Resolutions Archive - old versions

Resolutions listed here are ones that have beeen superceded by new versions, and/or combined with others. They are grouped here in case you need to look at an old version.

A Renewed Commitment To Peace And Diplomacy: A Cabinet Level Department Of Peace -OLD

Note: This is an old version, and has been superceded by a new (2/2008) version entitled "Department of Peace"

 

Whereas, Our unilateral, preemptive war against Iraq has alienated our allies, demonstrated U.S. indifference to international concerns, and increased recruits for terrorist groups bent on fighting our country; and

Whereas, conflict in all relationships is inevitable; and

Whereas, Two hundred seventy million people died in the twentieth century when conflicts were addressed with military and political force; and

Whereas, Military and political forces are expensive and starve our nation of the resources needed to create a strong, healthy society; and

Whereas, Nonviolent mediation has proved successful in seemingly insoluble conflicts, ranging from India's struggle for independence to the great strides made towards integration in the U.S.; and

Whereas, Implementing nonviolent approaches for domestic programs and foreign mediation requires broad understanding, research and a concerted effort; and

Whereas, There is no single government entity assigned to deal with these various issues and report to the American people the status of our efforts to achieve these goals; be it therefore

RESOLVED, That we strengthen security in our country and in the world by:


• Rejecting a foreign policy of preemptive, unilateral war,
• Working with the world community through the United Nations, and
• Supporting international agreements such as the Anti-ballistic Missile Treaty, the Biological and Chemical Weapons Conventions, the Small Arms Treaty, the International Criminal Court and the Kyoto Climate Treaty; and be it further
• Resolved, That a Cabinet level Department of Peace be established to study and advance non-violence as the organizing principle in all human relations from families and neighborhoods to courts and congresses, both nationwide and internationally.

 

Note:  This resolution was approved by the Texas state Democratic Convention in 2004, but was not incorporated into the platform at that time.  It was originally developed by the Texas Kucinich for President campaign. 

Abolish the Death Penalty - OLD

Note: This is an old version of a resolution that has been superceded by a new one (Feb. 2008) entitled "Abolish the Death Penalty in Texas". WHEREAS we now have the option of life without parole which protects society; and WHEREAS the death penalty does not deter violent crime by others; and WHEREAS the criminal justice is flawed and innocent people have been sent to death row; and WHEREAS the criminal justice system unfairly targets the poor and minorities; and WHEREAS people who are severely mentally ill are executed; and WHEREAS people who are rehabilitated are executed; and WHEREAS executions do not bring healing to the families of victims, but only create another set of victims - the family of the executed; and WHEREAS the death penalty is more expensive than life in prison; and WHEREAS politicians use the death penalty as a tool to get elected to office; and WHEREAS the death penalty degrades society and continues a cycle of violence and vengeance, be it therefore RESOLVED, that the death penalty should be abolished. Draft by Dave Atwood, revised by Bill Crosier Mar. 2, 2006

Campaign Finance Reform (old version)

Note: This is an old resolution that has been superceded by a new version.

Whereas, Candidates for public office now depend upon large contributions to run competitive campaigns; and

Whereas, Elected officials often operate on behalf of contributors who want their wealth to control government decision-making; and

Whereas, Members of Congress often represent their own interests, special interests (dollars) and their political party before considering the interests of the people that they were elected to represent; and

Whereas, Even highly-principled officials who want to stay in office to serve their constituents are forced into objectionable compromises in order to finance re-elections; and

Whereas, Media monopolies restrict and censor political debate, leaving the electorate without the benefits that a Free Press was intended to provide; and

Whereas, Broadcasting corporations charge exhorbitant rates for election ads while profiting from the use of publicly-owned airwaves; therefore, be it

Resolved, that we support:

* Comprehensive campaign finance reform and "clean money" public financing of the public's elections,

* Requirements for ample free and equal broadcast time for candidates, and

* Break-up of the media monopolies.

