A quarter century of bad policy has led us to the edge of an economic disaster. We believe government must act now to prevent unnecessary suffering by our people.

We support immediate steps to protect Americans affected by rising prices, layoffs, and the threat of foreclosure:  extension of unemployment benefits and food stamps, increasing local self-reliance including energy and food self-sufficiency, assistance with rapidly increasing transportation and utility bills, veterans’ benefits, and some protection against foreclosures in specific circumstances.

We support long-term strategies to stabilize local economies. We support incentives to entrepreneurs with ideas for the businesses of the future. We support small business because the vast majority of jobs in the economy are created by small businesses, rather than large corporations. We believe in personal responsibility, and we support programs that encourage responsible behavior and that empower individuals and communities.

Like President Lincoln, we believe in government "of, by, and for the People," not of, by, and for the corporations. Let's end corporate welfare and build a sustainable economy that works for people. These are American values. They undergird our proposals in the areas of (1) healthcare, (2) the war in Iraq, (3) fair trade, (4) energy, and (5) campaign finance.

National Healthcare

We support the design of a single-payer, national healthcare plan that covers all Americans. The US is the only advanced nation in the world that does not have national healthcare. The US can study these tried-and-tested systems and design one that works for the US.

The advantages of universal healthcare are many. National healthcare will benefit business by making it easier for small business to compete with large corporations. Under this system, each would have an equal ability to cover its workforce. With our plan, private hospitals and physicians would continue to practice, and individuals could use either the public or private system or both, and could purchase private insurance if desired. Wealthy individuals would lose nothing, while working families and the poor would gain stability and security. A well-designed national health plan must also include a strong component of preventive medicine, including education for the public on the benefits of exercise and a diet rich in fruits and vegetables. Mississippi stands to benefit proportionally more than other states from single-payer national healthcare.

America needs universal healthcare. Let's agree on this and get to work on the specifics.

The War in Iraq

We must immediately withdraw all American troops and dismantle our military bases in Iraq.

As a result of this war, America is less secure. We have provoked the hatred of an entire generation in the Islamic world. Although the loss of life (over 4,000 Americans and as many as 1 million Iraqi people), destruction of families and livelihoods (1 in 5 Iraqis has been displaced by the war), and the devastation of an entire country are reason enough to leave Iraq and help repair the damage we have caused, the economic costs to America are also enormous. We are spending over $250 million a day on Iraq. Taxpayers in the First District have paid over $400 million dollars for the war in Iraq. What could this money do for the people of North Mississippi?

Since the beginning of the war, the government has failed our soldiers by not providing armor and other equipment, by extending tours of duty beyond reasonable limits, and failing to provide support to veterans returning from duty in Iraq. As one after another scandal, from Walter Reed to the Veterans Administration, has come to light over the past 5 years, the administration has treated each one as a public relations problem. We must right these wrongs and give our veterans the support they deserve.

Energy  

Establish energy independence for America. Emphasize conservation and renewables like solar, wind, and geothermal. Nuclear power has many problems and is not part of a long-term solution.

On Jan. 2, 2008, the day we launched our campaign, the price of oil hit $100/barrel. The price of oil contributes to the cost of everything else. To lessen the impact of rising oil prices on our economy, we must rapidly deploy new power-generation technologies. We now have practical, affordable solar cells and highly efficient wind turbines. The field of natural building has developed highly efficient passive solar designs for houses and buildings that require little or no active heating and cooling. All of these technologies are now ready to be used. The US must end tax breaks for oil, coal, and nuclear, and redirect the subsidies to solar, wind, geothermal, and other renewable technologies. We must begin a crash program of conservation, installation of solar cells on rooftops, revision of building codes to encourage passive solar design, deployment of wind turbines on ridgelines, and assistance to local and regional power associations to build solar and wind electric power plants where appropriate.

Investment in clean, renewable energy will create new jobs. If we lead the way, many of these jobs could be here in North Mississippi.

International Trade

We must withdraw from NAFTA, GATT, and other free-trade agreements that fail to protect American jobs. Corporations have benefited from these agreements, but working Americans have not. Estimates range from loss of 1 million jobs to a small net gain from NAFTA. Regardless of the overall impact on the economy, NAFTA has thrown over a million workers out of their jobs, requiring them to undergo re-training for what are often lower-paying jobs in the service industry. The yardstick of trade policy should be its impact on individual Americans, not its hypothetical benefits to the economy.

We must carefully plan how to phase out NAFTA to avoid shock to those businesses that have adjusted to the free-trade regime. But, we must lose no time in replacing these treaties with something better. We propose the Fair Trade Agreement of the Americas. The details of this agreement will not be negotiated in secret, but in the open, with public hearings open to all whom it will affect. While our first concern is for the people, this will protect American companies as well, who will no longer be forced to move overseas in order to remain competitive. North Mississippi's furniture industry faces stiff foreign competition. We have already lost most of our textile industry. Even our catfish farmers face competition from Asian fish farms. It's time to end the charade of free trade.

Fair and open trade will protect workers and small businesses, stimulate a boom in jobs creation at the local level, help real people on both sides of the border, and encourage international trade without damaging national economies or giving up our national sovereignty. Unlike NAFTA, our Fair Trade Agreement will solve problems, not create them. It’s time to replace NAFTA and other free-trade agreements with something better.

