Now . . . here's specifically why you as a populist/progressive candidate should sign the candidate contract.
- It's the right thing to do.
Think about it. This is grass-roots democracy at its best. If you get
elected, this represents a mandate from your voters. As a matter of
fact, on the issues listed in the contract you signed, they are
literally giving you your marching orders. Voters have decided what
they want done, you are responding directly to their wishes. This is
representative democracy in its purest form. You should be PROUD!
- It offers clarity, certainty, credibility to voters. Campaigns are now fraught with garbage talk. Fluff. Nonsense. Major campaigns actually hire psychologists to put together strings of words which sound good and make people feel great. Campaign rhetoric has become a cheap form of manipulation. Campaign promises now mean nothing. Look at what you are offering. A legally-binding contract. No guesswork. No hot air. No feel good blather. The real thing. You really should be PROUD.
- It gives you the ammunition you need to defeat your centrist/neoliberal opponents.
When voters see what you're offering, your opponents are frankly going
to look very bad. While they're hemming and hawing, you'll be offering a
real commitment on the issues that make a real difference. You have to
keep pushing this out there. You're on the side of the people, they're
on the side of . . . well, who knows? But it sure ain't the side of
the everyday citizen. If they were, they'd sign the contract. You
should be very PROUD to display your signed candidate contract wherever
you go!
- It offers you protection from lobbyists, special interest groups, other wheel-and-deal legislators. Every freshman congressman says the same thing. They're under constant assault. Everyone wants something, has something to trade, wants to make a deal. It's a nightmare trying to keep focused on why you're there, and keep reminding yourself of the people back home who are counting on you. Well, the contract is your Kevlar vest! It's your bulletproof alibi. On the issues in that contract, there's no room for wheeling or space for dealing. You've got the perfect excuse for blowing off all of the hired guns and Washington DC insiders who will try to seduce and manipulate you. Tell them: "I've got a contract with my voters! I have no choice."
- You have everything to gain, nothing to lose. Against the overwhelming piles of money and power of the establishment major party machinery, you will most likely lose this election unless you do something amazing. The contract is that something amazing. Will it put you at risk? Will you get sued? If you really really screw up and anger the majority of your constituents, they could organize a special referendum calling for a class action lawsuit. But in reality, will this happen? You tell me. How easy is it to get a majority of the voting public to do anything? Like vote for you? Be realistic. Yes, the possibility of a lawsuit adds enormous force to the contract. That's why it's there. To make people take you and the contract seriously. But if you're a serious candidate, there's no room here for diffidence. You should be secure in your commitment, confident of your mission, PROUD of yourself and what you stand for. What do you stand for? Just read the contract. It's right there in black-and-white. Just do your job. Stay focused. Submit the legislation and do your best to support it. That's all it takes. It's what you'd be doing anyway, with or without the contract. The only risk you face is losing the election because you didn't fight hard enough for what you believe in.
To make sure we get to the bottom of any unwarranted and unnecessary apprehensions about this powerful and decisive electoral strategy, let me just add a tad more really blunt straight-talk about this last item. A populist candidate has so much to gain with this, yet I'm sure it's the fear of a lawsuit which is the source of almost all of the anxiety with this game-changing approach.
Do you realize how easy it is to fulfill the obligations of the contract? All you have to do is draft legislation, submit it to Congress through whatever procedure or established channel there is, then talk it up and vote for it if it comes up for vote. That's it! Maybe it won't get passed. Others might sabotage it. Congress might burn to the ground. The Earth might get hit by a meteor. But you've fulfilled the terms of the contract!
Let's say you give it your best shot. But the bill you drafted gets hung up in committee. You're still doing your job. You're still fulfilling your obligations under the contract, as long as you keep trying to submit it for consideration and spread the good word about it. You will not get sued! If anything, you'll might eventually be acclaimed as one of the few people in Congress with integrity and determination, and most of all, genuine loyalty to the voters who elected you to office. You might get on the cover of Time Magazine, but YOU WILL NOT GET SUED!
Now please pay attention. Because I'm talking to YOU! You dedicated progressives who want to do the right thing, who want to serve your country and work hard on behalf of the millions of good, decent, everyday Americans who right now are getting the shaft from a rigged system -- our sold-to-the-highest-bidder democracy.
I'm talking to YOU! You populist candidates who are willing to buck the system, you who refuse to play by the anti-democratic rules dictated by our lapdog major political parties, parties which kowtow to the ruthless, self-serving ruling elite.
I'm talking to YOU! You candidates who truly want to make a difference . . .
Be bold! Be strong! Get a leg up on your opponent. Demand honesty and integrity. Demand transparency and accountability. Run a truly exemplary campaign in the best traditions of democracy. Be the solution to the mess our electoral system is in, not just a perpetuation of the problem. Help raise the bar and get rid of the crooks and liars. Stand up to the tyranny of the anti-democratic kleptocrats -- the rich and powerful -- who are destroying our system of self-government and looting our country of its future.
Sign the contract.
Win the election.
Then start thinking about what you want to say in your victory speech late in the evening on November 6, 2018.
Make us PROUD!
You can download the CFAR (Contract For American Renewal) template in the format of your choice using the following links, then get to work customizing it for your campaign, reflecting the constituent values and priorities of your particular district. Or you may choose to adopt the entire contract as it is:
House of Representatives - Word
House of Representatives - PDF
House of Representatives - Text
Senate - Word
Senate - PDF
Senate - Text
(Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher).
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