THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!

This agenda is for all of the Sean Hannitys, Bill O'Reillys, Rush Limbaughs, Dick Cheneys, and Karl Roves of the world that say Democrats do not have a plan for national security, homeland security, foreign policy, and Iraq.

Awesome! This gives me some (more) hope for the Dem party...that the "leaders" might grow some spine and a backbone!

Thanks for finally putting something out there!
Now give us the cliff notes, sound bytes, one liners if you will to get the message to the masses!
Cheney says that this is just a stunt..the CNN article I just read on line says the plan is "short on details"..well ...my take would be that if we are going to "eliminate Osama Bin Laden" we would be supremely stupid to publish just how we will accomplish that!
We need to spin that. Now how do you break that down to one short sweet line?
Put your marketing genius caps on activists and give us verbal ammo!

I hope the leadership has learned the value of repetition to keep this plan on everyone's radar. If they can do that, they'll own national security the way they did social security privitization.

Tim, this thing needs bullet points with identifiable themes -- for easy reading, digestion and recollection. For example (off the top of my head):

* Secure America's ports & borders
* Restore America's security before profit & contracts
* Protect America from national disasters
* Improve military intelligence
* Implement 9/11 Commission recommendations

And then hit it over and over in the press: Secure, Restore, Protect, Improve, Implement . . . the version you've posted is a good first draft, but much too narrative and thematically disorganized. You folks can do better . . .

OK, I see the tabs across the top, but "21st Century Military, War on Terror, Homeland Security, Iraq, and Energy Ind." doesn't tell me anything . . . and certainly not anything NEW. This isn't a policy report, this is marketing -- albeit of important information. The topic (I can't call it a theme) "21st Century Military" alone sounds like it'd take a century to explain.

We need memorable themes, those that reinforce what America already knows. If you try to educate people, you're either going to offend voters and turn them off ("Who are those Ivy League East Coasters to tell me what I need") or you'll put them to sleep ("zzzzz").

Empathise, Inspire, and Lead.

The file folder navigation on this thing is very cool.

Cheney's plan is short on details: "More of the same"

OK, I see the tabs across the top, but "21st Century Military, War on Terror, Homeland Security, Iraq, and Energy Ind." doesn't tell me anything . . .

You can't read what's in the body of the folder when you click on it? It should come right up with several paragraphs.

I think this is a very good piece of policy clarification and marketing. I'm glad to see we are doing these things seven months out from the election instead of seven weeks out.

The world doesn't stand in awe of every Powerpoint presentation. In fact, the Bush administration has used it so much that people laugh when they see Bush standing in front of one of those blurbs. Bill Gates should sue them for the misuse and corruption of his software.

The message these White House bulletpoints have come to represent is: all talk; no real action will be taken on any of these points.

But short, concise statements in a summary format always communicate well when repeated often by all your spokespersons....I believe we already saw this plan summed up that way on an earlier thread?

Good job, Tim. I think those that surf around the web expect this sort of user-friendly format. It speaks to the professionalism of the team. I don't go to the RNC site as I assume it doesn't cater to the masses.

The Times They Are A Changin'

This is clear concise and should be stated in every interview on television and print media.

Seriously. Thank you. I like it. Please spread the word, unify the party, get everyone on the same talking points, get together and repeat this great message so often that everyone in the nation will feel they know exactly where Democrats stand on these issues - whether they agree or not. BTW, I would think Feingold's censure resolution fits nicely with the "Iraq" point of the plan: Flash viewer - Real Security.

Take it to MSNBC, Fox, CNN, ABC, CBS, NBC, and CSpan - to all the hosts on Air America - but especially Al Franken every, single week. Take it to Ed Shultz, to Coast to Coast. Take it to the Daily Show and to the Colbert Report. Repeat as often as necessary - don't stop.

Thank you, thank you, thank you.

In political debate, we can never gain the upper hand as long as we allow our opponent to pose all the questions and demand all the answers.

For years, the Republicans have been insisting that Democrats have no right to talk about national security unless they first present a 'plan' for Iraq. Unfortunately, the Republicans have repeated this demand so often that many elected Democrats believe it to be true. But it is not true.

To lead this country, Democrats should stop answering questions posed by the Republiccans and start posing questions themselves--questions to the Republicans and answers to the American people.

To lead this country, Democrats must ask the questions. And the question on Iraq is not 'Do we have a plan?' The question is: 'Have you had enough?'

http://www.frameshopisopen.com/

Washington - Seeking to capitalize on President Bush's troubles overseas, leading Democrats in Congress are unveiling a broad attack this week on the administration's security policies at home and overseas along with a set of proposals intended to demonstrate that they have a credible alternative.