Global Warming

We must take immediate, bold action to reduce the production of carbon dioxide (CO₂) and other greenhouse gases to prevent the worst effects of global climate change. Mississippi already has experienced a prolonged drought and a devastating hurricane. Increasingly severe storms and more variable weather are among the predicted effects of climate change. Regardless of other causative factors, reducing CO₂ levels will cool the planet.

Global warming is a problem that goes beyond our borders, and the US must work with other nations. We cannot solve it alone, but we can begin to lead the way. We propose a program of reforestation that provides fast-growing, multi-use trees for planting by landowners and also individuals. Trees remove CO₂ from the atmosphere and store it for the lifetime of the wood. We propose to use agrichar technology to store carbon in soil, where it may remain stable for hundreds of years. Such a program has at least two additional benefits: jobs creation and repairing the lost fertility of our topsoil. Similar opportunities to reduce greenhouse gases must be identified and implemented immediately. Mississippi can benefit from jobs in the active carbon sequestration sector and from the rebuilding of our farm soils.

Campaign Finance
 

We must enact real campaign finance reform and get money out of politics. Money corrupts the decision-making process such that laws and regulations are made for the short-term benefit of large corporations rather than the long-term good of average citizens. Until we solve this problem, we will not be able to solve our energy, healthcare, education, or other problems.

The first step is to prohibit all corporate, Political Action Committee (PAC), and union contributions to candidates. Only limited contributions from private citizens will be allowed. Public campaign financing will ensure a minimal level of funding to all candidates. Despite the cost, this system will be far less expensive than the current one.

Americans have a right to hear from all the candidates in order to make an informed decision on Election Day. Media, including television, radio, and newspapers, will be required to air the ads of qualified candidates as a public service in exchange for their operating licenses.

National Security 

We support a strong national defense, but we do not support a military budget larger than what is legitimately needed for the defense of America. Presidents Jefferson, Madison, Eisenhower, and others have warned us about the dangers of militarism: “the military-industrial complex,” in the words of Eisenhower. We support the abolition of nuclear weapons, as is our obligation under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. 

We believe that the agencies charged with our national security have failed to deliver. The FBI, CIA, DIA, and NSA failed to protect America on 9-11. Despite the creation of an entirely new bureaucracy, the Department of Homeland Security, America (notably our ports) remains vulnerable to terrorists who might seek to smuggle weapons into the country.  We believe in real national security, which current policies have failed to deliver. Let’s replace militarism with smart defense policy, closely coordinated with our foreign policy.

Education 

We believe that if a person has a good education and access to healthcare, especially preventive medicine, they will be successful. Recent education reforms have resulted in more standardized tests for our students and more paperwork and stress for our teachers. We support changes that will encourage innovation and creativity among teachers, which will translate to helping our young people learn to think critically and creatively. With these skills, our young people will not only graduate, they will also be motivated to become lifelong learners and successful in their chosen fields.  Aside from providing adequate and equitable funding, setting national standards, and ensuring equal access to education, the federal government should facilitate solutions at the local level, rather than mandate one-size-fits-all programs like No Child Left Behind.

Farm Policy 

American agriculture is in a state of crisis. The high levels of productivity on American farms depend on oil that fuels farm equipment and that produces fertilizers and pesticides. We are now seeing the first effects of rising oil prices in the form of higher food prices.  The industrial model of agriculture has failed. Let’s replace it with something better: an agriculture that is small scale, ecological, and sustainable. We support a national farm policy that stops the loss of family farms, encourages more Americans to get into farming, promotes local and regional food security, and facilitates the conversion from conventional to organic methods. We support a farm policy that delivers national food security just as a good national defense policy delivers national security.

Agriculture employs 1 out of 4 people in Mississippi, making it our largest single employer. In the short term, Mississippi farmers can benefit from the organic foods market, which is growing by 20% per year. In the long term, a shift in our farm policy is required if American agriculture is to continue to be productive, if farming is to be economically viable, and if we are to feed the American people.

Civil Liberties and Freedom

We must restore our Constitution. Free speech, freedom to assemble, and the right to petition are guaranteed by the Bill of Rights. Abolish “free speech zones.” We must end torture and follow the example set by Washington who, during the Revolution, insisted on treating British prisoners humanely. We must end imprisonment without trial and indefinite, secret detentions because they are morally wrong and are illegal under US law.

Impeachment

We must hold those senior members of the Executive Branch accountable for leading American into the worst foreign policy disaster in our history: the invasion of Iraq. We support impeachment of the President and Vice-President of the United States for high crimes. Impeachment is not only an option—it is a responsibility of the Congress to deter future Presidents from launching illegal wars.

Electoral Reform

We support comprehensive reform of our election laws to enhance democracy by empowering the people. We support universal voter registration that prevents voter fraud while greatly increasing voter participation. We support instant runoff voting (IRV) that eliminates costly run-off elections and increases both voter and candidate participation in elections. We support the restoration of voting rights to convicted felons who have served their sentences. We support a Constitutional Amendment to replace the Electoral College with direct election of the President by popular vote.

Federal Budget Deficits

We support a balanced budget. We believe that, except in times of war or national emergency, the federal budget should be balanced. We support the reduction of the national debt, interest payments on which are a severe burden on Americans.