A Progressive Working Families' Agenda - DNC LISTEN UP!
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Background:
PA CD4 is one of those anomalies - a SW PA district in north suburban Pittsburgh with majority Dem registration that has been held for three terms by a Republican who is running for term #4. At best people thought it would support a conservative Dem. But then PA is an anomaly - it's a majority registration Dem state with both state houses and the Congressional delegation showing solid Republican majorities. The Governor and the 04 Presidential vote was Democratic - but we send Arlen Specter and Rick Santorum (now in the fight of his political career and expected to lose) to Washington.
CD4 is where I live. It's been targeted by "Working Families Win" - an action project of ADA - as a possible key swing district, and I've been working with them to make the change happen. One thing WFW has done through Town Hall Meetings is draw up this document. I thought this was worth sharing through the Blog - it's widely supported in the community, it represents the direction this particular little corner of America thinks we should be going - and it's pretty damned Progressive. Our local Dem candidate against the incumbent has publicly declared his support.
DEMOCRATIC LEADERSHIP - ARE YOU LISTENING? IF YOU WANT TO LEAD THE PARTY OUT OF THE WILDERNESS AND THE COUNTRY OUT OF STAGNATION AND FEAR, THIS IS WHAT YOU NEED TO EMBRACE VIGOROUSLY AND MAKE HAPPEN.
Working Families Community Agenda:
Too many people are not doing well in today's economy. Wages are stagnant, the costs of energy and health care are rising, health care and retirement benefits are being cut, and personal debt is at record levels. Workers are falling behind, and the gap between the rich and poor is growing. The middle class, and even the American Dream itself, is at risk.
We must change our economy so that it rewards work, promotes the well-being of families, gives people enough time for the things that are most important to us, better protects the environment which we leave to our children and grandchildren, and provides the security that every working family deserves.
Such an economy is possible with new rules that reflect the values that our community shares: fairness, responsibility, hard work, and a concern for our neighbors and the next generation.
We need politicians to respond to the needs of the community, not the demands of special interests and corporate lobbyists. We call on all candidates for office to take the following steps toward creating an economy that benefits working families everywhere:
Health Care for All -- Support the U.S. National Health Insurance Act
(H.R. 676) to expand Medicare to cover all U.S. residents, or
comparable legislation to secure comprehensive, high quality, and affordable health care for all Americans including provisions for Medicare to negotiate lower prices on prescription drugs.
Fair Wages -- Support the Fair Minimum Wage Act to increase the
federal minimum wage from its current $5.15 an hour to $7.25 an hour over two years, and also support indexing the minimum wage annually to keep up with the cost of living automatically. Work towards a living wage for all Americans.
Iraq -- Support the Murtha Plan for turning over security to the Iraqi Army. Instead of spending $200 million a day in Iraq, use the money for programs that help working families in this country.
Good Jobs -- Oppose new "fast track" authority for trade agreements like NAFTA and CAFTA. New trade agreements should safeguard workers and the environment by including binding, enforceable measures within the agreements ensuring that all countries protect in domestic law the basic rights established by the International Labor Organization. Labor and environmental provisions should be subject to the same
enforcement mechanisms that apply to other aspects of the agreement. Trade agreements should not cover public services such as education, health care, water supply, and energy.
Workers' Rights -- Support the Employee Free Choice Act which would require certification of a union as the bargaining representative for workers based on authorization cards signed by the majority of workers in the appropriate unit. Oppose so-called "right-to-work" legislation.
Voting Integrity -- Support at the federal level H.R. 550 and H.B.2000 in the Pennsylvania legislature, which would ensure that voting is conducted fairly on machines that are reliable and auditable.
Clean Elections -- Support, at the federal and state levels, publicly financed elections similar to the systems already in place in Arizona and Maine.
And my challenge - for everyone who reads this blog entry - TAKE THIS AGENDA TO YOUR INCUMBENTS AND YOUR CANDIDATES. CHALLENGE THEM TO ENDORSE IT. FIND OUR WHETHER THE PEOPLE WE ARE SENDING TO OFFICE REALLY SUPPORT YOUR INTERESTS AND NEEDS. THE MORE PEOPLE WE SEND TO WASHINGTON WHO SUPPORT THIS AGENDA, THE CLOSER THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY IS TO SHOWING REAL LEADERSHIP WITH A PROACTIVE AGENDA SHOWING REAL VISION FOR 2008.
