John Kerry on the Issues:

America’s Security
Aggressively fight terrorism without sacrificing our civil liberties; hire 100,000 new firefighters and police, provide training and equipment to our frontline defenders; strengthen security at our ports and borders; reduce US dependency on foreign oil

Jobs & the Economy
Guaranteed tax relief for Middle Class families; increase the minimum wage; create new manufacturing jobs by providing tax breaks for American manufacturers; improve workplace health and safety for all; close corporate tax loopholes.

Healthcare
Guaranteed healthcare for every child; protect Medicare; affordable prescription drugs for all; give every American access to the same health plan as members of Congress.

Education
Hire more teachers and reduce class size; oppose vouchers, improve public schools; reform and fund the “No Child Left Behind Act”; “Service for College” plan: 4 years public college tuition for 2 years of service

Environment
Reassert US leadership in global environmental progress; reduce toxins in our communities by taking on traffic, congestion and sprawl.

Foreign Policy
19 years of service on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee; Decorated Vietnam Veteran; pursue a multilateral approach, including the UN and international alliances, to reconstruct Iraq; Focus on the development of democratic values and human rights protections as keys to long-term security.

The Message: The Courage To Do What’s Right For America
“Your courage can break the grip of special interests and win back our economic future. Your courage can save our environment, raise up our schools, and finally open up health care to all. Your courage can end discrimination once and for all. Your courage can defend this nation’s ideals. I ask for your help. Together we can make it happen.” John F. Kerry

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Ivan Ciment on the Issues – a 15 Point Plan involving a Full Hour of Thought! 
(Just think of what I might come up with if I spent a day on this!)

Foreign Policy and Security

More realistic and dynamic foreign policy to effect change in Iran, Cuba and North Korea

Bring all of American power to bear to force negotiated settlement between Israel, the Palestinians and Syria

Shift American support toward democratic governments in the Middle East; increase R&D in Africa and natural fuels as an alternative to Gulf oil

Increase support for education, exchange and development programs to foster better relations between America and the people of the world’s developing nations

Economy 

Adjust tax and regulatory schemes to create a fairer and more competitive system. Examples: Eliminate the marriage tax penalty, break the local Baby-Bell telecom monopolies enshrined in current law, and update ancient regulations that have created an airline industry everyone hates.

Keep jobs and capital in America by raising the H1 visa cap and by supporting free trade agreements; reduce incentives to repatriate profits abroad.

Make rail transportation more competitive and a viable alternative to private auto transport; break up Amtrak by ending the current practice of permitting monopoly pricing on the Northeast corridor for passenger rail traffic to subsidize rural area traffic as a sop to powerful congressional districts that fund Amtrak.

Increase privatization of space exploration and offer incentives for the private sector to produce better science inside America.

Increase enforcement and regulation of consumer goods to ensure that package labeling is responsive to the needs of people (not industry) and that privacy rights of the consumer are respected.

Insurance

Enable small companies and families to procure pooled health insurance on the same footing as larger companies, and create options for people to purchase affordable personal disability insurance.

Education

Tax credits for private schooling and incentives to make public schooling more responsive to public demand.

More practical college savings plan that enables significant sums of money to be set aside and to provide flexibility in choosing an appropriate educational institution at a future date.

Pensions

Reform the private pension system to shift from tax-deferred pension savings to tax-exempt schemes that truly give one incentive to save and maximize the benefit of a pension. 

Increase the limits that may be put into pensions to permit people to save more, and create special accounts that pay greater interest or trigger government matching funds as a reward for good savings behavior in order to help people create meaningful pensions that will augment social security.

Better Government for You

Establish a 311 telephone inquiry resolution service to direct callers to the right place if they need information from the federal government or have a problem, in the same manner that now exists in New York City.

The Message: Do More with Your Vote: Be Part of the Solution.

“A Serious Candidate with Real Solutions for Real Problems. The other candidates do not take on vested interests and tell things the way they are. They offer phony solutions and debates about national security that won’t bring you the Personal Security you need in your wallet and at home with your family. Their policies have created enemies around the world who feed off entire populations who think America is on the wrong side of history because of our double-standards and short-term expedient foreign policy. Force America to turn a new page in history with realistic and innovative leadership at home and abroad. Leadership for the world keeping in mind that we are a country of individuals, focused on health, safety and security for our citizens and humanity. Use your vote to bring on solutions and actually Do Something.”

Ivan S. Ciment