American technology, and millions of American Workers to do it with. Now, what do the republicans propose . Basically, their Energy Program has two parts. The first part is to get rid of almost everything that weve done for the American Public in the last 3 years. They want to reduce or abolish the Synthetic Fuels program. They want to slash the solar energy incentives, the conservation programs, aid to mass transit, aid to elderly americans to help pay their fuel bills. They want to eliminate the 55 mile speed limit. And while they are at it, the republicans would like to gut the clean air act. They never liked it to begin with. Thats one part of their program; the other part is worse. To replace what we have built, this is what they propose to destroy the windfall profits tax and to unleash the Oil Companies and let them solve the Energy Problem for us. Thats it. That is it. Thats their whole program. There is no more. Can this nation accept such an outrageous program . No we democrats will fight it every step of the way, and well begin tomorrow morning with a campaign for reelection in november. When i took office, i inherited a heavy load of serious economic problems besides energy, and weve met them all head on. Weve slashed government regulations and put Free Enterprise back into the airlines, the trucking and the Financial Systems of our country, and were now doing the same thing for the railroads. This is the greatest change in the relationship between government and business since the new deal. Weve increased our exports dramatically. Weve reversed the decline in the basic research and development, and we have created more than 8 million new jobs the biggest increase in the history of our country. But the road is bumpy, and last years skyrocketing opec price increases have helped to trigger a worldwide inflation crisis. We took forceful action, and Interest Rates have now fallen, the dollar is stable and, although we still have a battle on our hands, were struggling to bring inflation under control. We are now at the critical point, a turning point in our economic history of our country. But because we made the hard decisions, because we have guided our nation and its economy through a rough but essential period of transition, weve laid the groundwork for a new economic age. Our economic Renewal Program for the 1980s will meet our immediate need for jobs and attack the very same, long range problem that caused unemployment and inflation in the first place. Itll move america simultaneously towards our five great economic goals lower inflation, better productivity, revitalization of american industry, energy security, and jobs. Its time to put all america back to work but not in make work, in real work. And there is real work in modernizing American Industries and creating new industries for america as well. Here are just a few things well rebuild together and build together new industries to turn our own coal and shale and Farm Products into fuel for our cars and trucks and to turn the light of the sun into heat and and electricity for our homes; a modern Transportation System of railbeds and ports to make american coal into a powerful rival of opec oil; industries that will provide the convenience of futuristic Computer Technology and communications to serve millions of American Homes and offices and factories; job training for workers displaced by economic changes; new investment pinpointed in regions and communities where jobs are needed most; better mass transit in our cities and in between cities; and a whole new generation of american jobs to make homes and vehicles and buildings that will house us and move us in comfort with a lot less energy. This is important, too. I have no doubt that the ingenuity, and dedication of the American People can make every single one of these things happen. We are talking about the United States of america, and those who count this country out as an economic superpower are going to find out just how wrong they are. Were going to share in the exciting enterprise of making the 1980s a time of growth for america. The republican alternative is the biggest tax giveaway in history. They call it reagankemproth. I call it a free lunch that americans cannot afford. The republican tax Program Offers rebates to the rich, deprivation for the poor, and fierce inflation for all of us. Their partys own Vice President ial nominee said that reagankemproth would result in an inflation rate of more than 30 percent. He called it voodoo economics. He suddenly changed his mind toward the end of the republican convention, but he was right the first time. Along with this gigantic tax cut, the new Republican Leaders promise to protect retirement and Health Programs and to have massive increases in defense spending and they claim they can balance the budget. If they are serious about these promises, and they say they are, then a close Analysis Shows that the entire rest of the government would have to be abolished, everything from education to farm programs, from the g. I. Bill to the night watchman at the Lincoln Memorial and their budget would still be in the red. The only alternative would be to build more Printing Presses to print cheap money. Either way, the American People lose. But the American People will not stand for it. The Democratic Party has always embodied the hope of our people for justice, opportunity, and a better life, and weve worked in every way possible to strengthen the american family, to encourage selfreliance, and to follow the Old Testament admonition defend the poor and the fatherless; give justice to