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1976 Republican Party Platform
(20,449 words, 62 pages)

Preamble

To you, an American citizen:

You are about to read the 1976 Republican Platform. We hope you willalso find time to read the Democrats' Platform. Compare You will see basicdifferences in how the two parties propose to represent you .

"The Platform is the Party's contract with the people." Thisis what it says on the cover of the official printing of the Democrat Platform.So it should be. The Democrats' Platform repeats the same thing on everypage: More government, more spending, more inflation. Compare. This RepublicanPlatform says exactly the opposite ‹ less government, less spending,less inflation. In other words, we want you to retain more of your own money,money that represents the worth of your labors, to use as you see fit forthe necessities and conveniences of life.

No matter how many statements to the contrary that Mr. Carter makes,he is firmly attached to a contract with you to vastly increase the powersof government. Is bigger government in Washington really what you want?

Make no mistake: You cannot have bigger programs in Washington and lessgovernment by Washington. You must choose.

What is the cost of these added or expanded programs? The Democrats'Platform is deliberately vague. When they tell you, as they do time aftertime, that they will "expand federal support," you are left toguess the cost. The price tag of five major Democrat Platform promises couldadd as much as $100-billion to the annual cost of government. But the Democrats'Platform proposes over 60 new or expanded spending programs and the expansionor creation of some 22 Washington agencies, offices or bureaus. In fact,the total of all Democrat proposals can be as high as $200-billion a yearWhile this must be a rough estimate, it does give you a clue to the magnitudeand direction of these commitments: The Democrats' Platform can increasefederal spending by 50 percent. If a Democrat Congress passes the DemocratPlatform and it is signed by a Democrat President, what happens then? TheDemocrats could raise your taxes by 50 per cent to pay for the new programsOr the Democrats could not raise taxes and the result would be a runawayinflation. Of course, contract or no contract, the Democrats may not honortheir promises, Are you prepared to risk it?

In stark contrast to the Democrats' Platform, we offer you a responsiveand moderate alternative based on these principles:

‹ We believe that liberty can be measured by how much freedom youhave to make your own decisions ‹ even your own mistakes. Governmentmust step in when your liberties impinge on your neighbors. Government mustprotect your constitutional rights. Government must deal with other governmentsand protect you from aggressors. Government must assure equal opportunity.And government must be compassionate in caring for those citizens who areunable to care for themselves.

‹ Our federal system of local-state-national government is designedto sort out on what level these actions should be taken. Those concernsof a national character ‹ such as air and water pollution that do notrespect state boundaries or the national transportation system or effortsto safeguard your civil liberties ‹ must, of course, be handled onthe national level.

‹ As a general rule, however, we believe that government actionshould be taken first by the government that resides as close to you aspossible. Governments tend to become less responsive to your needs the fartheraway they are from you. Thus, we prefer local and state government to nationalgovernment, and decentralized national government wherever possible.

‹ We also believe that you, often acting through voluntary organizations,should have the opportunity to solve many of the social problems of yourcommunity. This spirit of freely helping others is uniquely American andshould be encouraged in every way by government.

‹ Every dollar spent by government is a dollar earned by you. Governmentmust always ask: Are your dollars being wisely spent? Can we afford it?Is it not better for the country to leave your dollars in your pocket?

‹ Your elected officials, their appointees, and government workersare expected to perform their public acts with honesty, openness, diligence,and special integrity. At the heart of our system must be confidence thatthese people are always working for you.

‹ We believe that your initiative and energy create jobs, our standardof living and the underlying economic strength of the country. Governmentmust work for the goal of justice and the elimination of unfair practices,but no government has yet designed a more productive economic system orone which benefits as many people .

‹ The beauty of our land is our legacy to our children. It mustbe protected by us so that they can pass it on intact to their children.

‹ The United States must always stand for peace and liberty in theworld and the rights of the individual. We must form sturdy partnershipswith our allies for the preservation of freedom. We must be ever willingto negotiate differences, but equally mindful that there are American idealsthat cannot be compromised. Given that there are other nations with potentiallyhostile designs, we recognize that we can reach our goals only while maintaininga superior national defense that is second to none.

We support these principles because they are right, knowing full wellthat they will not be easy to achieve. Acting with restraint is most difficultwhen confronted by an opposition Congress that is determined to promiseeverything to everybody. And this is what the Democrat Congress has beendoing. A document, such as this Platform, which refuses to knuckle underto special interest groups, will be accused of being "uncaring."Yet it is exactly because we do care about your basic freedom to manageyour own life with a minimum of government interference, because we do careabout encouraging permanent and meaningful jobs, because we do care aboutyour getting paid in sound dollars, because we do care about resisting theuse of your tax dollars for wasteful or unproven programs‹it is forthese reasons that we are proposing only actions that the nation can affordand are opposing excessive tinkering with an economic system-that worksbetter than any other in the world.

Our great American Republic was founded on the principle: "one nationunder God, with liberty and justice for all." This bicentennial yearmarks the anniversary of the greatest secular experiment in history: Thatof seeking to determine that a people are truly capable of self-government:It was our "Declaration" which put the world and posterity onnotice "that all Men are...endowed by their Creator with certain unalienableRights" and that those rights must not be taken from those to whomGod has given them.

Recently, Peggy Pinder, a 23-year-old student from Grinnell, Iowa, whois a delegate to this convention, said that she joined our party "becauseRepublicans understand the place of government in the people's lives betterthan the Democrats. Republicans try to find ways to take care of needs throughthe private sector first while it seems automatic for Democrats to takecare of them through the governmental system ."

The perception of Peggy Pinder governs this Platform. Aren't these theprinciples that you want your elected representatives to have?

Jobs and Inflation

We believe it is of paramount importance that the American people understandthat the number one destroyer of jobs is inflation. We wish to stress thatthe number one cause of inflation is the government's expansion of the nation'ssupply of money and credit needed to pay for deficit spending. It is aboveall else deficit spending by the federal government which erodes the purchasingpower of the dollar. Most Republicans in Congress seem to understand thisfundamental cause-and-effect relationship and their support in sustainingover 40 Presidential vetoes in the past two years has prevented over $13-billionin federal spending. It is clear that most of the Democrats do not understandthis vital principle, or, if they do, they simply don't care.

Inflation is the direct responsibility of a spendthrift Democrat-controlledCongress that has been unwilling to discipline itself to live within ourmeans. The temptation to spend and deficit spend for political reasons hassimply been too great for most of our elected politicians to resist. Individuals,families, companies and most local and state governments must live withina budget. Why not Congress?

Republicans hope every American realizes that if we are to permanentlyeliminate high unemployment, it is essential to protect the integrity ofour money. That means putting an end to deficit spending. The danger, sooneror later, is runaway inflation.

Wage and price controls are not the solution to inflation. They attemptto treat only the symptom ‹ rising prices ‹ not the cause. Historically,controls have always been a dismal failure, and in the end they create onlyshortages, black markets and higher prices. For these reasons the RepublicanParty strongly opposes any reimposition of such controls, on a standby basisor otherwise.

Unfortunately, the Democrat-controlled Congress now persists in attemptingto obtain control over our nation's money creation policies by taking awaythe independence of the Federal Reserve Board. The same people who haveso massively expanded government spending should not be allowed politicallyto dominate our monetary policy. The independence of the Federal ReserveSystem must be preserved.

Massive, federally-funded public employment programs, such as the Humphrey-HawkinsBill currently embraced by the new National Platform of the Democrat Partywill cost billions and can only be financed either through very large taxincreases or through ever increasing levels of deficit spending. Althoughsuch government "make-work" programs usually provide a temporarystimulus to the economy, "quick-fix" solutions of this sort ‹like all narcotics ‹ lead to addiction, larger and larger doses, andultimately the destruction of far more jobs than they create Sound job creationcan only be accomplished in the private sector of the economy. Americansmust not be fooled into accepting government as the employer of last resort.Nor should we sit idly by while 2.5 million American jobs are threatenedby imports of textile products. We encourage the renewal of the GATT MultifiberArrangement and the signing of other necessary bilateral agreements to protectour domestic textile industry.

