2012 Washington State Republican Party Platform

2012 WASHINGTON STATE REPUBLICAN PARTY PLATFORM
TACOMA, WA
June 2, 2012

Platform Committee Co-Chairs
Matthew Pederson and Lori Sotelo

Washington State Republican Party
Kirby Wilbur, Chairman

PREAMBLE
The Washington State Republican Party is dedicated to preserving a constitutional republic through active participation by citizens for the protection and preservation of conservative values including: the sanctity of human life; preserving a free society, free markets, and free trade; limited government; low taxes; minimal bureaucracy; strong national defense; and private property rights.

We believe that government should do for individuals only those things they cannot do for themselves and should be based on respect for each person’s ability, dignity, and liberty. Good citizenship begins with protected rights and ends with accompanying responsibilities.

We reaffirm the words in the Declaration of Independence, “That all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness -That to secure these Rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just Powers from the Consent of the Governed.”

It has been over two centuries since our Founders established the American creed — government under God and accountable to the people. We believe their vision is best preserved by supporting the policies outlined below.

Section 1: We believe CIVIL and RELIGIOUS LIBERTY protect the sovereignty of the individual citizen.

Civil and religious liberties recognized in the U.S. Constitution are God-given and therefore unalienable. These fundamental liberties are protected in the Bill of Rights and reaffirmed in Article I of the Washington State Constitution. It is the obligation of government at every level to observe and respect these liberties. The role of the judiciary is to uphold the law in a manner faithful to the original intent of the state and federal constitutions. It is essential that the judiciary honor legislative intent and understand that the power to write law is vested in the legislature or the people.

Section 2: We believe in restoring the Constitutional sound MONETARY SYSTEM.

Inflation, skyrocketing debt and global economic instability are the consequence of a debt based monetary system utilizing fiat currency. The privately held Federal Reserve Bank and US Government precious metals holdings must be audited periodically by the Governmental Accountability Office with the ultimate goal of transitioning to a federal money system rooted in tangible commodities traded in open markets.

Section3: We believe ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITY ensures that each generation is better off than the one before it.

The greatest economic opportunity can best be achieved through imposing as few restraints as possible on private property, industry, recreational opportunities and trade. Private sector job creation, entrepreneurship, and keeping businesses and industries in our country and state are best achieved by minimizing business and personal taxes, limiting regulatory law, adopting right to work legislation, removing prevailing wage laws, and by maintaining a sound monetary system which is not fiat debt based.

Section 4: We believe LIMITED GOVERNMENT is essential to a free society.

Our Founders created a Constitution of limited and enumerated powers, underscored by the passage of the Tenth Amendment. We uphold strict compliance with the constitutional limitation of the federal and state governments and believe limiting the role of government is essential toward building economic prosperity and fostering individual freedom.

Section 5: We believe a STRONG AMERICA is a free America.

A strong America is a force for good at home and abroad. Republicans support and honor the past and continuing service of all veterans and members of the United States’ armed forces and the Washington State National Guard. At a time when the United States faces a variety of threats ranging from Jihadist terrorism, the proliferation of nuclear weapons, and rogue regional powers, it is important to endorse policies that will ensure peace through strength. National security is best preserved when America’s national sovereignty is never abdicated to any foreign or international organization.

The safety of the United States and the stability of the world is undermined when a President unilaterally weakens our deterrence posture by announcing that he will not use all available military power to deter aggressive actions by other nations.

United States foreign policy should support our national security and economic interests. We support our allies, such as Israel, as well as all people seeking freedom from repressive regimes.

Section 6: We believe our BORDERS are best protected by a fair and enforced IMMIGRATION policy.

The United States government must protect all of our borders from illegal crossings; therefore, we support the enactment of a temporary guest worker program, which includes proper security measures, and that all existing immigration laws should be enforced immediately.

SECTION 7: We believe the FAMILY unit is the cornerstone of a free and moral society.

It is the duty of parents, not the state, to guide their children to be responsible citizens. Government’s responsibility is to uphold and respect traditional institutions, such as marriage between one man and one woman; to protect the elderly and children from the harmful elements of society; and to defend the unalienable right of human life, from conception to natural death.

Section 8: We believe EDUCATION is critical to equip our children to be productive and responsible citizens.

Priority needs to be given to each family to guide and influence the education and training of their children. This is best achieved by offering various ways families can provide for their child’s education through home schooling, private schools, public schools, school choice through vouchers, and charter schools; AND by giving parents a voice on school boards to determine education priorities and materials with minimal state guidance and freedom from union and federal intervention. Where state guidance is used, it should be limited to promoting the basics of reading, writing, science, math, civics and founding documents, history, and economics.

