The Democratic Party has been the party of change for decades. It must continue to be the agent of change in the interests of the people, not the special interests. In essence, the party believes that government has the capacity to transform our nation for the better if managed efficiently, with purpose and integrity and with an eye towards a future that provides everyone with a chance at realizing their dreams. The government is not the enemy. The government represents the desires and hopes of the people and should always act with their interests in mind. Given this simple concept which was the very foundation of our nation throughout our history, the Democratic Party supports these broad themes. 1. Equality for All. Fair and equitable treatment of all our citizens regardless of race, gender, sexual orientation, social status, wealth, age or religion. This means that the party supports equal access to the benefits of citizenship for all citizens in areas of voting rights, marriage equality, fair sentencing guidelines and equal pay for equal work. All religions must enjoy equal treatment under the law and you should be free to engage or not engage in religious acts without government intervention. The separation of church and state is paramount. 2. Voting is a right and a responsibility. Voting should be easy, automatic and universal. All citizens should be encouraged to vote upon meeting eligibility requirements. Any citizen that has not committed treason, rape or murder should be eligible to vote for any national office. All national elections should use the same method of voting, it should be linked to one central database (Social Security for instance), voter registration should be automatic upon getting a valid SS card. SS cards should be secure, tamper proof and accurate. If we can secure a credit card transaction, we can vote electronically. 3. Education is the key to the future. Education remains the key investment we make in the future. It is the most important indicator of success in this competitive environment. Starting with preschool and ending with college, the party supports expanding our investments in each child making the circumstance of birth a non-factor in how you access our educational system. Higher educational opportunities in college or vocational schools should be available to anyone who makes the effort to meet the admission requirements. Tuition costs should be low, loans should be discouraged and subsidized and repayment of existing loans should be refinanced at the prime rate. Education should produce a person who has a solid base of knowledge and the ability to think critically. 4. We must invest in our own nation. The nation cannot expect to grow if we rely upon the infrastructure investments made by our ancestors alone. Everywhere you look, our infrastructure is crumbling. The federal government must work in concert with state and local governments to invest in new water, power, broadband, wireless and transportation projects. Every corner of America needs to be audited to see where our infrastructure needs improvement and 100 billion per year for 10 years should be budgeted for this effort. This will create jobs, increase our productivity and make our nation competitive again. 5. Trade must be open, free and fair. Trade agreements must be transparent, fair and tailored to direct improvement of the people of America not the investors in corporations. The main issue is labor and how any trade agreement affects domestic employment. If the agreement destroys jobs in America, then the agreement is wrong. We must stop being the customer for the world and rebalance our trade deficits so that we are a net exporter not a net importer. Exporting raw materials and energy is not the key to our future. We must exports goods and services that put people to work. 6. Military power lies in strength and restraint. The military is critical to our security, safety and represents the single most effective global tool against the horrors of war, brutality, genocide and oppression. We must maintain a modern, equipped force that can defend the homeland, our allies and our values. We must acknowledge that this responsibility is limited by our resources and by the ability of force to affect change in every instance where we see a need. It must not be used as a tool of imperialism. Our allies must accept a greater role in their own defense and in regional conflicts. We cannot and will not police the world. 7. The courts must be responsible to the people. The Supreme Court has almost unlimited power to shape our laws. The party supports a modern interpretation of the law in recognition of the complexity of life today. The court must reflect the interests of the people while defending and explaining the law. Nine justices rule for life, this must change. The party will propose a new amendment making judicial appointments 18 year terms with forced retirement at age 82. 8. Mother Earth is sacred. The environment is critical to our way of life. All of us want a clean, healthy and dynamic earth that is managed to sustain the precious life it supports, protects us against the dangers of mans activities and gives our ancestors a chance to enjoy an Earth that is filled with life, forests, reefs, wilderness and diversity. The tradeoff between money and nature is a false choice. We only have one Earth to live on, we must be stewards of it rather than exploiters. 9. Nothing is free. Taxes are the price we pay for civilization. Every single citizen pays a tax in one form or another. Taxes allow government to control the economy by cutting them or increasing them depending upon the conditions at the time. There is no golden rule for how much tax should be collected. The government can fund budgets by tying them to taxes or it can continue to increase the money supply by borrowing. Regardless of the tactic, the economy must be managed by looking at the capacity of the economy and use monetary and fiscal policy to insure that we are always working at or near full capacity. Taxes should be progressive and fair. The key to a good tax policy is to tie it to the goals of the people not the special interests or the wealthy. When in doubt, make taxes progressive but make sure that every citizen regardless of income pays a minimum tax so that all of us have an interest in the outcome. 