Part 10: Renewing American Leadership
1. Revitalizing American Diplomacy
a. Rebuilding America’s Tool of First Resort
i. diplomacy
ii. make the State Department more strategic, modern, agile, and effective
b. Reinventing Alliances
i. advance mutual priorities and deal with new challenges
ii. work with allied democracies to end democracy’s global recession
iii. make developing shared responses to non-military threats like disinformation, corruption, and economic coercion, priorities in our agenda
iv. never treat alliances like protection rackets
v. work to strengthen and build new partnerships in Africa and Latin America
c. International Institutions
i. rejoin and reform the WHO, the United Nations Human Rights Council, and the United Nations Population Fund
d. Foreign Assistance and Development
i. reject Trump Administration’s punitive and transactional approach to foreign aid and its use to advance domestic political arrands at the expense of our national interests.
ii. multiply impact of foreign assistance
iii. lead international efforts to help developing countries with COVID
2. Transforming Our Armed Forces for the 21st Century
a. Ending Forever Wars
i. Trump said he would get US out of Afghanistan but he just sent more people there and stoked regional tensions that made things worse
ii. responsibly set priorities, lead with diplomacy, protect ourselves from terrorist threats, enable local partners, bring troops home
iii. committed to a durable and inclusive political settlement in Afghanistan that ensures that al-Qaeda isn’t allowed to reconstitute, ISIS isn’t allowed to grow, and the international community can help Afghans safeguard hard-fought gains
iv. end support for the Saudi-led war in Yemen, help bring the war to an end
v. use force only when necessary, with the informed consent of the American people and the approval of Congress
1. work with Congress to repeal authorizations for the use of military force and replace them with a narrow and specific framework
b. Securing our Competitive Edge
i. US military should be best-trained, best-equipped, and most effective fighting force in the world
1. So…now I’m confused as to why Republicans keep saying that Democrats want to weaken the military…..
ii. invest in technology and forces that meet the threats of the future
iii. reinforce alliances and partnerships that enhance our collective security
c. Defense Spending
i. it’s not how much we spend, but how we spend it
ii. we spend too much on military and not enough on diplomacy
1. we can maintain a strong defense and protect our safety and security for less
2. Ok, I think this is really cool. Let’s try to make nice and figure things out with words instead of fists.
iii. conduct rigorous annual audits of the Pentagon
1. This is something that the Republican platform also pledged to do
d. Keeping Faith with Our Veterans and Military Families
i. protect opportunities for anyone who can meet the standards to serve in combat roles
ii. fight the scourge of rape and sexual assault in the military
1. https://www.protectourdefenders.com/factsheet/
2. https://abcnews.go.com/US/military-sexual-assault-victims-system-broken/story?id=72499053
iii. reverse Trump’s transgender ban
1. Yes. Anyone who wants to serve our country should be able to. There’s no good reason why trans people should be banned.
iv. root out systemic racism from military justice system
1. black service members are twice as likely as white ones to face court-martial
v. service members, veterans, and their spouses should never face deportation
1. create a parole process for veterans deported by the Trump Administration to reunite them with their families
vi. Veterans deserve better health care
1. Yep. And wasn’t that something that Republicans said they were gonna fix?
vii. work to combat veteran homelessness
viii. make sure veterans have access to mental health services
ix. support military families better
1. ensure pay and compensation keep pace with the economy
2. increase time between deployments
e. Civil-Military Relations
i. end the Trump Administration’s politicization of the armed forces
ii. safeguard the independence of the military justice system
iii. hold regular press briefings to explain the legal and policy justifications for military operations
iv. never use active duty soldiers as political props
v. never send military forces to suppress Americans exercising their constitutional rights
3. Mobilizing the World to Address Transnational Challenges
a. Global Health and Pandemics
i. expand Global Health Security Agenda
ii. restore the White House National Security Council Directorate for Global Health Security and Biodefense
iii. establish a Global Health Emergency Board to harmonize crisis response for vulnerable communities
iv. fully resource the WHO
v. help the world eradicate tuberculosis, malaria, polio, and other preventable maternal and childhood deaths
b. Climate Change
i. fully integrate climate change into foreign policy and national security strategies
ii. restore US global climate leadership
iii. recommit to the Green Climate Fund
iv. protect our oceans
v. support protection of species and wildlife habitats
c. Technology
i. recommit to net neutrality
ii. algorithms and platforms should empower people instead of the surveillance state
iii. expect tech companies and social media platforms to do more to preserve the openness of democratic societies and identify foreign disinformation
iv. prevent the use of new technologies to facilitate repression, spread hate, or incite violence
v. develop secure 5G networks
vi. remain committed to the international prohibition on the development or use of biological weapons.
