Obama begins swing through Iowa

Barack Obama launched a five-day circuit through Iowa with a speech in Bettendorf entitled "Reclaiming the American Dream."

Specific points of Obama's plan to help working families include:

• Provide a middle class tax cut of up to $1,000 for working families, and eliminate the income tax for retirees making less than $50,000 per year.

• Address the challenge of balancing work and family by guaranteeing workers paid sick days, expanding the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), supporting paid FMLA, and doubling funding for after-school programs.

• Help Americans buy and keep their homes.

• Protect American families by reforming bankruptcy laws, predatory credit card policies, and abusive payday lending practices.

• Reduce health care costs by $2,500 for a typical family.

• Strengthen retirement security by automatically enrolling workers in portable retirement accounts and providing additional incentives for Americans to save.

• Put the cost of college in reach by providing a $4,000 refundable tax credit available at the time of enrollment, and create a Community College Partnership Program to strengthen this vital resource for American students.

The highlight of the Iowa is visit is the Pre-JJ Rally on Nov. 10 with singer John Legend.