In order to be able to provide more jobs, businesses must be able toexpand; yet in order to build and expand, they must be profitable and ableto borrow funds (savings) that someone else has been willing to part withon a temporary basis. In the long run, inflation discourages thrift, encouragesdebt and destroys the incentive to save which is the mainspring of capitalformation. When our government ‹ through deficit spending and debasementof the currency ‹ destroys the incentive to save and to invest, itdestroys the wellspring of American productivity. Obviously, when productionfalls, the number of jobs decline.

The American people are beginning to understand that no government canever add real wealth (purchasing power) to an economy by simply turningon the printing presses or by creating credit out of thin air. All governmentcan do is confiscate and redistribute wealth. No nation can spend its wayinto prosperity; a nation can only spend its way into bankruptcy.

Taxes and Government Spending

The Republican Party recognizes that tax policies and spending policiesare inseparable. If government spending is not controlled, taxes will inevitablyrise either directly or through inflation. By failing to tie spending directlyto income, the Democrat-controlled Congress has not kept faith with theAmerican people. Every American knows he cannot continually live beyondhis means.

The Republican Party advocates a legislative policy to obtain a balancedfederal budget and reduced tax rates. While the best tax reform is tax reduction,we recognize the need for structural tax adjustments to help the workingmen and women of our nation. To that end, we recommend tax credits for collegetuition, post-secondary technical training and child care expenses incurredby working parents.

Over the past two decades of Democrat-control of the Congress, our taxlaws have become a nightmare of complexity and unfair tax preferences, virtuallydestroying the credibility of the system. Simplification should be a majorgoal of tax reform .

We support economic and tax policies to insure the necessary job-producingexpansion of our economy. These include hastening capital recovery throughnew systems of accelerated depreciation, removing the tax burden on equityfinancing to encourage more capital investment, ending the unfair doubletaxation of dividends, and supporting proposals to enhance the ability ofour working and other citizens to own "a piece of the action"through stock ownership. When balanced by expenditure reductions, the personalexemption should be raised to $1,000.

Agriculture and Rural Development

The bounty of our farms is so plentiful that we may tend to forget whatan amazing production achievement this really is. The American farmer andrancher produces enough food to feed over 56 people‹a threefold increasein productivity in 20 years.

Rural America must be maintained as a rewarding place to live. To accomplishthis, our rural areas are entitled to services comparable to their urbanneighbors, such as water and sewer systems, improved electricity and telephoneservice, adequate transportation, available and adequate financial credit,and employment opportunities which will allow small farmers to supplementtheir incomes.

Farm exports have continued to expand under the policies of this RepublicanAdministration ‹ from a low of $6-billion in 1968, the last Democratyear, to $22 billion in 1975. These exports are not giveaway programs, mostare earning dollars from the marketplaces of the world, establishing a favorablebalance of trade and a higher standard of living for all. Through our farmexports we fight the problem of world hunger, especially with the humanitarianFood for Peace Program (Public Law 480) of the Eisenhower Administrationand the Republican-controlled Congress of 1954.

Republican farm policy has permitted farmers to use their crop land fully.We are at last moving toward making effective use of our superb resources.Net farm income from 1972 through 1975 averaged $26-billion, more than doublethe average of the 1960's. Government should not dictate to the productivemen and women who work the land. To assure this, we support the continuationof the central principles of the Agricultural Act of 1973, with adjustmentsof target prices and loan levels to reflect increased production costs.

We oppose government-controlled grain reserves, just as we oppose federalregulations that are unrealistic in farm practices, such as those imposedby the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the EnvironmentalProtection Agency (EPA).

We urge prompt action by Congress in amending the Grain Inspection Actto strengthen the present inspection system and restore its integrity.

We firmly believe that when the nation asks our farmers to go all outto produce as much as possible for world-wide markets, the government shouldguarantee them unfettered access to those markets. Our farmers should notbe singled out by export controls. Also, when a foreign nation subsidizesits farm exports, our farmers deserve a protection against such unfair practices.The federal government should assure that foreign imported commodities areequal in quality to our domestic commodities. Nations from whom we buy commoditiesshould not be allowed to circumvent import restriction laws, such as theMeat Import Quota Act of 1964.

We recognize the importance of the multilateral trade negotiations nowin progress and urge our representatives to obtain the most beneficial agreementsfor our farmers and the nation's economy.

In order to assure the consumers of America an uninterrupted source offood, it is necessary to pass labor relations legislation which is responsiveto the welfare of workers and to the particular needs of ford production.Such legislation should recognize the need to prevent work stoppages duringcritical harvest periods.

We must help farmers protect themselves from drought, flood and othernatural disasters through a system of all-risk crop insurance through federalgovernment reinsurance of private insurance companies combined with theexisting disaster payment program.

As in 1972, we urge prompt passage of the Republican-sponsored legislationnow pending in Congress which will increase the estate tax exemption to$200,000, allow valuation of farm property on a current use basis and providefor extension of the time of payment in the case of farms and small businessesThis overdue estate and gift tax legislation must be approved this year.We favor a liberalized marital deduction and oppose capital gains tax atdeath.

Innovations in agriculture need to be encouraged by expanding researchprograms including new pest and predator control measures, and utilizationof crops as a new energy resource, If we expect our farmers to produce anabundant food supply, they must have all the energy they need to produce,market and process their crops and livestock.

We continue to support farmer cooperatives, including rural electricand telephone cooperatives, in their efforts to improve services to theirmembers. We support the Capper-Volstead Act.

We believe that non-farm corporations and tax-loss farming should beprevented from unfairly competing against family farms, which we supportas the preferred method of farm organization.

Since farmers are practicing conservationists, they should not be burdenedwith unrealistic environmental regulations. We are concerned about regulationsissued by the Army Corps of Engineers that will regulate all "routine"agricultural and forestry activities on "all" our waters and wetland,and support legislation to exempt routine farming operations from theserequirements. The adjudication of water rights should be a matter of statedetermination.

Small Business

Small business, so vital to our economic system, is free enterprise inits purest sense. It holds forth opportunity to the individual, regardlessof race or sex, to fulfill the American dream. Small businesses are thebase of our economy and its main source of strength. Some 9.6 million smallfirms generate 55 per cent of our private employment‹or the livelihoodof over 100 million Americans. Yet while small businesses have a uniqueplace in our society, they also have unique problems that government mustaddress. Therefore, we recommend that the Small Business Administration(SBA):

‹ Assure adequate financing to those credit worthy firms that cannotnow obtain funds through conventional channels;

‹ Include the proper mix of loan programs to meet the needs of themany different types of firms that constitute the American small businesscommunity;

‹ Serve as an aggressive advocate for small business and provideprocurement, management and technological assistance.

For survival, small businesses must have relief from the overwhelmingburden placed on them by many regulatory bodies. Paperwork proliferationhas grown out of control, and small business is not equipped to deal withthis aggravation.

The present tax structure does not allow small firms to generate enoughcapital to grow and create jobs. Estate taxes need liberalization to benefitthe family business in the same manner as for the family farm. Encouraginginvestment in small businesses through more equitable tax treatment remainsthe best and least expensive method of creating productive employment.

The Republican Party, recognizing that small and independent businessis the backbone of the American competitive system, pledges itself to strengthenthis vital institution.

Antitrust

The Republican Party believes in and endorses the concept that the Americaneconomy is traditionally dependent upon fair competition in the marketplace.To assure fair competition, antitrust laws must treat all segments of theeconomy equally.

Vigorous and equitable enforcement of antitrust laws heightens competitionand enables consumers to obtain the lowest possible price in the marketplace.

