Howdy! The Democratic Party Presidential nominee, Kamala Harris, finally posted her platform on her campaign site. Neither the Democratic nor Republican party presidential candidates have taken a hard line against Israel's continued slaughter of Palestinians. I am currently a single issue voter and that's my issue. For me, that means choosing between Cornel West, Jill Stein, and Claudia De La Cruz unless something drastically changes before the upcoming election. Assuming you already know where you stand on Harris v. Trump, I figured I'd list the other notable options' relevant stances.
All such plans are either paraphrased or directly pulled from the candidate's official platforms. I avoided re-wording and interpreting when possible.
The Democratic Party candidate, Kamala Harris' plans regarding the Israeli slaughter of Palestinians are to ensure Israel always has a right and the means to defend itself. While her page pays lip service to a desire to bring hostages home and to encourage a ceasefire, there are no mention of consequences in the event Israel refuses attempts at diplomacy. No arms embargo. No conditional aid. Just continued support for a genocide.
The Green Party candidate, Jill Stein's plans for Palestinian liberation are to demand an immediate ceasefire in Israel and Palestine, and an end to the blockade of Gaza. She plans to send immediate humanitarian and medical relief, and calls for the release of hostages and political prisoners. She will end all military aid to Israel and adopt sanctions until Israel complies with international law to put an end to decades of violence, illegal occupation, displacement, dispossession, apartheid, & ethnic cleansing. She will end the longstanding US practice of vetoing UN Security Council resolutions to hold Israel accountable to international law.
The Independent candidate Cornel West's plans for Palestinian Liberation are to end military funding to Israel and to advocate for Palestinian dignity and liberation. He will demand an end to apartheid conditions. He also plans to establish a Truth and Reconciliation Commission for U.S. interventions abroad as an act of moral accountability.
The Party for Socialism and Liberation's candidate Claudia De La Cruz's plans are to immediately cease sending aid to Israel and to immediately cease lending diplomatic support covering for Israel's human rights abuses and war crimes. She plans to repeal anti-BDS laws (laws that make boycotting Israeli businesses illegal) and demand an end to the repression and intimidation of pro-Palestine protesters.
The Libertarian Party's candidate, Chase Oliver's platform fails to specify Israeli/Palestinian relations but states a plan to pivot to a foreign policy focused on peace, ending drone strikes and military interventions, and instead champion free trade and international goodwill.
The Republican Party candidate, Donald Trump's plans regarding the Israeli slaughter of Palestinians are to stand with our ally and vaguely support "peace" in the middle east. More lip service with no actual substance, and what substance is implied is pretty bad.
In case you aren't a single issue voter or you happened to notice three candidates share almost the same stance on this issue, here are some notable areas in which they differ.
The Democratic Party candidate, Kamala Harris' platform includes a plan to sign a bill restoring reproductive rights after Congress has passed it. She promises to make childcare and secondary education more affordable. She promises to provide up to $25K in down-payment assistance for first time home buyers. She will outlaw new methods of price fixing amongst corporate landlords, as a means of keeping rent prices from being artifically increased .
The Green Party candidate, Jill Stein's platform includes removing the wealth cap on social security to ensure it's better funded. She has a plan to build 15 million homes over ten years as a means to end homelessness. She calls for universal rent control. She will fix healthcare gaps with a single payer healthcare system. She will codify Roe v. Wade ensuring female bodily autonomy rights. She will ban private prisons. She will end poverty by making a living-wage job, guaranteed livable income, housing, healthcare, childcare, lifelong education, secure retirement, utilities, healthy food and clean water established as inalienable rights. She will cut taxes for lower earners (<$75K gross income households). She will ensure the spread of free high-speed fiber optic internet to rural America. She will decriminalize drugs in order to treat addiction as a health issue.
The Party for Socialism and Liberation's candidate Claudia De La Cruz's platform includes literally seizing the means of production by the working class. She intends to revolutionize our economic system by having the government take over the top earning 100 companies. By removing control from their billionaire owners, she plans to use the wealth they provide to fund the base needs of every U.S. American. With such funding, quality healthcare, education through college and beyond, free childcare, decent housing and a living wage with union representation would become constitutional rights. She will cut the military budget by 90%.
The Independent candidate Cornel West's platform includes access to a doula and a midwife for every pregnant Black woman. He calls for the codification of abortion rights. He also calls for the demilitarization of police and for their funding to be allocated back into their communities. He calls for an end to the death penalty, end to solitary confinement, and for the introduction of a prisoner's bill of rights ensuring their just treatment and ability to vote. He calls for abolishing homelessness by providing housing as a right, and eradicating poverty with the introduction of UBI (Universal Basic Income), and for universal access to quality education and healthcare. He also calls for term limits for all elected officials, including supreme court judges, and ranked voting. He will move away from punitive measures regarding drug convictions, instead working towards addiction treatment.
The Libertarian Party's candidate, Chase Oliver's platform includes the abolishment of the Department of Education and the full removal of federal oversight to education. He will close U.S.A. military bases abroad. He will end abortion restrictions before viability and he will end the death penalty.
The Republican Party candidate, Donald Trump's platform includes ceasing all taxes on tips and lowering taxes for the working class. He states a desire to lower housing costs but I see no plan on how to do so...? He stands by letting states determine abortion rights, opposed late term abortions (that don't exist except where medically necessary) and supports access to IVF.
I have no patience for folks pulling up a picture of Jill Stein sitting at a table with Putin and claiming she's a Russian agent. Anyone seriously running for President should have some experience, or at least the desire, to communicate with other world leaders.
Of these, Jill Stein and Cornel West have very ambitious, but the most well-fleshed out stances. Jill explains more about how she intends to fulfill her promises more. Thus, she's got my vote. I still feel like their platforms are very similar and frankly, they should have compromised and run together. I like Claudia De La Cruz and I think much of this nation's issues stem from having two major economically right-leaning parties, meaning we need a strong socialist party for balance. I just think her platform isn't as strong right now.
Thanks for stopping by! I hope you found any of this informative. I drop a new blog post every Monday. Toodles!
P.S.: If you use Wix, do not make the mistake of adding a chart to your post. It slows down the entire page to the point where there is a delay in the appearance of letters on-screen when typing. The chart is a pain to tweak in every conceivable way. No charts. You'll be better off without.
Newsletter
Howdy! This past week I namely focused on prepping for First Friday in downtown Bryan. Meaning, I got no writing, minimal reading, but a handful of art work done. There was a set back wherein my favorite new woodburning/painting cracked and it took me all of Thursday to repair it. All told, September's First Friday was still my most successful yet, which is cool.
While woodburning and painting, I listened to most of the free online author lectures I posted last week. I'll continue adding to that list as I find more.
I'm currently reading The Unbearable Lightness Of Being by Milan Kundera. It's a favorite novel of a friend, and from the title, I guessed it would offer themes of self empowerment like in The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, or maybe The Alchemist. I'm 3/4 in and thus far the story is fast paced but there are low stakes and I'm not invested in a single character. The structure is unusual, in that the narrator comes off as a friend of the protagonists, while knowing personal details those characters would never have shared. Also, the story isn't just out of chronological order. It dwells on the same periods from multiple perspectives, which is popular for thrillers and higher stakes stories, but this isn't that.
Thanks for stopping by! I drop a newsletter every Monday! Toodles!
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