Campaign Finance Reform - OLD

Note: This is an old (2006) version, which has been superceded by a new resolution (2/2008) entitled "Texas Public Campaign Financing". WHEREAS Candidates for public office now depend upon large contributions to run competitive campaigns; and WHEREAS Elected officials often operate on behalf of contributors who use their wealth to control government decision making; and WHEREAS Members of Congress often represent their own interests, special interests and their political party before considering the interests of the people they were elected to represent; and WHEREAS Even highly principled officials who want to stay in office to serve their constituents are forced into highly objectionable compromises in order to finance re-elections; therefore be it RESOLVED That we support: Comprehensive campaign finance reform and “clean money” public financing of all public elections encompassing local, state and national elections Submitted by Kris Graham on January 27, 2006

Help America Vote Act (HAVA) Reform

Note: This is an old resolution that has been superceded by a later one on voting reform.

WHEREAS voting is the cornerstone of any democratic republic and without every vote having equal weight and every voter having equal rights to free expression there is no democracy but only hypocrisy and dictatorship; and

WHEREAS the elections of the years 2000 and 2004 clearly illustrated the flaws in the current voting methods, but no fair alternative has been proposed; and

WHEREAS every electronic voting machine system thus far submitted and demonstrated has been manufactured by, their computer software provided by and installed by corporations whose owners or managers have been clearly shown to be loyal members of only one political party and at least one of them promised to "deliver" the election to his party’s candidate; and

WHEREAS every demonstration of those electronic voting machines has uncovered irregularities and improprieties which only serve to demonstrate their infeasibility; be it therefore

RESOLVED, that We, in keeping with the principles of democracy, support the following measures:

* All voting machines shall have a paper printer which shall print, on location, a legible, verifiable paper receipt which the voter can read to determine that their intention has been recorded by the voting machine and the election officials and judges can use to verify that the electronic data gathered matches the votes recorded by paper receipts; and

* All electronic voting machines shall have an open source code software which can be examined and verified by independent investigators and shall be available to the public for scrutiny and critique; and

* Every individual electronic voting machine shall be tested before being used for polling to determine that predetermined outcomes have not been programmed into them; and

* All electronic voting machines shall be kept safely secured under lock and key by law enforcement officials sufficient to preclude tampering; and

* If these first four provisions cannot be met for any reason then paper ballots which can be marked with a pencil or pen shall be provided by the federal government to all precincts.

Money in Politics - OLD

Whereas; money has power to influence politics and corrupt government that is not available by speech alone; and

Whereas; the use of money to influence government and political processes confers an unfair and undemocratic advantage that is only available in proportion to elite status, economic success and, too often, white collar crime; Therefore, Be it

RESOLVED that



• We declare that money is not equivalent to speech and the free use of money to influence government and politics is not equivalent to free speech as defined by the The Constitution and Bill of Rights of The United States of America.

Negotiate with Hamas - OLD

To get a copy of this resolution formatted for printing, so you can take it with you to your precinct convention, click on the link in the Attachment box below.

WHEREAS, The Palestinian people participated in January 2006 in an election of the members of their parliament; and WHEREAS, The elections were internationally monitored and widely declared to be fair and clean; and WHEREAS, The result of the election was the ouster of the long-reigning Fatah faction and the induction of the Islamic Hamas faction; and WHEREAS, The only way to resolve a conflict is to negotiate directly with one's adversary, no matter how strongly contemned; and WHEREAS, A third party has no standing to name the representatives of a democratic government to which it is not a constituent; be it therefore RESOLVED, That the President of the United States, the Secretary of State, and all other officials duly appointed by our government negotiate directly, and without precondition, with the Palestinian counterparts appointed and empowered by the current democratically elected Hamas-led government of the Palestinian people.

Draft by Willie Simmons, Feb. 2006

Preserve Civil Liberties and Privacy - OLD

Note: This resolution has been replaced with a more up-to-date one, entitled "Restore the U.S. Constitution".