Bureaucratic Overregulation

We believe that the extent of federal regulation and bureaucratic interferencein the lives of the American people must be reduced. The programs and activitiesof the federal government should be required to meet strict tests of theirusefulness and effectiveness.

In particular, we consider essential an analysis of the extensive growthof laws and regulations governing production processes and conditions andstandards for consumer products, so as to determine whether the servicesand benefits the American people receive are worth the price they are payingfor these services in higher taxes and consumer prices.

We are intensely aware of the need to protect our environment and providesafe working conditions in American industry, while at the same time preventingthe loss of jobs and the closing of small businesses through unrealisticor over-rigorous government regulations. We support a balanced approachthat considers the requirements of a growing economy and provides jobs forAmerican workers.

The average businessman and employer is being overwhelmed by government-requiredpaperwork. We support legislation to control and reduce the burden of federalpaperwork, particularly that generated by the Internal Revenue Service andthe Census Bureau.

Government That Works

We believe that Americans are fed up with and frustrated by nationalgovernment that makes great promises and fails to deliver. We are. We thinkthat Democrat Congresses ‹ in control for 40 out of 44 years ‹are the grand masters of this practice. We think that national governmentthat has grown so big that the left hand doesn't know what the right handis doing has also caused the condition we are in.

What we now have is a government organization that doesn't make any sense.It has not developed by design. It just grew ‹ by whim, bureaucraticfighting, and the caving in of Democratic Congresses to special interestdemands. So today we find that nine federal departments and 20 independentagencies are involved in education; seven departments and eight agenciesin health; federal recreation areas are administered by six agencies inthree departments, and so forth.

What we need is a top-to-bottom overhaul. Two high level presidentialcommissions under two Presidents ‹ one a Democrat, one a Republican‹ have investigated and come up with the same answer: There must befunctional realignment of government, instead of the current arrangementby subject areas or constituencies .

We want federal domestic departments to reflect the major purposes ofgovernment, such as natural resources, human resources, community developmentand the economic affairs. Unfortunately, the Democrat Congress has refusedto address this problem. Now we insist that attention must be paid.

Too often in the past, we have been content with organizational or proceduralsolutions to complex economic and social regulatory problems. We shouldno longer accept rhetoric as a substitute for concrete results. The Presidenthas proposed to Congress the Agenda for Government Reform Act, which wouldguarantee the systematic re-examination and reform of all federal regulatoryactivities within the next four years. This legislation requires Congressand the President to agree to undertake an exhaustive reassessment of thecombined effects of all government regulations, and it requires them toadhere to a disciplined timetable to assure annual results. The Americanpeople deserve no less. Every agency of government must be made efficient,and every government regulation should be subjected to cost benefit analysis.The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is a typical exampleof a well-intentioned regulatory effort which has imposed large costs buthas not solved our problems.

The beauty of America's original concept of government was its diversity,the belief that different purposes are best served by governments at differentlevels. In our lifetime, however, Democrat Congresses have allowed thissystem to become warped and over-nationalized. As powers have flowed toWashington, the ability to attend to our problems has often dried up inour communities and states. This trend must be reversed. Local governmentis simply more accountable to the people, and local people are perfectlycapable of making decisions.

We reaffirm the long standing principle of the Republican Party thatthe best government is the one closest to the people. It is less costly,more accountable, and more responsive to the people's needs. Our confidencein the people of this nation was demonstrated by initiating the RevenueSharing Program. To date, $30-billion of federal tax dollars have been returnedto the states and localities. This program is administered with fewer than100 people and a computer. Revenue Sharing is an effort to reverse the trendtoward centralization. Revenue Sharing must continue without unwarrantedfederal strictures and regulations.

As a further step in this direction, the Republicans in Congress promotedthe new concept of federal block grants to localities for much greater flexibility.Under block grants, federal funds can be tailored by the states and localitiesto the wishes of each community. There are now two block grant programs‹ in community development and employment training. Block grant programsshould be extended to replace many existing categorical health, education,child nutrition and social programs. The Democrat Congress stands guiltyof failing to enact these vital reforms. Our ultimate goal is to restoretaxing and spending to the local level.

The Republican Party has always believed that the proper role of governmentis to do only those things which individuals cannot do for themselves. Weencourage individual initiative and oppose the trend of ever expanding governmentprograms which is destroying the volunteer spirit in America. We firmlybelieve that community involvement is essential to the development of effectivesolutions to the problems confronting our country.

While we oppose a uniform national primary, we encourage the conceptof regional presidential primaries, which would group those states whichvoluntarily agree to have presidential primaries in a geographical areaon a common date.

We encourage full participation in our electoral process. We furtherrecognize the sanctity and value of the ballot. In that regard, we oppose"federal post card registration." The possibilities could notonly cheapen our ballot, but in fact threaten the entire electoral process.

Control of the United States Congress by the Democrat Party for 40 ofthe past 44 years has resulted in a system dominated by powerful individualsand riddled with corruption. Recent events have demonstrated an unwillingnessand inability by the Democrat Party to cleanse itself. Selective moralityhas been the order of the day. Positive Republican initiatives have languishedin Democrat-controlled Congressional Committees while business as usualhas continued in Washington. The American people demand and deserve reformof the United States Congress. We offer these proposals of far-reachingreform:

‹ Repeal of legislation which permits automatic increases in thesalaries of Members of Congress, congressional staffs, and official expenseallowances. Public accountability demands that Members publicly vote onincreases on the expenses of their office. Members' salary increases shouldnot become effective until a new Congress is elected.

‹ Elimination of proxy voting which allows Members to record votesin Committee without being present for the actual deliberations or voteon a measure.

‹ Elimination of Democrat Caucus rules which allow a Party to bindits Members' votes on legislation. Each Member of Congress represents hisconstituency and must be free to vote in accordance with the dictates ofhis constituency and individual conscience.

‹ A complete audit by the General Accounting Office of all congressionalallowances and appropriate disciplinary measures for those who have violatedthe public trust.

‹ Full public disclosure of financial interests by Members and divestitureof those interests which present conflicts of interest.

‹ Changes in the House rules which would allow a House majorityto require the House Ethics Committee to conduct an investigation into allegedmisconduct by any Member of Congress if the Committee refuses to act onits own.

‹ A complete overhaul and streamlining of the system which has permittedthe proliferation of subcommittees. with overlapping responsibilities, vaguejurisdictional definitions and a lack of legislative production .

‹ Quarterly publication of names, titles and salaries of all Congressionalemployees.

‹ Improved lobby disclosure legislation so that the people willknow how much money is being spent to influence public officials .

Citizens are demanding the end to the rapid and wasteful increase inthe size of Washington government. All steps must be taken to insure thatunnecessary federal agencies and programs are eliminated and that Congresscarefully scrutinize the total budget of each agency. If it is determinedthat sunset laws and zero-based budgeting can accomplish these ends thenthey will have our support. Washington programs must be made as cost-effectiveas those in the states and localities. Among the many serious complaintsthat we wish to register on behalf of the American people is the poor operationof the United States Postal Service

We note the low respect the public has for Congress ‹ a Democrat-controlledinstitution ‹ and wonder how the Democrats can possibly honor theirpledge government when they have utterly failed to reform Congress.

A Safe and Just Society

Every American has a right to be protected from criminals. Violence hasno place in our land. A society that excuses crime will eventually fallvictim to it. The American people have been subjected to an m intolerablewave of violent crime.

The victim of a crime should be treated with compassion and justice.The attacker must be kept from harming others. Emphasis must be on protectingthe innocent and punishing the guilty. Prevention of it crime is its bestdeterrent and should be stressed.

Fighting crime is ‹and should be ‹ primarily a local responsibility.We support the continuation of the federal help given through the Law EnforcementAssistance Administration to law enforcement officials in our states, countiesand municipalities. Each state should have the power to decide whether itwishes to impose the death penalty for certain crimes. All localities areurged to tighten their bail practices and to review their sentencing andparole procedures.

