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Platform #1 in the left column We believe in
American exceptionalism. Americans have
earned and deserve a strong and healthy economy. Our standing in
world affairs has declined significantly — our enemies no longer fear us and
our friends no long trust us. We are the party of
a growing economy that gives everyone a chance in life, an opportunity to
learn, work, and realize the prosperity freedom makes possible. More than any other
public policy, the way government raises revenue — how much, at what rates,
under what circumstances, from whom, and for whom — has the greatest impact
on our economy's performance. We will eliminate as
many special interest provisions and loopholes as possible and curb corporate
welfare, …. We cannot allow
foreign governments to limit American access to their markets …. …We look to broaden
our trade agreements with countries which share our values and commitment to
fairness, along with transparency in our commercial and business practices.
In pursuing that objective, the American people demand transparency, full
disclosure, protection of our national sovereignty, and tough negotiation on
the part of those who are supposed to advance the interests of U.S. workers. We encourage
public-private partnerships to provide predictable support for connecting
rural areas so that every American can fully participate in the global
economy. The public-private
partnerships between NASA, the Department of Defense, and commercial
companies have given us technological progress that has reduced the cost of
accessing space and extended America's space leadership in the commercial,
civil, and national security spheres. All Americans
deserve the opportunity to pursue their American dream free from
discrimination. Clear nondiscrimination policies ensure all employees have
the chance to succeed based solely on their merits. These policies are vital
to creating an inclusive, innovative, and competitive workforce. We denounce bigotry,
racism, anti-Semitism, ethnic prejudice, and religious intolerance. Honest elections are
the foundation of representative government. We pledge to protect the voting
rights of every citizen, as well as their rights of conscience when they are
harassed or denied a job because of their contributions to a candidate or a
cause. We are the party of
America's growers, producers, farmers, ranchers, foresters, miners,
commercial fishermen, and all those who bring from the earth the crops,
minerals, energy, and the bounties of our seas that are the lifeblood of our
economy. The federal fiscal
burden threatens the security, liberty, and independence of our nation. …The
Administration's policies systematically crippled economic growth and job
creation, driving up government costs and driving down revenues. Based on both treaty
and other law, the federal government has a unique government-to-government
relationship with and trust responsibility for Indian Tribal Governments,
American Indians, and Alaska Natives. These obligations have not been
sufficiently honored. We respect the
tribal governments as the voice of their communities and encourage federal,
state, and local governments to heed those voices in developing programs and
partnerships to improve the quality of life for American Indians and their
neighbors in their communities. [Our party
recognizes] that each tribe has the right of consultation before any new
regulatory policy is implemented on tribal land. To the extent possible, such
consultation should take place in Indian country with the tribal government
and its members. We support the right
of the United States citizens of Puerto Rico to be admitted to the Union as a
fully sovereign state. The men and women of
law enforcement … deserve our gratitude and support. The current
Administration's lack of respect for them, from White House intervention in
local arrests to the Attorney General's present campaign of harassment
against police forces around the country, has been unprecedented. We encourage states
to offer opportunities for literacy and vocational education to prepare
prisoners for release to the community. Breaking the cycle of crime begins
with the children of those who are prisoners. Deprived of a parent through no
fault of their own, youngsters from these families should be a special
concern of our schools, social services, and religious institutions. We are the party of
peace through strength. We believe that American exceptionalism — the notion
that our ideas and principles as a nation give us a unique place of moral
leadership in the world — requires the United States to retake its natural
position as leader of the free world. In all of our
country's history, there is no parallel to what [the prior administration
has] done to weaken our nation. Our aging naval capabilities are inadequate
for their job. The Air Force fields the smallest and oldest force of combat
aircraft in its history. The Marines have only two-thirds the number of
battalions they have historically needed to meet day to day operational
demands. The Army is at its lowest troop levels since before World War II. In the face of these
threats, the first order of business for a [new] president and Congress will
be to restore our nation's military might. Our nation's
veterans have been our nation's strength and remain a national resource.
