Review our policy checklist today, watch the Harris-Trump debate on Tuesday.
Listen for the issues you care about.
The first debate between Harris and Trump is set for Tuesday, September 10, 2024 at 9 p.m. EST. ABC News will host the debate - other major networks will offer a simulcast, including C-SPAN, PBS, MSNBC, Fox News, and others.
Why a policy checklist?
A few weeks ago, Catherine Fleming Bruce of Camelot Excalibur Trust served as a Democratic National Committee Convention (DNCC) Correspondent for the 2024 Democratic National Convention.
Voters and advocates continue to ask about policy positions of Democratic Party Presidential nominee Kamala Harris, wondering which positions will emerge as her priorities.
In response to this interest, Bruce produced a policy checklist, drawn from the 2024 Democratic Party Platform.
What is on the list that YOU the voter affirm and support? What policies on the list will VP Kamala Harris affirm and support during the first Presidential Debate?
If there are issues you want to hear more about or issues missing that are important to you, reach out to the Harris-Walz campaign.
Please use and freely share the checklist and submit any suggestions to improve the checklist for the public good.
Growing Our Economy from the Bottom Up & Middle Out
ECONOMIC PROGRESS
_____Democrats will keep fighting to prevent the kind of supply chain shocks and corporate greed that have done so much to raise prices.
_____Democrats will keep investing in American workers, American jobs, and American families, bringing factories home to win the race for the future.
_____Democrats know the story of the middle class isn’t separate from the state of the economy – it’s at its heart. Democrats will never quit fighting to make sure that everyone is in on the deal.
INVESTING IN AMERICA
Infrastructure
_____Democrats are bringing affordable, reliable, high-speed internet to every American household. These projects don’t just build infrastructure, they create hundreds of thousands of good jobs for American workers.
Manufacturing
_____Democrats will continue supporting NASA and America’s presence on the International Space Station, and working to send Americans back to the moon and to Mars.
_____Democrats will keep America at the forefront of scientific discovery and innovation, responsibly leading the way in the defining fields of the future, like AI, biotech, quantum computing, advanced materials, and more.
GOOD JOBS
_____Democrats are working to make sure that every American can access quality new jobs, where many people can earn over $100,000 a year.
_____Democrats will keep making historic investments in apprenticeships to keep expanding opportunity, including by partnering directly with unions.
_____Democrats will keep fighting to pass the Protecting the Right to Organize (PRO) Act, to give everyone the right to organize for better pay, benefits, and working conditions, and to hold abusive bosses accountable for violating workers’ rights.
_____Democrats oppose state right-to-work laws, which drive down wages and leave workers unsafe.
_____Democrats support penalizing employers who engage in union busting.
_____Democrats will work to pass the Public Service Freedom to Negotiate Act, guaranteeing public sector bargaining rights; and to codify a right to organize for domestic workers, farm workers, and other unprotected laborers.
_____Democrats will continue to create strong labor standards for jobs created with taxpayer dollars through legislation and with strong Buy American rules.
_____Consistent with the law, Democrats will ensure that federal grants and other assistance to employers are contingent on recipients committing to not interfering with workers’ efforts to form a union.
_____Democrats will strengthen enforcement and penalties for safety, wage, and other labor and employment violations.
_____Democrats are pushing to guarantee workers the pay, benefits, and protections they deserve.
_____Democrats recognize that the U.S. Postal Service is the world’s most efficient, and Democrats are wholly committed to supporting a public U.S.P.S. Democrats will fight all efforts to privatize it and will work to ensure that it’s financially sustainable. Democrats will protect its universal service obligation and on-time delivery. Democrats will support a Board of Governors and a Postal Regulatory Commission that champion a strong public Postal Service.
_____Our opponents are vowing to repeal key pieces of the Biden agenda – stalling historic progress; undermining American manufacturing; and costing hundreds of thousands of Americans the good paychecks and future prospects that they deserve. Democrats won’t let that happen.
_____Democrats fought hard to pass the most significant investments in America in generations. Democrats will continue the important work of implementing them, to be sure that the benefits are shared in every corner of America and create good-paying jobs that folks can raise a family on, with the chance to join a union, and that rely on materials made here at home.
SMALL BUSINESSES
_____Initiatives like Vice President Harris’s Economic Opportunity Coalition are mobilizing hundreds of billions in private investment. At the same time, the federal government this year set a record for small business contract spending, awarding them 28 percent of total procurement dollars, directly supporting a million jobs. It is on track to meet its goal of increasing federal contracts awarded to small disadvantaged businesses by 50 percent.
_____Democrats won’t let Trump win with a plan to double-down on his tax scam to benefit big corporations and billionaires. His Congressional allies keep trying to slash SBA funding, and to repeal our investments in infrastructure and manufacturing – the same ones that are lowering costs for small businesses, boosting their revenue, and helping millions to thrive.
AGRICULTURE
_____Democrats recognize the critical role that our land stewards play in our food systems, economy, and environment, and are working hard to drive both public and private funds to reward these champions of nature for their hard work.
_____Democrats will work to get farmers the right to repair their own equipment, without having to pay big equipment makers for diagnostic tools and repairs.
_____Democrats will look to further limit foreign ownership of U.S. farmland to protect our food supply and national security.
_____Democrats will work to improve farm workers’ safety at meat processing facilities
_____Democrats will continue to enforce and advance labor and environmental rules, for example promoting organizing rights and requiring overtime pay, and boosting protections against harmful pesticides and extreme heat.
FIGHTING POVERTY
_____Democrats will keep pushing to restore and expand the expired Child Tax Credit and Earned Income Tax Credit.
_____Democrats will work to finally raise the federal minimum wage to at least $15-an-hour.
_____Democrats will fight for paid leave, better health care, and more investment in public schools and affordable housing.
_____Democrats will reduce the need for foster care, by supporting families and engaging kin.
_____Democrats will further expand public transit, connecting communities that have been cut off for too long.
_____Democrats will keep working to get more low-income families access to affordable banking and to boost the supply of capital and loans by investing more in CDFIs.
