If I were to run for President

 

Would you vote for me?

As another election season for president is upon us, and I have no candidate that represents me in the way I would wish to be represented, I give thought to what my platform would be and how I would represent myself and my fellow Americans if I were to run for the highest office in our nation.

I thought about such things on a long hike in the Colorado mountains recently, where I had the chance to breathe in some mountain air and "cleanse" my mind a bit. I've been so frustrated for so long, and I've tried to resign myself from our national politics because of the torment and disappointment of it all and the limited choices we have. I thought about the waste. The senselessness of the billions of dollars flushed away in political ads. Mostly, I thought about what really divides us as a country, versus what unites us.

So, if I were to run for President, what would my platform be?

Is this perfect? Absolutely not. But merely a head start from one person’s mind who loves this country, and I’m thankful for the freedom to articulate it. Who knows, if this were to go "viral" I might have a shot for 2028 because I am quite confident that there are millions of people out there who do not have a candidate worthy of their vote, and they are equally sick of the greed and corruption. 

1. I would represent myself as a servant of the people. All people. My policies would be “America first” in the way I would insist we govern within my authority.
2. This would inform my approach to foreign aid and foreign affairs. I would insist that we take care of the needs of our country first before dispersing further tax dollars to foreign countries and governments.
3. I would insist upon right sized and well-equipped and supported military for the protection of our national interests. I would steer clear of interference in matters where we do not have a clear mission and would not attempt to believe that we have the power to fix or influence the strife in other countries where there is conflict beyond our understanding. I would resist the temptation to think that we can cure such strife between nations over territory or religion. Unless or until these conflicts can be proven to be a specific threat to our nation, I will not put American lives in danger.
4. I would not allow myself or my administration to get caught up in the military industrial complex that breeds and perpetuates war and fighting for the financial gain of large defense companies. I would invest appropriately in strengthening and updating our military capacity for protecting our nation, and that strength would be restored as a deterrent for any nation that thinks they would have a chance against us.
5. My platform would not be influenced by the agendas of left or right extremism. Or corporate influence. Or power. Or greed. I would refuse to pander to the power of the largest corporations who currently are the puppeteers of our political system. I would resist these influences and crack down on those politicians who are profiting financially from them.
6. In this vein, my administration would systematically root out and call out and prosecute any politician who is specifically profiting from foreign influence, on both right and left. These people who were elected to be servants of the American people who went to Washington for one reason only- not to serve but to be served, and to pockets millions for themselves through the corruption that exists. This has eroded the integrity of our political system to where no legislation today seems to have a pure motive, tainted by greed and power of the true superpowers of today - the largest international corporations who broker and purchase influence.
7. My campaign would be funded by common sense, through committed American people who want a return to true and humble representation. Every clear-thinking American who wanted to see a true change and underwrite a candidate who would do his utmost to represent them with humility and honor and dignity, and restore integrity and statesmanship and sacrifice to the office would be invited to give what they could individually, and if 50 million people gave only $5, I would not have to look to corporations or superpacs to fund my campaign. AND, I would not waste any of it on stupid attack ads and the senseless mud slinging that gets us nowhere other than to divide us further.
8. My candidacy and commitment would be one of service, not gain. I would have the mentality of the forefathers who sacrificed for the common good and the future of the country.
9. I would steer clear of the petty and unproductive rhetoric and not use words to pick fights with our adversaries. I would first and foremost be about the protection of Americans and American forces, here and abroad and focus on what is truly best for our citizens: Protecting our liberties, our safety, our freedoms from those who wish to take it away by force.
10. I would end the collusion between technology companies and the government. And stomp out their agendas. I would not subscribe to these agendas and focus on what is best for our citizens.
11. From day 1, I would insist on a balancing of the budget and stop the runaway train traveling at $3 trillion more a year with a commitment to start paying off our debt. I would restore fiscal controls as that of a business who tries to be disciplined in its practices and only take on debt when it is economically advantageous to do so.
12. I would immediately commission a private task force to develop a comprehensive and sustainable solution to the broken immigration system. Since politicians cannot seem to figure it out, I would seek the wisdom of the brightest minds from the private sector to develop the plan, push that plan as a bipartisan solution. At its core, this policy would grant applicants an efficient path to citizenship for those who are worthy of being invited in. This same policy would direct proper resources to ensure that those with impure motives be turned away and shut out. These are those who only want to exploit, take advantage or do harm including drug traffickers, human traffickers, gangs, terrorists and the like.
13. I would not rest until we as a country began to heal ourselves from the other core matter that has continued to divide us for way too long. We need to find a middle ground on the subject of legalized abortion. We have allowed the extremism on both sides of this debate to suggest this is a black and white issue. It is not. It is gray. And we have to find a sensible compromise in that gray area where the majority of all Americans stand. Somewhere between terminate them all regardless of age or development and leave room for a conscious and private decision making process based on individual circumstance. We need to recognize this issue has fractured our country in two for 5 decades. I would find the middle ground.
14. My policies for the economy would be “American first” and “Buy American” but at the same time have sensible trade practices and tariff approaches in place for foreign goods so that we have fair trade practices and American businesses are promoted, supported and strengthened domestically and across the world.
15. Again, I would not incite our adversaries with hollow talk and stupid rhetoric. Shame on us. It is no wonder why so many in the world hate us and resent us. I want to return to the day when the US was to be revered and respected, but not hated.
16. My administration would operate from a domestic policy perspective under the guise of a “help those who cannot help themselves” calling and one of “if you can help yourself, get up, take up a job and go to work”. We would grant grace to those in poverty and stricken by diseases, including addiction. We would restore a war on drugs, and crack down on the flood of illicit drugs from entering the country. We have the ability to do so, yet we largely turn a blind eye to it and pretend it is going to go away. It is tragic and it needs to stop. We must get a hold of it and steer this. This will take time but we have to start making a better effort as this contributes significantly to our mental health crisis and homelessness.
17. On a related subject, my administration would insist and not rest until we did a better job of catering to the ever emerging needs of our veteran population and seek to fix any of the broken aspects of our VA health system. We can do so much better to honor the sacrifices made on our behalf.
18. And for now, and last but certainly not least, I would turn the “Make America Great Again” on its head. Shame on us. American was (and is) great when we uphold the reasons why American has been a beacon and a coveted nation in the world. The vision that was America, under the wisdom of founding fathers, was about freedom from tyranny, individual liberty, and access to pursue happiness. Our greatness was in our democracy, and the confidence that everyone had a voice and our vote counted for something. That the men and women who lead our country do so from a place of service and sacrifice. It was never supposed to be about our power, our greed, our capacity to eradicate. It was never about a superpower status. It was not supposed to be corrupted and influenced by corporations and the manipulation of media platforms. It was never supposed to be divided by race, religion, wealth, or extreme politics.

We were the United States of America, one nation, under God, and indivisible. Can we say that in good conscience today with where we are? Have we ever been more divisible than we are now? Split right down the middle on almost every subject.

 May God be with us and bless us in spite of us. Amen

We deserve everything we get based on what we have allowed ourselves to become.