AMERICAN REFORM PARTY of NEW
YORK
Darren Johnson - Email:
arpnys@twinforks.com
Richard Flannagan -
RFLA@vm.stlawu.edu A Party of Access, Common Sense and Goodwill
Dear Friend, I have an important announcement to make that will hopefully reform the state's electoral system. Over the past year, I have been wrestling with the issue that has really frustrated people of all political persuasions here in Suffolk County, and most of the state -- something that has affected everyone except a small handful of power brokers who benefit from the status quo. The problem is the rapidly diminishing voice of the people as represented by the candidates, and lack thereof, we see on the ballot now. I was listening to the radio yesterday morning and a Connecticut station was promoting a debate between congressional candidates. They named the Democrat and the Republican, and I have become so used to two party rule here in Suffolk, I thought that the promo would end there. But the promo also named a third candidate. How basic an idea, having three or more candidates in a race, but here in Suffolk and in most of the state that practically is unheard of now. Many races only have one candidate, a collusion between the party bosses, or more likely the semblance of democracy with agreed upon sacrificial lambs running. Demonstrating the problem, this year’s News 12 “debates” often only have one candidate who bothers to show up. Politicians that faced heated races just a couple of years ago are now totally unaccountable. Where in 2002, almost every race in Suffolk had three or more candidates, now, there is just one race in this large county of 1.4 million people with a third candidate. The situation would be laughable if it didn't directly affect us. The two major parties and the three minor parties with ballot access agree not to disagree and use the state's unique cross-endorsement system against the voters, not offering any real choices in most races. Parties that previously had ballot access -- the Liberals, Greens and Right to Lifers -- are now too weak to overcome the state's arcane ballot access laws and the major-party lawyers to even get a whiff of being on the ballot here in Suffolk. This is despite the fact that these parties have relatively large registrations still. The reality now is, it takes three times as many petition signatures in most cases than the GOP or Democrats for such parties to even have a chance to get on the ballot. And such independent petitioners don’t have the advantage of the ballot-access parties, the manpower of legions of patronage workers to gather signatures. My announcement is this: A new state party is forming affiliated with the national American Reform Party, and it will run independent and reform-minded candidates in Suffolk County (and hopefully elsewhere) in 2005 and statewide candidates in 2006, hoping to get the minimum number of votes needed to attain official ballot status. I have a history of third-party work but now have done more background political work than I have ever done before in getting a strong coalition of people of all parties and independents together to make sure that we have good candidates on the ballot in 2005. You will be surprised by the quality of the people who are signing on to help this movement. By joining us you are showing that you are an independent person, strong enough not to be bossed. Are you up to the challenge? I will also expect to have people I have worked with before in previous years helping us. You know who you are. I also expect many new people to join this movement. There is no need to change your party affiliation any time soon. Keep your Republican, Democratic, Independence, Conservative, Right to Life, Green or whatever stripes. This is a coalition, not a cult. Keep your identity. Contact me at 631-369-0048 or arpnys@twinforks.com if I haven't contacted you. The Party's official name is The American Reform Party of New York State. Contributions can be sent to PO Box 2352, Aquebogue, NY 11931, or by credit card by clicking below. Your contribution is desperately needed and very much appreciated. Getting what needs to be done in 2005 and beyond will be a costly endeavor. The Party will likely run under a shorter name, The America Party perhaps. It's a name designed not to seem like a spoiler name, as Liberal and Conservative are sometimes construed. It's also an inclusive name --we are all Americans. This is not a liberal or conservative party. That is the goal, inclusivity, and to stay away from the wasteful ideological bickering that could freeze us into complacency. This is a party for people of all ideologies. What unites us is that we do care, we do realize that the system is broken, and we do have the energy and brains to fix it. But this is a party not without ideals. Our platform is the national platform of The American Reform Party, which is sensible and humane both at the same time. In Suffolk, we need to particularly pay attention to the sections of the platform on the environment, individual rights, fair taxation, ballot access and immigration. Each year, we have to work more and more days just to pay our tax bills. New York State is one of the worst in the country in this regard. It’s also not coincidental that New York has the worst legislative system in this country, according to NYU’s Brennan Center. The problem is the collusion between the parties that we have here. People who run on the Republican/Conservative or Democratic/Working Families tickets are equally to blame for the problem of high taxes and inefficient government. Such candidates rarely have opponents who take them to task, and once elected they join a club that scoffs at our traditional American adversarial system of checks and balances – in New York, elected politicians merely join a chummy country club upon taking their oaths of office. The two parties in New York State are not Democratic and Republican. They