WHAT CHASE STANDS FOR
REFORM IMMIGRATION FOR THE 21ST CENTURY
Our immigration system is a tragic mess. We simply must break the partisan logjam and bring people from all parties together to reform and modernize it. There are few better examples of “bad government” than the overly complex current laws and regulations involving immigration. The President needs to take the lead and work with Congress to radically simplify our immigration system so people can come here, work, and become members of our communities without being relegated to the shadows. Immigrants built this country, and they can help keep it growing and prospering for future generations of Americans. As President, I would
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Collaborate with Congress to return to an Ellis Island style of processing immigrants. It should be simple for those who wish to come here to work and build a better life to appear before immigration officials at an accredited port of entry, be given medical and criminal checks to assess their safety and receive a visa allowing them to immediately find employment. This is a process that should take, at most, days; not months or years.
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Create a simpler path to citizenship for immigrants who are already here. Some eight million undocumented immigrants are currently present in our labor force, doing essential jobs, paying payroll taxes, and contributing to our economic growth. Formalizing this arrangement will not only allow them to further contribute to the economy by meeting critical labor demand and reducing inflationary pressures, it also saves taxpayers billions of dollars in enforcement costs.
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Create a path to citizenship for both DACA-eligible residents and the children of foreign workers admitted to the US on temporary work visas. These immigrants often lose their legal status upon turning 21, robbing us of individuals educated here in America with something to offer our society.
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Expand both the HB1 visa and startup visa, which allows skilled immigrants to bring their talent and innovation to our shores. These individuals add to our economy by starting new businesses and putting more Americans to work. Fifty-five percent of American startups that are valued at over one billion dollars were founded or co-founded by immigrants.
EMPOWER PEOPLE THROUGH JUSTICE REFORM
It is long past time we address the problems with our criminal justice system. From Courts to police, to prisons, we need reforms in every area with one goal in mind, empower people, not the government. With less than five percent of the world’s population, we host roughly a quarter of its prison population. That is simply unacceptable in a nation that styles itself as the land of the free. The current system feeds a prison-industrial complex that leads to the militarization of our police, corruption in our prosecutors who have perverse incentives to push for longer sentences, the building of private prisons that value profit over rehabilitation, and a cycle of incarceration that breeds lowered earnings and poverty that leads to recidivism.
My Administration would:
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End qualified immunity for federal law enforcement so those abused or harmed by law enforcement can have their day in court. While this judge-created rule that allows public officials to escape civil liability for the abuse of citizens’ rights is most often exercised at the state and local levels to shield rogue police officers, making Federal agents liable for abuses of power would allow us to place pressure on state and local officials to follow suit.
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End Federal mandatory minimum sentencing which ties the hands of judges and compels even some who are innocent to plead guilty to avoid the possibility of lengthy incarceration. A wealth of evidence demonstrates that mandatory minimums accelerate prison growth with no overall benefit to crime control. By legislatively mandating punishment, we have taken discretion out of the hands of judges and juries where they rightly belong.
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End the prosecution of victimless crimes and instead place the focus of law enforcement on investigating and prosecuting crimes of violence, theft, fraud, or coercion.
REPLACE THE DEATH PENALTY WITH HUMANE ALTERNATIVES
I am an opponent of the death penalty. In too many instances the government has carried out an execution and it was later found out that the convicted were innocent of their crimes. There is no reversal of death, nor any compensation that can make those murdered by the state, however unintentional, whole. It also does not deter crime, and the act itself is both cruel and does nothing to restore what was lost by the victims. In addition, of 198 nation-states and territories in the world, 140 have abolished this barbaric practice, leaving America among the minority of 58 who still abide by this tragic policy. As President, I would:
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Immediately abolish the death penalty for all Federal crimes. Not only are mistakes sometimes made that are not discovered until the execution has been carried out, but prosecutors often use the threat of the penalty as a method for extracting confessions in exchange for more lenient sentencing. This presents ethical concerns in itself, not the least of which is innocent suspects confessing to crimes they did not commit to escape the needle, the chamber, or the chair.
