Obama tech platform aims to trump Clinton

One of the leading Democratic presidential candidates, Barack Obama, today published his technology platform (PDF file), which if enacted would cover a much broader range of areas than an equivalent platform proposed by Hillary Clinton. His campaign calls not only for net neutrality and speeding up the expansion of broadband, but improved math and science education, more government research spending, making an R&D tax credit permanent, and allowing the immigration of more tech workers.

The most unusual aspect of the plan may be the concept of a "chief technology officer," who would be tasked with keeping all federal computer networks up to date, as well as enforcing the transparency of records as required by law. The first CTO's term would also see the building of a national wireless network solely for public safety units, a recommendation of the 9/11 Commission.

Obama's platform further calls for expanded government presence on the Internet. Streaming event coverage would expand to cover meetings of the executive branch, and data would be published in universal formats. In a bid to foster interaction, the public would be able to comment on non-emergency legislation through the White House website five days before signing, and government employees would be able to exchange information through official blogs, wikis and other web tools. [via San Jose Mercury News]