The federal criminal code should include automatic and mandatory minimumsentences for persons committing offenses under federal jurisdiction thatinvolve the use of a dangerous weapon; that involve exceptionally seriouscrimes, such as trafficking in hard drugs, kidnapping and aircraft hijacking;and that involve injuries committed by repeat offenders.

The work presently being done to tighten the anti-obscenity provisionsof the criminal code has our full support. Since the jurisdiction of thefederal government in this field is limited to interstate commerce and themails, we urge state and local governments to assume a major role in limitingthe distribution and availability of obscene materials.

We support the right of citizens to keep and bear arms. We oppose federalregistration of firearms. Mandatory sentences for crimes committed witha lethal weapon are the only effective solution to this problem.

Sure and swift justice demands additional judges, United States Attorneysand other court workers. The Democrat Congress has created no new federaljudgeships since 1970; we deplore this example of playing politics withthe justice system.

Drug abuse is not simply a health problem, but also a very real law enforcementconcern and a problem of worldwide dimension. Controlling drug abuse callsfor the ratification of the existing international treaty on synthetic drugs,increased emphasis on preventing the diversion of amphetamines and barbituratesinto illegal markets, and intensive efforts to keep drugs out of this country.Heroin continues top come across our borders. Drug enforcement agents andinternational cooperation must cut off this supply. We say: Treat the addicts,but, at the same time, remove the pushers from the street and give themmandatory sentences

Juveniles now account for almost half the arrests for serious crimes‹ murder, rape, robbery and aggravated assault. The cost of schoolviolence and vandalism is estimated at $600 million annually, about whatis spent on textbooks. Primary responsibility for raising our children,instilling proper values and thus preventing juvenile delinquency lies withthe family, not the government. Yet when families fail, local law enforcementauthorities must respond. Law enforcement block grant funds can be usedby states in correcting and preventing juvenile delinquency. The LEAA shouldpromote additional research in this area. The structure of the family mustbe strengthened. All enterprises have to be encouraged to find more jobsfor young people. A youth differential must be included in the minimum wagelaw. Citizen action should let the television industry know that we wantit to curb violence in programming because of its effect on our youth.

The criminal justice system must be more vigilant in preventing rape,eliminating discrimination against the victim and dealing with the offenders.

States should recognize that antiquated and overcrowded prisons are notconducive to rehabilitation. A high priority of prison reform should beto help the young first-time offender. There should be adequate separationof young from adult offenders, more relevant prison industries, better counseling,community-based alternatives and more help in getting a job for the offenderwho has served his or her time.

Terrorism ‹ both domestic and international ‹ must be stopped.Not only must the strongest steps be taken in the United States, but collectiveaction must come from all nations. Deterring every form of hijacking callsfor sanctions against countries that aid terrorists. The world communityshould take appropriate action to deal with terrorist organizations. Weapplaud the daring rescue by Israel of innocent civilian hostages who werekidnapped by terrorists. While we regret that loss of life was involved,the courageous manner in which the hostages were freed speaks eloquentlyto our abhorrence of world bandits.

The Right to Privacy

Liberty depends in great measure on the privacy that each American retains.

We are alarmed by Washington's growing collection of information. Thenumber of federal data banks is now estimated at between 800 and 900 andmore than 50 agencies are involved. We question the need for all these computersto be storing records of our lives. Safeguards must protect us against thisinformation being misused or disclosed. Major changes, for example, areneeded to maintain the confidentiality of tax returns and Social Securityrecords.

Recent Supreme Court decisions have held that an individual has no constitutionalright to the privacy of records held in banks or other depository institutionsand that they can be readily obtained by law enforcement agencies withouta person's consent or knowledge. Law enforcement authorities must be ableto pursue criminal violators, yet, at the same time, there should be reasonablecontrols imposed to protect the privacy of law-abiding citizens. We supportlegislation, now pending, to assure this protection.

Too many government records, on the other hand, are unnecessarily classified.Congress and the Executive should devise a more reasonable system for classifyingand handling government information.

The President's achievements in protecting privacy are unequalled bypast administrations and must be built upon in the future. We particularlynote changes in federal record-keeping systems, the appointment of the Commissionon the CIA, the reorganization of the intelligence community and the restrictionof White House access to income tax returns.

The American Family

Families must continue to be the foundation of our nation.

Families ‹ not government programs ‹ are the best way to makesure our children are properly nurtured, our elderly are cared for, ourcultural and spiritual heritages are perpetuated, our laws are observedand our values are preserved.

If families fail in these vitally important tasks, there is little thegovernment, no matter how well-intentioned, can do to remedy the results.Schools cannot educate children adequately if families are not supportiveof the learning process. Law enforcement authorities are nearly helplessto curb juvenile delinquency without family cooperation in teaching youngpeople respect for property and laws. Neither medicine nor school feedingprograms can replace the family's ability to provide the basis for goodhealth. Isolation from meaningful family contact makes it virtually impossiblefor the elderly to avoid loneliness or dependence. The values of hard workand responsibility start with the family.

As modern life brings changes in our society, it also puts stresses onfamilies trying to adjust to new realities while maintaining cherished values.Economic uncertainty, unemployment, housing difficulties, women's and men'sconcerns with their changing and often conflicting roles, high divorce rates,threatened neighborhoods and schools, and public scandal all create a hostileatmosphere that erodes family structures and family values. Thus it is imperativethat our government's programs, actions, officials and social welfare institutionsnever be allowed to jeopardize the family. We fear the government may bepowerful enough to destroy our families; we know that it is not powerfulenough to replace them.

Because of our concern for family values, we affirm our beliefs, statedelsewhere in this Platform, in many elements that will make our countrya more hospitable environment for family life ‹ neighborhood schools;educational systems that include and are responsive to parents' concerns;estate tax changes to establish more realistic exemptions which will minimizedisruption of already bereaved families; a position on abortion that valueshuman life, a welfare policy to encourage rather than discourage familiesto stay together and seek economic independence; a tax system that assistsrather than penalizes families with elderly members, children in day careor children in college; economic and employment policies that stop the shrinkageof our dollars and stimulate the creation of jobs so that families can planfor their economic security .

Education

Our children deserve quality education .

We believe that segregated schools are morally wrong and unconstitutional.However, we oppose forced busing to achieve racial balances in our schools.We believe there are educational advantages for children in attending schoolsin their own neighborhoods and that the Democrat-controlled Congress hasfailed to enact legislation to protect this concept. The racial compositionof many schools results from decisions by people about where they chooseto live. If Congress continues to fail to act, we would favor considerationof an amendment to the Constitution forbidding the assignment of childrento schools on the basis of race.

Our approach is to work to eradicate the root causes of segregated schools,such as housing discrimination and gerrymandered school districts. We mustget on with the education of all our children.

Throughout our history, the education of our children has been a communityresponsibility. But now federal categorical grant programs pressure localschool districts into substituting Washington-dictated priorities for theirown. Local school administrators and school boards are being turned intobookkeepers for the federal government. Red tape and restrictive regulationsstifle imagination and creativity. We are deeply concerned about the declinein the performance of our schools and the decline in public confidence inthem.

We favor consideration of tax credits for parents making elementary andsecondary school tuition payments.

Local communities wishing to conduct non-sectarian prayers in their publicschools should be able to do so. We favor a constitutional amendment toachieve this end.

We propose consolidating federal categorical grant programs into blockgrants and turning the money over to the states to use in accordance withtheir own needs and priorities and with minimum bureaucratic controls. Asingle program must preserve the funding that is directed at the needs ofsuch special groups as the handicapped and the disadvantaged.

Primary responsibility for education, particularly on the elementaryand secondary levels, belongs to local communities and parents. Intrusionby the federal government must be avoided. Bureaucratic control of schoolsby Washington has the potential for destruction of our educational systemby taking more and more decisions away from parents and local school authorities.Total financial dependence on the federal government inevitably leads togreater centralization of authority. We believe, therefore, that a studyshould be authorized concerning funding of elementary and secondary education,coupled with a study regarding return to the states of equivalent revenueto compensate for any loss in present levels of federal funding.

