Obama and McCain’s visions for the arts

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In today’s paper, I write about Barack Obama and John McCain’s very different visions for the future of the arts in America.

The presidential candidates disagree over funding for the arts and arts education, with Obama calling for more federal support and McCain calling for less. You can find both of their positions online.

McCain’s campaign has released very little official language on the subject. But two weeks ago it issued this four-sentence statement that calls for funding for arts education to be left to local entities, where ‘local priorities allow.’

Obama, on the other hand, has made arts proposals a part of his official party platform. You can find his arts policy statement, which includes a call for increased government funding for the National Endowment for the Arts, on his website.

Obama has also broached the topic on the campaign trail. Here is a clip of an April speech in which Obama talks about the importance of reintegrating arts into the classroom. The Democratic senator also shares some of his own memories of art and music lessons in school, and he admits that they weren’t always thrilling.

‘I’m not saying music was always exciting,’ Obama says. ‘I was more into Stevie Wonder.’

-- Kate Linthicum