PA CD4 is one of those anomalies - a SW PA district in north suburban Pittsburgh with majority Dem registration that has been held for three terms by a Republican who is running for term #4. At best people thought it would support a conservative Dem. But then PA is an anomaly - it's a majority registration Dem state with both state houses and the Congressional delegation showing solid Republican majorities. The Governor and the 04 Presidential vote was Democratic - but we send Arlen Specter and Rick Santorum (now in the fight of his political career and expected to lose) to Washington.
CD4 is where I live. It's been targeted by "Working Families Win" - an action project of ADA - as a possible key swing district, and I've been working with them to make the change happen. One thing WFW has done through Town Hall Meetings is draw up this document. I thought this was worth sharing through the Blog - it's widely supported in the community, it represents the direction this particular little corner of America thinks we should be going - and it's pretty damned Progressive. Our local Dem candidate against the incumbent has publicly declared his support.
DEMOCRATIC LEADERSHIP - ARE YOU LISTENING? IF YOU WANT TO LEAD THE PARTY OUT OF THE WILDERNESS AND THE COUNTRY OUT OF STAGNATION AND FEAR, THIS IS WHAT YOU NEED TO EMBRACE VIGOROUSLY AND MAKE HAPPEN.
Working Families Community Agenda:
Too many people are not doing well in today's economy. Wages are stagnant, the costs of energy and health care are rising, health care and retirement benefits are being cut, and personal debt is at record levels. Workers are falling behind, and the gap between the rich and poor is growing. The middle class, and even the American Dream itself, is at risk.
We must change our economy so that it rewards work, promotes the well-being of families, gives people enough time for the things that are most important to us, better protects the environment which we leave to our children and grandchildren, and provides the security that every working family deserves.
Such an economy is possible with new rules that reflect the values that our community shares: fairness, responsibility, hard work, and a concern for our neighbors and the next generation.
We need politicians to respond to the needs of the community, not the demands of special interests and corporate lobbyists. We call on all candidates for office to take the following steps toward creating an economy that benefits working families everywhere:
Health Care for All -- Support the U.S. National Health Insurance Act
(H.R. 676) to expand Medicare to cover all U.S. residents, or
comparable legislation to secure comprehensive, high quality, and affordable health care for all Americans including provisions for Medicare to negotiate lower prices on prescription drugs.
Fair Wages -- Support the Fair Minimum Wage Act to increase the
federal minimum wage from its current $5.15 an hour to $7.25 an hour over two years, and also support indexing the minimum wage annually to keep up with the cost of living automatically. Work towards a living wage for all Americans.
Iraq -- Support the Murtha Plan for turning over security to the Iraqi Army. Instead of spending $200 million a day in Iraq, use the money for programs that help working families in this country.
Good Jobs -- Oppose new "fast track" authority for trade agreements like NAFTA and CAFTA. New trade agreements should safeguard workers and the environment by including binding, enforceable measures within the agreements ensuring that all countries protect in domestic law the basic rights established by the International Labor Organization. Labor and environmental provisions should be subject to the same
enforcement mechanisms that apply to other aspects of the agreement. Trade agreements should not cover public services such as education, health care, water supply, and energy.
Workers' Rights -- Support the Employee Free Choice Act which would require certification of a union as the bargaining representative for workers based on authorization cards signed by the majority of workers in the appropriate unit. Oppose so-called "right-to-work" legislation.
Voting Integrity -- Support at the federal level H.R. 550 and H.B.2000 in the Pennsylvania legislature, which would ensure that voting is conducted fairly on machines that are reliable and auditable.
Clean Elections -- Support, at the federal and state levels, publicly financed elections similar to the systems already in place in Arizona and Maine.
And my challenge - for everyone who reads this blog entry - TAKE THIS AGENDA TO YOUR INCUMBENTS AND YOUR CANDIDATES. CHALLENGE THEM TO ENDORSE IT. FIND OUR WHETHER THE PEOPLE WE ARE SENDING TO OFFICE REALLY SUPPORT YOUR INTERESTS AND NEEDS. THE MORE PEOPLE WE SEND TO WASHINGTON WHO SUPPORT THIS AGENDA, THE CLOSER THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY IS TO SHOWING REAL LEADERSHIP WITH A PROACTIVE AGENDA SHOWING REAL VISION FOR 2008.