Platform Wrangling Part II

Time is moving quickly and the election in now less than a week away! As promised here is the second part of my examination of the two parties' platforms. Again, I encourage you to explore their stances on your own.

The following are overviews of Foreign Policy & Military, Civil Liberties, Gun Control and Reproductive Rights. Have fun!

Foreign Policy and Military:
Using our military and business might is how Republicans believe peace will be achieved.
Republicans main priorities in foreign affairs are opening markets to free trade with the U.S. and showing military strength. “The Republican vision of peace through strength requires a sustained international effort, which complements our military activities, to develop and maintain alliances and relationships that will lead to greater peace and stability.” (Pg. 6)
Iraq: “That outcome is too critical to our own national security to be jeopardized by artificial or politically inspired timetables that neither reflect conditions on the ground nor respect the essential advice of our military commanders.” (pg. 13)
Afghanistan: Republicans believe there is still some work to be done, but that there has been progress. There is little mention of increasing American troops in Afghanistan and no mention of grassroots development assistance. “Additional forces are also necessary, both from NATO countries and through a doubling in size of the Afghan army.” (Pg. 13)
Republicans do affirm the value of women in the armed service. However, they also believe “To protect our servicemen and women and ensure that America’s Armed Forces remain the best in the world, we affirm the timelessness of those values, the benefits of traditional military culture, and the incompatibility of homosexuality with military service.” (Pg. 5)

Democrats recognize that a strong military is important, but that foreign policy and protecting the United States needs to be more holistic and include diplomacy, education, development and leading by example.
Democrats see foreign countries as potential partners in business, but want to work towards greater equality by ensuring high labor and environmental standards. “Development and diplomacy will be reinforced as key pillars of U.S. foreign policy, and our civilian agencies will be staffed, resourced, and equipped to address effectively new global challenges.” (Pg. 41)
“Needed reform of these alliances and institutions will not come by bullying other countries to ratify American demands. It will come when we convince other governments and peoples that they too have a stake in effective partnerships.” (Pg. 36)
Iraq: “We will give our military a new mission: ending this war and giving Iraq back to its people. We will be as careful getting out of Iraq as we were careless getting in. We can safely remove our combat brigades at the pace of one to two per month and expect to complete redeployment within sixteen months.” (Pg. 29)
Afghanistan: “We will send at least two additional combat brigades to Afghanistan, and use this commitment to seek greater contributions–with fewer restrictions–from our NATO allies. We will focus on building up our special forces and intelligence capacity, training, equipping and advising Afghan security forces, building Afghan governmental capacity, and promoting the rule of law.” “We will help Afghans educate their children, including their girls, provide basic human services to their population, and grow their economy from the bottom up”
Democrats would like to increase military recruit through programs and believe it is essential to repeal the Don’t Ask Don’t Tell policy.

Civil Liberties:
Yes, Democrats realize that these liberties are the cornerstone of the freedoms that our founding father and mothers envisioned for the United States.
Democrats, on the other hand have a couple pages discussing different programs that will need to be reevaluated in order to protect our civil liberties. “We reject sweeping claims of “inherent” presidential power. We will revisit the Patriot Act and overturn unconstitutional executive decisions issued during the past eight years.” (Pg. 54) “We will close the detention camp in Guantanamo Bay, the location of so many of the worst constitutional abuses in recent years.” (Pg. 55) “We will review the current Administration’s warrantless wiretapping program. We reject illegal wiretapping of American citizens, wherever they live.” (Pg. 54)


What are those again? Oops! Republicans forgot to mention most of them!

Republicans don’t bring up a lot on this topic and fail to bring up issues involving torture, wiretapping or Guantanamo Bay. The following is the only mention of civil liberties. “We must always ensure that law enforcement respects the civil and constitutional rights of the people. While we wage war on terrorism in foreign lands, it is sometimes necessary for intelligence agencies and law enforcement officials to pursue terrorist threats at home. However, no expansion of governmental powers should occur at the expense of our constitutional liberties.” Pg.49

Gun Control:
Democrats realize that with such a right as owning a firearm comes even greater responsibility.
Democrats propose to “Acting responsibly and with respect for differing views on this issue, we can both protect the constitutional right to bear arms and keep our communities and our children safe.” (pg. 48)

Republicans forget about the thousands of people shot each year by firearms that are legal or were borrowed or stolen from a legal owner.
They believe in no gun control what so ever. "We recognize that gun control only affects and penalizes law-abiding citizens." (pg. 51)

Reproductive Rights:
Republicans do not believe a woman should have the right to make personal judgments in her reproductive activities.
Being proactive in preventing unwanted pregnancies is discouraged by the Republican Party. “We oppose school-based clinics that provide referrals, counseling, and related services for abortion and contraception.” (pg. 45)
Republicans also support a global gag rule, which refuses to fund international organizations that perform or promote abortion as a family planning option. Because of this stance they also reject signing treaties such as CEDAW (women’s right treaty) and UN convention on the rights of the child. (Pg. 8)

Democrats trust women and families to make decisions about their own reproduction and birth control decisions. They recognize it isn’t just a gender issue, but a class and human rights issue.
“The Democratic Party strongly and unequivocally supports Roe v. Wade and a woman’s right to choose a safe and legal abortion, regardless of ability to pay, and we oppose any and all
efforts to weaken or undermine that right…The Democratic Party also strongly supports access to comprehensive affordable family planning services and age-appropriate sex education” (pg. 50)
In addition, Democrats would repeal the global gag rule and reinstate funding to organizations such as United Nations Population Fund, which advocates women's health in third world countries.


Vote! Vote! Vote!