… by Publius July 2000

Publius was the pen name used by Alexander Hamilton when publishing the Federalist Papers. He wanted to avoid petty personal differences, which might prevent the goal of ratifying the Constitution. In the next couple of editions we will use this space to publish the 2000 Democratic Platform. If you would like to publish your opinion here in our anonymous column, send it to the Corresponding Secretary (whyte@widomaker.com).

THE PLATFORM DOCUMENT

The Democratic Party of Virginia is united in its dedication to electing to public office leaders of character, integrity, ability and vision. Through our party and these leaders, we work to protect our constitutionally established rights and freedoms which provide us with opportunities to improve our lives. We work to organize all of our citizens through a democratic government to achieve together those beneficial ends that we cannot achieve individually. We believe, as did our party’s founder, Thomas Jefferson, “That government is the strongest of which every man feels a part.”

We are a Party of values and ideals. We believe in building strong families and communities. We believe in the liberty of the individual. We believe in the separation of church and state. We believe in a strong national defense. We believe that we should work together through a democratic government to preserve our liberties, ensure public safety and health, and provide everyone with the best possible educational opportunities. We work to make our environment clean and safe so business and commerce will prosper and create good jobs.

We are the Party of inclusion. The Democratic Party welcomes persons from all walks of life, of all ages, races, religions, and sexual orientation. This is a nation of immigrants and descendants of immigrants who have enriched our society and have made significant contributions to our culture and character. We welcome our new immigrants and the ethnic diversity that they bring to our party and our country. The Democratic Party honors people with disabilities and supports their goals of equality of opportunity, full participation, independent living and economic self-sufficiency.

In order to realize our ideals of liberty, justice and equality for all, we affirm our support for equal rights for women, including the right to reproductive choice free from government interference. We respect the right of privacy and believe that the intimate details of adult lives and relationships should not be the subject of government regulation. We affirm our historic commitment to civil rights and honor those persons who made the dream a reality. The Democratic Party has always been the party of Virginia’s vision – the trustees of a better future for all.

Finally, we commend President Clinton and Vice President Gore for providing our state and nation with the strong leadership we deserve. The economy is stronger, the deficit has been eliminated and a budget surplus created.
Education is better, our environment is cleaner, and our streets are safer. There is more opportunity, more responsibility in our homes, and more peace in the world because of their leadership.

Education

We recognize that in today’s society, education is the key to opportunity. The public education system is one of Virginia’s most valuable assets, preparing our children to become responsible adults and citizens, and equipping them with the knowledge and skills to compete in tomorrow’s job market.

It is not only children who are in need of education, but their parents as well. No parent who works a full time job should be forced to raise his or her children in poverty. Virginia Democrats support job training and retraining programs that make available the skills adults need to compete for jobs in the New Economy. We encourage assistance for technology-oriented adult learning classes to help provide citizens access to the high-tech career market in Virginia. We believe in expanding affordable Internet access to every home and public library, computer center and school in Virginia in hopes of closing the digital divide. We support providing more opportunities for continuing education for adults because education is the fault line that separates those who will prosper from those who cannot. Virginia’s choolteachers are underpaid and overworked. There is a shortage of qualified teachers and public schools increasingly face ompetition from the private sector in attracting and retaining them. Higher standards mean a greater necessity for quality instruction. We believe the Standards of Learning (SOLs) should not be the sole criterion for students to achieve graduation, but that multiple indicators of performance evaluation should be utilized. We support raising teacher salaries to meet that of the national average and maintaining that increase in order to increase the level of excellence in Virginia public schools. No child should be forced to attend classes in a classroom with four wheels rather than four solid walls. fiscally stressed local governments do not have the resources or the ability to generate the revenue necessary to meet all the education needs of our children.

Virginia Democrats support and encourage efforts to provide more sate funding for school construction and renovation. We support the return of all lottery profits to localities for use in public education and oppose school vouchers and other tax credit programs for parochial and private schools.

Virginia Democrats recognize that teaching good values, the responsibilities
of citizenship, family life education, and a well-rounded curriculum, must be
an essential part of education. We believe that fine arts and physical
education in addition to academic studies should be taught in our schools. We
celebrate diversity in education, knowing that exposure to different cultures
enhances character and repels prejudices. We believe that schools should be
provided with the resources and assistance to rise to the expectation of
Virginia’s citizens.

