Barack Obama vs John McCain
Barack Obama
United States- 44th President of the United States (2009-2017)
- U.S. Senator from Illinois (2005-2008)
Illinois senator who became the first African American president, passed the Affordable Care Act and financial reform after the 2008 crisis, and pursued diplomacy with Iran and Cuba.
Full profile of Barack Obama
John McCain
United States- U.S. Senator from Arizona (1987-2018)
- U.S. Representative from Arizona (1983-1987)
Navy pilot and Vietnam prisoner of war who became a six-term Arizona senator, a defense hawk and the Republican presidential nominee in 2008.
Full profile of John McCainIn short
How they compare
Barack Obama (Born 1961) and John McCain (1936-2018) are a 70% match on the 11 axes where both have a clear record.
They differ most on foreign policy (Barack Obama: cooperation (mild); John McCain: strength (strong)), welfare (Barack Obama: shared (moderate); John McCain: self-reliant (moderate)) and morality (Barack Obama: progressive (moderate); John McCain: traditional (moderate)). They are closest on security, culture and trade.
On the economy John McCain sits further toward markets; on state and liberty Barack Obama sits further toward authority; on society John McCain sits further toward tradition; on the world stage John McCain sits further toward nation.
Generated from the two sourced profiles on this site. Each axis placement and its reasoning is on the full profile pages.
★ By family of axes
- Economy3 axes
- Barack Obamaequality (mild)John McCainmarkets (moderate)
- State and liberty3 axes
- Barack ObamabalancedJohn McCainliberty (mild)
- Society3 axes
- Barack Obamaprogress (moderate)John McCaintradition (mild)
- World2 axes
- Barack Obamaglobal (moderate)John McCainnation (mild)
- Barack Obama: petals and stars
- John McCain: dashed outline
★ Where they differ most
- Foreign policy110 points apart
Barack Obama: Cooperation (mild). John McCain: Strength (strong).
- Welfare90 points apart
Barack Obama: Shared (moderate). John McCain: Self-reliant (moderate).
- Morality90 points apart
Barack Obama: Progressive (moderate). John McCain: Traditional (moderate).
- Markets65 points apart
Barack Obama: Planned (mild). John McCain: Free (moderate).
★ Where they are closest
- Security · 5 apart
- Culture · 10 apart
- Trade · 15 apart
Axis by axis
John McCain
Economy
Equality / Markets- OwnershipMild: Private45%55%PublicPrivate
- MarketsMild: Planned60%40%PlannedFree
- WelfareModerate: Shared73%27%SharedSelf-reliant
State and liberty
Liberty / Authority- AuthorityModerate: Democratic78%22%DemocraticStrong leader
- SecurityMild: Order43%57%LibertyOrder
- StructureModerate: Central30%70%LocalCentral
Society
Progress / Tradition- MoralityModerate: Progressive75%25%ProgressiveTraditional
- ReligionMild: Secular58%42%SecularReligious
- TechnologyNo clear recordEmbraceCaution
- CultureModerate: Multicultural70%30%MulticulturalNational identity
World
Global / Nation- TradeModerate: Global73%27%GlobalProtected
- Foreign policyMild: Cooperation65%35%CooperationStrength
Not compared: Technology (no clear record for John McCain). These axes are greyed out above and left out of the match.
★ 12 Axes Political Test ★
Who are you closer to?
Answer plain statements on 12 axes and see your match with Barack Obama, John McCain and every other historical figure, axis by axis.
FAQ
Barack Obama vs John McCain
What is the difference between Barack Obama and John McCain?
They differ most on foreign policy (Barack Obama: cooperation (mild); John McCain: strength (strong)), welfare (Barack Obama: shared (moderate); John McCain: self-reliant (moderate)) and morality (Barack Obama: progressive (moderate); John McCain: traditional (moderate)). On the economy John McCain sits further toward markets; on state and liberty Barack Obama sits further toward authority; on society John McCain sits further toward tradition; on the world stage John McCain sits further toward nation.
What do Barack Obama and John McCain have in common?
They are closest on security, culture and trade. Overall their profiles are a 70% match on the 11 axes where both have a clear record.
Who leans more toward free markets, Barack Obama or John McCain?
On the economic axes they share, John McCain sits further toward markets and Barack Obama further toward equality. Barack Obama reads as equality (mild) overall, John McCain as markets (moderate).
Am I closer to Barack Obama or John McCain?
Take the 12 Axes Political Test. Your result shows your match with both of them, and with every other historical figure and ideology on the site, axis by axis.