In a set of policy papers titled "Real Security: Protecting America and Restoring Our Leadership in the World," Democratic leaders in the House and Senate plan to join with leading figures in the party, including former Secretary of State Madeleine K. Albright and Wesley K. Clark, the retired general and former presidential contender, in presenting the plan on Wednesday.

http://www.truthout.org/docs_2006/032906H.shtml

Yesss!!! THIS is the moment I was waiting for!! B/C THIS will mark the major turning point in this midterm election, the day that "the Democrats finally revealed their own plan to the American people!" And don't worry about the Democrats "repeating this message over and over again in the media", they're already on it!

And i'm glad to see you guys so upbeat and hopeful for a change! B/C on the "Real Security" entry, they're STILL pessimistic about things! They're all like Well the MSM won't cover this, and the people have low expectations of anything, and the catch phrase is bad and we're still the minority so we can't...Geez! What the hell is it gonna take for them to be happy? For there to be NO Republicans in congress or the media?

Well, we're doing the first right thing, presenting OUR message to the public so they can see that we DO have our own ideas and plan for America!

And it was me and Pam (or Sandy, can't remember which one) that kept the positive sprit on this Blog alive! We told you "Don't worry, Howard Dean is doing a great job, he's working on a plan and the other Democrats will follow suit w/ it", and those words were finally proven true today, so cheers to all those who thought positive throughout this whole ordeal of pessimisim, and to the rest of you, I say:

We told you so!

So, keep it up, this positiveness and optimism, and most importantly, keep this sprit of hope alive! See, things DID turn out as promised by Dean after all! So, let's just keep on working on this and in November, it will pay off w/ a Democratic House and possibly Democratic Senate!
THEN, we make our move to the presidency, where Russ Feingold will win the nomination and rally our base to turnout on election day which will elect him President of the United States!! YEAAAAHH!!!

I don't why there is any reason to be pessimistic about this plan. If anybody has listened to the press conference on democrats.senate.gov or seen footage elsewhere, you would see that Democratic leaders, military veterans, former heads of state, firefighters, and first responders were all present to give the message today. This was not some ploy straight from Harry Reid's office, this was a multi-layered initiative with many people having a say in the policy.

This is a "put up and shut up" move from our Party. I, like many Democrats, were sick and tired of hearing the media say that the Democrats do not stand for anything and are weak on National Security. According to a recent poll, 41% of Americans believe that we would be better suited to oversee national security, and iniatives such as this one today could give us a majority in such a poll if used correctly by our leaders.

I'm very pleased about this message and optimistic about our chances in the mid-term elections. Now things are starting to get going here.

The language is good, but a lot will have to be done to sell Americans on the individual steps that will need to be made along the way. For instance, I know you want to help veterans but want to know how that will be accomplished.

One suggestion is that we convert the GI Bill to allow veterans who already possess a marketable skill gained through military service to funds that could be used in the construction or purchase of a home.

Another suggestion is that we provide massage and other alternative treatments previously successful in the treatment of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder to those currently suffering. This is also helpful in controlling chronic pain although is rarely suggested by medical doctors who are most familiar with pharmacutical alternatives.

As you can see there is much to be done.

Marine- Interesting ideas. I don't know if some of those initiatives necessarily fit into this abridged Real Security plan, but I feel that your suggestions are things to keep in mind in terms of the G.I. Bill reform.

"The Plaaaan, The Plaaaaaan ...."

DING! DING! DING! .... LOL!

Remember that little dude from Fantasy Island when he saw the plane coming?

I'm glad we have a plan!

I do not like security. Security I do not like. Security leaves me either tied down or locked up.

What's wrong with Public Safety, that venerable term? I thought we had learned from Lackoff not to appropriate the language of the opposition.

When Dean said the capture of Saddam Hussein did not make us safer, he spoke truth to power.

Studied "Real Security". Good words, but where applicable, "HOW, HOW, and HOW! I have respect and gratitude for everyone running, but see Sen. Joe Biden as only one "weathered" to the point of capability, and having real knowledge on International affairs, as well as "home safety". Plus, he will answer the question asked, including, "How". Worn out listeners do listen to him. Those criteria must be addressed when making a choice. Likewise, John Edwards sparks with the people. Please make the winning choice this time, ignoring inside political frenzy. This one chance must connect to the people, as opposed to the party elite. Howard Dean is a fabulous organizer; Hillary Clinton has positive and clear intention—neither will win.
Give us HOW, when and how much from where. This Texan says take the "bull" by the horns and bury it!

Security leaves me either tied down or locked up.

No, that's called detainment.