The Platform of the American People: A Red, White and Blue Revolution

IOWA -- I'm writing to you from Iowa today, and the message I hear in America's heartland is the same one I hear everywhere I go: People are tired of "red-versus-blue" partisanship and bickering.

Across America, people say they are tired of negative campaigns, bitter partisan arguments and gridlock in Washington with nothing substantive getting done.

So that got me thinking. What if there were a platform of specific policy ideas that had the overwhelming support of the American people? And what if both parties adopted this platform in addition to their own platforms at their national conventions this summer? And what if they spent the first three months of 2009 making this platform law?

It would be a fundamental break from the red-versus-blue status quo. It would be a Red, White, and Blue Revolution.

Six National Polls Over the Last Six Months

At American Solutions, we have done months of work to create the potential to break out of the current partisan bitterness and move politics and government toward a unifying and empowering message that brings Americans together rather than pushing them apart.

Over the last six months, American Solutions has commissioned six national polls costing $428,000.

And the results? We've been pleasantly surprised to discover how many things the American people agree on.

A Core of Deeply Held, Shared Ideas: The Platform of the American People

The politicians may emphasize the negative and the news media may emphasize the conflict, but there are a lot of very substantive approaches to the challenges we face on which a majority of Democrats, Republicans and Independents agree. Pollster Kellyanne Conway calls these "tri-partisan" issues, because all three groups agree.

We reviewed all the polls and concluded that there was a core of deeply held ideas that had such strong support they could be called the Platform of the American People.

To distinguish these shared ideas from the usual red-versus-blue partisan bickering, we've given this platform a subtitle: The Red, White, and Blue Revolution.

Making the Platform Part of the Iowa Caucuses

Today, December 4, I am in Muscatine, Cedar Rapids and Des Moines, Iowa, and later tonight in St. Paul, Minn. I am releasing this proposed Platform of the American People and urging both Democrats and Republicans to take it to their precinct caucuses January 3.

The Iowa caucuses both pick presidential candidates and allow local citizens an opportunity to propose resolutions and even whole platforms.

Our hope over the next month is to get citizens in both parties to begin moving the Platform of the American People in their parties.

Since every item in the platform has a majority support in both parties, it is appropriate for both parties to begin with something that unifies us rather than divides us.

At the Party Conventions, a Platform for the American People Alongside the Partisan Ones

Imagine if we could get both parties to agree to adopt two platforms at their national conventions next summer.

The first platform would be the issues that unite us and would be identical for both parties. The second platform would be the usual partisan disagreements and arguments.

Then imagine that both parties could agree that for the first 90 days of 2009 both parties would work together to pass the legislation that has a majority support in both parties and that has overwhelming support from the American people.

After 90 days of cooperating to pass popular legislation with minimum partisanship and minimum bickering, we will have established a new tone in which people can opt to keep working together and solving problems instead of dividing up into bitter partisan camps.

A New Era of Getting Things Done for the American People

America will have entered a new period in which the vast majority of Americans would actually be represented in government and politics and in which we would actually get things done.

Let me give you just three examples of the Platform of the American People and why it is so potentially powerful. (The full platform can be found at AmerianSolutions.com. There, you will also find the polling data which proves it represents a majority of Democrats, Republicans and Independents.)

Example 1: English as the Official Language of Government. The American people want English to be the official language of government 87% to 11%. Overwhelming majorities of Democrats, Republicans and Independents agree. The majority of Hispanic Americans agree. This should be an easy win for the American people.

Example 2: Prizes to Spur Innovation. The American people like the idea of prizes to accelerate the development of new solutions on energy, the environment, health and other issues. By a score of 79% to 18%, the American people would like to see prizes developed to encourage people to develop bold solutions.

Example 3: Dramatic Investments in Math and Science Education. The American people believe there will be four to seven times more scientific knowledge in the next 25 years (88% to 7%) and that new innovation and technology is the key to competing with China and India (88% to 8%). Therefore, they are willing to invest dramatically more in math and science education (91% to 8%).

A Common Sense, Unifying Approach to Break out of Washington Gridlock

These are just three examples of deeply held, widely shared issues that could bring us together in a productive way. The entire Platform of the American People is at AmericanSolutions.com/Platform.

Let your friends know that, whatever party they belong to and wherever they live, they will have a chance to advocate that both parties adopt this common sense, unifying approach to break out of the gridlock and bring us together again.

In particular, if you have friends or relatives in Iowa in either party let them know that January 3 they can begin to bring America back together by offering this platform in their local precinct caucus.

