ISSUES

Putting Michigan Back to Work

• The immediate placement of al major corporations under social ownership and worker control.
• A massive federal public works program to rebuild our cities and communities, administered and controlled by elected assemblies of working people.
• Immediate reopening of all closed and closing factories under workers’ control, retooled (if necessary) to produce staple items for human need.
• Creation of a National Pension Authority, under democratic control of elected workers’ assemblies, to hold the assets of private pension funds and 401(k) retirement funds, and a levy against corporate assets for any pension fund deficits.
• Federal cultural works projects to develop and bring cultural activities into working communities.
• Creation of a Workers’ Superfund to pay a worker’s full wages and benefits, as well as necessary educational and/or retraining costs, for workers who lose their job due to environmental transition, downsizing, corporate restructuring or capital flight.
• Cut the work week with no loss of net pay or benefits to spread available work around according to the principle of the production for need, not production for profit.
• A 100-percent capital flight tax on corporations and capitalists who attempt to leave the United States.

Rebuilding Our Communities

• Creation of a neighborhood reconstruction program, to build quality, community based housing, controlled and administered by democratically elected assemblies of construction workers and future residents.
• Confiscation without compensation of rented houses and apartment complexes from landlords refusing to keep them up to code.
• Rent control for all existing rental units, and the right of tenants to organize into unions and conduct rent strikes and strikes over conditions.
• Support for the formation of housing cooperatives and nonprofit land trusts.
• Creation of a housing rehabilitation service, democratically controlled by construction workers and residents, to aid homeowners and renters in renovations and maintenance, and seasonal weatherizing.

Safe and Efficient Access to Travel

• Government-subsidized programs to expand foot and bicycle paths. Creation of pedestrian ways that exclude vehicles from downtown areas of cities and towns, accessible only by mass transit.
• Creation of fully funded high-speed rail transportation systems between the major cities with fares set low enough to be a viable alternative to the use of the automobile.
• Subsidies for mass transit so that fares are affordable to all.
• Indefinite moratorium on the expansion of the interstate highway system.
• Establishment of a democratically controlled Highway Redevelopment Commission to explore ways to transform the state’s roadway infrastructure into a non-invasive, environmentally friendly system.
• Replacement of all diesel-powered buses by electric- and CNG-powered coaches.
• Establishment of state-owned auto insurance, with rates on a sliding scale based on income, administered by an elected state Insurance Commission.

Lifting the Tax Burden Off of Working People

• Restoration of the income tax, estate tax, capital gains tax and luxury tax on a progressive, graduated scale, with people making less than 80 percent of the average wage of a skilled worker paying no income taxes.
• Elimination of all subsidies, tax breaks and credits that benefit corporations and individual capitalists (also known as “corporate welfare”).
• Abolition of the federal payroll tax and all “sin” taxes on gasoline, alcohol and tobacco.
• Tax benefits for renters equal to those for homeowners.
• A 100-percent tax on the profits of war goods and weapons manufacturers.
• Raising of the maximum yearly income limits to qualify for the federal Earned Income Credit by at least 25%.
• I also point to the fact that socialized industries in a planned economy would generate a social surplus of wealth which could be used to replace many taxes altogether.