A strong higher education and vocational training system is critical for economic vitality. State supported institutions need to give priority access to Washington state students. Colleges and universities should focus on promoting academic freedom by emphasizing courses that promote understanding and practical application of each discipline and avoid indoctrination and political correctness.

Section 9: We believe the greatest HEALTHCARE system in the world is best preserved by minimizing government control.

Citizens should have the ability to choose an affordable healthcare plan to meet individual needs. This is accomplished with competition among nationwide healthcare providers, health savings accounts, fewer mandates and tort reform. Physicians, healthcare providers, and healthcare organizations must retain the right to practice in a manner they believe is ethical and to exercise freedom of conscience. We call for the repeal of the 2010 Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, commonly known as Obamacare.

Section 10: We believe PROPERTY RIGHTS are civil rights.

The proper role of government is to protect “life, liberty and property.” Washington Republicans believe there is a fundamental relationship between free societies and the protection of private property rights. When governments expand the amount of land they own and abuse the power of eminent domain and regulatory takings, everyone’s freedom is at risk.

We oppose any governmental acquisition of private property without constitutional due process and just compensation.

Section 11: We believe that upholding our RULE OF LAW and JUSTICE, based upon our Constitution and Judeo-Christian heritage, that recognizes INDIVIDUAL RESPONSIBILITY, best protects and promotes a moral society.

We support an individual’s 2nd Amendment right to keep and bear Arms as the first line of defense to maintain the rule of law.

Laws should reduce and deter crime through strong and appropriate punishment. Effective criminal justice systems respect each citizen’s right to not be held without charges or representation, and include the appropriate use of the death penalty, strict punishment and control of sexual predators, deter recidivism and, whenever possible, require criminals to fully compensate those they have harmed.

Section 12: We believe America must balance our need for ENERGY with the preservation of our ENVIRONMENT.

Energy policy must allow America to access and use its abundant energy resources. Creativity, technological development and market driven application of science and technology will determine the most efficient, cost effective and cleanest uses of energy resulting in a prosperous economy.

We support a clean, healthy environment and management of our natural resources in order to sustain our diversity of species and landscapes while permitting access to these natural resources for the creation of wealth and the meeting of human needs.

We recognize that practices such as agriculture, timber harvesting and mining may change environments and landscapes and require practical stewardship to minimize negative impacts, prevent pollution, and promote restoration.

Climate change occurs naturally and warming from human generated greenhouse gases has yet to be proven. Well researched peer reviewed papers are being presented proposing other mechanisms that influence the earth’s climate. The ongoing debate should take place without external pressure where scientists are free to present various theses without fear of retribution. At present climate change science does not provide sufficient basis to formulate public policy.

SECTION 13: We believe the engine of economic growth is privately held AGRICULTURE and TIMBER LANDS.

Societies rise and fall based on the strength of the nation’s agriculture. The free market is the best mechanism to secure a strong agricultural base. Abundant, domestically produced fertilizer and access to essential technology and equipment is critical to our national security.
We insist on the sale of surplus public lands to the private sector to make more lands available for agriculture and the development of natural resources, and to help retire sovereign debt.

SECTION 14: We believe the TRANSPORTATION system is important to our economic survival and quality of life.

Our transportation system, comprised of roads, rail, air, and waterways, as well as our ports and ferries, play important roles in moving people and products in Washington. Policies should provide effective and efficient systems and not artificially control transportation choices. Transportation agencies must be accountable to the tax payers through ballot measures, performance audits and audit enforcement.
Section 15: We believe the INITIATIVE PROCESS is essential to providing a legislative voice for all the citizens of Washington State.

The Washington State Constitution provides, “The first power reserved by the people is the initiative,” and, “The second power reserved by the people is the referendum.” These fundamental rights of initiative and referendum should be free from unnecessary and burdensome regulation imposed by the state. We support prohibiting legislative abuse of emergency clauses to circumvent the people’s power of initiative and referendum.

Section 16: We believe the preservation of LIBERTY is dependent upon the sanctity of our NATIONAL SOVEREIGNTY.

The US Constitution is our supreme law of the land. The President shall not negotiate and the Senate shall not ratify any treaties, U.N. resolutions, agendas or foreign law, religious or otherwise, that are contrary to the US Constitution. Agenda 21, the Kyoto Protocol, Sharia Law, and others threaten our sovereignty. Therefore, judges, state and local authorities must be barred from using foreign agendas, laws, and resolutions for the purposes of interpreting United States law.