_____Democrats will push to make the New Markets Tax Credit permanent, drawing new investment to low-income communities nationwide.
_____Democrats will continue to reject Republican proposals to increase poverty by making devastating cuts to programs that vulnerable Americans count on.
_____Democrats will keep working to build an economy that rewards work, not wealth; where Democrats care for the most vulnerable, and unleash the potential that all our children have to grow and thrive.
_____Democrats remain committed to fighting poverty and enabling all Americans to live up to their God-given potential.
ENDING SPECIAL INTEREST GIVEAWAYS
_____Democrats will keep pushing to crack down on outsized insurance company profits, for example by requiring health insurers to reimburse Medicaid if they bill more than they actually spend on patient care.
_____Democrats believe in saving taxpayers money by investing more in preventative health care, vaccines, and other treatment for Medicaid and CHIP beneficiaries, avoiding unnecessary medical costs by keeping folks healthy – investing in America, and in the American people.
Rewarding Work, Not wealthy
CUTTING TAXES FOR WORKING FAMILIES
_____Democrats will protect everyone earning less than $400,000 a year from any tax increase; and we will fight to protect and expand other tax benefits for working people and families with children.
_____Democrats will keep fighting to restore and protect Child Tax Credit and Earned Income Tax Credit expansions - tax relief that will give tens of millions of families some breathing room again.
MAKING THE WEALTHY & BIG CORPORATIONS
PAY THEIR FAIR SHARE
_____Democrats will make billionaires pay a minimum income tax rate of 25 percent, raising $500 billion in 10 years. We’ll end the preferential treatment for capital gains for millionaires, so they pay the same rate on investment income as on wages.
_____Democrats will put an end to abusive life insurance tax shelters, and stop billionaires from exploiting retirement tax incentives that are supposed to help middle-class families save.
_____Democrats will eliminate the “stepped-up basis” loophole for the wealthiest Americans, so they can’t avoid paying taxes on their wealth by passing it down to heirs.
_____Democrats will close the “carried interest” loophole, which wealthy fund managers have long used to halve tax rates on their own personal pay, so they pay a lower rate than some teachers or firefighters do.
_____Democrats will increase our new stock buyback tax to 4 percent to discourage stock buybacks that benefit executives and wealthy shareholders, instead of workers and Consumers.
_____Democrats will keep upping the pressure on wealthy and corporate tax cheats that fail to pay what they owe. The IRS was severely underfunded for years; but Democrats are improving IRS services for everyday taxpayers and reviving enforcement against wealthy and corporate tax cheats, raising more than an estimated $440 billion in additional revenue as a result. The IRS has already collected over $500 million in unpaid taxes from less than 2,000 delinquent millionaires, and launched efforts aimed at thousands of other millionaires who hadn’t filed a return in years. Democrats will protect this progress by continuing to invest in modernizing the IRS.
_____Democrats will also make billion-dollar companies pay their fair share. In 2020, 55 of the biggest companies in America made $40 billion in profit, but paid zero in federal income Taxes. Corporations are seeing record margins, but their share of federal taxes has fallen below 10 percent, down from 30 percent in the 1950s.
_____Democrats oppose unfair loopholes and wasteful subsidies that benefit special interests a at everyone else’s expense. Democrats will fight to get rid of them. That starts by eliminating tens of billions of dollars in subsidies for oil and gas companies. It means ending special tax breaks for corporate jets, and boosting fuel taxes on corporate and private jet travel, saving taxpayers $4 billion over 10 years. Democrats will no longer permit companies to deduct the cost of paying executives more than $1 million a year. Corporations shouldn’t get a tax break for giving huge pay packages to CEOs.
_____Democrats will also eliminate the so-called “like-kind exchange” loophole that allows wealthy real estate investors to avoid paying taxes on real estate profits, as long as they keep investing in real estate.
Lowering Costs
Health Care & Prescription Drugs
_____Health care should be a right in America, not a privilege. Every American deserves the peace of mind that quality, affordable coverage brings.
_____Democrats will never quit fighting to protect and expand the Affordable Care Act, making quality care more accessible and affordable
_____Democrats will fight to make health insurance premium tax credits permanent.
_____Democrats support Medicaid expansion, encouraging states to provide health coverage to low-income Americans on the federal government’s tab. The Administration has helped over a million people in four states to enroll; and Democrats will keep pushing Congress to further expand Medicaid-like coverage to the 2.8 million uninsured low-income adults who live in states where Republicans still refuse the help.
_____Democrats are working to protect kids’ health coverage as well, by removing financial barriers for the Children's Health Insurance Program; and making it easier for families to keep kids on Medicaid.
_____Democrats believe that quality, affordable health care should be available in every corner of America. The Administration has invested in new mobile health clinics; and in keeping community and rural health centers, lifelines for tens of millions of people, open, well-staffed, and well-equipped. Democrats want to double those investments now.
_____Democrats will keep working to grow the healthcare workforce, so workplace and other provider shortages no longer create barriers to quality care and inflate health care costs.
_____Democrats will expand “no-surprise billing” to include costly ground ambulances. Democrats will keep using antitrust laws to stop hospital, insurance, and Big Pharma mergers that undermine competition and increase health care prices for consumers.
_____Democrats will keep fighting to ease the burden of medical debt, which makes it harder for millions of Americans to get a mortgage or other loan for the future.
_____Democrats will keep pushing to exclude medical debts from credit scoring entirely. 6
_____Democrats support closing fundamental gaps in women’s health care, including by protecting access to reproductive health care. This includes its efforts to reduce maternal mortality, led by Vice President Harris. Harris called for states to provide a full year of postpartum coverage for Medicaid beneficiaries, with 46 states, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. Virgin Islands now taking that step.
Prescription Drugs
_____Democrats will fight to expand that $35 insulin cap to cover everyone, saving millions of Americans with diabetes nearly $1,000 a year. Starting next year, the Inflation Reduction Act also caps total out-of-pocket drug costs at $2,000 a year for millions of seniors and others on Medicare. Democrats will fight until that cap covers every single American.
