Here's what Democrats stand for:

[Poiuyt]

I get so tired of people on TV saying that the Democrats have no agenda, no plans, no strategies. As John Kerry said to Norah O'Donnell today, the Democrats do have an alternative plan, but with Bush giving speeches every day, and the media covering them live with no rebuttal, the Democrats have no chance to articulate it.

I took the liberty of summarizing the agenda from the web site of the Democratic Party. Personally, I think it would be wise to take out a full page ad in the NYT or WP and print this just so people will stop saying that the Democrats have no message.

Honest Government & Open Government

We will end the Republican culture of corruption and restore a government as good as the people it serves, starting with real ethics reform.

Real Security

We will protect Americans at home and lead the world by telling the truth to our troops, our citizens and our allies. We believe in a strong national defense that is both tough and smart, recognizing that homeland security begins with hometown security.

Energy Independence

We will create a cleaner, greener and stronger America by reducing our dependence on foreign oil, eliminating billions in subsidies for oil and gas companies and use the savings to provide consumer relief and develop energy alternatives, and investing in energy independent technology.

Economic Prosperity and Educational Excellence

We will create jobs that stay in America and restore opportunity for all Americans, starting with raising the minimum wage, expanding Pell grants and making college tuition tax deductible. We also believe in budget discipline that reduces our deficit.

A Healthcare System that Works for Everyone

We will join 36 other industrialized nations in making sure everyone has access to affordable health care, starting by fixing the prescription drug program and investing in stem cell and other medical research.

Retirement Security

We will ensure that a retirement with dignity is the right and expectation of every single American, starting with pension reform, expanding saving incentives and preventing the privatization of social security.

Environment

The Democratic Party believes that it is our responsibility to protect America's extraordinary natural resources. The health of our families and the strength of our economy depend on our stewardship of the environment.

Civil Rights & Justice

Democrats are unwavering in our support of equal opportunity for all Americans. That's why we’ve worked to pass every one of our nation’s Civil Rights laws, and every law that protects workers. Most recently, Democrats stood together to reauthorize the Voting Rights Act.

Election Reform

A fundamental tenet of our democracy is the right to vote and have that counted. We must be vigilant in protecting this right and ensuring that our voting system is fair for every American.

http://www.democrats.org/

[JDPriestly]

1. Love it! You've said it all.

[Just-plain-Kathy]

2. P.S. Democrats created Social Security...

...and should be credited for saving it!!

Great post! Thanks!

[Flying Dream Blues]

3. Ahh, yes, Thank you!

Excellent post. I'm bookmarking it.

:hi:

[ComerPerro]

4. Problem is, Republicans promise the same things, and negate our message

even though they have no intention on following through on any of the promises, Republicans lie their asses off and run as progressives.

Magical progressives who will accomplish this while keeping government small and cutting taxes for everyone and balancing the budget.

[Trajan]

6. Then the problem is their lying ....

We STILL possess the message, and the philosophy ....

I respond to EVERY claim that 'we have no plan' with a very similar set of planks ....

The Democrats have HAD a 'plan' for 70 years running .... and it has ALWAYS worked ....

The Democratic Party agenda has been a rousing success for common citizens .....

Let's get it back ....

[texpatriot2004]

5. K & R nm

[garthranzz]

7. Just the kind of list I was looking for.

[Scriptor Ignotus]

8. I think its a great idea

and Kerry doesn't help matters when he laments the media's participation in our message distribution. We just sound whiny in the end.

If we had a decent PR machine, we wouldn't need to piss and moan about the MSM. We would create news worthy events. We would say news worthy things that pundits would talk about. Bush and friends say all these outrageous things all the time and then people and pundits spend days talking about it. We should be doing the same and we should not be backing down.

The whole purpose of PR is to get PUBLICITY. To get the media to focus on the issues YOU want to talk about. The GOP is crushing us on this front.

[Poiuyt]

9. The Democratic leaders tried holding a press conference to announce

their agenda a few months ago. When Bush/Rove heard about it, they scheduled an "important" speech at the same time. Guess which got covered by the TV crews. That's why I suggested full page ads in prominent newspapers.

But you're right. The Democrats need to do a full press media blitz. If they can't get free publicity, then they need to pay to get it.

[Scriptor Ignotus]

10. what Rove did was what we need to do

you have to outsmart your opponent and we haven't been able to do it. Unfortunately I'm not smarter than Rove, so I don't have any solutions to offer. I know what we need to do, just not how to do it.

But Dems need to do something dramatic to nail Rumsfeld, harp on Bin Laden, or do something to highlight Bush's and the Republicans weaknesses.

I really do like your idea though. They should probably do a few different ads in a few different papers so the message gets out. Include links to websites with online campaign videos (cheaper than buying TV ads on networks), things like that.