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Have Federal prosecutorial officials look for alternatives to life without parole, which is the most used substitute for the death penalty. While the gravity of some crimes, such as murder, is horrific, the goal of our prison system is to be rehabilitative as well as punitive. While not offenders will prove fit to enter society, some will earn a chance at clemency, and this should be allowed to happen on a case-by-case basis.
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As usual, utilize the example of Federal policy as a bully pulpit to encourage governors and state legislators to revisit their own policies and practices.
END THE FAILED WAR ON DRUGS INDEFINITELY
As the failed War on Drugs drags into its fifth long decade, we can all see that the policies of strict prohibition and prison need to change. Just as with the Eighteenth Amendment and its prohibition of alcohol, the criminalization of drugs simply has not worked. The black markets it has created have increased violent crime, engendered police corruption, and contributed to the rise of cartels in places near, such as Mexico, and far, such as Afghanistan. It’s time to end more than two generations of regressive, harmful, and unproductive drug policy and move America into a new chapter. As president I will:
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Immediately act to remove all federal laws criminalizing cannabis and end burdensome regulatory hurdles like federal banking regulations, placed on the cannabis industry.
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Deschedule cannabis with the stroke of a pen – legislation isn’t required.
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Issue full pardons for persons who were convicted solely for non-violent drug offenses and urge every governor to do the same.
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Work with Congress to obtain the repeal of the Controlled Substances Act, which helped pave the way for the War on Drugs.
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Push for the passage of the Drug Policy Reform Act, which would decriminalize possession and use of all drugs, allow for the criminal records of users to be sealed, and restore their right to vote.
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Encourage governors to not only follow suit but to reinforce the option of voluntary treatment for heavy users and addicts, so that they may maintain or return to their status as healthy, productive members of society. Mental health issues should be treated as such, and those needing help should be neither criminalized nor stigmatized by government policy.
RESPECT AND DEFEND YOUR RIGHT TO
PRIVACY AND CIVIL LIBERTIES
It is often the case that the worst government abuses come disguised as protection from danger and harm. If you feel in danger, it becomes easy for the government to have you trade your liberty for the illusion of security. We have warrantless wiretaps, abuses of the FISA courts, and an overarching Patriot Act to name a few. Even worse, we attempt to imprison those who expose the hard truths we need to hear. As President, I will fight to end these programs that eat away at your constitutionally protected privacy and civil liberties and pardon those who have blown the whistle on abuse and illegal actions of our government. As President, I will
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Work with Congress to abolish the Patriot Act, which has unconstitutionally increased the powers and scope of the police and surveillance state.
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Work to repeal the FISA Amendments Act of 2008 which serves as the legal justification for the surveillance abuses disclosed by Edward Snowden in 2013.
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End the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), which routinely violates our civil liberties, requires airlines to become agents of Federal surveillance, and whose screening devices, both for luggage and facial recognition, repeatedly exhibit problems that are inexcusable in relation to the taxpayer dollars spent.
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Have any surviving Cabinet departments and Federal agencies that collect citizens’ information review why and how that information is collected, and how it is used. In many ways, privacy is a highly individual matter, and the best judge of how personal information should be used is the individual involved.
END WARS & SUPPORT PEACE
My entire adult life, our nation has been at war somewhere in the world. I have friends and loved ones who have served, and come home with the visible and invisible scars of combat. I’ve seen them mourn their brothers and sisters who didn’t come home. I meet more and more anti-war veterans every day, and they know more than anyone about the cost of war. It’s time we focus our foreign policy on Peace. We should end our policy of sending drones around the world and instead foster international goodwill by defending free trade and free markets. Our nation has long had the moniker ‘leader of the free world.’ It is time we earn that distinction by insisting that Peace is the way forward. End the wars. End the drones. End the policy of constant intervention. It’s easy to drop a bomb, it’s much harder to serve as a beacon of Peace. We must take the more difficult but necessary path.