Protecting the Right to Work With Dignity

• A minimum wage of $15/hour for wage earners and a minimum yearly salary of $31,200 for salaried workers, indexed to the cost of living for certain states, and a cumulative maximum wage no greater than 10-times the minimum.
• An uninterrupted weekly break, of no less than 64 hours, for all workers, with exception for flex-time.
• A minimum of three weeks paid vacation, and a minimum 24 days of personal time off, for all workers.
• Abolition of mandatory overtime. Employees working voluntary overtime must receive double pay.
• Increased unemployment compensation at a living wage and indexed to the cost of living.
• Establishment of a guaranteed annual income at a living wage for those outside the work force.
• Price controls and freezes on all staple food items and essential services, established by democratically elected assemblies of producers and consumers.
• Support for the right of any number of interested workers in a workplace to form a union and bargain with their employer, with no limits on the subjects upon which employees and unions may bargain with employers.
• Automatic union recognition based on card check and neutrality.
• Support democratic control by the membership of all labor unions, independent of employer and government domination and influence.
• Support for the right of all workers, particularly workers in service industries, enlisted personnel in the Armed Forces (excluding non-commissioned officers) the unorganized,
under organized and unemployed to organize labor unions, associations and cooperative societies.
• Support for militant, united labor action including secondary strikes, sympathy strikes and secondary boycotts, factory committees, and ultimately the expropriation of the work place.
• Support of the right of first-time and part-time workers to full benefits.
• Repeal of all repressive “slave labor” legislation such as the Hatch Act, Taft-Hartley Act, Landrum-Griffin Act and all so-called “right-to-work” laws.
• Abolition of the National Labor Relations Board, replaced by community-based elected commissions composed of at least 50 percent working people.
• Support for the right of workers to organize workplace committees and assemblies, to hold shop meetings on company premises, elect their supervisors, and administer health and safety programs.
• Support for the right of workers, consumers and communities to information on plant safety, hazardous wastes, toxic substances, and the quality of goods and services.
• Support for the right of workers to strike over health and safety issues.
• Support for the right of all workers to organize irrespective of job titles and responsibilities, citizenship status, method of payment or sector of the economy where employed.

Ending Debt-Slavery in Rural Areas

• Formation of cooperatives to represent small and family farmers in negotiating contracts with canneries and grocery/produce distributors.
• Technological and resource incentives to small and family farmers that agree to form a cooperative.
• The right of farm workers to organize into unions to gain better wages and benefits, quality housing and working conditions, and for negotiating contracts.
• Placement of corporate-run “factory farms” into public ownership, administered and restructured by democratically elected farm workers’ assemblies.
• A parity system that guarantees farmers a full return on the cost of production.
• Repudiation of all current farm debts. Creation of grants, no-interest loans, micro-credits and technical help to farmers, including help to shift farm production from non-essentials to staple foods and fibers.
• Family farmers whose land was taken in foreclosures should be given their land and equipment back, or be given comparable land and equipment somewhere else if they wish it. They should also have the option of monetary compensation for their loss instead.
• The right of farmers and farm workers to organize unions for good wages, housing, and working conditions (including the right to be protected from pesticides).
• Labeling of genetically modified foods, and the banning of genetically modified seeds designed to be sterile.
• Democratic control of agricultural research and the complete testing of agricultural products.
• Increased funding to the U.S. Department of Agriculture to carry out full inspections of domestic and imported agricultural products to make sure they meet standards for food safety.
• Full disclosure in the labeling on agricultural products, including listing the country of origin.
• Full funding for research geared toward the elimination of pesticide use.

Social Equality and Democratic Rights

• Full equality for all, regardless of race, color or creed, nationality or national origin, gender, sexuality or sexual identity, age, ability, political affiliation, religion, or citizenship status.
• Federal anti-discrimination legislation covering the above categories, with fully empowered enforcement mechanisms in the hands of elected assemblies of working people.
• Affirmative action programs in housing, education, employment and state services.

People of Color

• Recognition of the right of oppressed nationalities to autonomy, community control and self-determination, up to and including separation.
• Formal apology and reparations from the federal government for its role in the maintenance and continuation of the slave trade, and the genocide of Native American nations, with the reparations programs administered by the oppressed communities themselves.
• Full representation and/or sovereignty for Native American communities and nations in the state and federal government as autonomous entities.
• Opposition to attempts to adopt an official language for the United States.
• Passage of legislation making racial profiling a crime severely punishable by law.
• The right of immigrants to housing, education, health care, jobs, and civil, legal and political rights.

Women

• Equal pay for equal work or work of comparative worth.
• Establishment of 24-hour childcare and medical facilities, crisis lines and shelters for victims and survivors of rape, domestic violence and child abuse, and community-based education and response teams to combat violence against women and children.
• The right of stay-at-home parents to organize into cooperatives, unions and other organizations.
• Establishment of 24-hour community kitchens and domestic cleaning teams.
• Banning all involuntary sterilizations, with doctors who perform them subject to prosecution.
• Decriminalization of prostitution, to remove it from criminal control. Prostitutes to be provided with special health care and other services to reduce the dangers they confront.