Their service to their country — as community leaders, volunteers, mentors,
educators, problem solvers, and public officials — continues long after they
leave the military. … America has a sacred trust with our veterans, and we
are committed to ensuring them and their families' care and dignity. The work
of the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is essential to meet our
commitments to them: Providing health, education, disability, survivor, and
home loan benefits, and arranging memorial services upon death. Our wounded
warriors, whether still in service or discharged, deserve the best medical
care the country can provide. Like the rest of
American medicine, the VA faces a critical shortage of primary care and
mental health physicians. For a veteran, a job
is more than a source of income. It is a new mission, with a new status, and
the transition can be difficult. We urge the private sector to make hiring
vets a company policy and commend the organizations that have proven programs
to accomplish this. We will retain the preference given to veterans when they
seek federal employment. With bipartisan
support, President Truman forged the North Atlantic Treaty Organization
(NATO) as an alliance of the western democracies. Its continued effectiveness
is vital, especially in light of recent military challenges in Eastern
Europe. Foreign assistance
programs must not only project the best of American values, but must work to
create self-sustainability and leverage the resources and capacity of the
private sector. The United States needs a radical rethinking
of our human rights diplomacy. A [xxx] administration will adopt a
"whole of government" approach to protect fundamental freedoms
globally, one where pressing human rights and rule of law issues are
integrated at every appropriate level of our bilateral relationships and
strategic decision-making. [this part is from the introduction and is
the only selection out of order] Every time we sing, "God Bless
America," we are asking for help. We ask for divine help that our
country can fulfill its promise. We earn that help by recommitting ourselves
to the ideas and ideals that are the true greatness of America. |
Platform #2 in the right column If America is to
work effectively for such a peace, we must first restore our national
strength-military, political, economic, and moral. Over the past 7 1/2
years, our military power has steadily declined relative to that of the
Russians and the Chinese... …Our conventional
military forces, on which we depend for defense in any non-nuclear war, have
been dangerously slashed for reasons of "economy". A first order of
business of [our] Administration will be a complete re-examination of the
organization of our armed forces. If an alliance is to
be maintained in vigor, its unity must be reflected in shared purposes. Some
of our allies have contributed neither devotion to the cause of freedom nor
any real military strength. The new [xxx] Administration
will review our system of pacts and alliances. …The increase in foreign imports involves
costly adjustment and damage to some domestic industries and communities. The [new] Administration
will help industries affected by foreign trade with measures favorable to
economic growth, orderly transition, fair competition, and the long-run
economic strength of all parts of our nation. Industries and
communities affected by foreign trade need and deserve appropriate help
through trade adjustment measures such as direct loans, tax incentives,
defense contracts priority, and re-training assistance. The new [xxx]
Administration will seek international agreements to assure fair competition
and fair labor standards to protect our own workers and to improve the lot of
workers elsewhere. …We recognize and
welcome the irresistible momentum of the world revolution of rising
expectations for a better life. We shall identify American policy with the
values and objectives of this revolution. To this end the new [xxx]
Administration will revamp and refocus the objectives, emphasis and
allocation of our foreign assistance programs. We welcome the
emerging new nations of Africa to the world community. Here again we shall
strive to write a new chapter of fruitful cooperation. In Latin America we
shall restore the Good Neighbor Policy based on far closer economic
cooperation and increased respect and understanding. In the Middle East
we will work for guarantees to insure independence for all states. The new [xxx]
Administration will restore the former high levels of cooperation within the
Atlantic Community envisaged from the beginning by the NATO treaty in
political and economic spheres as well as military affairs. Today we are capable
of creating an abundance in goods and services beyond the dreams of our
parents. Yet on the threshold of plenty the Republican Administration
hesitates, confused and afraid. As a result, massive
human needs now exist side by side with idle workers, idle capital, and idle
machines. The [prior
administration’s] failure in the economic field has been virtually complete. Over the past 7
1/2-year period, the [prior administration has] failed to balance the budget
or reduce the national debt. … The [prior administration] Administration has
produced the deficits— in fact, the greatest deficit in any peace-time year
in history…. The new [xxx] Administration
will confidently proceed to unshackle American enterprise and to free
American labor, industrial leadership, and capital, to create an abundance
that will outstrip any other system. Free competitive
enterprise is the most creative and productive form of economic order that
the world has seen. The recent slow pace of American growth is due not to the
failure of our free economy but to the failure of our national leadership. Economic growth is
the means whereby we improve the American standard of living and produce
added tax resources for national security and essential public services. Tens of thousands of
farm families have been bankrupted and forced off the land. This has happened
despite the fact that the Secretary of Agriculture has spent more on farm
programs than all previous Secretaries in history combined. "The right of
every businessman, large and small, to trade in an atmosphere of freedom from
unfair competition and domination by monopolies at home and abroad." The new [xxx] Administration
will act to make our free economy really free—free from the oppression of
monopolistic power, and free from the suffocating impact of high interest
rates. We will help create an economy in which small businesses can take
root, grow, and flourish. Natural resources
are the birthright of all the people. The people are
entitled to use profitably what they already own. …Our mining industry
is in what may be the initial phase of a serious long-term depression. Sound
policy requires that we strengthen the domestic mining industry without
interfering with adequate supplies of needed materials at reasonable costs. We will resume
research and development work on use of low-grade mineral reserves,
especially oil shale, lignites, iron ore taconite, and radioactive minerals.