Economic Security For Virginia’s Families
In the old economy, most workers could count on one job for life. They knew
that hard work was rewarded with raises and steady jobs; they were confident
the company would take care of them, their families, their health, and their
retirement. Success was tied to the success of their employer: sacrifice when
times were tough and a share in the wealth when times were good. In the new
economy, the rules have changed. We need to find new ways to help working
families find economic security: better training to help workers learn skills
to get new and better jobs; the security of good health care and safe
pensions so they can take care of themselves and their families.

The Democratic Party of Virginia stands with the working men and women of
Virginia, including those who have dedicated themselves to public service at
all levels of government. We support increasing the federal minimum wage. We
are convinced that the best way to help people lift themselves and their
families out of poverty is to pay them a living wage. We also support the
right of workers to form bargaining units and believe in the principle of
equal pay for equal work and pay equity. Agriculture remains a key component
of our state’s economy, and we will continue to be strong advocates for
farmers and their families.

Virginia Democrats urge the passage of the Employment Non-Discrimination Act
because employment discrimination of any kind has no place in our society. We
support the formation of public-private partnerships and leveraging federal
dollars to maximize worker training and retraining opportunities. As our
economy continues its rapid evolution, we must implement “lifetime education”
so that we leave no worker behind and unable to compete. We encourage
providing more quality training opportunities for people with disabilities,
so they can learn the skills they need to live independent, productive lives.
We strongly advocate continuing the progress made in moving people from
welfare to work by strengthening child support enforcement; ensuring adequate
childcare; and guaranteeing health care coverage. Further, we recognize that
true self-sufficiency will only be realized if training and educational
opportunities are provided.

Finally, The Democratic Party of Virginia stands with those who have lost
jobs through no fault of their own. We believe they should receive higher
unemployment benefits and help with health insurance. In areas of high
unemployment, such as the Martinsville/Henry County area, where employees
have found themselves out of work due to the Tultex Corporation bankruptcy,
we are proud to stand up for and with Virginia’s working men and families.
Virginia Democrats categorically reject the actions of Governor Jim Gilmore
that have denied assistance to these families in their time of need.

Environment

All Virginians should be able to enjoy Virginia’s natural heritage—and
Virginians should be assured that the air they breathe is pure, the water
they drink is clean, and the land they live on is safe from hazard. We
understand that we have a sacred obligation to protect the earth and preserve
our quality of life for our children and our children’s children.

We recognize the importance of continuing our efforts to restore the quality
of the waters in the Commonwealth with meaningful tributary strategies, the
reduction of nutrients entering our waters in excessive amounts from
non-point sources or specific facilities, elimination of toxins, and
protection of our non-tidal wetlands. We support the Chesapeake Bay
Agreement and its promise of improvement in this significant natural
resource.

The Old Dominion is rightfully renowned for its scenic beauty, which is,
along with its history, one of the primary attractions for the state’s
booming tourist industry. Virginia’s reputation as a place of natural
splendor is important not only to the state’s economic future but to the
quality of life of its citizens. Preservation of air quality and open space
are more important than ever to maintaining this beauty for future
generations and should receive additional support from both the public and
private sectors.

Virginia currently is second in the nation in importing out-of-state trash.
This reputation as one of the primary waste dumping sites in the United
States is simply incompatible with Virginia’s image as a place of natural
beauty. Virginia Democrats support Senator Robb’s efforts to curb importation
of out-of-state trash and urge Congressman Bliley to remove the roadblock he
has enacted to prevent such a bill from becoming law.

The Democratic Party of Virginia believes that we can protect the environment
and expand the economy. We support the reauthorization, funding and
enforcement of federal and state environmental laws and programs that
preserve and strengthen the government’s ability to oversee, implement and
enforce public and private adherence to environmental standards. We challenge
businesses and communities to take more initiative in protecting the
environment and we want to make it easier for them to do so. We encourage all
families and businesses to continue to recycle in hopes of sustaining our
scarce resources and expect the government to assist in these efforts for
conservation. Environmental protection should include more education on
compliance for small and medium sized business, more strategies to increase
compliance with less red tape and more timely review, but tough enforcement
for those who put human health and safety at risk.