Lesbians, Gay Men, Bisexuals, Transgender People, and Queer People

• Repeal of all anti-LGBTQ legislation, including anti-sodomy and “criminal deviant” laws.
• Recognition of equal protection under the law for same-sex couples through a constitutional amendment affirming their right to obtain a marriage license and certificate from the State of Michigan, and their right to adopt and raise children.
• Call on all schools to adopt policies and procedures to address and prevent student violence and to ban discrimination against GLBTQ people throughout the educational system.
• A federal ban on all forms of job discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity in both the public and the private sector.
• I am committed to confronting the heterosexism that provides the fertile ground for homophobic violence, and support all efforts toward fostering understanding and cooperation among persons and groups of different sexual orientations.

Disabled People

• Restoration and enhancement of enforcement provisions of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
• Establishment of a network of support for people with physical, mental and developmental disabilities, including home assistance, recreation centers, guaranteed income, voting access and quality control in residential facilities.
• We oppose any attempts to reduce social security entitlement, remove protections for the disabled under social security, or privatize the social security system.
• A raise in Social Security and SSI benefits to a minimum of $2,426 a month.
• Adjust the resource limits for SSI for the cost of living from the point they were last raised in the mid 80’s.

Elderly People

• No compulsory retirement. Right of retirement at age 55 — age 50 for workers in hazardous or extremely labor-intensive industries.
• Increase in home service and hospice care for older people so that they can remain independent in the community.
• Formation of publicly funded and democratically controlled senior centers to provide positive opportunities for community involvement.
• Vigorous enforcement of health and care standards for nursing homes.
• Election of advocates and ombudsmen by assemblies of seniors and caregivers to insure the protection of residents’ rights in nursing homes, and a stimulating environment in group and nursing home situations.

Young People

• Opposition to measures that increase responsibilities and penalties on youth ostensibly to curb crime.
• Abolition of the Selective Service Administration, the government agency responsible for organizing the military draft, abolition of Selective Service registration and abolition of military recruiting in educational institutions.
• Stipends and grants for children to aid in the economic satisfaction of every child’s basic rights and needs.
• The right of parents, stepparents, grandparents and all other caring adults to share in the child-rearing process.
• Adoption and foster care reform, including child protections from abuse and abandonment, and the stripping of parental rights from abusive parents.
• The right of young people to a job, proper training and/or full benefits after finishing their education.
• The right of young people to enter into personal relations with their peers without fear of repression from the state.
• End age-based curfew laws.

Breaking the System of Legal Injustice

• I call for the ultimate replacement of capitalist police departments altogether. They should be replaced with fully democratic, community based workers’ and peoples’ militias, volunteer and paid, composed of community residents and professionals trained in conflict resolution.
• Free, quality legal and court services with skilled and experienced attorneys of choice.
• Full prosecution of the criminal activities of politicians, corporate managers and other privileged individuals rather than the over-enforcement of minor infractions by working people.
• Expansion of community release programs and other alternatives to prisons, and a moratorium on new prison construction.
• Immediate closure of all “Supermax” prisons. Abolition of “prisons for profit”.
• Abolition of prison labor for profit, forced labor (“chain gangs”) and the use of prison labor to perform state services.
• The right of prisoners to organize unions and cooperative societies to negotiate for better living conditions.
• Abolition of the inhumane practice of cavity searches and the adoption of a zero tolerance policy towards sexual assault within prisons.
• Establishment of academic programs and schools to aid prisoners with literacy, attaining higher education and understanding the law and society.
• Support services for prisoners and their families to reduce ostracism, maintain family ties, and provide for non-degrading visitation policies.
• Abolition of multi-prisoner cells.
• Establishment of completely independent and democratically elected police control and oversight councils, with full power to fire police and to arrest, detain, and indict police officers who brutalize or abuse people or who commit any violation of laws or civil rights and liberties.
• Recognition of the right of working-class and oppressed communities and communities of color to defend themselves by any means necessary against reactionary violence, police harassment and brutality.
• Community response services for crime victims.
• Decriminalization of victimless crimes, including drug possession and substance abuse, and legalization of marijuana and hemp.
• Sliding scale of fines based on income.
• Commutation and pardoning of all political prisoners.
• Legislation to make the recitation of the rights of the accused (the “Miranda warning”) by police mandatory.
• Immediate dismissal of all prosecution cases where the rights of the accused have been violated.
• Abolition of the federal death penalty and oppose the institution of the death penalty in Michigan.
• Federal safety standards and training for gun owners, under democratic control.
• Unconditional amnesty for undocumented people. For full citizenship rights upon demonstrating proof of residency for six (6) months.
• An end to the use of “secret evidence” in deportation hearings, a ban on all immigration detentions and military tribunals, and full due process for habeas corpus rights in U.S. courts for all non-citizens on U.S. territory or in U.S. custody.