the afflicted and needy. Weve struggled to assure that no child in america ever goes to bed hungry, that no elderly couple in america has to live in a substandard home, and that no young person in america is excluded from college because the family is poor. But what have the republicans proposed . Just an attack on everything that weve done in the achievement of social justice and decency that weve won in the last 50 years, ever since Franklin Delano roosevelts first term. They would make Social Security voluntary. They would reverse our progress on the minimum wage, full employment laws, safety in the work place, and a healthy environment. Lately, as you know, the republicans have been quoting democratic president s. But who can blame them . Would you rather quote Herbert Hoover or Franklin Delano roosevelt . Would you rather quote Richard Nixon or John Fitzgerald kennedy . The republicans have always been the party of privilege, but this year their leaders have gone even further. In their platform, they have repudiated the best traditions of their own party. Where is the conscience of lincoln in the party of lincoln . Whats become of their traditional republican commitment to fiscal responsibility . Whats happened to their commitment to a safe and sane arms control . Now, i dont claim perfection for the Democratic Party. I dont claim that every decision that we have made has been right or popular; certainly, theyve not all been easy. But i will say this weve been tested under fire. Weve neither ducked nor hidden, and weve tackled the Great Central issues of our time, the historic challenges of peace and energy, which have been ignored for years. Weve made tough decisions, and weve taken the heat for them. Weve made mistakes, and weve learned from them. But we have built the foundation now for a better future. Weve done something else, perhaps even more important. In good times and bad, in the valleys and on the peaks, weve told people the truth, the hard truth, the truth that sometimes hurts. One truth that we americans have learned is that our dream has been earned for progress and for peace. Look what our land has been through within our own memory a great depression, a world war, a technological explosion, the civil rights revolution, the bitterness of vietnam, the shame of watergate, the twilight peace of nuclear terror. Through each of these momentous experiences, weve learned the hard way about the world and about ourselves. But weve matured and weve grown as a nation and weve grown stronger. Weve learned the uses and the limitations of power. Weve learned the beauty and responsibility of freedom. Weve learned the value and the obligation of justice. And we have learned the necessity of peace. Some would argue that to master these lessons is somehow to limit our potential. That is not so. A nation which knows its true strengths, which sees its true challenges, which understands legitimate constraints, that nation our nation is far stronger than one which takes refuge in Wishful Thinking or nostalgia. The Democratic Party the American People have understood these fundamental truths. All of us can sympathize with the desire for easy answers. Theres often the temptation to substitute idle dreams for hard reality. The new Republican Leaders are hoping that our nation will succumb to that temptation this year, but they profoundly misunderstand and underestimate the character of the American People. Three weeks after pearl harbor, Winston Churchill came to north america and he said, we have not journeyed all this way across the centuries, across the oceans, across the mountains, across the prairies, because we are made of sugar candy. We americans have courage. Americans have always been on the cutting edge of change. Weve always looked forward with anticipation and confidence. I still want the same thing that all of you want a selfreliant neighborhood, strong families, work for the ablebodied and good medical care for the sick, opportunity for our youth and dignity for our old, equal rights and justice for all people. I want teachers eager to explain what a civilization really is, and i want students to understand their own needs and their own aims, but also the needs and yearnings of their neighbors. I want women free to pursue without limit the full life of what they want for themselves. I want our farmers growing crops to feed our nation and the world, secure in the knowledge that the family farm will thrive and with a fair return on the good work they do for all of us. I want workers to see meaning in the labor they perform and work enough to guarantee a job for every worker in this country. And i want the people in business free to pursue with boldness and freedom new ideas. And i want minority citizens fully to join the mainstream of american life. And i want from the bottom of my heart to remove the blight of racial and other discrimination from the face of our nation, and im determined to do it. I need for all of you to join me in fulfilling that vision. The choice, the choice between the two futures, could not be more clear. If we succumb to a dream world , then well wake up to a nightmare. But if we start with reality and fight to make our dreams a reality, then americans will have a good life, a life of meaning and purpose in a nation thats strong and secure. Above all, i want us to be what the founders of our nation meant us to become the land of freedom, the land of peace, and the land of hope. Thank you very much. Announcer be sure to watch cspans washington journal at 7 00 eastern this morning. Join the discussion. Announcer the