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Edited on Sat Jan-03-04 08:31 PM by David Zephyr
I'm so sick of the old adage: "Run to the right if you are a Republican and to the Left if you are a Democrat during the Primaries, and then back to the Middle during the General Election".
To hell with this thinking! It is exactly the thinking that has reduced Roosevelt’s legacy of 40 years of Democrats controlling the Congress to the situation we face today.
Focus less on the 19% who waver between voting Democrat and Republican every four years and who vote with us during bad times and with them during good times (That is exactly what "independents" do, folks. Deal with it.)
Rally the 50% of the entire electorate that doesn't even bother to vote because they are convinced that their vote won't change things and that there is very little difference between the two parties.
How do we get that sleeping giant of non-participating voters to show up on Election Day and scare the shit out of Republicans and Global Corporations?
Here's a rough David Zephyr proposal for the next Nominee of the Democratic Party in 2004 on how to galvanize these voters to show up and win back both houses of Congress at the same time:
1.) Campaign for Universal Healthcare for all Americans (not just children) along the lines of what Dennis Kucinich has proposed.
2.) Campaign for four years of free university/college level and or vocational education and training.
3.) Campaign for adding 7 to 10 extra National Holidays for workers and browbeat Corporations to participate.
4.) Campaign for making all U.S. Governmental agencies purchase only products that are made in the United States of America.
5.) Call for the immediate decriminalization of Marijuana.
6.) Promise to let all drug users, not pushers, out of America's prisons and jails immediately.
7.) Call to move the nation towards 100% employment through public sector hiring and taxation. Campaign for clean energy, for building high speed rail, highways, expand solar/wind energy investment, etc.
8.) Call for Life Imprisonment for Major Corporate Crimes committed by CEO’s. Three strikes (counts) and they are out!
9.) Call for immediate legislation to make all U.S. Corporations with more than 50 employees to provide on-site day care for working parents.
10.) Monitor and enforce labor and worker rights internationally by permitting or prohibiting imported goods from nations/corporations that violate them.
11.) And by all means, campaign and educate the American populace as to class awareness.
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