_____Democrats will push to add at least 50 drugs a year to that Medicare list, lowering prices for 500 drugs this decade. Medicare Part-D is also working to cap cost-sharing for life-saving generics at $2 a dose; Democrats will make this mandatory for all Medicare beneficiaries.
_____Democrats will keep fighting to expand these rebates, applying them when drugmakers overcharge not just Medicare, but private insurers as well. Democrats are cracking down on improper drug patent listings, which some drugmakers use to shut out competition.
_____Democrats will work to require that any drugs developed with taxpayer dollars be available to taxpayers, including at reasonable prices.
_____Democrats will keep working to lower drug prices by requiring more transparency from the “pharmacy benefit manager” middlemen who generally decide which drugs are covered by insurance and bought by doctors, and how much they cost.
_____Democrats won’t let Trump and his MAGA allies repeal the Inflation Reduction Act entirely, and funnel our savings back into Big Pharma’s pockets.
Child and Home Care
_____Democrats will guarantee affordable, quality child care to millions of working families for less than $10-a-day per child.
_____Democrats will restore the expanded Child Tax Credit and strengthen Head Start.
_____Democrats will improve and expand home- and community-based services for seniors and people with disabilities,, working toward finally eliminating the 700,000-person Medicaid waiting list, so more people can live and work with dignity in their own communities.
_____Democrats will also keep pushing to improve pay and benefits for care workers, for example by fighting to get many of them a bigger share of Medicaid home care payments.
_____Democrats will overhaul the quality of care and quality of life for our nation’s 1.3 million nursing home residents by defending Administration regulations that require minimum staffing standards at nursing homes.
Gas & Groceries
_____Democrats will keep working to boost supply, fix supply chains and promote competition to lower prices, especially for essential items like gas and groceries that families depend on.
Corporate Greed
_____Democrats will keep working to make the American economy more competitive for businesses and workers across sectors, from transportation to housing to food.
_____Democrats will reform hiring and procurement processes across the government, to boost among our contractors and suppliers.
_____Democrats will work to shore up a safe, secure banking system that protects consumer deposits and holds investors accountable. Democrats have pushed for legislation to hold executives at all failed banks accountable, clawing back compensation and banning them from the industry.
_____Democrats will work to limit out-of-control Wall Street bonuses that encourage risky bank practices that jeopardize our whole economy.
_____Democrats will keep pushing to pass an updated Glass-Steagall Act, more clearly separating commercial and investment banking and expanding Volcker rule safeguards. Democrats defeated Republican efforts to gut the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau at the Supreme Court this year; and will continue to protect and strengthen that agency and support its critical work.
Housing
_____Democrats will crack down on corporate landlords who are gouging tenants, for example by capping the amount they can raise the rent each year. Democrats will go after negligent landlords who don’t maintain basic habitability standards.
_____Democrats will crack down on those who violate the Fair Housing Act, and on landlords who discriminate against low-income and minority renters and people with housing vouchers.
_____Democrats are rooting bias out of the home appraisal process, which perpetuates the racial wealth gap by unjustly undervaluing millions of Black- and Latino-owned homes.
_____Democrats are dedicated to increasing the supply of an array of housing options like duplexes, triplexes, and townhomes that bridge the gap between single-family homes and large apartment buildings. By reducing barriers to building housing and providing federal tax incentives for the development of housing for people of all incomes, Democrats can foster vibrant, inclusive communities where people from all walks of life can find affordable, diverse living options.
_____Democrats will prioritize Workforce housing to ensure that our nation’s teachers, nurses, firefighters, and other essential workers can afford to live in the communities they serve. Democrats recognize that these workers are the backbone of our society, but they are left to struggle with housing costs that outpace their incomes, leaving them unable to live near their workplaces. Democrats will meet this challenge head-on by increasing funding for programs that support the creation and preservation of affordable housing options for essential workers, as well as collaborating with state and local governments to accelerate the development of workforce housing, ensuring that our communities remain accessible and affordable for all.
_____Democrats are working to help Americans cover other housing-related costs, like utilities. Families are already saving thousands of dollars with clean energy tax credits; and 23 million households received free or monthly discounts, saving $30 to $75 per month on high-speed broadband through the largest internet affordability program in history. It expired in May, because Republicans refused to act; but Democrats will keep fighting to reinstate it.
_____Democrats will work to expand other programs that reduce home heating, cooling, and water bills as well, especially in rural areas; and to speed the transition to cheaper renewable energy, like solar, that will lower people’s bills long-term.
_____Democrats won’t let Trump and his MAGA allies cut affordable housing and rental assistance programs, protect tax breaks for corporate landlords, and weaken the independent agencies that protect consumers from rent gouging. Democrats won’t let them
make it harder for working families to buy a home by reinstating higher mortgage insurance premiums, and by privatizing Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
Education
_____Democrats fundamentally believe that every student deserves a quality education, regardless of their parents’ zip code or income.
_____Democrats will provide free, universal preschool for four-year olds, saving the families of 5 million children $13,000 a year.
_____Democrats support fully funding IDEA to prioritize students with disabilities and the special educator workforce.
_____Democrats support efforts to provide more timely, well-rounded, actionable feedback on student learning and progress to educators and to families that will support instruction and student success, while upholding rigorous academic standards.
_____Democrats oppose the use of private-school vouchers, tuition tax credits, opportunity scholarships, and other schemes that divert taxpayer-funded resources away from public education. Public tax dollars should never be used to discriminate.
_____Democrats will continue working to increase accountability at charters, holding them to the same transparency standards as public schools.
_____Democrats will prioritize education in cutting-edge STEAM fields as well, especially for students from underrepresented communities, preparing every child to compete and thrive.
_____Democrats will work to provide every student with a pathway to multilingual education, while ensuring equitable access to a high-quality education for English learners, who’ve historically been underserved.
_____Democrats will make quality, affordable, postsecondary education a path forward again. A quality, postsecondary education used to be a ticket to the middle class, but the cost that many folks face for higher education today is crippling families, futures, and our entire economy. It has become a barrier to opportunity.
