Centrist Democratic politicians, upset by the wins of Democratic Socialists in the recent primaries, have issued a statement of their convictions. Called "The Promise to America," it sounds good, responding to many of the problems we face. But they are empty promises, even if well-meant.
How can I say that? First, Democrats have been saying similar things for years. Yet despite the rhetoric, the people are hurting. Why? It's not just because of Trump and the Republicans; it's because the government—Democrats as well as Republicans—have lost sight of the meaning and implications of our founding principles. It is to those principles that Democrats must dedicate themselves. See my article, "People are Hurting - The U.S. Must Return to Our Founding Principles."
Second, the piece says that "We are capitalist, not socialist." That is a very simplistic statement. There are many kinds of capitalists and many kinds of socialists. The dictionary defines a socialist as someone who believes in public ownership of the means of production, or at least the essential ones. That is the formal definition, and it is true of the Democratic Socialists of America. And yes, that is not true of Democrats.
But even the DSA acknowledges that isn't going to happen, and so, instead, they advocate for more power for workers in the workplace and the economy and for a decrease in the influence of money in politics.
Many members of the DSA, for example Bernie Sanders and Zohran Mamdani among others, are socialists only in the sense that they believe that the government must be focused more on the rights of the people. But that is totally in line with the Declaration of Independence; it is all about the people. They are for a reformed capitalism, not a socialist government. See my article, "Towards a Reformed Capitalism."
Nothing will fundamentally change in this country (meaning the way it's always been—not the Trump aberration) even if the Democrats regain power in the upcoming elections, because the Party itself is too beholden to corporations and their interests. The Democratic Party must reconsider its mission and clearly commit to supporting the founding principles of the Declaration of Independence—the rights of the people to equality and to their pursuit of happiness, and government's defined role of securing those rights.
Government can secure the people's rights only when the government has that as its purpose. Whether it's promoting industry and the economy, whether it's promoting our defense, whether it's protecting the environment and clean water and air ... all of this is appropriate for government action only in so far as the purpose is consistent with securing people's right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
For example, anything the government does that promotes or increases inequality is contrary to the government's purpose. Anything the government does that promotes or increases the power of corporations or government over the people is contrary to the government's purpose. Anything that the government or a politician does that is self-serving is contrary to the government's purpose. And our governments—not just Trump, but probably all administrations to varying degrees—are guilty of all three of these types of actions that harm rather than support the people.
The Declaration and the Constitution are all about the people, protecting the people, ensuring that they have the opportunity to exercise their rights and pursue happiness. That's what the revolution was all about.
John Adams was comfortable with the government the Founders created because the republic, he said, was a government of laws, not of men. But there's a hitch that one must remember. It is men who make the laws, and it is men who interpret and enforce the laws.
Men—politicians—are human beings. And as human beings, they are largely governed by their emotions and judgments, which are a product of their learned experience, their past. These emotions and perspectives—and the campaign funding that comes from corporations—lead even many liberals to support legislation which, while advancing the cause of the people, holds back and gives corporate interests much weight.
For example, after the 2008 recession, when the Democratic-controlled Congress took action to protect the public from finance industry abuses that caused the crisis, there was an effort to reinstate sections of the Glass-Steagall Act that had been repealed under President Clinton and which repeal was a cause of the 2008 financial crisis. But the Obama administration and many Democrats did not support the reenactment as part of the Dodd-Frank Consumer Protection Act; bills that would have reinstated these sections were not even brought to a vote in either the House or the Senate.
I have thus often advocated over the past 20 years that the Democratic Party should dedicate itself to a new mission based on the Declaration of Independence, namely:
“To build a country of greater opportunity where:
- each and every American has a real opportunity to experience the promises made in the Declaration of Independence: 'that all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness' ;
- government has as its purpose to meet its responsibility as set forth in the Declaration—‘to secure these rights’—; and
- all citizens have a shared responsibility to support the government’s efforts to secure these rights and promote the public good, each according to his ability.”
These words from the Declaration of Independence are the moral philosophy, the heart, the soul of American democracy. This is, or was until recently, America’s common faith. This is America’s social contract. To further that promise of equality and opportunity with fiscal responsibility should be the clear mission of the Democratic Party.
All the policies of the Party should flow from this mission statement, and any proposed policy that runs counter to the mission statement should be dropped. Government can legitimately support industry and commerce insofar as their activities support this mission—there is nothing inconsistent between the people being protected and industry making money. But if industry interests do not further this mission, if they seek power and riches for themselves without benefit to the people, the Party should not support those interests.
All American men, women, and children are owed the support of government policies in education, health care, civil rights, security, the economy, the environment, and taxation that provide a foundation of equal opportunity for all. That is the American social contract.
This is the promise that Democrats should make to the people.
Ronald L. Hirsch is a teacher, legal aid lawyer, survey researcher, nonprofit executive, consultant, composer, author, and volunteer. He is a graduate of Brown University and the University of Chicago Law School and the author of We Still Hold These Truths. Read more of his writing at www.PreservingAmericanValues.com