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Close all overseas bases and immediately return active-duty personnel to domestic bases. The cost savings of doing so will be used as a one-time contribution to discharge the interest on currently outstanding Federally guaranteed student loans.
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End aid being directed to nation-states currently at war. This includes Israel and Ukraine. While we offer moral support to our friends currently engaged with the enemy, we should not be contributing to extending the fight.
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With this said, I recognize that there are aggressors and victims in war. I would allow private parties, including defense contractors, to voluntarily contribute funds and sell weapons to our friends without fear of violating any Federal laws.
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If asked to act as a mediator, I would more than happily allow America to act as a mediator in negotiating a peace that ends the conflict without rewarding aggressing parties for bad behavior.
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Utilize trade as a bargaining chip to foment peace with our neighbors.
CREATE A THRIVING ECONOMY
Every day, average Americans face many challenges in our overly regulated economy where government, lobbyists, and special interests continuously conspire to pick winners and losers. From trillions of dollars in government deficits, and trillions more in unfunded liabilities, our government recklessly crowds out funding that would be better served allowing innovation in the marketplace to find solutions to our most pressing issues. To combat these constant rounds of economic and financial crises, we must get government out of our boardrooms and wallets, and allow individuals to decide how to best distribute their hard-earned dollars.
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As President, I will close regulatory loopholes that reward firms that have close relationships with government officials, and that stifle both competition and the innovation which competition creates.
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Immediately end all tariffs, which serve only to increase the bottom lines of protected industries, shift labor from more efficient industries while creating a net loss of jobs, and raise prices by lowering the number of alternatives for consumers to choose among. Tariffs are a form of embargo on domestic laborers and consumers, raising the costs of doing business for importers who pass these added costs onto end-buyers.
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In addition to ending special protections such as tariffs for favored industries, I will also encourage Congress to pass legislation prohibiting bailing out firms that engage in irresponsible business and fiscal practices. It is not the role of government to underwrite the fiduciary duty that firms have to their stakeholders.
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I will strongly urge Congress to work with each state to introduce and pass a Balanced Budget Amendment to the Constitution, forever ending the perpetual cycle of deficit spending.
RESPECT INDIVIDUAL CHOICE ON TOUGH ISSUES
There are many complex issues in our society which offer no easy solutions. More than a few of these issues involve individuals engaging in activities that may run counter to our personal beliefs. Outside of obvious criminal offenses such as assault, theft, or murder, it is not the role of government in a free society to prohibit such behavior, even when the majority wishes it so. For this reason, activities such as abortion are the province of individual choice and bodily autonomy.
• I recognize the complexity of this issue and how there can be good faith positions on both sides of the abortion debate. With this said, I will work to encourage states to decriminalize abortions, as these decisions should rest in the hands of individuals and their doctors.
• I will encourage the passage of the Hyde Amendment, which will prevent Federal dollars from funding abortion clinics.
• I will encourage states to incentivize alternatives to abortion, such as adoption, by easing burdensome regulations that greatly increase their cost. The median range for adopting a newborn baby is between $25,000 to $45,000, placing this avenue out of the range of many who would otherwise be willing.
EMPOWER PARENTS & STUDENTS IN EDUCATION
At the federal level, the best policy on education is to remove the federal government’s involvement in education. I support abolishing the Department of Education and block granting those funds back to states to be returned to taxpayers. I also support getting the government out of the student loan business so market forces can lower the cost of higher education over time.
END THE STUDENT DEBT CRISIS TO ASSIST IN INDIVIDUAL FINANCIAL AND RETIREMENT SECURITY
At this critical moment in time in our economy, millions of people find themselves saddled with an average of $28,950 in student loan debt. This puts them behind the eight-ball before they have even gotten started. 92% of all student loan debt is held or backed by our federal government, with some $1.61 trillion out of $1.75 trillion outstanding. This is a burden that neither students nor the taxpayers responsible for these guarantees can continue to bear. The skyrocketing costs of college education can be directly placed at the feet of this massive boondoggle, which creates perverse incentives to raise the costs of tuition by artificially inflating demand beyond that which the market would normally provide.
