The past has great future or return to the basics

The freedom of an individual is at the foundation of our political system. All people are created equal and should have equal rights to pursue happiness. The freedom of an individual should be limited only if it infringes on the freedoms of another individual. The government should guarantee security and executions of laws that reflect the stated above fundamental principles. Liberties given to individuals, unleashed energy of entrepreneurs, which - in result - created vast wealth of this country. By the nature of its creation, this wealth has not been distributed evenly; not all people pursuing happiness have been able to achieve it. Out of compassion, we created a gigantic welfare system assisting the least fortunate, and many others along. The government was put in charge of securing happiness of every American. Unfortunately, for many Americans, this welfare state is what they perceive as the American values. In many cases, regulations constrain freedoms of the most entrepreneurial individuals and give benefits to those who contribute the least. Fortunately, thanks to the free market system, the capitalists accumulated a huge wealth, and consequently, this nation can effort to provide for many individuals that take more than they provide to the society. However, the wealth of our country, though enormous, is not unlimited. Therefore, thinking of political solutions, first of all we need to preserve the political mechanisms that have made this country rich. On many pivotal issues - health care could be a good example - the nation is in the stalemate for long years. The only way out is by returning to basics, by redefining how the ideas that this country was built upon apply to us here and now.

Changing as little as possible in order to change a lot

Despite all the problems, the country is still in good shape; therefore, before introducing any change I will pay attention that whatever works will not be distracted. Every time when the problem will be brought to my attention, first I will look if this problem could be resolved by unrestricted actions of private citizens and private organizations, without the government intervention. Many of our problems originate from too much of government intrusion into private matters of fellow citizens. Before introducing new laws, I will look into possibilities of resolving problems by elimination of existing regulations. Every time when a new law will be established, I will incorporate into it the date it would cease to exist. As president, I will inform citizens when their behavior is good and when it is bad for the nation. I believe that many will adjusts their actions just to strengthen the nation. In many instances, this will bring better results than by introducing new regulations. The goal is to solve problems not by introducing more regulations, but in starting a legacy of putting an onus on individuals' rights and responsibilities, as well as gradual government self limitation, which will reach far beyond my presidency.

War in Iraq

We had no reason to start the war to begin with. We made a mistake. We caused damage. We have to say we are sorry, fix the damage, and get out. We started the war; Iran won it. Let us have courage to face facts.

Healthcare

Most Americans who have health insurance have it selected and in large part paid for by their employers. This appears to be the American way of handling it. If personal freedom and the right of each individual to pursue happiness are core American values, then health insurance chosen and paid for by corporations is downright un-American. It means undignified patronizing. It is limiting someone's freedom through an essentially not business-related dependence attached to the employment contract. At this point, it appears that government involvement is necessary in creating general healthcare, covering basic preventive treatments as well as major hospitalization and terminal sicknesses. At the same time, this industry needs to be deregulated so private industry can offer better health insurance plans that those offered by the government, with the goal that eventually most Americans would buy their health insurance on the open market.

International policy

The U.S. is the only left world superpower, and it will be like this for about next twenty years until China and India will grow to match our strength. Smaller nations are oversensitive to any U.S. actions, be it political, economical or military, that could be perceived as bully. Therefore, it is imperative that we avoid unilateral actions and involve UN into our political moves, even if it impairs our ability to act swiftly.

Immigration

Many Americans believe that it is within their constitutional right to hire whomever they please, including foreigners. Other Americans believe that when foreigners are employed in America, some Americans lose their jobs, and consequently their well-being suffers. Should freedom of some Americans be restricted in order to secure comfort of other Americans? I doubt. Consequently, every foreigner who can find employment here should be allowed to come and work here legally.

Taxes

There are so many form of taxation that in order to keep them bearable, there are even more tax exemptions. In this commotion - in public perception - the richest can manage to pay less tax than it would be their fair share. The simplest solution is a flat tax on consumption. We should go in this direction.

War on drugs

Drugs affect human lives the same way as alcohol does. Criminalization of drug use creates much more social damage than the drugs themselves. The ultimate goal is legalization of all narcotics. We lost the war on drugs. Drugs are the part of our life; we have to deal with them the same way as with other unhealthy addictions.

Education

It is in the best interest of the nation that our youth get good education. For this reason, it would be one of the few instances where limiting freedom of individuals - parents in this instance - would be justifiable, if it proved necessary to raise a child. For every young person, until the age of 16, there should be a responsible adult always knowing where that young person is and what that person is doing. Most good parents do it intuitively. As President, I will support regulations allowing churches, community organizations, and individuals, become mentors for children falling behind. These mentors should have shared custody over the children under their supervision. Money spent on these programs will not be needed later for prisons.