10. Natural Law is our guide. Our foreign policy should be focused on protecting our allies, encouraging human rights, gaining equal access to education, food, health care and peace for everyone on earth. Our policies must always keep in mind that these are our core values. 11. We can all be good Samaritans. Health care is a fundamental right of any human being. The Hippocratic Oath has been around for thousands of years. Humans have been providing health care for themselves and others since the dawn of time. We have the capacity to make health care universal, effective, efficient and inexpensive. We must continue to improve the ACA to meet these goals. The federal government will open up Medicare for all as an alternative to private health insurance. It will be a fee based service. Health insurance for the uninsured or the poor will be available through a national system of clinics paid for by a tax on all health care products, services and industries. 12. Money is the root of all evil. Financial institutions must be held accountable to the people. The SEC, FED and DoJ must serve the interests of the people not the banks or financial institutions. The government will no longer accept fines in lieu of prosecution. Any wrong doing by any financial firm will involve prosecution of individuals and management will be held personally responsible for their firms actions. A financial transaction tax will be levied. The big banks will be broken up separating investment from banking. Anti-trust laws will be enforced. Any company that commands greater than 70% of a market will be forced to liquidate assets until they control less than 50% of that market. Mergers and acquisitions will be scrutinized to insure that competition remains vibrant. Competitors will no longer be able to buy other competitors unless the market contains at least 10 viable competitors remaining. 13. Energy must be a priority. The energy profile of America must be moving towards efficiency, conservation, renewables and clean energy. Utilities must be organized to allow for small scale energy sources to exist and become part of the energy system. 14. Water is fundamental to survival. Water is critical to our survival. National standards for ground water regulation, usage and management should be created. The commerce clause must be used to declare all fresh water a national resource managed by each state but with the knowledge that our water ecosystem is intertwined and connected. We must invest in water desalinization research and technology to replenish our existing aquifers. Federal subsidies of water for farming, ranching, urban use and power generation must focus on the most effective use of a finite resource. 15. The War on Drugs has been a disaster. Focus on treatment not incarceration. Our prisons are filled with people with severe drug problems. Repeal the federal laws making marijuana illegal. Make cocaine, meth, heroin and other serious drugs decriminalized but force users into treatment centers not jails. 16. Labor must regain power. The labor movement has been the single most important agent of middle class prosperity in the history of mankind. Allow labor to sit on the negotiation teams of every free trade agreement. Encourage management to put labor on the boards of directors and in key management roles. Reverse the adversarial relationship between management and labor by making both sides understand they need each other to succeed. 17. Budgets are plans for the future. The federal budget is not the same as a personal or company budget. It is a plan for insuring that the goals set forth in this platform can be reached. If the economy is performing at or near optimum capacity, budgets should still be a way to invest in the future regardless of the delta between tax incomes and expenditures. If the economy is suffering from a deficit in demand, the federal budget must make up the difference either by granting tax relief or putting people to work on critical needs. As we grow, we consume and demand more wealth to be created. Money is created by the government. Drive wealth by managing the economy not the budget. 18. Research funding must increase. Pure research is not constrained by the need to make a profit. It is the key human activity that increases our knowledge base, improves our living conditions and allows us to explore the wonders of nature and reality. The government and its institutions must continue to expand research by funding it at all levels as a top priority. 19. Immigration reform must be comprehensive A path to citizenship for all undocumented people living in the US today must be passed as part of a comprehensive immigration reform package. America is not a police state and never will be a police state. Future immigration policy must accept the fact that we will always need low skilled workers and that these workers and immigrants play a vital role in our economy and they must enter the USA within the system not outside of it. Foreign students who come to our universities must be given special status so that we keep them in the USA rather than train them to compete with us upon their return to their countries of origin. We should allow for immigration to occur only when we see a need to bring in new talents or scarce skills. We cannot allow unlimited or increased immigration without an understanding of the carrying capacity of the nation, our resources and our way of life. America will not be a better place with 500 million people. We need to accept that there is a limit to how many people can live in this great nation and that this should always be foremost in our minds when creating immigration policies. If the left adopts many of these policies, you will see voter turnout increase and the people will get a sense that the government is working for them not the rich, powerful or connected. These policies are in sharp contrast to the Tea Party and the conservative agenda but there are areas of agreement that could attract independents and younger conservative voters. The left cannot and will not give ground on its core values and principles. We will fight aggressively and thoroughly to promote these items and halt the right ward slide of national politics which will end up destroying us if left unchallenged.
