What are the most important issues to DU'ers?

[TakebackAmerica]

If we beat W and take back the Senate, what should our agenda be? O ther cleaning up Shrub's mess what should we be advocating. What are the big issues. The Economy, Enviroment, Education, Health Care.

[JohnKleeb]

1. social and economic justice and peace

yeah thats me. I think Kucinich has the best views on those in general.

[TakebackAmerica]

5. Agreed.

I think the 3 E's and Health Care are big issues. I agree about social and economic injustice. Child poverty is one of the worst and most underreported tragedies in America. Clark, Kucinich and Sharpton are the only candiadtes discussing poverty.

[George_Bonanza]

9. I read that Lieberman is big on poverty discussion as well

[arcane1]

2. repealing ALL if W's excecutive orders...

would be a good start...

[mmonk]

3. #1

Getting team Bush out of the White House.

[Pez]

4. it's hard to pick

since dubya has totally destroyed or blocked basically everything i find important, i have a hard time narrowing it down.

environment, education, health care (would be nice; i don't have any)... trying to convince the rest of the world we shouldn't be blasted off the face of the earth...

[sandnsea]

6. global relations

I blabbered about this in GD so I won't go on here. But success with our issues are dependent on better global relations on security, the environment, and trade/jobs. We've got to get people to see this.

[DrFunkenstein]

7. Energy Independence

Under Bush, 9/11 has only served to unleash our darkest fears. But it can also serve as a catalyst for our deepest-held hopes for the 21st century.

I am glad that several candidates at least have this on the table. It is unclear to me which will truly make this a national priority. It won't be easy. It is going to run up against alot of opposition from Labor, as well as Republicans. With universal health care also on the table, you're going to have to pick your battles carefully.

One of the reasons that I like Kerry so much is that he has an incredible record on the environment and anti-terrorism. I really think he could meld these two experiences into a vision of what America should be.

[genius]

8. Criminal justice, civil rights, peace, jobs,education, health care,

Also, my mother is older and I want to see seniors treated better. I would also like to see the environment cleaned up. Dennis has the clearest positions on all these issues. I liked the way Dennis was so clear about his plans and positions in the debate tonight. I wish they had given him more time. It looked like the Wesley Clark Show based on the number of times each person spoke.

[MercutioATC]

10. Civil rights and healthcare.

Attention to civil rights takes care of....well....our rights as citizens and I believe that healthcare reform alone will go a long way toward solving our economic issues.

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

11. Start at the root of all our problems. Information/being informed.

Kill the Corporate Media. Fully fund our schools and make college cheap or free.

An informed and educated electorate scares the shit out of the Establishment.

[wyldwolf]

12. Who someone voted for 20 years ago.

[kang]

13. So many problems to deal with!!!

I think you named nearly all of it, but IF we had the Senate and the White House it would mean we have a mandate for real change.

So, I'd say we should put our foreign policy and nat'l security in order first since most Americans and the rest of the World wants to know that our country is safe and will act like a reasonable neighbor. Foreign aid will be a good part of this, but we'll also need to find and kill terrorists that are hostile to the US in an effective manner. Then internal security and we can repeal that Patriot Act or a substantial part of it.

Next, we need to repeal that tax cut (how much I'll leave up to you) and get our economy going again.

The next immediate need is health care coverage and prescription drugs.

Then the bigger and longer term overhaul is our education system and addressing the inequalities in our schools.

The environment is also a longer term project, but a few quick fixes is getting back to real clean air and water standards, stop privatizing our national parks services, stop timber activities, close the loophole for companies to upgrade their factories w/out improving their air standards, raise the minimum gas mileage for cars and close that damn SUV loophole. And let's get back to the table on Kyoto.

And then there's the Supreme Court and Section III judge appointments. They don't need to be flaming liberals, but they certainly won't be flaming conservatives. I can live w/that.

So no problem right? Now we just have to win!
*edit for spelling

[AP]

14. Shifting wealth and political power to middle/working class in the form

of jobs, savings, higher incomes.

Which will, in turn, get the economy going.

[rucky]

15. CLASS WAR: Jobs, Working Poor, Healthcare

The Class War is ON. I want to hear the candidates talk much more about the 10 million working poor, and the Bush plan to create even more working poor - if he creates any jobs at all.

Walmart is the new business model of the service industry. Corporations are holding the workforce hostage: Those industries who can't outsource their labor overseas are just creating a new class of cheap labor right here in the US of A. The Bush economy is intentionally starving the labor force, so we feel we have no alternative but to take it up the doo-dah.

It doesn't even make economic sense for the corporations.

The new business trend: Labor is a liability.

The reality: Without labor and a consumer base, there will be no business.

The solution: Raise minimum wage. Cut the payroll tax & remove the cap - paid for by cutting corporate welfare & removing the cap (with a surplus). Universal healthcare - paid for by rolling back Bush tax cuts. Daycare for single parents - paid for by cutting the 87B for Iraq. Reduce deficit by cutting pork - mostly in defense.

If any candidates have talked about this, please let me know.

[DJcairo]

16. Dean, Dean, Dean, Dean, Dean, Dean, Dean

are the first 6 follow by
7.Dean
8.Dean
9.Dean
10.Dean

Did I mention Dean?