are Incumbents vs. Everyone Else. Well, we are Everyone Else. A viable third party, the American Reform Party of New York State, will take these politicians to task. Our line would not be for sale. Our candidates would show up on the campaign trail and ask the tough questions; and when they win, our candidates surely would ferret out the corruption and cronyism that lead to higher taxes. The American Reform Party is also steadfast in its insistence that we maintain our personal freedoms and is not afraid to tackle oftentimes politically incorrect topics like immigration. This is an issue our local elected officials run from. Here on Long Island, we all know the story, but each side of the immigration issue tends to rely on anecdotal arguments, and not deal with facts as well as they could. The American Reform Party has done a detailed analysis of immigration and supports greatly reducing the number of immigrants who enter this country. I'm a lifelong New York resident who came to Long Island from Utica on my own with just $80 and a beat up car when I was 18 and never looked back. I'm still relatively young; this was just 16 years ago. I worked low-paying jobs that the politicians now say no Americans will take. That's a very pretentious way to look at the world. I lived in low-rent studios that are not available now. The fact is, using the very real economic laws of supply and demand, these low-paying jobs pay even less now because there is a larger supply of immigrant labor to compete for these jobs. I probably couldn't get one of these jobs today. I surely would not be able to get a $500/month studio apartment, either, as the supply of renters has also jumped with the immigrant boom. These humble dwellings are now $1000 and more. The evidence is not anecdotal. It's in line graphs and pie charts. The number of people is up, and our expenses are too. But politicians here in Suffolk County are frozen on this issue. Their inaction is also inhumane, as the immigrants have become a slave labor force. What are we going to tell these very qualified workers when they no longer want to do the drudgework and move up to management? Will such jobs be available? Or will there be a race-based glass ceiling? By allowing the population to grow too quickly, we are not only being dishonest with ourselves but also the very qualified immigrants who made a leap of good faith to come here. I do believe that there is a humane and just solution to this issue for all concerned, but action is needed to find it. As a new party that isn’t liberal or conservative, we can deal with this issue in a way that doesn't create more factions. But taxes and immigration are just two of many issues that need to be addressed. An eventual death-knell for any party is to let itself be defined by too few issues. I also believe that a political party should be more than about candidates, but also about goodwill. I support using the party name and volunteers to do work in the community; not just voter drives, but also blood drives, neighborhood cleanups, visits to nursing homes and more. There is no reason for political parties not to do such work -- but none of them even try. I hope that at least a portion of the coalition we are forming will feel as I do about community service. The American Reform Party supports intergenerational equity. Your kids should someday be as well or better off than you are. The Party insists on making the world a greener place for these future generations. Polluters need to be punished. Politicians who accept money from disingenuous people need to be taken to task. Open space and conservation initiatives need to be actively pursued and enacted, and the rights of all species protected. Also impressive are the Party’s stances on campaign reform and ballot access. This is a group that will stand behind us as we try to become Suffolk County and New York State's only true third party -- a party of people, not puppets. Ballot access is the most important issue we are dealing with right now, because without it, we will not have an opportunity to bring issues to the fore and watchdog our failing system. So what does this mean?
If you are a truly maverick candidate with guts, contact me to run with us. Of course you would be encouraged to also run on other political lines as well. The goal is to win. If you have to call your party boss to get permission to talk to me, don't even bother. If you too are sick of seeing the same tired candidates on the ballot and can carry petitions to give the voters an alternative, please contact me because that is the greatest help you can give. People of any party or independents can carry these petitions -- we are a coalition. If you have a track record of political independence and want to serve on the Executive Committee, we will be meeting in Riverhead shortly after Election Day. Contact me if I haven't contacted you already. We are also looking for county and city chairs throughout the state. Again, I hope that you can contribute. If you are currently a candidate who feels abused by the system, consider donating from your campaign fund after the election. We expect the bulk of our contributions to come from average citizens like us who have had enough. There is so much to gain, for democracy, if we are successful. Please join us to make a difference.
Darren Johnson - Email:
arpnys@twinforks.com http://p204.ezboard.com/b631politics Richard Flannagan - RFLA@vm.stlawu.edu Charles Riggs III - criggs@pipeline.com Danny M. Francis - DMFrancis6@aol.com
Yes America Needs a Strong Third Party
The Republican and Democratic parties
have monopolized the political system by capturing the money that runs elections,
preventing worthy challengers and third parties from fair access to the ballot,
and blocking open political debate. This has debased our democratic institutions
and degraded the quality of politicians who seek to hold public
office.