Health Care
The Democratic Party of Virginia is committed to ensuring that all Virginians
have access to affordable, high-quality health care. Few issues are more
important to families than health care. From prenatal care to long-term
care, from quality mental health services to the early detection of disease,
Virginians of all ages are affected by our system of health care.

We know that prevention is more cost-effective than emergency treatment, that
Virginians need a voice in their health care decisions, that hard-working,
lower income citizens need assistance with the costs of health care, and that
the elderly and persons with disabilities of all ages should be able to live
as independently as possible. We are committed to making these goals a
reality.

Virginia Democrats believe that individuals should be empowered to make their
own health care decisions, in consultation with medical professionals. The
bottom line in health care should be the well being of patients, not the
profits of Health Maintenance Organizations (HMO's).

General Assembly Democrats have repeatedly introduced legislation to hold
HMO's accountable for their medical treatment decisions, only to see
Republicans defeat this legislation. Virginia Democrats continue to support
legislative efforts to hold HMO's liable for their treatment decisions.

Because the choice of physician is among the most important of health care
decisions, Democrats also support legislative efforts to allow patients to
choose their own doctors, just as they can now choose their own pharmacists.

Virginia Democrats recognize that access to prescription medication is
critical to adequate health care and the rapidly increasing price of
prescription drugs places a heavy burden on older Virginians, particularly
those on fixed incomes. Many seniors face the awful choice of buying food or
medicine.

General Assembly Democrats at the state level, and Senator Chuck Robb at the
federal level, have led legislative efforts to provide prescription
assistance benefits to seniors. These efforts have been thwarted by
Republican majorities at both levels, denying many the relief they so
desperately need.

Virginia Democrats re-emphasize their support for efforts at both the state
and federal level to provide prescription assistance to senior citizens and
call on Republicans to withdraw their opposition to this vital legislation.

Political Reform
As Virginia Democrats, we have a responsibility to make democracy work
better. It is up to us to ensure that the process by which we nominate
candidates, especially to statewide office, is as open, accessible, and
inclusive as possible. To this end, Virginia Democrats support a statewide
state-administered primary method of nominating future statewide candidates.
Primaries afford the maximum opportunity for participation by voters and
strengthen our candidates by providing them with valuable campaign
experience.

A statewide state-administered Presidential primary in 2004 should be
implemented. Further, we urge the House and Senate Democratic Caucuses to
work with the State Party Chair and the members of the Democratic National
Committee representing Virginia to ensure enactment of legislation enabling
this primary within DNC guidelines. We also support legislation that would
amend Virginia law to allow Virginia voters to register by political party.

In addition, we have an obligation to try to restore the public’s lost faith
in our political system. We must act to strengthen campaign finance laws.
Virginia Democrats support legislation that would impose reasonable limits on
contributions to state and local campaigns, as well as prompt dissemination
by the State Board of Elections and local Electoral Boards of campaign
finance disclosure statements by electronic means. Legislation that would
prohibit out-of-state campaigns from using Virginia law to set up political
“slush-funds” for virtually unregulated and unlimited contributions should be
enacted. We believe it is fair to expand home rule for localities to give
them flexibility to address local needs. Fair and equitable political
appointments make our political system more inclusive, and we support them.

Public Safety, Security and Criminal Justice
The maintenance of public safety is of paramount importance in a civilized
society. Individuals convicted of violent crimes must be separated from the
rest of society.

Virginia Democrats also recognize that the U.S. Constitution guarantees equal
treatment under the law and prohibits discrimination on the basis of race,
ethnicity or national origin in the exercise of police powers. The fair
administration of justice is a primary bulwark of the freedoms that
Virginians hold dear, and the public must be confident in this fact at every
stage of the criminal justice process.

We applaud the accomplishments of the Clinton/Gore administration in
protecting our children and our neighborhoods from violence through community
policing, tougher sentencing, and early intervention programs. Young people
must be steered away from the dangers of crime and drugs.

Virginia Democrats support efforts for common-sense firearms safety
legislation, including Virginia's one-gun-per-month law and the federal Brady
Law, which have prevented thousands of criminals from obtaining guns. We
endorse efforts to use technological advances, such as trigger locks, which
minimize access to firearms, especially through theft. We also support the
ability of localities to enact sensible and reasonable weapons regulations to
ensure the safety of their own citizens.