Unless steps are taken immediately, soaring prices will restrict a collegeeducation to the rich and those poor enough to qualify now for governmentaid. Federal higher education policy should continue to focus on financialaid for needy individuals, but because the financial ability to go to collegeis fast slipping out of the grasp of middle income families, more realisticeligibility guidelines for student aid are essential .

Government interference in the management of colleges and universitiesmust be stopped. Federal support to assist in meeting the grave financialproblems of higher education should be forthcoming, but such funds shouldnever be used as devices for imposing added controls.

Diversity in education has great value. Public schools and non-publicschools should share in education funds on a constitutionally acceptablebasis. Private colleges and universities should be assisted to maintainhealthy competition and to enrich diversity. The cost of expanding publiccampuses can be kept down if existing private institutions are helped toaccommodate our student population.

We favor continued special federal support for vocational education.

Health

Every American should have access to quality health care at an affordableprice.

The possibility of an extended illness in a family is a frightening prospect,but, if it does happen, a person should at least be protected from havingit wipe out lifetime savings. Catastrophic expenses incurred from majorillnesses and accidents affect only a small percentage of Americans eachyear, but for those people, the financial burden can be devastating. Wesupport extension of catastrophic illness protection to all who cannot obtainit. We should utilize our private health insurance system to assure adequateprotection for those who do not have it. Such an approach will eliminatethe red tape and high bureaucratic costs inevitable in a comprehensive nationalprogram.

The Republican Party opposes compulsory national health insurance.

Americans should know that the Democrat Platform, which offers a government-operatedand financed "comprehensive national health insurance system with universaland mandatory coverage," will increase federal government spendingby more than $70-billion in its first full year. Such a plan, could requirea personal income tax increase of approximately 20 per cent. We oppose thishuge, new health insurance tax. Moreover, we do not believe that the federalgovernment can administer effectively the Democrats' cradle-to-grave proposal.

The most effective, efficient and economical method to improve healthcare and extend its availability to all is to build on the present healthdelivery and insurance system, which covers nine out of every ten Americans.

A coordinated effort should be mounted immediately to contain the rapidincrease in health care costs by all available means, such as developmentof healthier life styles through education, improved preventive care, betterdistribution of medical manpower, emphasis on out-of-hospital services andelimination of wasteful duplication of medical services.

We oppose excessive intrusions from Washington in the delivery of healthcare. We believe in preserving the privacy that should exist between a patientand a physician, particularly in regard to the confidentiality of medicalrecords.

Federal health programs should be consolidated into a single grant toeach state, where possible, thereby allowing much greater flexibility insetting local priorities. Our rural areas, for example, have different healthcare delivery needs than our cities. Federal laws and regulations shouldrespect these differences and make it possible to respond differently todiffering needs. Fraud in Medicare and Medicaid programs should be exposedand eliminated.

We need a comprehensive and equitable approach to the subject of mentalhealth. Such a program should focus on the prevention, treatment and careof mental illness. It should cover all aspects of the interrelationshipsbetween emotional illness and other specific disabilities.

The Republican Party applauds the enlightened programs that address mentalretardation, cerebral palsy, epilepsy, and other developmental disabilitiesthat seek to remove us from the dark ages in these areas.

Alcoholism and drug abuse, growing problems in America today, shouldreceive the utmost attention.

While we support valid medical and biological research efforts whichcan produce life-saving results, we oppose any research on live fetuses.We are also opposed to any legislation which sanctions ending the life ofany patient.

Child Nutrition

Every child should have enough to eat. Good nutrition is a prerequisiteof a healthy life. We must focus our resources on feeding needy children.The present school lunch programs provide a 20 per cent subsidy underwritethe meals of children from middle- and upper-income families.

The existing 15 child nutrition programs should be concentrated on thosechildren truly in need. Other federal programs should assure that low-incomepeople will be able to purchase a nutritionally adequate food supply.

Equal Rights and Ending Discrimination

Roadblocks must be removed that maybe prevent Americans from realizingtheir full potential in society. Unfair discrimination is a burden thatintolerably weighs morally, economically and politically upon a free nation.

While working to eradicate discriminatory practices, every citizen shouldbe encouraged to take pride in and foster the cultural heritage that hasbeen passed on from previous generations. Almost every American traces ancestryfrom another country; this cultural diversity gives strength to our nationalheritage.

There must be vigorous enforcement of laws to assure equal treatmentin job recruitment, hiring, promotion, pay, credit, mortgage access andhousing. The way to end discrimination, however, is not by resurrectingthe much discredited quota system and attempting to cloak it in an auraof new respectability. Rather, we must provide alternative means of assistingthe victims of past discrimination to realize their full worth as Americancitizens.

Wiping out past discrimination requires continued emphasis on providingeducational opportunities for minority citizens, increasing direct and guaranteedloans to minority business enterprises, and affording qualified minoritypersons equal opportunities for government positions at all levels.

Women

Women, who comprise a numerical majority of the population, have beendenied a just portion of our nation's rights and opportunities. We reaffirmour pledge to work to eliminate discrimination in all areas for reasonsof race, color, national origin, age, creed or sex and to enforce vigorouslylaws guaranteeing women equal rights.

The Republican Party reaffirms its support for ratification of the EqualRights Amendment. Our Party was the first national party to endorse theE.R.A. in 1940. We continue to believe its ratification is essential toinsure equal rights for all Americans. In our 1972 Platform, the RepublicanParty recognized the great contributions women have made to society as homemakersand mothers, as contributors to the community through volunteer work, andas members of the labor force in careers. The Platform stated then, andrepeats now, that the Republican Party "fully endorses the principleof equal rights, equal opportunities and equal responsibilities for women."The equal Rights Amendment is the embodiment of this principle and thereforewe support its swift ratification.

The question of abortion is one of the most difficult and controversialof our time. It is undoubtedly a moral and personal issue but it also involvescomplex questions relating to medical science and criminal justice. Thereare those in our Party who favor complete support for the Supreme Courtdecision which permits abortion on demand. There are others who share sincereconvictions that the Supreme Court's decision must be changed by a constitutionalamendment prohibiting all abortions. Others have yet to take a position,or they have assumed a stance somewhere in between polar positions.

We protest the Supreme Court's intrusion into the family structure throughits denial of the parents obligation and right to guide their minor children.The Republican Party favors a continuance of the public dialogue on abortionand supports the efforts of those who seek enactment of a constitutionalamendment to restore protection of the right to life for unborn children.

The Social Security System, our federal tax laws, and unemployment anddisability programs currently discriminate against women and often workagainst married couples as well. These inequities must be corrected. Werecognize that special support must be given to the increasing number ofwomen who have assumed responsibility as the heads of households while alsobeing wage earners. Programs for job training, counseling and other servicesshould be established to help them attain their dual role in society.

We reiterate the pledges elsewhere in this platform of support for childcare assistance, part-time and flexible-time work that enables men and womento combine employment and family responsibilities, estate tax reform, smallbusiness assistance for women, rape prevention and elimination of discriminatoryhousing practices.

Ethnic Americans

Ethnic Americans have enriched this nation with their hard work, self-relianceand respect for the rights and needs of others Ethnic groups reaching ourshores at various times have given our country its unique identity and strengthamong the nations of the world. We recognize and value the contributionsof Ethnic Americans to our free and democratic society.

Hispanic-Americans

When language is a cause of discrimination, there must be an intensiveeducational effort to enable Spanish-speaking students to become fully proficientin English while maintaining their own language and cultural heritage. Hispanic-Americansmust not be treated as second-class citizens in schools, employment or anyother aspect of life just because English is not their first language. Hispanic-Americanstruly believe that individual integrity must be paramount what they wantmost from government and politics is the opportunity to participate fully.The Republican Party has and always will offer this opportunity.