d. Nonproliferation
i. prevent the spread of nuclear, chemical, and biological weapons, eventually secure their elimination
ii. Trump has made it so the nuclear dangers Americans face are greater than they have been in decades
iii. the sole purpose of our nuclear arsenal should be to deter a nuclear attack
1. We should reduce our overreliance and excessive expenditure on nuclear weapons
iv. push for ratification of the UN Arms Trade Treaty and Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty
e. Terrorism
i. sustain global effort to defeat ISIS, al-Qaeda, and their affiliates
ii. committed to dealing with the underlying conditions that allowed violent extremism to flourish in the first place
iii. always work to avoid civilian casualties
iv. not weaponize counterterrorism for anti-immigrant purposes
v. close detention center at Guantanamo Bay
f. Democracy and Human Rights
i. make gender equality a key foreign policy priority
ii. implement the Women, Peace, and Security Act
iii. incorporate more women into peace processes
iv. ratify the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women
v. pass the GLOBE Act and appoint senior leaders directly responsible for driving and coordinating LGBTQ+ issues at the Sate Department, USAID, and the National Security Council
vi. amplify the voices of LGBTQ+ persons around the world and counter violence and discrimination against LGBTQ+ persons wherever it appears
vii. defend freedom of the press
viii. fight human trafficking
1. increase visas for victims of human trafficking
ix. improve labor standards around the world
x. never use protection of freedom of religion as a cover for discrimination
1. yes. We do this. And we need to stop it.
xi. we have an obligation to help alleviate suffering around the world, will contribute more aid, and better aid
xii. END TRUMP ADMINISTRATION’S EFFORTS TO CLOSE DOORS TO REFUGEES!!!!
1. significantly raise the annual global refugee admissions target
2. “Admitting refugees is not only the right thing to do – it’s the smart thing to do”
3. This is extremely important to me and one of my biggest reasons for voting Democrat this election. I am thrilled to see this in the platform.
xiii. torture is immoral and ineffective
4. Advancing American Interests
a. Global Economy and Trade
i. no new trade deals before first investing in American competitiveness at home
ii. insist on strong and enforceable standards for labor, human rights, and the environment
iii. stand up to China with trade
iv. anti-corruption will be a priority in foreign policy
v. ban anonymous shell companies
vi. guard against improper application of economic and financial sanctions
b. Africa
i. recommit to National Strategy for Combating Wildlife Trafficking
ii. ban importation to the US of hunting trophies
iii. There’s lots more but this is not a huge issue for me so I’m leaving it there
c. Americas
i. work with regional and international partners to address the root causes of migration – violence and insecurity, weak rule of law, lack of educational and economic opportunity, pervasive corruption and environmental degradation
ii. protect the Amazon from deforestation
iii. help Venezuela, grant Temporary Protected Status to Venezuelans in the US
1. use smart pressure and effective diplomacy, not threats
d. Asia-Pacific
i. protect American workers from unfair trade practices by the Chines govt
ii. resist Chines military’s intimidation in the South China Sea
iii. committed to the Taiwan Relations Act
iv. fully enforce Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act
v. condemn the internment of more than one million Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities in concentration camps in China
vi. North Korea – build a campaign to advance the goal of denuclearization, support humanitarian aid, pressure regime to cease its gross human rights abuses
e. Europe
i. Trump has damaged our ties with Europe and we will fix them
ii. stand up to Russia
iii. reaffirm commitment to NATO
f. Middle East
i. move away from military intervention and towards pragmatic diplomacy
ii. we should not impose regime change on other countries
iii. Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action is the best way to cut off Iran’s pathways to a nuclear bomb
1. Trump withdrew from this plan
iv. help find a political resolution to the war in Syria
v. concerned about Lebanon, will work with them to promote economic and political reform
vi. commit to Israel’s security, it’s military edge and it’s right to defend itself
vii. work to help end the Israel/Palestine conflict
1. two-state solution
2. Jerusalem should stay the capital of Israel
3. oppose any effort to delegitimize Israel
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