That 10 point plan of Sen. Kerry's and pending legislation

[TayTay]

A while back someone asked what would be different if John Kerry were President. The Senator listed his 10 Point Plan for what to do in America that is not being done now by the current Administration. I thought I would go through the Plan and link it to current legislation the Senator has filed that might actually get out of Committee with a Dem Pres and Congress.

Not a definitive list, just some suggestions. Go to this link: http://thomas.loc.gov/ and use the pulldown menu to see the bills filed by Sen. Kerry. Please note, these are only the bills that the good Senator filed and doesn't include co-sponsored amendments.

(1) Obey the law, and Protect civil rights in this country.

S. 2369 March 6, 2006
Mr. SPECTER (for himself, Mr. LEAHY, Ms. MURKOWSKI, Mr. SUNUNU, Mr. FEINGOLD, Mr. CRAIG, Mr. HAGEL, Mr. DURBIN, Mr. SALAZAR, Mrs. FEINSTEIN, Mr. OBAMA, and Mr. KERRY) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

To require a more reasonable period for delayed-notice search warrants, to provide enhanced judicial review of FISA orders and national security letters, to require an enhanced factual basis for a FISA order, and to create national security letter sunset provisions.

(2) Tell the truth, and tell it to Americans all the time.

82. S.AMDT.2507 to S.1042 To require reports on clandestine facilities for the detention of individuals captured in the global war on terrorism.
Sponsor: Sen Kerry, John F. (introduced 11/10/2005) Cosponsors (3)
Latest Major Action: 11/10/2005 Senate amendment agreed to. Status: Amendment SA 2507 agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 82 - 9. Record Vote Number: 318.

(3) Fire the incompetents, and Restore competence and integrity to Washington.

1. S.CON.RES.82 : A concurrent resolution to establish a procedure for the appointment of independent Congressional Ethics Office to investigate ethics violations in the Senate and the House of Representatives.
Sponsor: Sen Kerry, John F. (introduced 2/28/2006) Cosponsors (None)
Committees: Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
Latest Major Action: 2/28/2006 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.

(4) Chase the money changers from the temples of democracy, and
reclaim it for the grassroots of this nation.

28. S.2268 : A bill to amend title 5, United States Code, to deny Federal retirement benefits to individuals convicted of certain offenses, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Sen Kerry, John F. (introduced 2/9/2006) Cosponsors (1)
Committees: Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
Latest Major Action: 3/28/2006 Referred to Senate subcommittee. Status: Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs referred to Subcommittee on Oversight of Government Management, the Federal Workforce, and the District of Columbia.

5) Bring our troops home from Iraq.

4. S.J.RES.33 : A joint resolution to provide for a strategy for successfully empowering a new unity government in Iraq.
Sponsor: Sen Kerry, John F. (introduced 4/6/2006) Cosponsors (None)
Committees: Senate Foreign Relations
Latest Major Action: 4/6/2006 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations.

(6) Find Osama bin Laden, and Secure our ports and homeland.

62. S.AMDT.1162 to H.R.2360 To require the Inspector General to report to the Congress on the port security grant programs.
Sponsor: Sen Kerry, John F. (introduced 7/11/2005) Cosponsors (4)
Latest Major Action: 7/12/2005 Senate amendment agreed to. Status: Amendment SA 1162 agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent.


(7) Stop subsidizing “Big Oil,” and start investing in energy alternatives.

3. S.RES.372 : A resolution expressing the sense of the Senate that oil and gas companies should not be provided outer Continental Shelf royalty relief when energy prices are at historic highs.
Sponsor: Sen Kerry, John F. (introduced 2/14/2006) Cosponsors (2)
Committees: Senate Energy and Natural Resources
Latest Major Action: 2/14/2006 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Referred to the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources.

60. S.AMDT.844 to H.R.6 To express the sense of the Senate regarding the need for the United States to address global climate change through comprehensive and cost-effective national measures and through the negotiation of fair and binding international commitments under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change.
Sponsor: Sen Kerry, John F. (introduced 6/22/2005) Cosponsors (3)
Latest Major Action: 6/22/2005 Senate amendment not agreed to. Status: Amendment SA 844 not agreed to in Senate by Yea-Nay Vote. 46 - 49. Record Vote Number: 151.


(8) Make access to affordable healthcare a right and not a privilege.

5. S.114 : A bill to amend titles XIX and XXI of the Social Security Act to ensure that every uninsured child in America has health insurance coverage, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Sen Kerry, John F. (introduced 1/24/2005) Cosponsors (10)
Committees: Senate Finance
Latest Major Action: 1/24/2005 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.

(9) Reduce the deficit, and Respect work over wealth.

85. S.AMDT.2616 to S.2020 To accelerate marriage penalty relief for the earned income tax credit, to extend the election to include combat pay in earned income, and to make modifications of effective dates of leasing provisions of the American Jobs Creation Act of 2004.
Sponsor: Sen Kerry, John F. (introduced 11/17/2005) Cosponsors (1)
Latest Major Action: 11/17/2005 Amendment SA 2616 ruled out of order by the chair.


(10) Invest in education, and Fight for American jobs that restore the American dream.