Whereas, The U.S. Constitution establishes and ensures democracy in this country and additional amendments and legislation have expanded civil rights and liberty guarantees; and Whereas, The American jurisprudence system is the envy of the free world with it's emphasis on due process of law; and Whereas, Recent Executive Orders of the current administration, along with the so-called USA PATRIOT Act, subvert our American justice system with military tribunals where officers sit as judge and jury with secret evidence, secret witnesses, secret verdicts and even secretly handed-down death sentences; and Whereas, The First Amendment protects controversial views and nothing is more controversial than peace when your government justifies war with lies and threatens those who protest that war; and Whereas, The Federal Bureau of Investigation has infringed upon civil liberties, as reported in the New York Times, by collecting information on anti-war demonstrators; and Whereas, Retired General Tommy Franks recently said that if the United States is hit with a weapon of mass destruction that inflicts large casualties, the Constitution will likely be discarded in favor of a military form of government; and Whereas, We should not let the actions of terrorists cause us to sacrifice our American system of justice, privacy and Constitutional rights; and Whereas, Too many Americans, especially those that are not of European, Christian ancestry, have been intimidated and excluded from our democracy, and other citizens and immigrants in this country continue to be targets of discrimination; therefore, be it Resolved, that Executive Orders, regulations, laws and departmental procedures and orders implemented during this administration that have limited our civil liberties and compromised our rights to privacy, including but not limited to the USA PATRIOT Act, be repealed and rescinded.

Preserve the Right to Choose - OLD

Note: This resolution has been merged with the one entitled "Preserve Reproductive Rights".

Whereas, Termination of her pregnancy is one of the most serious, dreaded and deeply personal decisions a woman may ever face; and Whereas, In our society all women and men have a right to make difficult moral decisions and personal choices; and Whereas, Women will not be equal to men if this constitutionally protected right is denied; and Whereas, Denying this right will not curtail abortions but will send desperate women to dangerous, unlicensed clinics; and Whereas, The right to choose, as established by the U.S. Supreme Court decision Roe v. Wade, is now threatened, and Whereas, Sex education programs, including more than "abstinence only" methods, as well as ready access to contraceptives, are fundamental in reducing unwanted pregnancies and the spread of sexually transmitted diseases; and Whereas, Organizations dealing with HIV/AIDS prevention find it difficult or impossible to comply with the "global gag order" on abortion and have lost U.S. funding for condoms which would help reduce the HIV/AIDS epidemic; therefore, be it Resolved, That candidates for U.S. Supreme Court judgeships demonstrate strong commitment to a woman's right to choose; and be it further Resolved, That sex education concerning pregnancy, sexually transmitted diseases, HIV/AIDS prevention, as well as international family planning and HIV/AIDS programs, include comprehensive and realistic contraceptive methods; and be it further Resolved, That abortion procedures be covered under health care programs.

Written Jan. 2008 by the Texans for Kucinich campaign.

Protection from Election Fraud (old version)

Note: This is an old resolution that has been superceded by a new one on voting reform.

Whereas computerized voting equipment is inherently subject to programming error, equipment malfunction, and malicious tampering; and

Whereas many voting experts are advocating voting equipment provide an individual paper voter-verifiable audit trail, by which we mean a permanent record of each vote that can be checked for accuracy by the voter both before and after the vote is cast and which is difficult to alter after it has been checked; and

And Whereas many of the electronic voting machines being purchased by election authorities in Texas do not satisfy this requirement; and

Be it resolved that voting machines should not be purchased or used unless they provide an individual paper voter-verifiable audit trail; and

Be it resolved that when such machines are already in use, they should be replaced or modified to provide an individual paper voter-verifiable audit trail; and

Be it therefore resolved that providing an individual paper voter-verifiable audit trail should be one of the essential requirements for certification of new voting systems and election procedures mandate that the individual paper audit trail be the vote of record in the event of a recount.