Universal Health Care

• For a socialized health care system, with standard and alternative medical coverage, and vision and dental care, for all, controlled by democratically elected care-center assemblies of health care workers and patients.
• For a health care system that emphasizes preventive care, respects patients’ privacy, gives special attention to the needs of the physically and mentally disabled, and conducts treatment and research unimpaired by sexism, racism or homophobia/heterosexism.
• Free and safe access to reproductive services, including birth control and medical termination of pregnancy (abortion), on demand.
• Fully paid maternity leave three months before and six months after giving birth; the partner or guardian couple to be provided with six months’ leave.
• Full funding for research into developing vaccines and treatment for HIV and AIDS.
• Full funding for research into medical benefits that can be derived from the study of the human genome.
• Abolition of all copyright protection for medicines and biomedical/technology products.
• Immediate lifting of the restrictions upon government funding for human embryonic on stem-cell research.
• Full funding for treatment and management of addiction to controlled substances, and the development of synthetic alternatives that aid in eliminating physical addiction, not merely replace one addictive substance with another.
• Full funding for community mental health services available on a voluntary basis, with patients’ rights respected.

Education

 • Free, quality and universal public education, from pre-kindergarten through post-graduate studies, including open admissions with the abolition of tuition and fees at all public universities.
• Recognition of full unionization rights for graduate teaching assistants.
• Abolition of legislation that allows public funds to be diverted into private schools. Abolition of school voucher programs and charter schools.
• Funding for a massive teacher recruitment and retention program, administered by the teachers’ unions.
• Mandatory reduction of class sizes to no larger than 15 students per teacher.
• Broadband Internet access in all schools, libraries and other educational facilities, free and accessible to all students, parents and members of the community.
• Repudiation of the provisions of the “No Child Left Behind” Act, including teacher testing and merit pay, and rejection of funds tied to that legislation.
• Multicultural, class-conscious curricula that allows for alternative methods of learning and development.
• Non-moralistic sex and health education beginning in the fourth grade.
• Removal of all corporate advertising and presence in public schools.
• Mandatory updating of all school textbooks and other learning-related materials every three years.
• Inclusion of vocational and fine arts courses in the mandatory curriculum.
• An end to military research at public universities and the abolition of all ROTC and JROTC programs.
• Student, parent, and teacher control of curriculum formation, and in the hiring and dismissal procedures of school personnel, through the formation of local school/community committees.
• Student, teacher, and faculty representation on school boards, and for those boards to be fully accountable to students, parents, teachers, and school workers.

Democratic Economy and Society

• All financial institutions, including credit unions, mutual insurance cooperatives, and cooperative state banks, to be publicly owned and operated by democratically controlled assemblies of financial service workers.
• Debt “owed” to the big banks by levels of government be either cancelled outright or drastically reduced at far lower interest rates. It is time for debt enslavement to be ended as an excuse for cutting domestic spending on social needs.
• Abolition of all ATM, check cashing and bank fees.
• No business secrets hidden from the workers. The books and data banks of every company must be open to the inspection of specialists appointed by and responsible to the workers.
• Abolition of state secrecy. Public access to all state files, cabinet papers, diplomatic agreements, etc., with respect to personal privacy.
• Mandatory full disclosure of corporate plans to close and relocate plants and compensation for workers and communities affected by plant closings.
• Mandatory full disclosure of budgets and assets for all declared failing and bankrupt corporations.
• End to all forms of censorship, both legislative and institutional.
• Separation of church and state, and separation of church and school. Full freedom for religious and atheist beliefs.
• An end to all state-sponsored religious propaganda and acts of worship. Religion taught in public schools only as a subject of academic study.