_____ Democrats will invest in many forms of education, including career and technical education. That’s a path to the middle class that families can count on.
_____Democrats will recruit more new teachers, paraprofessionals and school related personnel, and education support professionals, with the option for some to even start training in high school. Democrats will help school-support staff to advance in their own careers with a living wage.
____Democrats will improve working conditions and support to help make teaching a sustainable and affordable profession.
_____Democrats will keep investing in partnerships with HBCUs, MSIs, and Tribal Colleges and Universities to strengthen and diversify the teacher pipeline, so students of every background can see themselves at the head of the classroom and in charge of their schools.
Social Security, Pensions, & Medicare
_____Democrats won’t let Trump and his MAGA allies cut Social Security to give billionaires another tax cut. Trump has called Social Security a “Ponzi Scheme” and warned “there’s a lot you can do in terms of cutting.” As President, he tried to slash both Social Security and Medicare programs in every budget, and to gut Medicaid, which provides home care to over seven million seniors and people with disabilities. House Republicans have vowed to cut Social Security by over $1.5 trillion, to raise the retirement age, and to transform Medicare into a voucher-like system, threatening the program. Trump will also eliminate protections for private retirement savings, by undermining the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and making it easier for banks to rip off seniors with expensive, hidden fees.
Generations of Americans have paid into these programs, with every paycheck of their lives. Democrats will never back down from our ironclad commitment to protecting Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid.
_____Democrats reject any effort to privatize Social Security or to cut any of the benefits that the American people have earned. Middle-class Americans pay 6.2 percent of their income to support Social Security, and the self-employed pay twice that. But people with multi-million dollar incomes pay a fraction of 1 percent.
_____Democrats will strengthen the program and expand benefits by asking the wealthiest Americans to pay their fair share.
_____Democrats oppose any actions to cut Medicare benefits.
_____Democrats will look to expand traditional Medicare coverage to include dental, vision, and hearing services, which are so key to health and quality of life, by making the wealthy and big corporations pay their fair share.
_____Democrats will make Medicare permanently solvent, by making the wealthy pay their fair share in Medicare taxes.
_____Democrats will stand firm to protect retirement security across the board. Going forward, we’ll amend federal bankruptcy laws to make sure no other retirees ever run that same risk.. Democrats want to make it easier for everyone to save for retirement and retire with dignity.
Tackling the Climate Crisis, Lowering Energy Costs, & Securing Energy Independence
Producing Cleaner, More Affordable Energy
_____Democrats will keep working to incentivize investment in transmission upgrades and new lines, and in the grid-component manufacturing that’s needed to support that growth.
_____Democrats will improve and speed up the processes of environmental review and clean-energy permitting; and further scale up development of clean energy on public lands.
_____Democrats will continue to invest in clean energy research and development, building on America’s legacy as a nation of new frontiers and possibilities.
_____ Democrats will launch an Advanced Research Projects Agency for Climate (ARPA-C), modeled on the defense research agency that’s behind breakthrough technologies like the internet and GPS, and the new ARPA-H that the Administration created to transform medicine. This will help find new ways of generating and storing energy, reducing emissions, and boosting climate resilience,
_____ Democrats will establish a new national lab for climate research and innovation, affiliated with an HBCU, Hispanic-, or other Minority-Serving Institution, to ensure the opportunities of the future are available to everyone, and built by everyone.
_____Democrats will continue to invest in climate research across NASA, NOAA, the National Science Foundation, and other agencies, to make sure that America leads the world in clean energy innovation.
Creating Clean Energy Jobs
_____Democrats will continue to work to create strong labor standards for jobs created with taxpayer dollars, through executive action and with Congress.
_____Democrats will unite against the Republican war on clean energy, blocking their obsessive attempts to repeal President Biden’s clean energy investments. Republicans will not be allowed to pull the rug out from American clean energy businesses, send hundreds of thousands of jobs overseas, and strip all Americans of cheaper, cleaner energy choices, all to please their special interest backers.
Reducing Pollution & Making Polluters Pay
_____Democrats will keep working to electrify the nation’s fleet of school buses, transit buses, and federal vehicles, including the U.S. Postal Service fleet.
_____Democrats will double funding to repair and expand active transportation and public transit, reducing pollution and traffic, and connecting people to jobs and opportunity.
_____Democrats will work to electrify our ports and waterways, prioritizing progress towards a goal of zero-emissions freight.
_____Democrats will keep pushing to reduce emissions from America's buildings and heavy industry.
_____Democrats support local and state efforts to adopt energy-efficient building codes.
____ Democrats will require that low-carbon materials and clean power be used in all new federal buildings by 2030, and invest in upgrading VA hospitals, federal offices, and K-12 public school and community college buildings, making them innovative, energy efficient, and safe places to learn.
_____Democrats will support investments in heavy industry, to make America the leader in clean steel, cement, aluminum, and other products.
_____Democrats will keep stepping up action to crack down on other forms of air and water pollution, repairing damage done by Trump’s failed oversight, and making polluters pay.
_____Democrats will keep standing up to Big Oil, as our clean energy boom breaks the industry’s monopoly hold on energy markets.
_____Democrats will eliminate tens of billions of dollars in other unfair oil and gas subsidies. When windfall profiteering causes prices to spike at the pump, we’ll release our own supplies to keep costs down for American families. And, when we hear of potential collusion or price-gouging, we’ll hold oil and gas executives accountable.
Environmental Justice
_____Democrats will continue to implement the Executive Order on Environmental Justice for All, and will seek legislative options to further advance environmental justice.
Building Climate Resilient Communities
_____Democrats will continue investing in public safety measures, like resiliency and cooling centers, so everyone, including our most vulnerable residents can find refuge during extreme weather events.
_____Democrats will work to pass the bipartisan Disaster Resilience Tax Credit, to help low and middle-income families and small businesses invest in preparing for and easing the impact of storms, heat, floods, and other natural disasters.
Conservation
_____Democrats will increase protections for America’s Arctic, and ensure clean water for all Americans by protecting rivers and wetlands.