Social Security

Presently, for many retired persons Social Security is a major income. This is unlikely to change. Consequently, Social Security in its current form should be preserved and its solvency should be protected. On the other hand, Social Security should be not considered as a government managed retirement plan. It should be measured as a financial security back-up for those individuals that failed in securing their own retirement income.

Same sex marriage

How individuals arrange their private lives is their personal business. The government intervention into family matters should be limited to secure wellbeing of children. Present regulations put to much emphasis on benefits given to married couples. About 50% adult Americans are not married. Marriage itself is rarely a lifetime commitment. Government should acknowledge these facts and not try to change them.

Abortion

Some people believe that life commences at conception, some that it is at the point when the fetus could survive on its own. It is a personal choice that the government should not take a stand on. Any anti-abortion regulation would require government intervention into very private matters between a woman and her doctor. On the other hand, abortion is a health risk and emotional toll. The government should be involved in educating the public about these dangers.

Global warming

Not far ago, we were warned about ice age coming back. About 1300 years ago, the climate was warmer than now. Human activities likely invoke climate changes. The government should support studies of this issue. It is too early for any other actions.

Gun control

In a peaceful society as ours, there is no reason for citizens to keep weapons at home. People, who like sport shooting, can have their guns stored safely in a safe at the shooting range. This should be a community standard but not the law. On the other hand, if someone wants to keep a gun in home, he or she should have a right to do so. Nevertheless, the government should keep the registry of these guns. Furthermore, gun owners should be legally liable for damages resulted from misuse of their guns due to unsafe storage.

International trade

It should be a trade not micromanaging the economy. The ultimate goal, likely never achieved, is a completely free trade with all countries around the world. Existing trade barriers should be gradually lowered. New barriers should be limited to retaliation to trade limitations imposed on us by other nations.

Religion

Religions as we know them, uplift the moral integrity of the society, which is positive for the nation. Although, supporting freedom of religion, the government should not involve itself in promoting religious goals. Separation of church and state should be strictly enforced. Religion should be a private matter and not practiced during formal government functions.

Minimum wage

The contract between an employee and his or her employer should be their private matter. There is not reason for the government to interfere with this business transaction. It is not the government's responsibility to guarantee a livable salary for an individual. It is the responsibility of an individual to find a better job, including learning new skills and moving to other region. The government should give a helping hand to those individuals that are capable and willing to help themselves but are down on their luck.

War on terror

On 9/11, a bunch of fanatics, hiding somewhere in the caves of Afghanistan, were able to pull off a one time stunt. Spectacular, harmful - but still just a stunt. In response to this act, twenty well-trained secret agents could do a much better job than the whole war on terror has been able to accomplish. There is no war on terror. So-called terrorists should be pursued as any other criminals.

Death penalty

All people are created equal; however, some grow to become bad. Individual's personality is formed before the age of 10. Every person is solely responsible for his or her deeds. However, some predispositions to become a criminal result from errors made by parents, teachers, priests, or peers. In this sense, we have no moral right to kill the individuals that proved not deserving to be ever a part of the community. They are still humans, even if sometimes their behavior might indicate otherwise.

Border security

It was not a major issue until faulty immigration laws resulted in illegal mass border crossing. Reasonable temporary workers policy will end a need for illegal border crossing. Consequently, we do not have a border security problem.

Palestine and Israel

This conflict spreads anti-American sentiment across the whole Middle East. Atrocities committed by all parties involved in this conflict obscure the basic fact, this is a struggle for the land. Every Palestinian who lost his or her land or home after 1948, needs to get a day in court, with a realistic chance to get their property back or to receive a realistic compensation. Even if the U.S. would need to pay Jewish lawyers to sue the Israel government on behalf of Palestinians, it would bring better fruit than selling our weapons there.

Military

We need to maintain our military power. However, when there is a strong army, there will always be people justifying reasons to use it. War is too important to be left to generals. Our army should be engaged only if attacked or as a part of coalition forces for operations with goals clearly defined.

Poverty

In public perception, supported by some data, in recent years, the rich got richer and the poor got poorer. For some it is a reason to introduce legislation limiting income for the rich and guaranteeing higher income for the poor. For example, some executives receive millions of dollars in salaries and benefits. I bet that for every position with such excessive compensation, there are at least dozen of well-qualified candidates willing to do this job for the half what the current executive is paid. The same, many talented and hardworking people are entangled in bureaucratic scheme. Both cases result from limitations of freedom. The solution is not in introducing more regulations, but in eliminating some, so someone paid less can replace an excessively paid executive, and that ambitious persons on the bottom of the scale can faster grow up.