The Democratic Agenda

By JAMES F. HENRY

Bull Moose Magazine Publisher

Far too often, people "learn" about issues that are important to the Presidential candidates filtered through the invariably negative lens of their opponent. This is nothing new. During graduate school I studied the Presidential Election of 1800, which featured Thomas Jefferson and John Adams. If people believed what they read in the newspapers of the day (which were actually owned by the Democratic-Republican and Federalist Parties) you would think that both Jefferson and Adams were headed straight to hell, without passing go and without collecting $200. So we shouldn't be surprised when Sen. Barack Obama and Sen. John McCain are on the stump that they invariably take shots at each other. It's how the game has been played for centuries.

However, I am firmly of the opinion that in this election, perhaps more than any other in my life time, there is a profound difference between the priorities of the two parties. Furthermore, as a proud Democrat, I happen to believe that the Democratic Party is right on the preponderance of the issues. I firmly believe that if people educate themselves on the issues and what the Democratic Party actually stands for (as opposed to what Sen. McCain and Gov. Palin would have you believe) you will see why Barack Obama should be elected President of the United States.

Toward that end, I undertook an exercise tonight. I went through the entire Democratic Platform and ranked the issues. I ranked them based upon the amount of space each issue received within the platform, by counting words in each plank. Truth be told, my computer did the counting! There are actually 93 issues and subissues contained in the document. Since no one (not even me) would care to read about all 93 issues, I have combined many that run along common themes, and have highlighted the top 10 of these combined rankings.

In the weeks ahead, my plan is to write 10 hubs, each featuring one of these issues. As the hubs are put online, I will link them here, for easy access. Please know that this exercise is not news. Objective journalists, if they still exist (or ever did), are required to seek out divergent positions, to maintain a balance. My intention is to present my decidedly biased opinion on the important issues facing our nation today.

1. Empowering Families for a New Era

2. Economic Stewardship

3. Working for our Common Security

4. Revitalizing and Supporting the Military, Keeping Faith With Veterans

5. Ending the War in Iraq, Defeating Al Qaeda, Winning in Afghanistan

6. Education - K12 & Higher Education

7. Preventing the Spread and Use of Weapons of Mass Destruction

8. Invest in our Common Humanity

9. Reclaiming our Constitution and our Liberties

10. Open, Accountable and Ethical Government

There is a theory called Agenda Setting that contends that the media aren't very good at telling you what to think but are very good at telling you what to think about. Now you can have your say and let everyone know what is important to you.

If you would care to share, leave a comment below answering this question:

What is the most important issue facing the United States of America today?