Democratic National committee met this week and to finish work on the partys platform, which will be voted at the democratic month inn later this philadelphia. The unbinding document is a representation of the position on several foreign and domestic issues. Here is a portion of yesterdays meeting and some of the debates occurred. Amendment number 139 sponsored ,y Benjamin Kemper on page 11 line 41, the proposed amendment is as follows on page 11, line 41, strike the following explore reforms of the civil Asset Forfeiture system and insert reform the civil Asset Forfeiture system to prohibit police from keeping assets seized during an alleged crime when their owners are not convicted of that crime. [applause] just a second. Can we hold on that and come back to that . They are asking us to come back to that. The next one please. Number 164. On page 11, line 47, the proposed amendment is to insert on page 11 line 47 after the word addiction and Mental Health issues, the following. It also means building on effective models of drug courts, veterans courts, and other diversionary programs that seek to give low level and nonviolent offenders opportunities for rehabilitation as opposed to incarceration. Thank you. Thank you. I rise on behalf of supporting this amendment. Like many here, i live in a state ravaged by the heroine and usoid crisis that is facing tragedy after tragedy. I spent years in the criminal Justice System and im here to tell you we are not going to arrest our way out of this problem. [applause] my colleague from indiana spoke about more discretion and that is what this is about, giving people the tools they need. There are people, violent people, who belong in jail but there are a lot of people who dont need handcuffs, they just need a hand. We need to concentrate on the 55 of people who are locked up your eligible from substances for Substance Abuse treatment. We need veterans courts, drug courts. All of those rings are available. Things are available. Is there a second . Second. Anyone speaking against this . Well go to a vote. All in favor indicated by raising your hand. All opposed. Five opposed. It is past. Next amendment. Whats we will be going back to amend and six amendment 66. Paschalponsor is chuck on page 11, line 40. , we willsed amendment assist stays in providing a system of Public Defense that is adequately resourced. A parliamentary inquiry, i was told this was being accepted into the draft. Why it was withdrawn earlier. Is that not correct . I was told that language is. Ncorporated into the draft is that not correct . We do not have updated language. I will offer the amendment. One of the ways to make a criminal Justice System more fair is to make sure there is adequate defense provided. Throughout the country, there is is a system where some states fully fund a Public Defense system and some states like mine provide no funding at all. Which means that defendants do to lawyers who have caseloads that are manageable for it means that defendants dont have access to investigators and other things required to have a competent and quality defense to their criminal charges. This results in false convictions. Fair publicave a Defense System that will adequately defend those accused of crimes. Is there anyone in opposition . Opposition . If there is no opposition, it will go to a vote. All in favor indicated by holding your cards up. All opposed. It passes. Amendment number 60 sponsored. Y dennis a dusty the proposed amendment is before line one, at the following. Because of conflicting laws can turning marijuana, both on the hydro and state level, we encourage the federal government to remove marijuana from its list as a class one federal controlled substance, providing a reasoned pathway for future legalization. [applause] clerks of the sponsor has one minute. I was told earlier that this would be combined with number 35 that has similar wording for that day wording. Why dont we said that aside . Lets hold it and we will determine it. 60. 5 and we need to have that question answered. In the meantime, is there an answer for that in the room . If not, we will hold it for now. It is similar language. To find outing whether there is agreement to this. So we can make a ruling. 60 is withdrawn. 35 60 is withdrawn, and my hearing that right . Thank you. What is the next amendment . Thank you. Amendment 35 sponsored by page 12, cramer on line five, the proposed amendment is page 12, line five after the word uncertainty, enter the following, we will also remove marijuana from the controlled substances act. Today, theyre one is treated as a schedule one drug like heroine. Regardless of your views, i dont think anyone in this room believes marijuana is as dangerous as heroine. The time has come to remove marijuana from the controlled substances act. It should be up to the states to decide whether to legalize their water or not. We need to rethink the war on drugs. Legalize marijuana or not. We are arresting one marijuana user every minute but have not arrested one executive on wall street for causing the near collapse of the economy in 2008. That has got to change. Veterans living in states with medical marijuana cannot get a prescription through the v. A. Because its still illegal federally. Marijuanas classification was only supposed to be temporary when the law was passed in the 1970s. This is a long overdue change. States shouldink be able to do what they want with marijuana. Are their opponents . Are there seconds . Are their opponents . The proponents go first. Five minutes. A young lady in nashville was having over 500 seizures and m