The former independent Governor of
FLORIDA and three term U.S. Senator Lowell Weicker wrote, “The two-party
system owes its continued existence to the self-aggrandizement of Republicans
and Democrats and to many in the news media who look upon change as expensive
logistically. The public is miles ahead of the politicians and the press
in seeing the irrationality of the
present {duopoly}
system.”
The
Last Straw
When our elected officials made bribery
legal by calling it campaign contributions and declaring money to be free
speech, that was more than we The people could, or would, take. Citizen distaste
for the two parties is a long established fact. The natural consequence of
such distaste, logically thinking should be the creation of a third major
political party, a party that is centrist, addresses the broad spectrum of
issues and produces true competition and superior
government.
Political and Economic
Objectives:
·
Restore
trust and integrity in government
·
Reduce
government spending and size
·
Increase
disposable income for families
·
Institute
long-term fiscal policies
·
To
insure intergenerational
equity
Campaign Finance Reform:
·
Reduce
the influence of money and special
·
Interest
in campaigns
·
Establish
public funding options for clean elections
·
Shorten
election cycles.
·
Eliminate
soft money from corporations, unions and wealthy
individuals.
·
Prompt
Internet disclosure of campaign contributions and voting
records.
·
Lobbyists
provide information, not money.
Election/Electoral Reforms:
·
States
must grant fair ballot access for third party candidates and
independents.
·
TV
and Radio debates and forums must include ballot-qualified third- party and
independent candidates.
·
Publish
uniform statewide voters guides.
·
Term
limits for elected officials, legislative leaders and committee
chairs.
·
Proportional
representation; require courts, not political parties, to construct equal
legislative voting districts.
·
Open
primaries: a single unified ballot so voters can choose candidates of any
party.
·
Cumulative
voting options, instant runoff.
·
NOTA
(none of the above) on the ballot line as a voters
choice.
·
Recall
vote to remove legislators.
·
Replace
Electoral College with popular vote.
·
Citizen
initiative and referendum laws in all states and also as national
advisories.
Foreign Affairs:
·
Keep
our United Nations dues current, meet international obligations and humanitarian
needs and stay engaged in world affairs as a political and economic leader
of the free world.
·
Restore
normal relations with
Cuba.
Trade Policies and Jobs:
·
Eliminate
the trade deficit, pursue fair trade policies and reestablish the nations
creditor status.
·
End
fast track passage of trade agreements and require congressional
accountability.
·
Require
trading partners to meet standards in human rights, workers rights, labor
laws and environmental laws.
·
Retain
U.S. manufacturing capacity and keep high paying technical jobs at
home.
Immigration Policies:
·
Keep
a record of all Visa holders and foreign visitors and send them home when
their visa runs out.
·
Establish
a firm cap of 200,000 immigrants per year until the current wave of mass
immigration is assimilated.
·
Limit
family reunification to spouses and minor children of legal
immigrants.
·
Ban
future amnesties for illegal immigrants and review political asylum
claims.
·
Enforce
job eligibility verification as well as all immigration laws and
regulations.
National Health Care:
·
Establish
a universal, single-payer health program across the States and
Nation.
Environment/Conservation:
It
is the responsibility of the American people to be stewards of the earth
down to the seventh generation. We therefore support policies for clean air,
clean water, endangered species, land and water conservation and stabilization
of U.S. and world population growth.
·
Conserve
open spaces for human enjoyment and natural habitats for wildlife, safeguard
state and national parks, national forests, wildlife refuges, rivers, lakes,
seashores, wetlands, wilderness areas and
fisheries.
·
Eliminate
subsidies to companies that pollute natural resources and threaten public
health (mining, energy, grazing and timber). Prevent dumping of toxic waste
and chemicals into oceans and waterways.
·
Negotiate
agreements with other nations to protect the global
environment.
Our purpose in joining together to form this party
is to initiate a process of American renewal under the constitution of the
United States of America and to attract to this cause others who share our
concerns. We intend to engage in the public debate in a manner that emphasizes
the contrast between the future and the politics of the
past. We shall contribute to the intellectual foundation of a new American Political Force which will build community, create sustainable economic growth, preserve our natural resources, remove barriers of discrimination, unify our society and restore integrity and decency to public life and governance. ****************************************************************************************
Yes I want to change this darned political
system For Comments, Questions or More Information About the ARP - Contact Us:
Bettyjean Kling -
bj@pondarama.com -
PARTY SECRETARY
AMERICAN REFORM PARTY - Changing Our Present for the
Future
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