Barack Obama’s “plan” for science was just posted on his campaign website issues page. The statement is short and generic at best, but he has also posted a three page fact sheet that gives more detail about his overall view. They call the fact sheet a plan on the issues page, but it is really a rather odd combination of statements about his record on the issues and statements about what he supports rather than a real top down plan for science. Overall, the document is very positive for science, but it lacks enough detail for any kind of substantive assessment of what he would do for science as President. There are some notable highlights though.
Doubling Basic Science Research Funding?: His plan plainly states that “Barack Obama supports doubling federal funding for basic research.” However, it seems that he might be talking just about the physical sciences as outlined int he American COMPETES Act. Unfortunately there is no specific mention of increasing funding for basic biomedical research anywhere in the document.
Politicalization of Science: The fact sheet states, “An Obama administration will make sure that the government does not distort the results of scientific research for ideological ends.” While far less detailed than Hillary Clinton’s refreshingly specific plans to end the politicalization of science, it is a good sign that the Obama campaign at least realizes that it has been a problem.
Minorities: Both healthcare disparities and increasing the number of minorities that go into science are given their own sections; a strong indication that an Obama administration will make these issues a serious priority. Unfortunately, both sections lack any specific plans for tackling the issues.
Intellectual Property: Here the campaign again states his intentions very specifically. “Barack Obama believes we need to update and reform our copyright and patent systems to promote innovation and investment, while ensuring that intellectual property owners are fairly treated. He supports updating our patent policies and procedures to promote enhanced research.” Can anyone tell us what “enhanced research” is?
R&D Tax Credit: He supports making the R&D tax credit permanent, but also states, “He will refine tax laws to better support investment, adjust patent policies to more flexibly respond to quickening cycles of technological advance, and ensure regulatory policies both protect the public and encourage risk-taking by researchers.” That sounds encouraging, but it is a rather amorphous statement that mixes patent issues with regulatory policies.
Stem Cells:It is widely known that Senator Obama supports lifting the President’s ban on using federal funding for embryonic stem cell research on cell lines derived after August 2001, and the campaign clearly implies such in this fact sheet. I find it somewhat odd that it isn’t simply stated that he would lift President Bush’s ban. Was it lost to editing by committee or did the campaign really think that some people would be put off by simply stating what he would do?
My criticisms of this short document aside, the Obama campaign should be commended for at least trying to put something out that directly addresses science issues. All candidates for President and Congress should really be laying out what they plan to do if elected or re-elected for office. As many of our posts have indicated, science is going to play a vital role in determining our economic viability over the coming decades, especially in areas like energy research. If your leaders aren’t laying out their plans, then please dig in and find what they have done and load it into the SEA SHARP Network and write to them and ask them where they stand.
On a final note…I, of course, have not forgotten the two leading Republican candidates. Unfortunately, neither John McCain’s nor Mike Huckabee’s campaign issue pages detail any specific plans for science so far. McCain does have information posted on healthcare reform and the space program. Huckabee, on the other hand, has pages on energy independence and healthcare reform. We will be doing a comprehensive search of their websites next week to see if we can cobble together other statements that indicate their plans for science.
