ot statements for jan17

8/3/2019 OT Statements for Jan17

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January 17, 2012presented by members of:

Occupy Trenton136-140 West State Street

Trenton, NJ 08608http://occupytrenton.net

609 222-4790

WHEREAS THE FIRST AMENDMENT TO THE UNITED STATESCONSTITUTION PROVIDES:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment ofreligion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridgingthe freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the

people peaceably to assemble, and to petition theGovernment for a redress of grievances.

Therefore persons who have maintained a continuous openforum and vigil for more than three months across from theNew Jersey Statehouse and are known as Occupy Trentonsubmit the following items representing the desires of some orall of said individuals:

1. Implementation of an immediate ban on all private contributions ofmoney and gifts, to all politicians in federal office, from Individuals,Corporations, Political Action Committees, Super Political ActionCommittees, Lobbyists, Unions and all other private sources of money

to be replaced by the fair and equal public financing of all federalpolitical campaigns. We REJECT the concept that money is equal tofree speech because if that were so, that concept provides a guaranteeof free speech only to the wealthiest Americans. It is profoundlyevident that politicians in the United States cannot regulatethemselves within the parameters presently in place. Exclusiverepresentatives of corporations, and unions along with the verywealthy spend vast sums of money on political campaigns in order toinfluence the decision making process of those candidates and ensurecontinuing support for and from those offices.

2. The expedited reversal, even if it requires a Constitutional

Amendment, of the outrageous and anti-democratic holding in theCitizens United case by the Supreme Court, which equates thepayment of money by corporations and unions to politicians with freespeech. This decision, in effect is free license to engage in bribery.

3. Prohibiting all public officials and their immediate family members,whether elected or appointed from EVER being employed by anycorporation they regulate while in office and/or holding any stock or


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shares in any corporation they regulate while in office until a full 5years after their term is completed.

4. A complete lifetime ban on accepting all gifts, services, money, directlyor indirectly, to any elected or appointed officials or their immediatefamily members, from any person, corporation, union or other entity

that the public official was charged to regulate while in office.5. A complete reformation of the United States Tax Code to require ALLcitizens to pay a fair share of a progressive, graduated income tax byeliminating loopholes, unfair tax breaks, exemptions and deductions,subsidies (e.g. oil, gas and farm) and ending all other methods ofevading taxes. The current system of taxation favors the wealthiestAmericans.

6. Medicare for ALL American citizens adjusted by a means test (i.e.citizens who can afford it will opt-out of Medicare and pay their ownhealth insurance or opt-in and pay a means tested Medicare premium).The Medicaid program, fraught with corruption and fraud, will be

eliminated except for the purpose of providing emergency room careto indigent non-citizens who will not be covered by Medicare-for-all.

7. New comprehensive regulations to give the Environmental ProtectionAgency the power to shut down corporations, businesses or anotherentity that intentionally damages the environment and/or criminallyprosecute individuals who intentionally damage the environment.Immediate adoption of the most recent international protocols to capcarbon emissions and new goals to transition away from fossil fuels toreusable or carbon neutral sources of power as soon as possible.

8. Adoption of an immediate plan to reduce the national debt to asustainable percentage of GDP by 2020. Reduction of the national debt

to be achieved by BOTH a cut in spending to corporations engaged inperpetual war for profit, the healthcare industry, the pharmaceuticalindustry and all other sectors that use the federal budget as theirincome stream AND a truly progressive income tax code that does notallow the wealthy and corporations to evade taxes through excessivedeductions, subsidies and loopholes.

9. Passage of a comprehensive job and job-training bill to employ ourcitizens in jobs that are available with specialized training and byputting People to work tomorrow by repairing Americas crumblinginfrastructure. Establishment of an online international job exchange tomatch employers with skilled workers or employers willing to train

workers in 21st century skills.10. Student loan debt relief. Our young People and students are more than

$830 billion in debt from education loans alone. Payment and intereston these debts should be deferred for periods of unemployment andthe principal reduced using a corporate tax surcharge and byextending the age to collect social security from 65 to 70.

11. Immediate passage of the Dream Act and comprehensive immigrationand border security reform including offering visas, lawful permanent

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resident status and citizenship to the worlds brightest People to comeand work in our industries and schools.

12. Recalling all military personnel at all non-essential bases andrefocusing national defense goals to address threats posed by thegeopolitics of the 21st century. To seek a permanent solution in ending

Military Industrial Complexs goal of perpetual war for profit.13. Formulating and promoting new educational goals to train theAmerican public to perform jobs in a 21st Century economy,particularly in the areas of technology and green energy.

14. Subject to the elimination of corporate tax loopholes and exploitedexemptions and deductions stated above, offering tax incentives tobusinesses to reconstruct the manufacturing capacity of the UnitedStates and reinstitution of the Works Progress Administration andCivilian Conservation Corps and other emergency governmentalagencies required to create new public works projects to provide jobsto the 46 million People living in poverty, the (undercounted) 8.5%

unemployed and 10% underemployed.15. Implementing immediate legislation to encourage China and our other

trading partners to end currency manipulation or impose aconsumption tax on goods that those countries export to the UnitedStates calculated by comparing the fair market value of the currencyto the manipulated valuation.

16. Reenactment of the Glass-Steagall Act and increased regulation of WallStreet and the financial industry by the SEC, FINRA and the otherfinancial regulators, and the commencement of a Justice Departmentcriminal investigations into the Securities and Banking industriespractices that led to the collapse of markets, and the massive bank

bailout.17. Adoption of President Clintons plan to end the mortgage crisis. The

Federal Reserve shall buy all underwater or foreclosed mortgages andshall refinance this debt at 1% or less to be managed by the newlyestablished Consumer Protection Agency (and foreclosure task forcedescribed below) because 1% or less is the interest rate the FederalReserve loans to the banks directly who hoard the cash rather thanloan it to the People and small businesses.

18. An immediate one year freeze on all foreclosures to be reviewed by anindependent foreclosure task force appointed by Congress and theExecutive Branch to determine, on a case by case basis, whether

foreclosure proceedings should continue based on the circumstancesof each homeowner.

19. Subject to the above ban on money and gifts in politics, additionalcampaign finance reform requiring free air time and public campaignfinances to all candidates who obtain sufficient petition signaturesand/or votes to participate in the primaries and/or electoral process,shortening the campaign season and allow voting on weekends andholidays. Voting must be accessible to all citizens for democracy to

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work.20. An expedited withdrawal of all troops from Iraq and Afghanistan and a

substantial increase in the amount of funding needed for veteran jobplacement and the treatment of the physical and emotional injuriessustained by veterans in these wars. Our veterans are committing

suicide at an unprecedented rate and we must help now.21. An end to the state of unaccountability that the Federal Reserve iscurrently allowed. Put the Federal Reserve under the treasurydepartment or create a mechanism for auditing and monitoring theiractions

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