_____Democrats will protect our oceans by working to designate new marine sanctuaries, and protect coastal communities from climate impacts.
_____Democrats will keep pushing to fully fund the Land and Water Conservation Fund, partnering with state and local governments; and work to reduce threats to iconic old growth forests.
_____Democrats will reward Americans across the country who engage in voluntary conservation on private lands.
_____Democrats will work with landowners to protect endangered species and our economy by restoring habitats and enhancing biodiversity, and continuing to protect lands and waters as National Monuments.
Global Climate Leadership
_____Democrats believe the United States has an indispensable role to play in solving the climate crisis, and we have an obligation to help other nations carry out this work.
_____Democrats will continue to support efforts to boost funding for initiatives like PREPARE, our program to build out better early warning systems for climate impacts in critical regions of the globe.
_____Democrats will use America’s leadership to drive global innovation and build out clean energy supply chains.
_____Democrats will work through the Multilateral Development Bank to elevate climate and clean energy priorities within the global development finance system.
_____Democrats will build on our leadership in innovative debt-for-nature swaps, which have helped countries from Barbados to Gabon to restructure over $2 billion in debt so far, unlocking hundreds of millions of dollars for nature and climate investments.
Protecting Communities & Tackling the Scourge of Gun Violence
Gun Safety
_____Democrats will continue the first-ever White House Office of Gun Safety Prevention - led by Vice President Harris - which took nearly 40 gun safety executive actions, including going after dangerous “ghost guns.”
_____Democrats will establish universal background checks, a step supported by the vast majority of Americans, including gun owners.
_____Democrats will once again ban assault weapons and high-capacity magazines. _____Democrats will require safe storage for guns.
_____Democrats will end the gun industry's immunity from liability, so gunmakers can no longer accountability.
_____Democrats will pass a national red flag law to prevent tragedies by keeping weapons out of dangerous hands.
_____Democrats will increase funding to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF) for enforcement and prosecution, and to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) for firearm background checks.
_____Democrats will fund gun violence research across the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and National Institutes of Health (NIH) as well as community violence interventions, because the gun violence epidemic is a public health crisis.
Policing & Public Safety
_____Democrats will create a new Violent Crime Reduction and Prevention Fund to give federal, state, local, and Tribal law enforcement the resources they need to fight crime, including to hire more agents, prosecutors, and forensic specialists.
_____Democrats will give communities the tools to crack down on gun crime, retail crime, and carjacking.
_____Democrats will pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act.
_____Democrats will end racial profiling and religious discrimination in law enforcement.
Criminal Justice
_____Democrats will take action to expunge federal marijuana-only convictions.
_____Democrats will combat drug trafficking and expand the use of drug courts, interventions, and diversion for people with substance use disorders.
_____Democrats will fund a new Accelerating Justice System Reform grant program to provide jurisdictions with critical resources to foster community trust and safety, reduce inequity and justice system involvement, and alleviate burdens on police.
_____Democrats will expand access to public defenders and step up civil rights enforcement, including by boosting funding for the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division and hiring 50 new Assistant U.S. Attorneys.
_____Democrats will remove barriers to legal access, combat hate crimes, and counter cyber threats.
_____ Democrats will invest in after-school programs, community centers, and summer jobs, to keep children and teens safe and out of the justice system.
_____ Democrats will automatically seal and expunge juvenile records, to ensure young people get a second chance after leaving the justice system.
_____Democrats will end state-level use of private prisons and detention centers, and l restrict state and local practices like solitary confinement, chokeholds, and restraints on pregnant inmates.
_____Democrats will guarantee access to medical care in prison and will eliminate profiteering from diversion, bail, electronic monitoring, commissaries, and reentry programs.
_____Democrats will support rehabilitation and education, including college programs, for inmates in prison and after their release.
_____ Democrats will boost access to transitional housing, affordable housing, mental health and substance use treatment, to help returning citizens succeed upon their release,
_____Democrats will limit reincarcerating people federally to only serious violations of supervised release.
_____Democrats will work to expand “ban the box” so returning citizens can more easily find work, protect their right to vote, and protect their right to public services like Pell grants.
Violence Against Women
_____Democrats will work to end sexual assault, domestic violence, online abuse, and all violence against women.
_____Democrats will continue to strengthen VAWA; keep guns out of the hands of domestic abusers; and expand housing and legal services for survivors.
_____ Democrats will work with schools to implement and enforce Title IX and end sexual harassment and assault in our nation’s schools, to keep students safe on campus.
_____Democrats will eliminate the rape kit backlog.
_____Democrats will strengthen legal protections for and support survivors of deepfake image-based sexual abuse.
Strengthening Democracy, Protecting Freedoms, & Advancing Equity
Voting Rights
_____Democrats will pass the John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act and the Freedom to Vote Act to fully secure the right to vote in every state.
_____Democrats will ensure fair congressional maps for every American, modernize and secure our elections, and curtail the corrupting influence of money in politics.
Stopping The Influence Of Special Interests
_____Democrats will fight to strengthen public financing with small-dollar matching for all federal candidates and crack down on foreign nationals who try to influence elections.
_____Democrats will keep super PACs wholly independent of campaigns and parties and pass a constitutional amendment that will ban all private financing from federal elections.
_____Democrats will end “dark money” by requiring full disclosure of contributors and ban 501(c)(4) organizations from spending on elections.
_____Democrats will prohibit corporate PACs and lobbyists from donating to anyone they lobby.
_____Democrats will adopt ethics reforms to ensure every American can feel confident that their government is working for them, not for special interests.
_____Democrats will enact legislation to apply similar standards to Members of Congress. Democrats will create a federal ethics commission to strengthen good governance laws, like those requiring financial and lobbying disclosure.
_____Democrats will require all federal candidates to disclose at least 10 years of tax returns. 18
_____ Democrats will reestablish merit-based federal contracting and ban political appointees from interfering in grantmaking, to ensure tax dollars go to work for the American people, not for special interests.