Election Reform

• Abolition of restrictive rules for obtaining and retaining ballot status as a political party.
• Uniformed ballot access laws or all states.
• Automatic granting of “Political Party” status for any organization that holds a State Convention and elects a State Central Committee.
• Abolition of the two-tier system that favors the Republicans and Democrats by abolishing signature-gathering requirements.
• Repeal of all laws restricting participation by labor unions in the political process.
• Equal public financing of all registered candidates and abolition of the use of personal funds in elections.
• Mandatory, verifiable paper trail of all votes to allow for recounts and verification.
• Automatic voter registration upon reaching voting age, based upon the most recent of address provided on a drivers’ license application, state ID application or state tax return, whenever possible.
• Implementation of Instant Runoff Voting in presidential elections. Implementation of proportional representation in Congress.
• Lower the voting age to 14
• Extension of the right of all American citizens incarcerated in jails and prisons to vote.
• Higher donation limits for minor parties.
• Election day as a federal holiday.

The People’s Airwaves

• Abolition of privately funded campaign commercials, replaced by state-mandated blocs of time for each candidate and recognized state political party.
• Reinstitute of the “fairness doctrine” in all media, with automatic recognition of equal time for all candidates.
• Supervision and oversight of media reporting by democratically elected boards of review attached to each local and regional media outlet.
• Expansion of public access media, including print and radio, to allow for more diverse voices to be heard.
• Sliding scale of fees for obtaining broadcast licenses, based on income and audience served.
• Free Internet access for all, including the distribution of computers to individuals and families in need of them.

Environment

Preserving Natural Resources

• Public ownership and democratic control of all our natural resources in order to conserve resources, preserve our wilderness areas, and restore environmental quality.
• Placement of all financial responsibility for cleaning up toxic wastes on the corporations which are responsible for them.
• Requirements for manufacturers to contribute to research and development of new technologies for cleaning up and preventing future toxic wastes.
• Banning of the placement of local municipal landfills, toxic waste disposal sites or incinerators in working-class communities and communities of color.
• Legal action against any U.S. private corporation that violates environmental laws in the operation of facilities overseas.
• No clear-cutting in commercial forestry. Banning of commercial cutting in old-growth forests.
• An environmentally sound timber policy that takes into account the historical ecology of the region.
• Endangered species protection that focuses on habitat-centered protection for plants and animals.

Water Pollution

• Massive cleanup of lakes and waterways.
• Ban on all oil and natural gas exploration and pumping in the Great Lakes.
• Ban on the use of water from the Great Lakes for bottling and sale.
• Strict adherence to the federal Clean Water Act.
• Strict controls on runoff and effluent by industry and agriculture.
• Programs to reduce and eliminate mercury contamination in water.
• Statewide program to clean up and restore our state’s beaches and shorelines.

Air Pollution

• “Polluter pay” laws to stop corporations from exceeding pollution levels.
• Mandatory DEQ monitoring of air pollution levels in urban areas.
• Statewide moratorium on all logging and other programs that cause deforestation.
• Legislation to preserve old growth forests and create new forest areas.
• Acceptance and compliance with the Kyoto Protocols.

Alternative Energy

• For alternative energy systems that are not harmful to the environment or living things.
• Public ownership and control of energy plants, organized in a production-for-use system, and administered by elected workplace and community assemblies, assuring the most careful use of natural resources.
• Establishment of wind, geothermal, biomass and hydroelectric power plants to end  dependence on fossil fuels.
• Immediate closure and decommissioning of all nuclear power plants, and an indefinite moratorium on all nuclear plant construction.
• Mandatory vitrification of all spent nuclear fuel, control rods and other waste.
• Ban on all imports of nuclear materials, whether they are vitrified or not.
• Sliding scale of utility rates which favor low-income people and ensure that everyone has access to utility services.

Consumption Waste

• Ban on all imports of consumption waste.
• Moratorium on the construction of new waste dumps and landfills.
• Retrofitting of all current dumps and landfills with technology the aids in breaking down waste.
• Increasing conservation efforts by individuals, businesses and communities.
• “Premium pricing” for virgin raw materials.
• Expansion of weekly curbside recycling programs.
• Expansion of the “Bottle Bill” to include all glass, plastic, metal and coated paper containers.
• Democratically-elected, community-based environmental oversight committees.

Urban Sprawl

• Immediate moratorium on all new construction and an injunction on all current construction contributing to urban sprawl.
• Credits and incentives to individuals and construction teams to build new dwellings and facilities in urban areas.