Public Support for VVPAT - OLD

We have two versions of this resolution.  The original is from the Ad Hoc Committee on Party Governance Resolutions of the Texas Progressive Populist Caucus http://texaspopulists.com/ and the revised version is from the Progressive Action Alliance.  Both ask that the Texas Democratic Party leadership do the same thing -- to promote VVPAT.  Pick the one you like the most -- both versions are available below, formatted for printing, under Attachments.



Progressive Populist Caucus Version:

DRAFT  RESOLUTION ON PUBLIC SUPPORT FOR VVPAT


WHEREAS the Democratic Party is one of just two Political Parties Nominating By
Primary Election (Title 10, Subtitle B, Texas Election Code) in Texas; …

WHEREAS it exercises inherent powers (Title 10, Section 161.001); …

WHEREAS the State Democratic Executive Committee is the general custodian of
records for this party (Title 5, Section 66.010); and …

WHEREAS the State Democratic Convention is the highest authority of the party in
Texas; …

NOW THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED by the State Democratic Convention duly
convened in Fort Worth to conduct such business as shall properly come before it, …

1. THAT the people of the TDP direct its leadership, including Chair as well
as all Democratic Party County Chairs, to actively and aggressively
advocate the inclusion of a voter verifiable paper audit trail with all DRE
electronic voting machines in use for all elections.

[Discussion]
13 Texas Counties have such non-transparent voting machines in use and
many more in ’06 will be adding them to comply with HAVA requirements.
Aggressive advocacy for this verified voting technology includes
proactively communicating this urgent need to all Democratic party
officeholders and candidates, especially those in charge of elections,
media interviews, public meetings and news releases stating the Party’s
continuing demand for a VVPAT.

Draft prepared by the TDP governance resolutions committee of the Progressive Populist Caucus, Feb. 22, 2006

 

Revised Version:

Public Support for Voter-Verifiable Paper Audit Trail


WHEREAS, most Direct Recording Electronic (DRE) voting machines in use in Texas are not being used with any method which allows voters to verify that their votes are recorded properly, even though paper trail options are available for many DRE machines, and

WHEREAS, the lack of a Voter-Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) makes it impossible to conduct a recount or check the accuracy of vote counting, and

WHEREAS, numerous design flaws and failures have been documented in DRE's from multiple manufacturers, and

WHEREAS, thirteen Texas Counties have electronic voting machines in use and many more will be adding them in 2006 to comply with Help America Vote Act (HAVA) requirements;

Now therefore be it:

RESOLVED, that the Texas Democratic Party direct its leadership, including the State Chair as well as all County Chairs, to actively and aggressively advocate the inclusion of a voter verifiable paper audit trail with all Direct Recording Electronic (DRE) voting machines in use for all elections, and be it further

RESOLVED, that such paper records be the official ballots of record and be used in any recount, and be it further

RESOLVED, that aggressive advocacy for this verified voting technology by the Texas Democratic Party leadership should include proactively communicating this urgent need to all Democratic party officeholders and candidates, especially those in charge of elections, media interviews, public meetings and news releases stating the Party's continuing demand for a VVPAT.


 

Regional Water Management Plan

Note:  This is an old resolution that has been superceded by a new version.  See http://www.paa-tx.org/node/1495  

 

BE IT THEREFORE RESOLVED THAT the Harris County Democratic Party supports:

• Good management of the Region H Water Plan and the Regional Transportation Plan to increase the quality of all human life and reuse and recycle limited water resources.
• Appropriate and high human life and health science-based standards for regulating both surface and underground drinking water supplies.
• Green-space for parks, recreation, floodwater management, and wetlands protection within the region.
• An environmental economic formula for water and transportation projects funded with public revenue, that includes an environmental assessment to protect public health as well as public funds.

FACTS TO SUPPORT THE RESOLUTION:

• Harris County, Texas is the third largest populated county in the United States with about 2 million voters and 3 million residents;
• The City of Houston is the 4th largest city in the United States; it is the home to the petrochemical industry, NASA, more than 16 institutions of higher learning and the largest medical complex in the world;
  
• The surface and near-surface groundwater in the Houston Region are polluted with urban and industrial chemicals and waste;
  
• The Houston Region is subject to natural geological ground subsidence and land subsidence increases with groundwater production;
  
• Special Subsidence Districts have been created to manage groundwater production within Harris, Galveston and Fort Bend counties;
  
• Regional water and transportation plans have been created for Harris and adjacent counties within the Houston Region.