_____Democrats will strengthen laws that regulate lobbying by foreign governments and lower the threshold for registering as a federal lobbyist, to ensure that policy decisions are guided by what’s best for the American people, not by special interests.
Reproductive Freedom
_____ Vice President Harris and Democrats are committed to restoring the reproductive rights Trump ripped away. A Democratic Congress will pass national legislation to make Roe the law of the land again. Democrats will strengthen access to contraception so every woman who needs it is able to get and afford it. Democrats will protect a woman’s right to access IVF and repeal the Hyde Amendment.
_____Vice President Harris will continue to support access to FDA-approved medication abortion, appoint leaders at the FDA who respect science, and appoint judges who uphold fundamental freedoms.
Women’s Rights
_____Democrats will fight to make the Equal Rights Amendment the law of the land.
_____Democrats will work to pass the Paycheck Fairness Act and end
pay inequity not just in the federal workforce, but throughout the economy with penalties for companies that discriminate against women.
_____Democrats will guarantee affordable, high-quality child care from birth until kindergarten, with most families paying just $10 a day — and make it free for low-income families.
_____Democrats will protect the health and dignity of older adults and people with disabilities by improving long-term care and supporting family caregivers, and we will invest in care infrastructure by raising wages and the quality of care worker jobs.
_____Democrats will establish a national, comprehensive paid family and medical leave program to ensure that all workers, including women, can take the time they need to bond with a new child, care for a loved one, or recover from an illness.
_____. Vice President Harris came into office as a key leader on maternal health and continues to lead the fight for improved maternal health outcomes, elevating the issue nationally and convening experts and activists to find solutions. Women in America are dying at a higher rate from pregnancy-related causes than women in any other wealthy nation, especially Black and Native women. The American Rescue Plan gave States the option to provide a full year of postpartum coverage to women on Medicaid, increasing it from just 60 days.
_____Vice President Harris challenged all states to provide a full year of coverage; and 46 states, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. Virgin Islands now do. The Administration also expanded access to maternity care coordinators for U.S. military veterans, from eight weeks to 12 months postpartum. And, it established the first-ever national maternal health and safety standards for hospitals across the country, which include requirements that hospitals have resuscitation equipment in labor and delivery rooms and proper protocols and supplies for emergency deliveries. The Administration released a blueprint outlining other federal actions to combat maternal mortality and improve maternal health. And it launched the National Maternal Mental Health Hotline which has helped tens of thousands of women.
_____Democrats will continue working to address the maternal health crisis and ensure every American has access to high-quality, culturally competent care before, during, and after pregnancy.
_____Democrats will continue to invest in women’s health research to galvanize new research and breakthroughs on a wide range of topics.
Racial Equity
_____Democrats will keep working to increase food security, including through WIC and Summer EBT, and by bringing back the enhanced Child Tax Credit.
_____Democrats are working to make starting a business part of the American Dream that is possible for everyone, by boosting access to capital and loans, and government contracting work.
_____Vice President Harris will continue the Economic Opportunity Coalition bringing together major corporations and foundations to align public and private sector investments with a particular focus on driving private investment in CDFIs and MDIs.
_____ Democrats will drive an estimated $130 billion more in loans to Black and Latino communities over the next decade. Democrats will double funding for CDFIs, and expand and make permanent a New Markets Tax Credit, and encourage development in places too long left behind by investing in community lenders.
_____Democrats will work to bring down housing costs across the board.
_____Democrats will work to make college more affordable, and to relieve the crippling burden of student debt, which disproportionately falls on students of color. Black students take on 85 percent more debt than white peers, and both Black and Latino borrowers are more likely to hold debt many years longer after graduation, deferring their dreams to buy a home, build a family, or start a business.
_____Democrats are committed to ending generations of environmental injustices that have left communities of color bearing the brunt of toxic pollution and climate change, decaying infrastructure, and inadequate services.
_____Democrats will keep fighting to address disparities in health care and make sure that Americans have access to quality, affordable health care.
____ Democrats will keep fighting to expand those caps for every American.
_____Democrats will keep pushing to provide Medicaid-like coverage to people in states that have not expanded Medicaid, and to make it easier for parents to keep children enrolled in Medicaid and CHIP.
_____Democrats will defend all women’s right to reproductive health care.
_____Democrats will address the disproportionate impact of infectious diseases, including HIV and Hepatitis C, and expand access to PrEP to end the HIV epidemic.
_____ Democrats will support Congress executing a study of reparations and the continuing impacts of slavery, to determine how best to right historical wrongs.
LGBTQ+
_____Democrats are committed to defending LGBTQI+ rights.
_____Democrats will pass the Equality Act to codify protections for LGBTQI+ Americans and their families.
_____Democrats will prohibit employment discrimination in the federal government, including contractors, and make federally-funded seniors programs LGBTQI+ inclusive.
_____Democrats will continue to make great strides in protecting LGBTQI+ children and prospective parents in the adoption and foster care systems.
_____Democrats will vigorously oppose state and federal bans on gender-affirming health care and respect the role of parents, families, and doctors – not politicians – in making health care decisions.
_____Democrats will continue to fight for LGBTQI+ youth by protecting LGBTQI+ children from bullying and discrimination; guaranteeing that transgender students are treated fairly and with respect at school; and ending the homeless crisis among LGBTQI+ youth.
_____Democrats will end violence against transgender Americans, especially Black and brown transgender women, and prioritize the investigation of hate crimes against trans and non-binary people.
Disability
_____Democrats will enforce laws that ensure equal opportunity for people with disabilities: the ADA, IDEA, the Fair Housing Act, the Civil Rights of Institutionalized Persons Act, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, the Mental Health Parity Act, and the Help America Vote Act.
_____Democrats oppose efforts to weaken the ADA and build on the ACA to prevent health care discrimination.
_____Democrats will enforce the Olmstead integration mandate and enforce non-discrimination protections in health care, employment, education, housing, voting.
_____Democrats will promote equitable treatment of students with disabilities so every child with disabilities can thrive.
