I have a little bit to add to today’s earlier posting on McCain’s science policies.
1) An interesting thing to note is that Obama has released the names of the people who advised him on his ScienceDebate2008 answers (one is an astronomer I know, Donald Lamb). McCain? Not so much. According to that Wired magazine article linked, his campaign “ignored multiple requests for the identity of its science advisors.”
2) Incidentally, you can now vote on what grades the answers from both candidates should get.
3) My co-DM blogger Melissa Lafksy has weighed in with her views on McCain’s answers.
4) McCain is now saying some things that are truly frightening. For example, he has said that he will freeze all budgets so that they can be reviewed. At first blush that may sound reasonable, to prevent wild and reckless spending. However, many organizations need an increase in money every year just to stay even, so freezing their budgets will severely impact their ability to work.
5) The other incredible thing he said almost sounds like a joke. Here is a quotation from McCain on his health care “reform” ideas:
Opening up the health insurance market to more vigorous nationwide competition, as we have done over the last decade in banking, would provide more choices of innovative products less burdened by the worst excesses of state-based regulation.
Yes, because that worked so well for the banking industry! Just ask anyone at Fannie Mae, Freddi Mac, or the Lehman Brothers.
Wow.
This part was out of context, as pointed out in the comments below (thanks, Ryan!). I got the original quotation from Paul Klugman of the Washington Post, who is usually good about such things, and missed it myself when reading McCain’s original article. My apologies. Still, the analogy is a funny one.