[rucky]

17. So who are you supporting? n/t

[diamondsoul]

18. My take is we should combine efforts

on solving the problems left after Bush is gone. I like Kucinich's suggestion of a new WPA to create jobs and rebuild infrastructure at the same time. Healthcare is a biggie, imo. I'm a firm proponent of Universal Healthcare, not so much for myself but because I don't think anyone should ever have to choose between eating and being treated for illness or getting needed medicine. Education is next. As someone else said in this thread, an informed and well-educated electorate scares the sh*t out of the establishment.

I'm in a little bit of a quandry over which order to put them in because logic dictates we have to get the economy going to create the revenues for all of them, besides repealing ALL the tax cuts and cutting the Pentagon budget.

And yes, a Kucinich supporter did say repeal ALL of Bush's tax cuts. We don't have a choice for the moment. That's one thing I wholeheartedly agree with, and the longer this Iraq mess goes on the worse it's going to get.

[Redneck Socialist]

19. Environment

Specifically protection of open space and stopping sprawl.

[w4rma]

20. H-1b visas, L-1 visas & overseas outsourcing of jobs is my *primary* issue

Where the Good Jobs Are Going
Forget sweatshops. U.S. companies are now shifting high-wage work overseas, especially to India
http://www.time.com/time/archive/preview/from_redirect/0,10987,1101030804-471198,00.html
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=104&topic_id=102329


Outsourcing to usurp more U.S. jobs (1 of every 10 IT Jobs)
http://msnbc-cnet.com.com/2100-1022_3-5057087.html?part=msnbc-cnet&tag=alert&form=feed&subj=cnetnews
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=102&topic_id=40609&mesg_id=40609&page=

Tech jobs leave U.S. for India, Russia
Job exports may imperil U.S. programmers
http://edition.cnn.com/2003/TECH/biztech/07/14/moves.offshore.ap/index.html

Will your job move to India?
Millions of U.S. jobs will be exported in the coming decade, forecasters say. Here are the jobs that are especially vulnerable, plus 5 that aren't
http://moneycentral.msn.com/content/invest/extra/P62115.asp
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=104&topic_id=439869
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=104&topic_id=438039

I.B.M. Explores Shift of White-Collar Jobs Overseas
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/nyt/20030722/ts_nyt/ibmexploresshiftofwhitecollarjobsoverseas
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=104&topic_id=63492

How do you DUer's feel about outsourcing?
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=104&topic_id=471629

India winning higher-status jobs from US
http://www.csmonitor.com/2003/0618/p01s03-wosc.html
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=104&topic_id=117120

IT Sweatshops Breaking Indians
http://www.wired.com/news/business/0,1367,59477,00.html
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=104&topic_id=25985

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 3, 2003
Contact: Press Office, 802-651-3200
Where Are the Jobs George Bush Promised?
Bush Tax Cuts Fall Short of Delivering Promised Jobs

WASHINGTON--Democratic presidential candidate Governor Howard Dean, M.D., issued the following statement today:
" New employment figures released today confirm that the latest Bush tax cuts have failed to live up to President Bush's promises. In February, President Bush predicted the economy would create 5.5 million new jobs in 2003 and 2004 if the 2003 tax cut were passed. Not one of them has materialized.

"By this time in his presidency, President Clinton had created over 7.5 million private sector jobs. In contrast, President Bush has lost over 3.2 million jobs in his 33 months in office.

"The Bush Administration tax cuts have not provided the short-term stimulus the economy needed. Instead, the Bush tax cuts have rewarded the President's wealthy contributors at the expense of the economy, and furthered an extreme, ideological agenda that aims to destroy Social Security, Medicare and public education."
http://www.deanforamerica.com/site/News2?page=NewsArticle&id=9528&JServSessionIdr001=tlwxsz8f21.app196a&security=1&news_iv_ctrl=1301
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=104&topic_id=474949

…
While U.S. unemployment improved in June, Dean said it’s still at a nine-year high and ignores the underemployed, which he pegged at 6 percent.

“These are people who had $50,000 good jobs and now they are making $25,000 or $30,000, and they have two of them, in some cases,” Dean said. “I am tired of having an economy where our best jobs are shifted elsewhere in the world.’’

Dean fans made up a thick portion of the crowd, often turning Dean’s 25-minute stump speech into a rally of revival proportions with interrupted calls of “amen’’ and “yes, yes.’’
…
http://www.nashuatelegraph.com/Main.asp?SectionID=25&SubSectionID=377&ArticleID=85948
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=108&topic_id=11856&mesg_id=11856
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=104&topic_id=124665&mesg_id=124665

Bush Announces "Bold" New Job Plan for India:
GOP Hires 75 Telephone Marketers in New Delhi Suburb to Raise Funds for the Republicans, Exporting Away American Jobs
http://www.buzzflash.com/analysis/03/02/16_India.html
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=104&topic_id=117115
http://www.theinquirer.net/?article=11219
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=104&topic_id=240787

Freepers scared Dems might use outsourcing issue against them (class war)
http://freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/956435/posts
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=104&topic_id=112815

President blames unemployment on lack of skills
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=102&topic_id=45247&mesg_id=45247

Freepers Actively Jumping Ship
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=104&topic_id=40475&mesg_id=40475&page=

Will someone tell Bush* and big business that foreign outsourcing is bad?
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=104&topic_id=46681&mesg_id=46681&page=