View My Visit With the Republican Governors Association

Speaking of the Platform of the American People, I previewed it a little bit in my speech to the Republican Governors Association last week in California. I talked about the enormous opportunity that exists for real change, and I went into depth about the issues and the polling data that make up the platform. You can view my speech here. The response from this group of Republican leaders to breaking out of the current partisan gridlock was very encouraging.

What Is Nancy Pelosi Thinking?

Two weeks ago, I wrote to you about how House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D.-Calif.) is attempting to appease anti-English extremists in the House by blocking legislation that would protect American employers such as the Salvation Army from being sued by the federal government for requiring that their employees speak English on the job. As I write, Speaker Pelosi is still holding up a bill sponsored by Sen. Lamar Alexander (R.-Tenn.) that would give charities such as the Salvation Army protection from frivolous anti-English lawsuits brought by their own government.

And as if this hostility to our common language weren't enough, now Speaker Pelosi's House has approved a bill that would establish a race-based government in Hawaii that is not subject to the Constitution. What is Speaker Pelosi thinking?

A Race-Based Government in Hawaii? So Much for 'E Pluribus Unum'

Has it somehow escaped Speaker Pelosi and the authors and supporters of this bill that hundreds of thousands of Americans gave their last full measure of devotion in the American Civil War to preserve a nation dedicated to liberty and equality among all men and women, regardless of race?

The Native Hawaiian Government Reorganization Act would not only create a race-based government in Hawaii, but also its racial jurisdiction could extend to include governance over the thousands of native Hawaiians living throughout the United States. State legislatures in all 50 states may potentially be required to accommodate two tiers of sovereignty -- one for native Hawaiians, another for everybody else.

The Senate should reject this misguided bill. If it doesn't, the President should veto it. And all presidential candidates should affirm, by their opposition to this legislation, that America is more than a collection of competing, aggrieved ethnicities.

By their opposition to this bill, all men and women who lead -- or seek to lead -- this nation should affirm that the motto found on the Great Seal of the United States -- "E Pluribus Unum" -- still stands:

Out of Many, One.

P.S. -- Looking for unique stocking stuffers for this Christmas season? Visit Newt.org for personalized autographed books.

P.P.S. -- We have a new sponsor for Winning the Future this week. Ambassador Eckert is leading an effort to have President Ronald Reagan's image added to Mount Rushmore alongside Abraham Lincoln, Teddy Roosevelt, Thomas Jefferson and George Washington. I urge you to click here and show your support for Ronald Reagan.

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By haggerty @ Wednesday, January 02, 2008 8:35 PM

Newt:
I have loved you from the day you developed the Contract for America and helped the Conservatives of America win one of the greatest elections in the visible time of my Republican eyes. Our loss of that momentum was due in large part to the loss of the leadership of Newt Gingrich.

The Contract for America was based on the same principals as the “The Platform of the American People”. All of the things in that “Contract” and the things in this “Platform” are the things that are near and dear to the majority of the American people. We what these things to happen, we want these things to be the objective of the man who will lead the United States to this goal. We want this man to be the Republican candidate for President of the United States.

I was disappointed when you decided not to run for President. I understood your reasons but was still disappointed. In my mind you may have now missed the opportunity to chase and win the nomination but you could be the deciding element for the success of Fred Thompson with Newt Gingrich as his Vice President.

Think about it Newt. The people of the United States are about to make the decision that will determine its future legacy in this world.

By Half-Smart @ Saturday, December 22, 2007 8:10 PM

I am going to keep asking this, for we need such as Newt or his clone in high office.

What is it going to take to get Newt to run in 2008?

By divine providence @ Thursday, December 06, 2007 8:30 PM

Newt,
I am currently reading "The Life of George Washington" by David Ramsay. I am so intrigued by the leadership qualities he posessed. Two of these that stick out so much in my mind is his reluctance for fame and his abhorrence of the division of America that the two parties created. I wonder what he would think of today's america. I want to help.

By lstannard1 @ Thursday, December 06, 2007 9:53 AM

About 10 years after Hitler wrote Mein Kampf—Hitler’s manifesto on HEGEMONY of the German people—an Italian Communist intellectual by the name of ANTONIO GRAMSCI, while also in jail, wrote his own manifesto on how to subvert western societies from within. Since Marxism was a failure, Gramsci reasoned that the only way to topple the repressive Western institutions was by, what he called, “a long march through the culture” subverting the main pillars of Western civilization, including Christianity, capitalism, authority, the family, morality, tradition, sexual restraint, loyalty, patriotism, nationalism, heredity, ethnocentrism, convention, conservatism and especially the language. At the heart of his teachings were to covertly take control, you had to secure HEGEMONY over the elites in a society.

