Issue Position: A Plan for Our National Security

Issue Position

To maximize our national security, we must have a realistic and comprehensive plan that includes the following elements. We must change our national policies to:

greatly increase our foreign intelligence capabilities
build international cooperation
emphasize peaceful resolutions to disputes
promote human rights
deal with and reduce the causes of violence and terrorism
provide an admirable example of a free, democratic, and responsible nation
encourage disarmament
improve our homeland security

We must recognize that security, justice, and peace in the world all go together; we will not have one without the other two. Our policies must always be developed with this reality in mind.

We must greatly increase our foreign intelligence capabilities, espionage, and information-gathering

We do face an immediate and grave threat of terrorism anywhere in the world. It is manifest common sense, and commonly recognized, that what is best is to prevent terrorism from occurring in the first place. To do this -- to stop and apprehend the terrorists before they can strike -- we must assemble the best possible intelligence capabilities about foreign and terrorist threats we can.

We must build international cooperation

In all regards -- to gather the best intelligence, to prevent terrorism, to stop the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, to achieve peaceful results to problems, to increase our own prosperity and security -- our chances are better if we are working together with people and nations around the world. We must act to strengthen the United Nations and international law. We must appreciate that seeking mutual solutions to international problems, and being willing to appropriately compromise in negotiating treaties and transnational accords, will often be in our broader national interest.

We must strive to resolve international disputes peacefully

We should recognize that not only is a peaceful resolution to a problem desirable in its own right, but, just as violence begets violence, reaching a peaceful result makes it more likely others will try to do the same in other situations. We must "practice peace" at all times.

We must promote human rights and attack the causes of violence and terrorism

We will not be able to end violence and terrorism until we eliminate their underlying causes. As CIA Director George Tenet testified before Congress, "We must also look beyond the immediate danger of terrorist attacks to the conditions that allow terrorism to take root around the world. These conditions are no less threatening to US national security than terrorism itself. The problems that terrorists exploit -- poverty, alienation, and ethnic tensions -- will grow more acute over the next decade."

We will not be secure in our country or have peace on our planet, if progress is not being made to meet the basic needs and win human rights for all people around the world.

We must present a good example of a free, democratic, and responsible nation

Undoubtedly the most effective way we have furthered our national security is by being a pioneering society leading in the human struggle to realize universal rights -- a society history is showing other peoples wish to emulate. We must continue to demonstrate that liberty, democracy, equality, justice, and the rule of law are achievable and do "work." Human rights are the aspiration of all people. We do more to advance our security by being an admirable example of a just and open nation that is successful and prosperous, and that invests its resources in improving the lives of all of its people, than by adding to our already greatly superfluous military might.

We must work toward disarmament

We rightfully oppose the "proliferation" of nuclear and other weapons of mass destruction to other countries. But the real objective must be to achieve a world free of such genocidal armaments. For we are in danger from weapons of mass destruction, both in the hands of those who presently possess them as well as those who wish to do so, in many ways, including from their possible clandestine, irrational, accidental, mistaken, unauthorized, criminal, or threatened or actual terrorist use.

Responsible global disarmament is a must because we human beings cannot survive forever, or probably even for very long, in a world where we keep at the ready the means to our self-destruction.

We must improve our homeland security

We must especially focus our homeland security on anticipating terrorist threats, preventing attacks from occurring, and reducing the harm if they do.

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