Suggested Democratic Party Core Values
My take on what the Democratic Party should declare as its philosophy
Ruy Teixeira suggested this 4 years ago. Matt Yglesias just republished his list. I’m sure others have done the same just as I did years ago. Well here are my suggestions, updated a bit.
I think what’s key is for the Democratic Party to have a discussion on this and make some decisions. Continuing on our present course means, at best, that we occasionally get a very small majority in the House and sometimes the presidency. And at worse we suffer under what the Republicans faced from FDR to Reagan - permanent minority status.
The United States is the greatest country on earth.
And its greatest strength is that it continuously strives to become even better.
We support equal opportunity for all.
We realize this does not mean equal outcomes.
Capitalism is the best means to deliver an ever better life to everyone.
Appropriate regulation improves the productivity and advancement of the free enterprise system.
We must improve our educational system for all children.
If we don’t enforce our borders we’re a location, not a country.
And our policy must not give precedence to those that cut in line.
We need to become competent at building once again.
Both construction by the government and permitting for private construction.
Our national security requires an industrial policy that insures we have national champions in key industries.
We will enforce the rules of a civilized society.
Our public spaces will be made safe for women and families.
We will create an abundance economy.
We need electrical generation that is reliable, inexpensive, & green.
We will base our decisions on evidence & science while understanding the limits of that.
Please feel free to disagree in the comments.
I say this as a libertarian, although one who sees genuine value in a strong Democratic Party and a strong GOP, so this will be a little strange coming from me.
I have no skin in what I am about to describe, other than being about 7-8 years from Medicare.
We have an issue with healthcare financing in this country. There's no escaping it. And I don't see a private sector way out of it--some people simply can't afford the premiums, and some people are actuarially uninsurable.
Should the Dems support some kind of modest healthcare financing option--such as a government option? That is, offer buy-ins to Medicare with means-tested premiums?
One proposal that the Dems could offer to dovetail with what is happening with DOGE is to propose combining Medicare, Medicaid, and SCHIP (and any other federal healthcare financing programs) under one umbrella, along with what I described above?
Of course, how to pay for it. Any way to recover the charity-care expenses that our current system supports?
The answer to DOGE is not thwarting it. It's a better alternative to a Republican DOGE.