ADOPTED 30 June 2005 by the Harris County Democratic Party

Repeal NAFTA & Withdraw From WTO (old version)

Note: This is an old resolution that has been superceded by a new version.

WHEREAS, Participation in the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and the World Trade Organization (WTO) has meant a race to the bottom for workers, family farmers and the environment, causing a $418 billion trade deficit and a loss of over 500,000 jobs; and

WHEREAS, Free trade has encouraged companies in the U. S. to leave the country in search of low wages, low commodity prices, anti-union climates, and lax environmental laws; and

WHEREAS, Free trade has stocked our retail shelves with goods produced by foreign workers under harsh working conditions that would be illegal if found in this country; and

WHEREAS, NAFTA shifts power away from state and local government and directly challenges our U. S. Constitution, as in the case when our "Buy American" laws were challenged by other countries; and

WHEREAS, Free trade favors multinational corporations, not citizens or communities and;

WHEREAS, Free trade agreements are not fair and beneficial to U. S. agriculture and are a threat to our national food security; and

WHEREAS, The September 2003 Cancun WTO negotiations on agricultural subsidies, domestic supports and market access and special treatment for developing nations were a failure and caused breakdown in overall negotiations; and

WHEREAS, Expansion of the General Agreement on Trades in Services (GATS) leaves water supplies, electrical services, healthcare, and education unprotected from the greedy tactics of multinational corporations; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, That we support measures to restore control of trade from multinational corporations to the jurisdiction of the U.S. government and for the benefit of U.S. citizens, by:

* Immediately withdrawing from NAFTA and the WTO
* Opposing unfair "free trade" agreements including the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) and the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA)
* Opposing expansion of the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS)
* Urging Congress to work for fair trade agreements that are beneficial to U.S. workers and farmers, and that protect the environment and our local economies.

Repeal Proposition Two - OLD

Note: This resolution has been incorporated into the one entitled "GLBT Rights" (Feb. 2008).

WHEREAS The Democratic Party is a party of the people, a party that respects the rights and liberties of all people, and which stands for fairness rather than hate and discrimination; and WHEREAS That only a small percentage of Texas voters cast their votes in November 2005, in the Discriminatory Anti-Gay and Lesbian Constitutional Amendment denying gays and lesbians basic constitutional rights; and WHEREAS The majority of those who did vote supported this hateful Amendment to the State Constitution; and WHEREAS Gays and lesbians should enjoy all the rights and privileges of all the other citizens in the State of Texas; and WHEREAS Members of the gay community continue to be the targets of hate crimes; and WHEREAS Sexual orientation has no bearing on the integrity and patriotism required to serve one's country; therefore, be it RESOLVED That the Democratic Party stand for the repeal of the "HATE AMENDMENT" which is depriving gay and lesbian Texans of certain fundamental rights; and be it further RESOLVED That hate crimes laws be strengthened and enforced, and be it further RESOLVED That until said Amendment is repealed, the State Legislature should enact laws to give gays and lesbians all other rights and responsibilities that heterosexual couples enjoy, and in particular the following rights: * To make medical decisions for their partners * To receive inheritances from their partners * To obtain insurance benefits through their partners * To adopt children; and be it further RESOLVED That pressure be put on the President of the United States so that openly gay, lesbian and bisexual persons be allowed to serve in the US armed services. Draft by Cathy Tarte and Bobby Caldwell Revised and submitted by Cathy Tarte 2/11/06

Resolve the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict (old version)

Note: This is an old resolution and has been superceded by a new version.