Indians and Alaska Natives

We have a unique commitment to Native Americans; we pledge to continueto honor our trust relationship with them, and we reaffirm our federal Indianpolicy of self-determination without termination. This means moving smoothlyand quickly away from federal domination to effective participation andcommunication by Indians in the political process and in the planning contentand administration of federal programs. We shall pursue our joint effortwith Indian leaders to assist in the orderly development of Indian and native-ownedresources and to continue to attack the severe health, education and unemploymentproblems which exist among Indians and Alaska Natives.

Puerto Rico, The District of Columbia and the Territories

The principle of self-determination also governs our positions on PuertoRico and the District of Columbia as it has in past platforms. We againsupport statehood for Puerto Rico, if that is the people's choice in a referendum,with full recognition within the concept of a multicultural society of thecitizens' right to retain their Spanish language and traditions; and supportgiving the District of Columbia voting representation in the United StatesSenate and House of Representatives and full home rule over those mattersthat are purely local.

We will continue to negotiate with the Congress of Micronesia on thefuture political status of the Trust Territories of the Pacific Islandsto meet the mutual interests of both parties. We support a plebiscite bythe people of American Samoa on whether they wish to elect a territorialgovernor. We favor whatever action necessary to permit American citizensresident in Guam, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands to vote for Presidentand Vice President in national elections.

Responsibilities

Finally, the most basic principle of all: Achievement and preservationof human rights in our society is based on the willing acceptance by millionsof Americans of their responsibilities as free citizens. Instead of viewinggovernment programs with ever increasing expectations, we must readily assumethe obligations of wage-earners, taxpayers and supporters of our governmentinstitution and laws. This is often forgotten, and so it is appropriateto remind ourselves in this Platform that this is why our society works.

Handicapped Citizens

Handicapped persons must be admitted into the mainstream of our society.

Too often the handicapped population of the nation ‹ over 30 millionmen, women and children ‹ has been denied the rights taken for grantedby other citizens. Time after time, the paths are closed to the handicappedin education, employment, transportation, health care, housing, recreation,insurance, polling booths and due process of law. National involvement isnecessary to correct discrimination in these areas. Individual incentivealone cannot do it.

We pledge continued attention to the problems caused by barriers in architecture,communication, transportation and attitudes. In addition, we realize thatto deny education and employment simply because of an existing disabilityruns counter to our accepted belief in the free enterprise system and forcesthe handicapped to be overly dependent on others. Similarly, the denialof equal access to credit and to acquisition of venture capital on the basisof a handicap or other disability conflicts with Republican philosophy.We advocate the elimination of needless barriers for all handicapped persons.

Working Americans

Free collective bargaining remains the best way to insure that Americanworkers receive a fair price for their labors.

The special problems of collective bargaining in state and local governmentshould be addressed at those levels. Washington should not impose its standardson local governments. While we oppose strikes by public employees, we recognizethat states have the right to permit them if they choose.

Union membership as a condition of employment has been regulated by statelaw under Section 14(b) of the Taft-Hartley Act. This basic right shouldcontinue to be determined by the states. We oppose strikes by federal employees,the unionization of our military forces and the legalization of common-situspicketing.

Employees of the federal government should not engage in partisan politics.The Civil Service system must remain nonpartisan and non-political. TheHatch Act now protects federal employees, we insist that it be uniformlyadministered.

Among the rights that are the entitlement of every American worker isthe right to join a union ‹ large, small or independent; the rightto be protected against racial discrimination and misuse of dues the rightto union elections that are fair and democratic; and the right to be assuredof ultimately receiving his or her promised pension benefits.

Safe and healthful working conditions are goals of utmost importance.We should expect the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to helpemployers, particularly in small businesses, comply with the law, and wewill support legislation providing on-site consultation.

There should be considerable concern over the presence of several millionillegal aliens in the country who fill jobs that otherwise would be availableto American workers. We support increased efforts to deal more effectivelywith this problem and favor legislation prohibiting employers from knowinglyhiring illegal aliens. The Democrat leaders in Congress have systematicallykilled every attempt to debate this legislation in recent years.

Increased part-time and flexible-hour work should be encouraged whereverfeasible. In keeping with our belief in family life, we want to expand moreopportunities for men and women to combine family responsibilities and employment.

Welfare Reform

The work of all Americans contributes to the strength of our nation,and all who are able to contribute should be encouraged to do so.

In every society there will be some who cannot work, often through nofault of their own. The measure of a country's compassion is how it treatsthe least fortunate.

We appreciate the magnificent variety of private charitable institutionswhich have developed in the United States.

The Democrat-controlled Congress has produced a jumble of degrading,dehumanizing, wasteful, overlapping and inefficient programs failing toassist the needy poor. A systematic and complete overhaul of the welfaresystem should be initiated immediately.

The following goals should govern the reform of the welfare system: (1)Provide adequate living standards for the truly needy; (2) End welfare fraudand prevent it in the future with emphasis on removing ineligible recipientsfrom the welfare rolls, tightening food stamp eligibility requirements,and ending aid to illegal aliens and the voluntarily unemployed; (3) Strengthenwork requirements, particularly directed at the productive involvement ofable-bodied persons in useful community work projects; (4) Provide educationaland vocational incentives to allow recipients to become self-supporting;(5) Better coordinate federal efforts with local and state social welfareagencies and strengthen local and state administrative functions. We opposefederalizing the welfare system; local levels of government are most awareof the needs of their communities. Consideration should be given to a rangeof options in financing the programs to assure that state and local responsibilitiesare met. We also oppose the guaranteed annual income concept or any programsthat reduce the incentive to work.

Those features of the present law, particularly the food stamp program,that draw into assistance programs people who are capable of paying fortheir own needs should be corrected. The humanitarian purpose of such programsmust not be corrupted by eligibility loopholes. Food stamp program reformsproposed by Republicans in Congress would accomplish the twin goals of directingresources to those most in need and streamlining administration.

We must never forget that unemployment compensation is insurance, nota welfare program. It should be redesigned to assure that working is alwaysmore beneficial than collecting unemployment benefits. The benefits shouldhelp most the hard-core unemployed. Major efforts must be encouraged throughthe private sector to speed up the process of finding jobs for those temporarilyout of work.

Older Americans

Older Americans constitute one of our most valuable resources.

Families should be supported in trying to take care of their elderly.Too often government laws and policies contribute to the deterioration offamily life. Our tax laws, for example, permit a deduction to the taxpayerwho gives a contribution to a charitable institution that might care foran elderly parent, but offer little or no incentive to provide care in thehome. If an elderly parent relinquishes certain assets and enters a nursinghome, the parent may qualify for full Medicaid coverage, but if parentslive with their children, any Supplemental Security Income benefit for whichthey are eligible may be reduced. Incentives must be written into law toencourage families to care for their older members .

Along with loneliness and ill health, older Americans are deeply threatenedby inflation. The costs of the basic necessities of life‹food, shelter,clothing, health care‹have risen so drastically as to reduce the abilityof many older persons to subsist with any measure of dignity. In additionto our program for protecting against excessive costs of long-term illness,nothing will be as beneficial to the elderly as the effect of this platform'sproposals on curbing inflation.

The Social Security benefits are of inestimable importance to the well-beingand financial peace-of-mind of most older Americans. We will not let theSocial Security system fail. We will work to make the Social Security systemactuarily sound. The Social Security program must not be turned into a welfaresystem, based on need rather than contributions. The cost to employers forSocial Security contributions must not be raised to the point where theywill be unable to afford contributions to employees' private pension programs.We will work for an increase in the earned income ceiling or its eliminationso that, as people live longer, there will not be the present penalty onwork. We will also seek to correct those provisions of the system that nowdiscriminate against women and married couples.