These efforts have been halted or cut back by the [prior] Administration. Over the past seven
years, we have watched the steady weakening of the nation's transportation
system. The new [xxx] Administration
will press forward with our national space program in full realization of the
importance of space accomplishments to our national security and our
international prestige. In order to restore
United States leadership in atomic development, the new [xxx] Administration
will: 1. Restore truly
nonpartisan and vigorous administration of the vital atomic energy program. 2. Continue the
development of the various promising experimental and prototype atomic power
plants which show promise, and provide increasing support for longer-range
projects at the frontiers of atomic energy application…. In recent years, we
have been faced with a shocking increase in crimes of all kinds. Organized
criminals have even infiltrated into legitimate business enterprises and
labor unions. The [prior]
Administration, particularly the Attorney General's office, has failed
lamentably to deal with this problem despite the growing power of the
underworld. The new [xxx] Administration will take vigorous corrective
action. We deplore efforts
to divide the United States into regional, religious and ethnic groups. We denounce and
repudiate campaign tactics that substitute smear and slander, bigotry and
false accusations of bigotry, for truth and reasoned argument. The social,
economic, and political progress of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico is a
testimonial to the sound enabling legislation, and to the sincerity and
understanding with which the people of the 50 states and Puerto Rico are
meeting their joint problems. Puerto Rico has
become a show place of world-wide interest, a tribute to the benefits of the
principles of self-determination. Further benefits for Puerto Rico under
these principles are certain to follow. We pledge adequate
compensation for those with service-connected disabilities and for the
survivors of those who died in service or from service-connected
disabilities. We pledge pensions adequate for a full and dignified life for
disabled and distressed veterans and for needy survivors of deceased
veterans. We endorse expanded
programs of vocational rehabilitation for disabled veterans, and education
for orphans of servicemen. The quality of
medical care furnished to the disabled veterans has deteriorated under the [prior]
Administration. We recognize the
unique legal and moral responsibility of the Federal Government for Indians
in restitution for the injustice that has sometimes been done them. We
therefore pledge prompt adoption of a program to assist Indian tribes in the
full development of their human and natural resources and to advance the
health, education, and economic well-being of Indian citizens while
preserving their cultural heritage. The new [xxx] Administration
will bring competent, sympathetic, and dedicated leadership to the
administration of Indian affairs which will end practices that have eroded Indian
rights and resources, reduced the Indians' land base and repudiated Federal
responsibility. We believe,
moreover, that except in periods of recession or national emergency, these
needs can be met with a balanced budget, with no increase in present tax
rates, and with some surplus for the gradual reduction of our national debt. To assure such a
balance we shall pursue a four-point program of fiscal responsibility. First, we shall end
the gross waste in Federal expenditures which needlessly raises the budgets
of many Government agencies…. Third, we shall
close the loopholes in the tax laws by which certain privileged groups
legally escape their fair share of taxation. Fourth, we shall
bring in added Federal tax revenues by expanding the economy itself. Each
dollar of additional production puts an additional 18 cents in tax revenue in
the national treasury. A 5% growth rate, therefore, will mean that at the end
of four years the Federal Government will have had a total of nearly $[XXX]
billion in additional tax revenues above those presently received. It is the duty of
the Congress to enact the laws necessary and proper to protect and promote
these constitutional rights. The Supreme Court has the power to interpret
these rights and the laws thus enacted. It is the duty of
the President to see that these rights are respected and that the
Constitution and laws as interpreted by the Supreme Court are faithfully
executed. For 7 1/2 years
America, governed by the Party of Memory, has taken a holiday from history. As the Party of Hope
it is our responsibility and opportunity to call forth the greatness of the
American people. |
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