100 Days to Change America

“It’s a President we’re choosing here. That’s why today I want to lay out some of what I’ll do in the first hundred days of a Kerry Administration to make the Real Deal a reality. In the weeks ahead, I’m going to lay out an Action Plan for the First 100 Days. The specific steps we will take to change America – the steps I will fight for in the early days of a Kerry Presidency.”

Give our government back to the people and shine a light on the secret deals in Washington by reinstating the 5-year ban on lobbying so that government officials cannot cash in with influence peddling and requiring every meeting with a lobbyist or any special interest deal inserted by a lobbyist be made public.

Make health care a right for every American by offering a realistic health care plan as the first major proposal to Congress.

Change the corporate culture by closing offshore loopholes, applying tough RICO criminal penalties for corrupt corporations and rewarding companies that create jobs by helping with health care costs, a new manufacturing jobs tax credit and new assistance for small businesses.

Rollback George Bush’s assault on our environment by restoring and strengthening protections for clean air and clean water, and making America energy independent of Mid East oil in ten years.

Make national service a way of life by requiring mandatory service for high school kids and giving Americans the chance to earn four years of college tuition in exchange for two years of service.

Create an economy that works for the middle class instead of the privileged class by repealing the Bush tax cuts for the wealthy so that we can invest in education and health care and protecting middle class tax cuts.

Make a new deal on education by creating a new Education Trust Fund that will guarantee full funding our schools and protect our children’s education from politics.

Restore fiscal sanity to Washington by cutting the deficit in half in four years.

Protect individual rights not roll them back -- including equal rights and a woman’s right to choose –by naming an Attorney General who has a proven commitment to the constitutional foundation of this nation.

Rejoin the community of nations, renounce the Bush policy of preemptive war and restore American leadership.

http://www.johnkerry.com/pressroom/releases/pr_2003_1121.html

More on the 100 Days Blueprint, a Real Deal:

http://www.johnkerry.com/issues/100days/index.html

I still have my own personal questions about mandatory service, but in general I like it.

So do I. But I also know it's been very popular in alot of places around the country and as long as it considers kids' differing circumstances, I can see it being beneficial.

I see stronger communities coming from this. A good sense of "neighborhood" that has been neglected in many areas.

I would like to see a big chunk of funds earmarked for the administrative end of it.

Working in the public sector, I've seen too many instances of otherwise good ideas implemented as unfunded mandates...and it does put a strain on the public and nonprofit sector.

Dealing with this size of an influx of new untrained high school volunteers is a challenge. I tend to have one at a time already, and that does require significant staff time for training, supervision, etc.

I've lived in two small towns most of my adult life, very different. The first one was centered around the school and kids and the 'old people' knew all the kids, what activities they were involved in, what their aspirations were. When one of the kids was disabled in a car wreck, the community paid for everything he needed at home and at school. Because of the seniors' support of the kids, the kids learned to give back and were always ready to help the seniors.

The community I'm in now is the complete opposite because the seniors come from other places to retire here. The schools are well-funded, that's only right, but they're stuck on the outskirts of town, out of sight. The teens aren't treated well in town and I doubt many seniors or even business owners know one from another. The kids aren't as respectful or community oriented.

If this national service brought seniors and teens together in community service, it could make a real difference. But if it keeps the generations separated, it won't help as much as it could.

That's my 2 cents anyway.

Most of our volunteers are either seniors or teens.

Not as an attack, but my eyes start to roll backward at extremely long policy statements.

This one is nice and succinct and highly readable.

I do like it, and would much rather talk about it than who lies, or Kerry campaign staff gossip, or who seems a nicer person or not.

It is a strong candidate statement...could probably fit well on flyers to the ordinary American.