Biodiversity

• Creation of and support for programs aimed at preserving wildlife preserves and natural wetlands.
• Expansion of federal and state wildlife areas, under democratic control of elected DNR representatives.
• Support for the development of programs aimed at studying the effects of naturally-occurring chemical compounds.

Respecting All Living Things

• Free spaying and neutering of domesticated animals and pets to prevent overpopulation.
• Mandated humane treatment of all animals employed to entertain humans, enforced by a Bureau of Animal Rights Enforcement, attached to the DNR.
• Abolition of the fur trade.
• Support for greater inclusion in and enforcement of the federal Endangered Species Act.
• Banning of animal experimentation for product development, and support for products that are not tested on animals.
• Opposition to the practices of overcrowding, drugging, and otherwise cruelly treating animals on large and factory farms.

International Policy

Anti-Militarism/Disarmament

• Elimination of all stockpiles of weapons of mass destruction, including nuclear, biological and chemical weapons, and depleted uranium weapons.
• Support for the worldwide ban on landmines.
• Immediate, unconditional withdrawal of all U.S. occupation forces from Afghanistan, Iraq and Haiti.
• Immediate, unconditional return of all military and paramilitary personnel stationed outside of the U.S. and the closure of all over-seas military bases.
• Immediate closure of the U.S. naval base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
• Disbanding of NATO and all other international military alliances.
• Immediate reduction of the federal defense budget by 50 percent, with additional cuts to follow.
• Abolition of permanent ranks and orders in the Armed Forces, and their replacement by elected command and chief positions based on all standard unit divisions (detail, squad, platoon, company, battalion, regiment, etc.).
• Full democratic rights for soldiers.
• The right of soldiers to elect and recall officers and sergeants at all levels and to form soldiers councils and assemblies to represent their views and interests.
• The right of soldiers to refuse suicidal orders or to commit murder, terror against populations, or war crimes.
• A constitutional amendment requiring a binding vote of the people on all issues of war or military intervention.

The “War on Terror”

• Repeal of the USA-PATRIOT Act, Anti-Terrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act, Transportation Security Act and other similar “anti-terrorist” measures.
• Abolition of the FBI, CIA, NSA and all other institutions of covert warfare and domestic spying.
• Abolition of the Department of Homeland Security and similar agencies within the State of Michigan.
• Abolition of the North American Command of the United States Armed Forces and of military intervention inside the borders of the U.S., except in times of civil war or invasion.
• Strict enforcement of the civil and Constitutional rights of all those residing within the state.
• Ban on federal detention facilities associated with the “war on terror”.
• Rejection of all federal funds earmarked for the “war on terror”.

International Trade

• Immediate repeal of U.S. participation in NAFTA and CAFTA; rejection of the proposed FTAA; withdraw from the G-7 and G-8.
• Abolition of the World Trade Organization, World Bank and International Monetary Fund.
• Application of International Labor Organization standards to all trade agreements.
• Repudiation and cancellation of all international debt owed by or owed to the U.S.

The Americas

The Middle East

• Immediate withdrawal of Israeli occupation forces from the West Bank, Gaza Strip and Golan Heights; enforcement of UN resolutions 242 and 338.

• The right of return, or appropriate compensation, for all Palestinian refugees.

• A democratic and secular Palestine, and a democratic and secular Israel, preferably united in a voluntary federated republic.

• Abolition of all military aid to Israel and other aggressor states.

International Relations

• Abolition of permanent membership in the United Nations Security Council. Abolition of the “concurrence clause” (veto power) of the UN Charter. Transfer of UN executive authority to the central assembly. Suspension of member state’s rights if they are more than three years in arrears of paying their dues.

• Distribution of AIDS treatments based on a sliding scale, from at-cost to free, for countries ravaged by the disease.

• Fraternal, non-violent assistance to countries requesting assistance in dealing with communal, religious and fratricidal conflicts.

• Creation of an international political organization of working people as the only way of combating the exploitation of workers in a global economy based on capitalism.

• Establishment and implementation of international labor standards, including the unconditional right to organize, a sliding scale of wages and hours, generous periods of vacation and leisure, and provisions for leaves of absence for new parents with no loss of seniority.