In order of priority, dominate:
1. Academia both upper and lower education
2. The Media
3. Judicial structures and then all the other elitist suspects.

Now Gramsci’s ideas weren’t lost on European and American leftist in academia because back in the thirties, many of them were disillusioned by the excesses of Communism in the Soviet Union and were sure that if only they could have run things Communism would have been a great thing.

In addition to their normal screeds, academia’s new left knew it would be necessary to instill in those that passed through their portals MORAL RELATIVISM as a substitute for traditional values: In a nutshell: No standards—The law, religious, and social standards were what you wanted it to be! Sound familiar? Read on.

For those that academia missed it would be up to their acolytes in the media, Hollywood, and the pop culture to promulgate a lack of standards to corrupt us gradually like that frog in the tepid kettle.

One example: With moral equivalence the new group think—and it’s almost everywhere—from downloading music illegally to ignoring immigration laws—the elites had the tools necessary to ignore the laws and constitutional constraints that got in their way and visit on us such obscenities as illegal immigration and the culture corroding policies of “multiculturalism” and its hand maiden “diversity” all without the assimilation experience of our forefathers. Their goal?

Create an endless stream of disparate humanity all with their own allegiances and all struggling to be at the apex of a ‘victimhood pyramid’ and once there, protected by an endless stream of political correctness from academia, the media, and the rest of the usual suspects in return for their votes.

Anyone in opposition would be tagged as reactionary, racist, or at the very least—offensive. Their defense? Sophistry, and of course political correctness all visited on a public by an agenda driven media—a public so steeped in academia’s vision of political correctness as to be totally unprepared—except through maturity, morality and experience—to discern truth.

Now immigration is just one of the new left’s fronts—there are many more—perhaps the foremost being religion. Ever wonder why everything that even smacks of religion is under attack? Besides the judicial, activist judges, courts and the like—Gramsci’s teachings put religion—especially Christianity—right in the new left’s crosshairs as the greatest bulwark against a successful subversion of society. Why? Standards, morality, the law and all that stuff. Those things get in the way of moral relativism: discarding standards and living our lives like Hollywood elites—turning our backs when activist judges overturn our laws—sticky little things like that. Here’s what historian William Borst, PHD said:

“Gramsci knew that the civilized world had been thoroughly indoctrinated with Christianity for 2000 years, so much so that civilization and Christianity were inexorably bound. It was the Christian character of the West that had provided an almost impenetrable barrier to infiltration. More than an opiate, religion was the peasants' lifeline that helped them endure the harsh realities of life.”

Over the top? Don’t believe this to be the case? Read Londonistan by Melanie Phillips—an insightful book that shows where America would be right now if not for our new alternative media. Phillips tells how England’s unfettered immigration without assimilation policies has destroyed a culture previously revered throughout the world—where we too would be if not for the new media as our bulwark against the left. Phillips lays a lot of the blame right in Gramsci’s coffin.

Not enough? Read The Professors—the 101 most dangerous people in America (there are thousands)—by David Horowitz. Just look at the references to Gramsci in this book. Educate yourself in order to see where this attack is coming from—there are many references out there.

Want more? Google Gramsci and follow your gut knowing full well that these things just didn’t happen, but were—and are—part of a blueprint. Here’s just one link: http://www.catholicculture.org/library/view.cfm?recnum=7314

Now Gramsci is not be the only force behind what is happening in the culture wars: there are many. You can bet your country, though, that the old dead Communist is smiling in his grave as his devotees—many graduates from higher education—are totally unaware that Gramsci’s teachings are and were behind their professors’ ravings as they too continue to promulgate his teachings.

Recognize the source of what is happening! Know Gramsci’s teachings so you can recognize what’s happening. Withhold those alumni dollars to universities that tolerate tenured anarchist. Know what your children are learning. Pull them out of schools that don’t change. If your elected representatives won’t change the system—replace them.

By ericrobinson @ Wednesday, December 05, 2007 4:31 PM

Dear Newt, It is becoming clear to me, by now, that this country will ultimately go the way of all great nations/empires, and like the Soviet Union, the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Holy Roman Empire, and countless others, break back apart into the separate entities from which it was formed. "Diversity" is rapidly de-Americanizing the population of this country, and sooner or later the vastly different cultural groups in this country will recognize that one govt. cannot serve all of us to our satisfaction, and we will have to dissolve the bonds that hold us together, or, forcing us to live together, and re-form nations/govts. to those ends. Unfortunately, the price of bad leadership is historical failure. Eric

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