_____ Democrats will support home and community-based care and end the subminimum wage, to support people with disabilities and their families.
Tribal Nations
_____Democrats will continue promoting nation-to-nation partnerships with Tribal Nations.
_____Democrats will continue strengthening and respect for Tribal sovereignty, the federal trust responsibility, Tribal treaty rights, and Native history, including educating the federal workforce, providing best practices for sacred sites, and ensuring Native American history is recognized.
_____Democrats will keep working to make federal resources for Tribal Nations more accessible and protect health, education, safety, and welfare in Indian Country, particularly for Native women, children, and families.
_____Democrats will make IHS funding mandatory.
_____Democrats will invest in housing in Tribal communities, and support Tribal conservation through co-stewardship of public lands and waters.
_____Democrats will continue to usher in the next era of Tribal self-determination.
_____Democrats will invest in public safety and justice, by increasing the number of officers and investigators on the ground; addressing the crisis of missing and murdered Indigenous persons; and supporting VAWA programs, including a new grant program to address the missing and murdered Indigenous persons crisis.
Combating Hate & Protecting Freedom Of Religion
_____Democrats condemn the decades-long campaign to demonize the Muslim community and will end policies that target American Muslims as security threats.
_____Democrats will combat hate crimes and white nationalist terrorism.
_____Democrats will prioritize the investigation of hate crimes against trans and non-binary people.
_____Democrats will continue to increase security at houses of worship. Democrats will protect the First Amendment right to free exercise of religion for everyone, and we will maintain the separation of church and state.
_____Democrats will advocate for religious freedom across the world.
_____Democrats will continue to honor both religious freedom and other civil rights, not put them at war with one another.
_____Democrats will continue to recognize faith communities’ acts of service, which are critical pillars of their communities.
Freedom Of The Press
_____Democrats reject Trump’s denigration of the free press and recognize its importance to our society.
_____Democrats will strengthen media ownership rules and direct federal antitrust agencies to investigate media mergers, pushing back on the potentially harmful effects of corporate consolidation.
_____Democrats will appoint an independent media professional to head the U.S. Agency for Global Media.
Arts & Humanities
_____Democrats value the humanities, arts and art education for developing imagination, creativity, innovation, and critical thinking, and for building bridges within and between our communities.
_____Democrats will promote arts funding and education — and invest in the arts and humanities accordingly.
_____Democrats will fund the National Endowment for the Arts, the National Endowment for the Humanities, and art and music education in public schools.
_____Democrats know that federal grants for cultural organizations, artists, scholars, library systems, museums, and state and local governments only strengthen our communities and our cultural heritage.
D.C., PUERTO RICO
_____Democrats reject the unequal treatment of residents of D.C., Puerto Rico, and the U.S. territories. Democrats unequivocally support statehood for D.C., which its residents overwhelmingly support.
_____Democrats recognize that the people of Puerto Rico have earned and deserve to resolve the political status questions. For this reason, Democrats support the enactment of the Puerto Rico Status Act/H.R. 2757, and promote full civic and political representation for Puerto Ricans. Democrats will work to end its unequal treatment by the federal government, and fight to provide equal access to federal programs like Medicaid, SNAP, and the CTC.
_____Democrats reject Trump’s failed response to Hurricane Maria, which devastated Puerto Rico, and will ensure that the federal government’s response to disasters in Puerto Rico is as urgent as it would be anywhere else in the country. When disaster does strike, Democrats will speed access to recovery funds to help rebuild.
_____Democrats will build on the Administration’s investments to invest further in energy, infrastructure, economic development, education, health care, housing, energy, and climate resilience.
_____Democrats will help restructure Puerto Rico’s debt to relieve its debt burden, and we will work to dissolve the Financial Oversight and Management Board.
_____Democrats support self-determination for the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and American Samoa. Democrats will create a Congressional task force to study equal voting rights and House representation; and work to ensure equal access to federal programs like veterans’ benefits, the Affordable Care Act, Medicaid, and SNAP food assistance for all those eligible.
_____Democrats support funding to improve critical health care facilities in the territories, including construction of a state-of-the-art medical complex in Guam that co-locates health agencies on a single campus for a more integrated healthcare system that will benefit the region.
_____Democrats will invest in ending disparities in agriculture, economic development, education, employment, energy, health care, housing, and infrastructure, and help the U.S. territories diversify their economies.
_____Democrats will help with recovery from natural disasters, and will invest in expanding clean energy and water systems to be more resilient.
_____Democrats support reimbursing U.S. territories for more migration costs, including restoring Medicaid eligibility for legal migrants under the Compacts of Free Association.
_____Democrats will continue to recognize the sacrifices and honor the contributions of residents who suffered because of their U.S. nationality during the Japanese occupation during World War II.
_____Democrats recognize that millions of U.S. citizens live abroad, and will consider their unique circumstances and challenges when shaping policy. Democrats will work to protect their voting rights and ensure they are able to participate in the democratic process here at home.
Securing our Border & Fixing the Broken Immigration System
Reform the Asylum System
_____Democrats believe that asylum processing should be efficient and fair, and that those who are determined not to have a legal basis to remain should be quickly removed. In order to achieve this, Congress must strengthen requirements for valid asylum claims.
_____Democrats believe that Congress must fund a sufficient number of asylum officers and immigration judges to facilitate timely decisions.
_____Democrats believe that asylum seekers, especially the most vulnerable, including unaccompanied children, should have access to legal counsel.
_____Democrats believe that Individuals who pass this strengthened initial screening and are determined to be likely to qualify for asylum should be given quick access to work authorization while they go through a streamlined court process.
Temporary Emergency Authority to Shut Down the Border
_____Democrats believe that when the system is overwhelmed, the President should have emergency authority to expel migrants who are crossing unlawfully and stop processing asylum claims except for those using a safe and orderly process at Ports of Entry. The authority should be accompanied by humanitarian exceptions for vulnerable populations including unaccompanied children and victims of trafficking.
_____Democrats believe that Congress should dedicate resources to detain and remove individuals quickly, and rapidly process those who cannot be detained in a non-custodial setting under government supervision. Those who pose a threat to public safety or national security must be identified and removed as quickly as possible.