Criminal profiling on the basis of ethnicity, race or religion is abhorrent
to our system of justice and such practices must cease.

Crimes against individuals because of their race, religion, color, national
origin, gender or sexual orientation are deplorable, and we support the
adoption of protections against these types of hate crimes.

In view of recent national developments concerning the issue of capital
punishment, including calls for a moratorium, it is imperative that
Virginians remain vigilant and take all necessary steps to ensure that the
death penalty is applied fairly and impartially in order to prevent the
execution of innocent persons.

As technology advances, particularly in the area of DNA evidence, our system
of criminal justice needs to be flexible enough to adapt in order to prevent
the execution of those who are, subsequent to conviction, proven to be
actually innocent. Proof of actual innocence should not be precluded by any
deadlines for introduction of evidence bearing on actual guilt or innocence.

In all cases, justice must be administered in a fair and color-blind manner
in federal and state courts and administrative proceedings including those
conducted by the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS). We support
fair and just immigration laws that treat similarly situated individuals
equally.

Social Security and Medicare

Social Security and Medicare are two of the proudest legacies of the
Democratic Party. These two initiatives have helped to ensure the economic
and physical well being of millions of older Americans. Over the next fifty
years, both programs will require a substantial infusion of additional funds
to cover benefits for the aging "baby boomer" generation and successive
generations of Americans.

President Clinton, Vice President Gore and congressional Democrats have
worked hard to protect Social Security and Medicare, overcoming Republican
efforts during the '90s to slash funding for both programs. Now, national
Republicans have endorsed massive, untargeted tax cut proposals for wealthy
Americans which will jeopardize attempts to fully fund the Social Security
Trust Fund as well as endanger funding needed to modernize and continue
Medicare as a comprehensive benefit program.

Virginia Democrats believe that we must honor our values and continue to
protect and provide for the economic security of our parents, grandparents
and family members. All Virginians deserve fair treatment so that they can
maintain an adequate standard of living upon retirement.

We call on Congress to support President Clinton's plan to dedicate to the
Social Security Trust Fund the savings achieved from paying down the national
debt so that Social Security can be preserved for future generations. We
further call on Congress to reject the Republicans' dangerous tax plans which
would jeopardize Social Security and Medicare.

Transportation and Growth
The purpose of transportation is to move people and goods safely and
efficiently. A balanced, comprehensive multi-modal transportation system is
vital to the future well-being of the Commonwealth and essential to economic
development. In addition, inadequate transportation infrastructure
constitutes an important quality of life issue for thousands of Virginia
citizens who are forced to spend hours stuck in their vehicles in traffic
jams, time that would be better spent with their families.

The Allen administration not only ignored the state’s growing transportation
shortfall, it actually exacerbated the problem with deep personnel cuts at
the Virginia Department of Transportation. Furthermore, the Allen
administration took funds from previously approved projects to use on the
Governor’s initiatives, funds that had to be repaid this year by the General
Assembly. The Gilmore administration failed to address the transportation
issue until it was raised by Democratic legislators.

In order to provide a good transportation network to support our growing
economy and to improve the quality of life for Virginians besieged by traffic
and congestion, it is time for Virginia to address this serious issue that
confronts the Commonwealth. More needs to be done to meet the state’s
current and future transportation needs, including providing a stable,
long-term, significant stream of revenue dedicated to transportation
projects.

Along with building roads, Virginia needs to increase investment in
alternative modes of transportation such as rail and public transportation,
telecommuting, car and vanpooling, and other forms of ridesharing. All have
an important role to play in reducing congestion and increasing mobility.
Attention should be given to offering incentives to encourage commuters to
use mass transportation as the primary means of commuting.

Managing growth is another way to maximize the state’s investment in
transportation infrastructure. By placing new development near existing or
planned transportation facilities, congestion can be minimized, sprawl
diminished, and open space preserved. These advantages of smart growth should
be promoted as land use planning policies and practices developed by the
local jurisdictions and they need to tools to manage them. Localities should
have the necessary authority to implement land use policies that are
appropriate to their communities.

Report of the Resolutions Committee

2000 Virginia Democratic Convention

Norfolk Scope June 2– 3, 2000