WHEREAS, The Israeli-Palestinian conflict killed 920 Israelis and 2,682 Palestinians between September 29, 2000 and February 11, 2004; and

WHEREAS, The U.S. gives almost thirty times as much money to the Israeli government and military ($15,000,000) daily, as to Palestinian, non-governmental organizations ($570,000); and

WHEREAS, The U.S. reliance on force rather than diplomacy and its unbalanced support of Israel's conflict with the Palestinians have greatly injured the credibility of the United States, especially in the Arab and Muslim world; and

WHEREAS, Nearly 60% of Europeans believe Israel presents a threat to peace, putting it ahead of Iran, North Korea and the United States, each of which polled 53%; and

WHEREAS, The U.S. decries extremist Palestinian suicide bombers sent to kill Israeli civilians, but ignores Israel’s violations of international law when it confiscates Palestinian land for Israeli settlements and builds walls that cage and impoverish Palestinians; and

WHEREAS, The Palestinian struggle for self determination should not be equated to the terrorist activities of the criminal organization, Al Queda; and

WHEREAS, The only way for Israelis to be secure is for Palestinians to be secure; therefore be it

RESOLVED

* That the U.S. stop disproportionate aid to the Israeli government and military,
* The U.S. require each party’s adherence to the principles of nonviolent conflict resolution to qualify for aid.

Standards For Safer Air To Breathe

BE IT THEREFORE RESOLVED THAT the Harris County Democratic Party supports:

• Appropriate science-based air quality standards for the Houston Region that will result in safer indoor and outdoor air for all humans to breathe.
• Environmental assessments that include protection for human health based on appropriate health and life science peer reviewed studies.
• An environmental economic formula that includes an environmental assessment that will protect both public revenues and public health for publicly funded transportation and development
  

FACTS TO SUPPORT THE RESOLUTION:

• Harris County, Texas is the third largest populated county in the United States with about 2 million voters and 3 million residents;
• Harris County has 22% of the roll call in seven (7) of the 31 Senate Districts in Texas; the counties in these seven districts include Brazoria, Chambers, Fort Bend, Galveston, Harris, Jefferson, Montgomery, and Orange. These counties politically define the "Houston Region".
• The City of Houston, Harris County, Texas is the 4th largest populated city in the United States; and is to home of the oil and gas industry, NASA and the largest medical complex in the world;
• Vehicles (44%) and industry (55%) are the leading sources of air pollution and toxic emissions in the Houston Region;
• General property tax revenue is the primary source of funds for public institutions and agencies, such as city and county pollution control and the regional offices of the Texas Commission of Environmental Quality, Texas Department of Health, and Department of Transportation;
• Harris County and the Houston Region are consistently out of compliance with Ambient Air Quality Standards for major criteria air pollutants. These pollutants are acknowledged by both the scientific community and the city, county, and state Departments of Health and Texas Commission of Environmental Quality as exacerbating both respiratory and cardiovascular related disease in the human population.

ADOPTED 30 June 2005 by the Harris County Democratic

Voters Rights

Note: This is an old resolution that has been superceded by new ones on voting reform.

WHEREAS, many citizens, especially African-Americans, the homeless, and immigrants, have been intimidated, excluded, and shut out from the democratic process; and

WHEREAS, District of Columbia residents are not permitted to vote in the general election for president, nor for members of Congress; and

WHEREAS, in some states, convicted felons are not allowed to vote even though they have completed the penalties placed upon them by the judicial system; and

WHEREAS, many citizens find it difficult to vote due to work schedules; and

WHEREAS, the use of electronic voting machines, which do not provide auditable records, has endangered the election process for all of us, by making it difficult or impossible to verify the vote count; and

WHEREAS, electronic voting machines with proprietary, secret software create new ways of corrupting elections; be it therefore

RESOLVED, that We support the following measures to make the election process more democratic:

* Election day be a holiday when all registered voters may vote;
* Every American citizen be allowed to vote within appropriate guidelines, despite homelessness or prior convictions;
* District of Columbia citizens be granted voting rights equal to those of all American citizens;
* Electronic voting machines be used only with open source software and a voter-verifiable paper trail;