Iraq war (he just returned from a tour with the Navy), the economy. “The economy determines my college. The funding could be lost because it’s paid through the G.I. Bill. If you have no funding, you can’t go to college. You can have passion, but you can’t go.”

Obama’s position: Says he would provide students with a $4,000 refundable tax credit.
McCain’s position: Intends to shorten FAFSA aid form and make current tax credits more easily accessible to families.

— Compiled by Isolde Raftery, Columbian staff writer