Fighting Human Trafficking
_____Democrats believe that more resources are needed and Congressional authorization passed to increase penalties to prosecute and punish human smugglers and traffickers who prey upon families and migrants.
Legal Immigration Pathways
_____Democrats will explore opportunities to identify or create work permits for immigrants, long-term undocumented residents, and legally processed asylum seekers in our country. Congress should increase the number of visas for the Special Immigrant Juvenile Status program for abused, abandoned, or neglected youth
Advancing the President’s Unity Agenda
Investing In Mental Health
_____Democrats will push to expand 988, the National Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, to handle increased capacity and serve more Americans.
_____ Democrats will push for permanent funding for Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics, which provide 24/7 crisis care and treatment for mental health and substance use disorders, regardless of individuals’ ability to pay, as mental health care becomes increasingly expensive.
_____Democrats will work to ensure full mental health parity so that mental health care is covered the same as physical health care. Democrats will strengthen mental health parity requirements and closing insurance loopholes for the more than 150 million Americans with private health insurance.
Protecting Kids Online, Strengthening Americans’ Data Privacy, & Promoting Competition
_____Democrats will pass bipartisan legislation to protect kids' privacy and to stop Big Tech from collecting personal data on kids and teenagers online, ban targeted advertising to children, and put stricter limits on the personal data these companies collect on all of us.
_____Democrats are determined to strengthen data privacy and do more and update and pass the Consumer Privacy Bill of Rights.
_____Democrats want to protect student data privacy by ensuring what is collected in schools is only used for education
_____Democrats will update the Electronic Communications Privacy Act to protect personal electronic information and safeguard location information.
Seizing the Promise and Managing the Risks of AI
_____Democrats are finding solutions to make sure that as AI’s capabilities grow, we can manage the implications for Americans’ rights, safety and security.
_____Democrats are committed to ensuring that workers get a voice in how AI is used in their workplace and that they share fairly in any economic gains AI produces.
_____Democrats will continue to advocate for the safe and secure development of AI. We will invest in the AI Safety Institute to create guidelines, tools, benchmarks, and best practices for evaluating dangerous capabilities and mitigating AI risk.
_____Democrats will prioritize funding for critical AI research and development that advances AI safety.
_____Democrats will ban voice impersonations, and take action to provide heightened protections in critical sectors such as health care, financial services, education, housing, and transportation.
_____Democrats will make sure to responsibly develop, test, procure and integrate transformative AI across the federal government.
Meeting Our Nation’s Sacred Obligation To Veterans And Military Families
_____Democrats will take steps to support veterans’ mental health and decrease the scourge of veteran suicides by expanding mental health screenings, increasing access to legal and financial support, and hiring more mental health professionals at the VA.
_____Democrats will continue to implement the PACT Act; and will strengthen VA care by fully funding inpatient and outpatient care and long-term care, and by upgrading medical facility infrastructure. Democrats will also improve and increase access to mental health care, expand suicide prevention, and invest in opioid overdose prevention and treatment.
_____Democrats are also determined to expand women veterans’ health care and access to benefits, and to continue implementing key Independent Review Commission on Sexual Assault recommendations. With a Democrat as President and a majority in Congress, Democrats will fulfill our promise to end veteran homelessness and support military students with disabilities.
_____Democrats will strengthen their support for military families by making child care more affordable and accessible, expanding job opportunities for spouses, and investing in a stipend for caregivers. Democrats will continue implementing the military spouse Executive Order and ensure the federal government is an employer of choice for military families.
_____Democrats will expand memorial benefits to honor their years of service and lasting memories, in recognition of our nation’s greatest heroes.
Strengthening American Leadership Worldwide
Europe
_____Democrats will help protect Ukraine’s civilian population and energy infrastructure from unprovoked Russian attacks and work to resume trade of Ukrainian agricultural products to support global food security.
China
_____Democrats will continue to invest in our alliances and partnerships to ensure China cannot coerce its neighbors or overturn the international rules that keep America secure and prosperous.
The Middle East & North Africa
_____Democrats will continue to manage the fallout from Trump’s reckless and short-sighted decision to pull the United States out of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action to constrain Iran’s nuclear weapons ambitions. Iran was abiding by the agreement not to expand its nuclear capacity until Trump’s costly mistake. Since then, as a result, Iran has gone from being more than a year away from being able to produce enough weapons grade material for a bomb in a matter of weeks, should it choose to do so. Iran has continued to advance its nuclear program, increase the size and enrichment level of its uranium stockpile, and develop, manufacture, and operate advanced centrifuges.
Response to the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel and Next Steps to a Lasting Peace for Israelis and Palestinians
_____President Biden and Vice President Harris believe a strong, secure, and democratic Israel is vital to the interests of the United States. Their commitment to Israel’s security, its qualitative military edge, its right to defend itself, and the 2016 Memorandum of Understanding is ironclad. President Biden and Vice President Harris recognize the worth of every innocent life, whether Israeli or Palestinian.
_____President Biden and Vice President Harris have unequivocally denounced Hamas’s brutal attack on Israel on October 7, condemned the gruesome violence – including conflict-related sexual violence – demonstrated by Hamas and made clear that the United States wants to see Hamas defeated.
_____President Biden and Vice President Harris oppose any unilateral steps by either side, including annexation, that undermine prospects for two states. We will continue to stand against incitement and terror. The Administration opposes settlement expansion.
_____The Lebanese people deserve to live in an independent and sovereign Lebanon that is free from the grip of Iran-backed Hezbollah, and a corruption-free, competent, reform-minded government focused on addressing the needs of its people. In this regard, the Administration is also committed to facilitating a diplomatic resolution to the ongoing hostilities along the Israel-Lebanon border that would ensure the return of both Israeli and Lebanese families to their homes.
Western Hemisphere
_____President Biden and the Vice President Harris have created over 250,000 new jobs in Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala under the Administration’s ambitious Root Causes strategy for Central America.
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