Candidate	Barack Obama	John McCain
Rates	Expand 10, 15, 25, 28% rate brackets   Restore 36% and 39.6% brackets   Increast Cap Gain rates from 15% to 20%	Make Bush tax cuts permanent   Require 3/5 Congressional majority to raise taxes
Cuts / Credits	Permanently adopt current rules for marriage penalty relief, expanded Child Tax Credit, and expanded Adoption tax Credit   Eliminate tax on seniors earning <$50,000   Expand Earned Income Tax Credit   Create refundable “Universal Mortgage Credit” equal to 10% of interest payments for non-itemizers   Expand Saver’s Credit; make refundable   Create refundable “American Opportunity Tax Credit” for first $4,000 of college costs   Make R&D Credit and R&E Credit permanent   Expand Production Tax Credit for 5 years; add incentives for renewable energy	Raise personal exemption for dependents to $7,000   Expand first-year expensing for new equipment and technology
Employment Taxes	Eliminate wage ceiling for Social Security   Create refundable “Making Work Pay” tax credit of 6.2% of earnings up to $8,100	-
Estate Tax	Freeze tax at 2009 levels (estates over $3.5/$7.0M taxes at 45%)	Cap tax at 15% on estates over $10M
Administration	Give taxpayers option to accept IRS-completed forms to verify, sign, and return	-
Alternative Minimum Tax	-	Permanently repeal AMT
Health Care	Create national public plan for individuals and small employers	Eliminate tax breaks for employer-provided health insurance; replace with tax credits ($2,500/individuals, $5,000/families) for buying insurance