A Liberal's Wish list

If all goes well in November we will be inaugurating both a Democratic president and Congress. I have high hopes that with the adults back in charge of the government we can actually get some things done over the next 4 to 8 years. In no particular order here is my wish list of things that I think need to be done.

End the Iraq war -- This items is a-number one on the list for the Democrats to accomplish. By ending the Iraq war we can refocus our attention on hunting down Osama bin Laden and ending other terrorist threats. We can also start to re-gain the prestige and respect we lost under the Bush regime by taking decisive action in Iraq instead of letting the slow bleed go on and on and on. Also by ending the Iraq war oil prices will start to come down and we can stop bleeding money into a dark pit of no return. Our economy will also start to recover, as the dollar starts to recover when the Iraq war ends.

Balance the Budget -- Just balance the fucking budget so the government isn't bleeding money from all orifices and our economy will start to recover and the dollar will also start to recover. Anyone who still thinks the Republicans are the party of "fiscal responsibility" needs to have their heads examined.

De-politicize the Department of Justice -- Every person who was hired during the Bush regime needs to be fired. Period. No exceptions. They can all be invited to apply for the jobs again but this time they need to go through the proper interview process that is not run by political hacks. And every person who interviewed for jobs in the DOJ during the Bush regime and was turned away should to be invited back and given priority. The people who get fired get to go to the back of the line and wait for the qualified people to have their turn.

De-politicize the Department of Defense and the military -- Besides the politicization of the DOJ, politicizing the military is one of the more egregious things the Bush regime did domestically. Anyone hired for a career position with the DOD during the Bush regime should be immediately fired. Period. No exceptions. And not be allowed back. Any General officer appointed to a position by George Bush should immediately be relieved. Because Bush has filled the top ranks of General officers with only those officers who agree with him on Iraq their judgment is compromised and can no longer be trusted. And since President Obama is going to end the war in Iraq we don't need those military yes-men in place any longer.

Roll back the tax give aways to the rich and corporations -- The Democratic Congress needs to take immediate steps to roll back the Bush tax give aways, and close the loopholes, that have been crushing the middle class for the past few years. This is also part of balancing the budget. By collecting the taxes the government is due from the people and corporations who haven't been paying what they owe the past few years our economy will start to recover and the dollar will start to recover. We lose close to a Trillion dollars a year in taxes because giant corporations and the super-rich aren't paying in what they owe. This needs to stop.

Push for alternative energy -- This is a long term plan that needs to get going immediately. Bio-fuels and hybrid vehicles are a good start but they don't solve the problem. We need energy sources that are renewable and environmentally friendly and that don't cause food shortages. Wind, solar, hydrogen, and even some nuclear need to be more fully developed while the government also subsidizes pure research into fuels we might not even know about yet. Congress needs to fund these programs well.

Sign the Kyoto accords -- We need to step up to the plate and start showing the world we can lead again. One way we can do that is to sign the Kyoto accords which President Clinton worked so hard on during the 90's. If we don't act soon to stop the damage we humans are doing to environment in 100 years we may not be able to stop it and we will have killed ourselves. For no reason.

Move forward on Universal Health care -- I don't expect something to get accomplished on providing affordable and good health care for all Americans overnight. It's going to take awhile to pry the insurance industry's filthy hands out of the process. But with 4 years to work on it I think a Democratically controlled government can have something in place by the end of President Obama's first term. But we need to move on this soon after inauguration.

Shut down all domestic spying on Americans -- Does this really need any explanation? The domestic spying being done by the Bush regime in the name of "national security" is illegal, unconstitutional, and, simply, un-American. Just fucking stop it.

Shut down the Republicans in the Senate -- this is kind of a bonus item on my wish list. Hopefully, in November the Democrats will get a filibuster-proof majority in the Senate and they will be able to shut down, and shut up, the Rethugnican obstructionism they have been engaging in since 2006. They don't deserve any consideration, just shut them down, push them to the side and don't allow them to get in the way of the adults getting real work done. If they are not going to be part of the solution then don't let them be yet another part of the problem they have caused, which is what they have been doing for the past 2 years.

I could go on. Oh, my, could I go on but I think this is a good start for an agenda for the Democrats should they gain a larger majority in Congress and the White House.