Such programs as Foster Grandparents and Senior Companions, which provideincome exempt from Social Security limitations, should be continued andextended to encourage senior citizens to continue to be active and involvedin society. Appropriate domiciliary care programs should be developed toenable senior citizens to receive such care without losing other benefitsto which they may be entitled.

We favor the abolition of arbitrary levels for mandatory retirement.

The Medicare program must be improved to help control inflation in healthcare costs triggered by present regulation.

Other areas of concern to the elderly that need increased attention arehome and outpatient care, adequate transportation, nutrition, day care andhomemaker care as an alternative to costly institutional treatment.

A nation should be judged by its ability to help make all the years oflife as productive and gainful as possible. This nation still has a jobto do.

Veterans

The nation must never forget its appreciation and obligation to thosewho have served in the armed forces.

Because they bear the heaviest burdens of war, we owe special honor andcompensation to disabled veterans and survivors of the war dead.

We are firmly committed to maintaining and improving our Veterans Administrationhospital system.

Younger veterans, especially those who served in the Vietnam conflict,deserve educational, job and housing loan benefits equivalent to those ofWorld War II and the Korean conflict. Because of our deep and continuingconcern for those still listed as Prisoners of War or Missing in Actionin Vietnam, the Foreign Policy section of this. Republican Platform callsfor top priority actions.

And we must continue to provide for our veterans at their death a finalresting place for their remains in a national cemetery and the costs oftransportation thereto.

A National Urban Strategy

The decay and decline of communities in this country is not just a physicaland economic crisis, but traceable to the decline of a real "senseof community" in our society. Community development cannot be achievedmerely by throwing dollars and mortar at our community problems; what mustbe developed is a new sense of mutual concern and responsibility among allmembers of a community for its improvement.

We recognize the family, the neighborhood and the private volunteer sectorto be the most basic and vital units within our communities and their centralrole in revitalizing our communities. We propose a strategy for urban revitalizationthat both treats our urban areas as social organisms and recognizes thatthe family is the basic building block in these organisms.

Effectively helping our cities now requires a coordinated National Urbanpolicy. The cornerstone of this policy must be to curb inflation. This policymust be based on the principle that the levels of government closest tothe cities' problems are best able to respond. Thus federal and state assistanceto cities and counties should give the greatest flexibility to those directlyon the scene, the local elected officials. Such a policy should replacegrant programs ‹ the approach of the Democrat Congress ‹ withblock grant programs that allow cities and counties to set their own priorities.

Without an urban policy, the Democrat-controlled Congress has createda hodge podge of programs which have all but destroyed our once vital cities.At the same time. urban crime rates have skyrocketed and the quality andpromise of metropolitan education systems have plummeted. All this has happenedduring the years that the number of federal urban programs has increasedalmost tenfold: from 45 in 1946 to 435 in 1968; and expenditures have increased3000 per cent: from $1-billion to $30-billion.

The Republican programs of revenue sharing and block grants for communitydevelopment and manpower have already immensely helped our cities and counties.We favor extension of revenue sharing and the orderly conversion of categoricalgrants into block grants. When federal assistance programs for general purposelocal governments are administered through the states, there should be directpass-through and an effective role for cities and counties in the planning,allocation and use of the funds .

Federal, state and local government resources combined are not enoughto solve our urban problems. The private sector must he the major participant.Economic development is the best way to involve business and industry; governmentsupport should emphasize capital formation and technical assistance forsmall and minority businesses .

We can bring about a new "birth of freedom" by following theexample of those individuals organizations and community leaders who havesuccessfully solved specific undesirable conditions and problems throughprivate efforts. Government officials should be aware of these successesin developing new approaches to public problems.

Financial institutions should be encouraged to participate in the financialrequirements of urban development. Each institution should recognize itsresponsibility in promoting and maintaining economic growth and stabilityin the central cities.

Our urban policies should encourage families and businesses to improvetheir neighborhoods by means of participation in neighborhood self-helpgroups, improving and rehabilitating their homes and businesses, and investingin and managing local businesses. We support the revision of federal businessassistance programs to encourage joint efforts by local merchants' associations.

We need a comprehensive approach to plan, develop and implement a varietyof programs which take into account the many diverse needs of each neighborhood.The establishment of a National Neighborhood Policy will signal a commitmentto the improvement of the quality of our life in our neighborhoods.

We call for an expansion of the President's Committee on Urban Developmentand Neighborhood Revitalization to include representatives of elected stateand local officials and the private sector.

Taken together, the thrust of the proposals in this section and in suchrelated areas as housing, transportation, safety and taxes should contributesignificantly to again making our cities a pleasant place to live. The RepublicanNational Urban Strategy has been formed in the realization that when thebell tolls for the cities it tolls for all of America.

Housing

In the United States today we are the best housed nation in the historyof world civilization. This accomplishment was achieved by a private enterprisesystem using free market concepts.

All of our citizens should be given the opportunity to live in decent,affordable housing.

We believe that we should continue to pursue the primary goal of expandinghousing opportunities for all Americans and we should pursue the companiongoal of reducing the degree of direct federal involvement in housing.

To most Americans the American Dream is a home of their own. The timehas come to face some hard realities, primarily that the greatest impedimentto decent and affordable housing is inflation. It logically follows thatone effective housing program would be simply to elect a Republican Congresswhich would balance the federal budget.

To meet the housing needs of this country there must be a continuous,stable and adequate flow of funds for the purpose of real estate mortgagesat realistic interest rates.

To continue to encourage home ownership which now encompasses 64 percent of our families, we support the deductibility of interest on home mortgagesand property taxes.

We favor the concept of federal revenue sharing and block grants to reducethe excessive burden of the property tax in financing local government.

We are concerned with the excessive reliance of financing welfare andpublic school costs primarily by the property tax.

We support inflation-impact studies on governmental regulations, whichare inflating housing costs.

Current economic problems and environmental concerns must be balancedin each community by a policy of "Sensible Growth ."

We oppose discrimination in housing, whether by individuals or by institutionalfinancing policies.

We urge continued incentives to support the development of low and moderateincome housing in order to assure the availability of adequate shelter forthe less fortunate.

Rehabilitation and preservation of existing housing stock should be givenhigh priority in federal housing policy.

We urge the continuation of the self-help restoration of housing, suchas urban homesteading, which is providing housing for low-income families.

Transportation

The federal government has a special responsibility to foster those elementsof our national transportation system that are essential to foreign andinterstate commerce and national defense. In other transportation systemsthat primarily support local needs, the federal government's responsibilityis to encourage the greatest possible decision-making and flexibility onthe part of state and local governments to spend funds in ways that makethe best sense for each community. Thus all levels of government have animportant role in providing a balanced and coordinated transportation network.

In keeping with national transportation goals, the Railroad Revitalizationand Regulatory Reform Act of 1976 has begun the task of removing regulatoryconstraints of the Interstate Commerce Commission on America's ailing railroads.Now we should carefully assess the need to remove many of the regulatoryconstraints imposed on the nation's airlines and motor carriers. Consumerspay too high a price for the artificial fare and rate structures imposedby federal regulations.

The great Interstate Highway System, initiated by President Eisenhower,has brought new freedom of travel to every American and must be completedand maintained. Our road network should always stress safety through betterdesign as well as bridge maintenance and replacement.

We must also have a safe and efficient aviation system capable of respondingto the air transportation needs of the future and of reducing exposure toaircraft noise. This includes airport development, navigational and safetyfacilities, and the design and adequate staffing of advanced air trafficcontrol systems. In airplane use as in other modes of transportation, theimpact on the physical environment must always be a basic considerationin federal decisions and such decisions should also include appraisals ofimpact on the economy. We deplore unfair treatment of United States airlinesunder foreign landing regulations.

Research must be continued to find safe, more fuel-efficient automobilemotors and airplanes; safer, faster rail service; and more convenient, lessexpensive urban transportation. Tax policies should be considered whichwould stimulate the development and installation of new energy sources intransportation, such as railroad electrification.