49. S.2586 : A bill to establish a 2-year pilot program to develop a curriculum at historically Black colleges and universities, Tribal Colleges, and Hispanic serving institutions to foster entrepreneurship and business development in underserved minority communities.
Sponsor: Sen Kerry, John F. (introduced 4/6/2006) Cosponsors (None)
Committees: Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship
Latest Major Action: 4/6/2006 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship.


74. S.AMDT.1695 to H.R.2862 To strengthen the loan, procurement assistance, and management education programs of the Small Business Administration in order to help small businesses and home owners hurt by Hurricane Katrina meet their existing obligations, finance their businesses, and maintain and create jobs, thereby providing stability to the national economy.
Sponsor: Sen Kerry, John F. (introduced 9/13/2005) Cosponsors (4)
Latest Major Action: 9/15/2005 Proposed amendment SA 1695 withdrawn in Senate.


**** Borrowed the list from the Dem Daily. Feel free to take it back with links if it is interesting.

[globalvillage]

1. Illustrates nicely that it's not just words

but legislation to back up every point. Very nice, Tay.
Bet I could add 10 bills to #10.

[TayTay]

2. Go for it.

This was just a starting point. People always ask, what do Dems stand for and What would be different if Kerry was Pres. Well, here you go, with actual filed legislation for proof.

[globalvillage]

3. You had kind of a one bill per point thingie going there.

And I didn't want to screw with it. Just for the record, though, here's yours and 10 more that deal with small biz issues, all recent.
S137, S138, S139, S240, S269, S1411, S1463, S2594, S2595, SA825, SA2532
He's a busy, busy man.

I like your list. It makes a great point.

[ProSense]

4. Excellent list!

Ten great points and legislation to back em...more to come. This is a terrific one:

2. S.RES.261 : A resolution expressing the sense of the Senate that the crisis of Hurricane Katrina should not be used to weaken, waive, or roll back Federal public health, environmental, and environmental justice laws and regulations, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Sen Kerry, John F. (introduced 9/29/2005) Cosponsors (7)
Committees: Senate Environment and Public Works
Latest Major Action: 9/29/2005 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Referred to the Committee on Environment and Public Works.

[jenndar]

5. That is an awesome endeavor, Tay!

Do you have any ideas for how to spread the word on this? I think it could be eye-opening for a lot of people.

[globalvillage]

6. I think so, too.

It's one thing to come up with a list. What's significant is that there is legislation behind every point.
Really, this should be shared beyond this group.

[WildEyedLiberal]

7. You should post this in GD, Tay

I third the motion that this is really wicked awesome and should be shared with all. Also you should journal it for posterity. :D

[politicasista]

8. Nice job TayTay

Just one observation: Is there anyway the proposals/solutions could be concise to the "average non blogger"? (Not you or Kerry's fault of course:))

The solutions/bills are really good, but I think what we saw in the last election is that people prefer simple soundbites, (Kerry got criticized for being long-winded, wordy, etc while Bush was fake "folksy")therefore the Dems (party and leadership)are going to have to find a way to make things simple, clear, and concise and run with it.

I am sort of learning about plans and proposals. Am I missing something?:shrug:

[Dr Ron]

9. The four point plan is the sound bite

Kerry condensed this down to four quick points recently. TayTay is elaborating on this, but if you need a simple sound bite for others, go back to his four points.

From his recent emailing on this:

"Tell the truth. Fire the incompetents. Get out of Iraq. Have health care for all Americans. These are pretty simple messages, and they're worth fighting for today."

That's what I said yesterday when I appeared on "Meet the Press" to push our call for two deadlines and an exit from Iraq.

[politicasista]

11. Thanks n/t

[TayTay]

12. I think 'sista, that you posted something a little while ago

that made me think of this. I think you asked what proof is there that Kerry would be a different Pres than the one in there now and what proof is there of his actual agenda. So, I went and quickly compiled this.

It is not comprehensive. (It only took a few minutes to put together.) But people seem to like it, so I can adapt it to a more readable form. Then I will put it on the thread that Ray of Light started as permanent info and will put it elsewhere for info as well.

Thanks!

[karynnj]

13. The 10 points are each sound bite size

"Tell the Truth" etc

10 is a good number - there were 10 commandments. Also, even this list of 10 was the top rated sound bite from anyone in the recent Luntz focus group. I actually think it will be copied by others.

Also, look carefully at the claims. In 2004, Edwards was lauded as an incredible speaker and extremely charismatic. It was clear the press would not have been unhappy if he swept the first multi-state primary/caucus day - when there were 6 rurual/south or south-western states and Delaware. With the exception of Delaware, these should have been very tough for a Northeastern canddiate - Kerry won 5 of them and got 27-30% in the other two. At the convention, Edwards gave the less well received speech. As to quick on his feet, the debates did NOT show this. (which was a dissapointment given his reputation.)

[jenndar]

15. Both are important and useful.

The 10-point plan is the perfect comeback to the "Democrats have no ideas" lie.

The sound byte reduction is the perfect comeback to the idea that "Democrats can't be reduced to sound bytes."

[Noisy Democrat]

10. Awesome

Wonderful post, Taytay!! Thank you so much for the information and inspiration. :)

[karynnj]

14. This is incredible, Tay

It really shows that he has put great thought and effort on each of these issues. Maybe that's why he never ever seemed at a loss for a clear full answer to any question.