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I will immediately end the Federal backing of student loans by asking Congress to make all current loans interest-free, while simultaneously ending all future government-guaranteed loans.
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I would then make the discharge of interest revenue neutral by requiring the Department of Defense to cut costs by closing overseas bases and installations and bringing our troops home, instead of engaging in expensive nation-building and peacekeeping missions abroad. It is only right that the DoD bear part of the cost, as mounting debt is as big a threat to our security as any foreign enemy,
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Finally, I would allow students to stabilize their financial situations by allowing student loan debt to be dischargeable in bankruptcy just like any other loan. I want a well-educated populace that can compete with the minds of any other nation, but not at the cost of our nation's financial and retirement security.
CHAMPION GUN RIGHTS FOR ALL
I support the right of every person to defend themselves from violence and aggression. Gun control throughout our history has been used to limit the ability of vulnerable populations to defend themselves. Armed people are harder to oppress and harder to attack.
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I will not support any new gun restrictions and will look to repeal the restrictions that exist today.
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I will nominate to the judiciary judges committed to protecting the right of all persons to defend themselves from aggression.
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District of Columbia v. Heller was a seminal moment in our history, affirming not only the right of citizens to own arms, but determining that restrictions such as trigger locks are unconstitutional. I will work to extend this legal concept to all bans, such as bans on bump stocks.
LOWER THE COST OF HEALTHCARE THROUGH MARKET & INNOVATION
Healthcare is too expensive because of government overregulation. We should advocate for market alternatives to heavily regulated employer-provided insurance such as the Direct Primary Care model. We should also reform how we bring new drugs to market and end practices such as patent evergreening which keep the cost of too many drugs artificially high. With more choices and free market forces, we will see a drop in the cost of healthcare overall.
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I would urge Congress to remove limits on Health Savings Accounts. Currently, these tax-deductible accounts are capped at $4,150 per year for individuals or $8,300 for families. This fails to cover the cost of healthcare in America, which averages $13,493 a year per individual.
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We must lower the regulatory burden on the pharmaceutical industry, which imposes huge costs on research and development that both protects favored firms by erecting costly barriers to entry that crowd out smaller firms and increase the costs of end-products to consumers.
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As I already stated, I would end the practice of evergreen patents, which create artificial product monopolies that keep prices high. While I understand the need for firms to protect their profits, competition would result in better versions of already existing medications, greater innovation, and lower prices.
RESTORE PROSPERITY BY REDUCING INFLATION
Every American is feeling the pinch of excessive inflation, especially those with the least safety net to begin with. Among other factors, this is driven by massive overspending from the government and the printing money from thin air to pay for it. This cycle is unsustainable, and we must cut spending to balance the budget. With spending under control, we will see an easing of inflation, and in the long run have a stronger, healthier, and more robust economy for all. As President, I would propose that we:
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Reduce Federal spending to pre-pandemic levels, balancing the budget. While it has long been the theory that when interest rates rise to combat inflation, the increased costs of borrowing cause the government to borrow less, but the evidence suggests this simply isn’t the case. Under these circumstances, deficit spending increases inflationary pressures increasing the cost of government debt.
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Reduce the red tape and barriers to entry that inhibit new businesses and entrepreneurial growth. A sizable portion of our current round of inflation is the result of demand exceeding supply post-pandemic. Increased productivity and more efficient supply change can help reduce inflationary pressure.
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Significantly reduce the money supply, which is a necessary supplement to the fiscal consolidation strategy of budget reduction. Supply-side policies don’t curb inflation. Decreased demand does. An absence of easy money, results in the reining in of spending by consumers, lowering inflation organically.