Originally Posted by
acesfull86
Here are some excerpts from the 1996 Democratic Party platform...tell me how many of these make it into 2020's version:
- "Today, America is moving forward with the strong Presidential leadership it deserves. The economy is stronger, the deficit is lower, and government is smaller."
- "Now we must move forward, and we know the course we must follow. We need a smaller, more effective, more efficient, less bureaucratic government that reflects our time-honored values. The American people do not want big government solutions and they do not want empty promises. They want a government that is for them, not against them; that doesn't interfere with their lives but enhances their quality of life. They want a course that is reasonable, help that is realistic, and solutions that can be delivered -- a moderate, achievable, common-sense agenda that will improve people's daily lives and not increase the size of government."
- "That is what today's Democratic Party offers: the end of the era of big government"
- "With his (Bill Clinton's) leadership, we put in place a comprehensive strategy for economic growth. Today's Democratic Party knows that the private sector is the engine of economic growth, and we fought to put America's economic house in order so private business could prosper. We worked to tap the full potential of a new global economy through open and fair trade."
- " In 1992, we promised to cut the deficit in half over four years. We did. Our 1993 economic plan cut spending by over a quarter trillion dollars in five years. The only deficit left today is interest payments on the debt run up over the 12 Republican years before fiscal responsibility returned to the White House. President Clinton is the first President to cut the deficit four years in a row since before the Civil War."
- "Now the Democratic Party is determined to finish the job and balance the budget. President Clinton has put forward a plan to balance the budget by 2002"
- "Today's Democratic Party believes that working people should not be taxed into poverty."
- "Today's Democratic Party believes in a government that works better and costs less. We know that government workers are good people trapped in bad systems, and we are committed to reinventing government to reform those systems."
- "Today's Democratic Party is committed to targeted tax cuts that help working Americans invest in their future, and we insist that any tax cuts are completely paid for, because we are determined to balance the budget."
- "We support government policies that encourage private sector investment and innovation to create a pro-growth economic climate"
- "We believe that if we want the American economy to continue strong growth, we must continue to expand trade, and not retreat from the world. America's markets are open to the world, so America has a right to demand that the world's markets are open to our products."
- "In the last four years, the Clinton-Gore Administration has signed over 200 trade agreements, including NAFTA and GATT, to open markets around the world to American products, and create more jobs for the people who make them here at home. We have put in place the most sweeping agreements to lower foreign trade barriers of any administration in modern American history"
- "Today's Democratic Party knows that the era of big government is over. Big bureaucracies and Washington solutions are not the real answers to today's challenges. We need a smaller government . . . and we must have a larger national spirit."
- "Today's Democratic Party believes the first responsibility of government is law and order."
- "Bill Clinton promised to turn things around, and that is exactly what he did. After a long hard fight, President Clinton beat back fierce Republican opposition, led by Senator Dole and Speaker Gingrich, to answer the call of America's police officers and pass the toughest Crime Bill in history. The Democratic Party under President Clinton is putting more police on the streets and tougher penalties on the books"
- "Nothing is more effective in the fight against crime than police officers on the beat, engaged in community policing. The Crime Bill is putting 100,000 new police officers on the street. We deplore cynical Republican attempts to undermine our promise to America to put 100,000 new police officers on the street."
- "Today's Democratic Party stands with America's police officers."
- "We believe that people who break the law should be punished, and people who commit violent crimes should be punished severely. President Clinton made three-strikes-you're-out the law of the land, to ensure that the most dangerous criminals go to jail for life, with no chance of parole."
- "We provided almost $8 billion in new funding to help states build new prison cells"
- "We want parents to bring order to their children's lives and teach them right from wrong, and we want to make it easier for them to take that responsibility. We support schools that adopt school uniform policies, to promote discipline and respect."
- "President Clinton and the Democratic Party have waged an aggressive war on drugs."
- "The President signed a directive requiring drug testing of anyone arrested for a federal crime, and he challenged states to do the same for state offenders."
- "We support the President's decision to tell those who commit crimes and peddle drugs in public housing: You will get no second chance to threaten your neighbors; it is one strike and you're out."
- "Today's Democratic Party also believes we must remain a nation of laws. We cannot tolerate illegal immigration and we must stop it. For years before Bill Clinton became President, Washington talked tough but failed to act. In 1992, our borders might as well not have existed. The border was under-patrolled, and what patrols there were, were under-equipped. Drugs flowed freely. Illegal immigration was rampant. Criminal immigrants, deported after committing crimes in America, returned the very next day to commit crimes again. President Clinton is making our border a place where the law is respected and drugs and illegal immigrants are turned away."
- "Just since January of 1995, we have arrested more than 1,700 criminal aliens and prosecuted them on federal felony charges because they returned to America after having been deported"
- "Today's Democratic Party knows there is no greater gap between mainstream American values and modern American government than our failed welfare system."
- "Now, because of the President's leadership and with the support of a majority of the Democrats in Congress, national welfare reform is going to make work and responsibility the law of the land. "
- "Thanks to President Clinton and the Democrats, the new welfare bill imposes time limits and real work requirements -- so anyone who can work, does work, and so that no one who can work can stay on welfare forever. Thanks to President Clinton and the Democrats, the new welfare bill cracks down on deadbeat parents and requires minor mothers to live at home with their parents or with another responsible adult."
- "We challenge states to ensure that hard-earned, federal taxpayer dollars are spent effectively and fraud and abuse are prevented. "
- "We must send the strongest possible signal to young people that it is wrong to get pregnant or father a child until they are married and ready to support that child and raise that child."
- "The mission of today's Democratic Party is to expand opportunity, not bureaucracy. We have worked hard over the last four years to rein in big government, slash burdensome regulations, eliminate wasteful programs, and shift problem-solving out of Washington and back to people and communities who understand their situations best."
- "Today's Democratic Party is committed to strengthening our military"
- "The Administration has ensured that America is prepared to fight alongside others when we can, and alone when we must. We have defeated attempts to cut our defense budget irresponsibly. Three times in three years, President Clinton has increased our defense spending plans"
- "Today's Democratic Party understands that we cannot rebuild our poorest communities by imposing cookie-cutter solutions from Washington. "
- "We believe everyone in America should learn English so they can fully share in our daily life"
- "Americans have a right to express their love of God in public, and we applaud the President's work to ensure that children are not denied private religious expression in school."
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