The disorganization of a Democrat-controlled Congress frustrates thecoordination of transportation policy. Currently there are more than 50congressional subcommittees with independent jurisdiction in the transportationfield. This hopelessly disjointed and disorganized approach must be reformed.

In keeping with the local goal setting in transportation, the RepublicanParty applauds the system under which state and local governments can divertfunds from interstate highway mileage not essential to interstate commerceor national defense to other, more pressing community needs, such as urbanmass transit.

We support the concept of a surface transportation block grant whichwould include the various highway and mass transit programs now in existence.This will provide local elected officials maximum flexibility in selectingand implementing the balanced transportation systems best suited to eachlocality. It will encompass both capital and operating subsidies for urbanmass transit. It will eliminate red tape and over-regulation. We regretthat the Democrat-controlled Congress has not adopted such a reform.

Energy

In 1973, Americans were shocked to discover that a plentiful supply ofenergy could no longer be assumed. Unfortunately, the Democrat majorityin Congress still has not responded to this clear and urgent warning. TheUnited States is now consuming more imported oil than it was three yearsago and our dependence on foreign sources has continued to increase to thepoint where we now import more than 40% of our oil.

One fact should now be clear: We must reduce sharply our dependence onother nations for energy and strive to achieve energy independence at theearliest possible date. We cannot allow the economic destiny and internationalpolicy of the United States to be dictated by the sovereign powers thatcontrol major portions of the world's petroleum supplies.

Our approach toward energy self-sufficiency must involve both expansionof energy supply and improvement of energy efficiency. It must include elementsthat insure increased conservation at all levels of our society. It mustalso provide incentives for the exploration and development of domesticgas, oil, coal and uranium, and for expanded research and development inthe use of solar, geothermal, co-generation, solid waste, wind, water, andother sources of energy.

We must use our non-renewable resources wisely while we develop alternativesupplies for the future. Our standard of living is directly tied to a continuedsupply of energy resources. Without an adequate supply of energy, our entireeconomy will crumble.

Unwise government intervention in the marketplace has caused shortageof supply, unrealistic prices and increased dependence on foreign sources.We must immediately eliminate price controls on oil and newly-discoverednatural gas in order to increase supply, and to provide the capital thatis needed to finance further exploration and development of domestic hydrocarbonreserves.

Fair and realistic market prices will encourage sensible conservationefforts and establish priorities in the use of our resources, which overthe long run will provide a secure supply at reasonable prices for all.

The nation's clear and present need is for vast amounts of new capitalto finance exploration, discovery, refining, and delivery of currently usableforms of energy, including the use of coal as well as discovery and developmentof new sources. At this critical time, the Democrats have characteristicallyresorted to political demagoguery seeking short-term political gain at theexpense of the long-term national interest. They object to the petroleumindustry making any profit. The petroleum industry is an important segmentof our economy and is entitled to reasonable profits to permit further explorationand development.

At the height of the energy crisis, the Republican Administration proposeda strong, balanced energy package directed at both expansion of supply andconservation of energy. The response from the Democrats in Congress wasto inhibit expanded production through artificially set price and allocationcontrols, thereby preventing market forces from working to make energy expansioneconomically feasible.

Now, the Democrats proposed to dismember the American oil industry. Wevigorously oppose such divestiture of oil companies ‹ a move whichwould surely result in higher energy costs, inefficiency and under-capitalizationof the industry.

Democrats have also proposed that the federal government compete withindustry in energy development by creating a national oil company. We totallyoppose this expensive, inefficient and wasteful intrusion into an area whichis best handled by private enterprise.

The Democrats are playing politics with energy. If they are permittedto continue, we will pay a heavy price in lost energy and lost jobs duringthe decades ahead.

Immediate removal of counterproductive bureaucratic redtape will eliminatehindrances to the exploration and development of hydrocarbons and otherenergy resources. We will accelerate development of oil shale reserves,Alaskan petroleum and the leasing of the Outer Continental Shelf, alwayswithin the context of preserving the fullest possible protection for theenvironment. We will reduce complexity and delays involved in siting, licensingand the regulatory procedures affecting power generation facilities andrefineries.

Coal, America's most abundant energy resource, is of inestimable valueto the American people. It can provide the energy needed to bridge the gapbetween oil and gas and nuclear and other sources of energy.

The uncertainties of governmental regulation regarding the mining, transportationand use of coal must be removed and a policy established which will assurethat governmental restraints, other than proper environmental controls,do not prevent the use of coal. Mined lands must be returned to beneficialuse.

Uranium offers the best intermediate solution to America's energy crisis.We support accelerated use of nuclear energy through processes that havebeen proven safe. Government research on the use of nuclear energy willbe expanded to include perfecting a long-term solution to the problems ofnuclear waste.

Among alternative future energy sources, fusion, with its unique potentialfor supplying unlimited clean energy and the promise of new methods of naturalresource recovery, warrants continued emphasis in our national energy researchprogram and we support measures to assure adequate capital investment inthe development of new energy sources.

Environment and Natural Resources

A clean and healthy natural environment is the rightful heritage of everyAmerican. In order to preserve this heritage, we will provide for properdevelopment of resources, safeguards for clean air and water, and protectionand enhancement of our recreation and scenic areas.

As our environmental sophistication grows, we must more clearly definethe role of the federal government in environmental protection.

We believe that it is a national responsibility to support scientificand technological research and development to identify environmental problemsand arrives at solutions.

We are in complete accord with the recent Supreme Court decision on airpollution that allows the level of government closest to the problem andthe solution to establish and apply appropriate air quality standards .

We are proud of the progress that the current Republican Administrationhas made toward bringing pollution of water, land and air under control.We will meet the challenges that remain by stepping up efforts to perfectour understanding of pollutants and the means for reducing their effects.Moreover, as the nation develops new energy sources and technologies, wemust insure that they meet safe environmental standards.

We renew our commitments to the development of additional water suppliesby desalinization, and to the more efficient use and refuse of waters currentlyavailable.

We are determined to preserve land use planning as a unique responsibilityof state and local government.

We take particular pride in the expanded use of the National Park systemin recent years, and will provide for continued improvement of the nationalparks and historic sites.

We support establishment of a Presidential Panel, including representativesof environmental groups, industry, the scientific community and the publicto assist in the development of national priorities on environmental andenergy issues. This panel will hear and consider alternative policy recommendationsset forth by all of the interested groups, and then develop solutions thatrepresent the overall public interest on environmental and energy matters.

One of this nation's greatest assets has been our abundant natural resourceswhich have made possible our strong economic and strategic role in the world.We still have a wealth of resources, but they are not of infinite quantity.We must recognize that our material blessings stem from what we grow inthe soil take from the sea, or extract from the ground. We have a responsibilityto future generations to conserve our nonrenewable natural resources. Consistentwith our needs, conservation should remain our national policy.

The vast land holdings of the federal government ‹ approximatelyone-third of our nation's area ‹ are the lands from which much of ourfuture production of minerals must come. Public lands must be maintainedfor multiple use management where such uses are compatible. Public landareas should not he closed to exploration for minerals or for mining withoutan overriding national interest.

We believe Americans want their resources developed properly, their environmentkept clean and their recreational and scenic areas kept intact. We supportappropriate measures to achieve these goals .

We also believe that Americans are realistic and recognize that the emphasison environmental concerns must be brought into balance with the needs forindustrial and economic growth so that we can continue to provide jobs foran ever-growing work force.

The United States possesses the most productive softwood forests in theworld, as well as extensive hardwood forests. Demands for housing, fuel,paper, chemicals and a multitude of other such needs require that theserenewable resources be wisely managed on both public and private forestlands ‹ not only to meet these needs, but also to provide for soilconservation, wildlife habitats and recreation.

Recognizing that timber is a uniquely renewable resource, we will useall scientifically sound means to maximize Sustained yield, including clear-cuttingand replanting where appropriate. We urge the Congress to strengthen theNational Forest Service so that it can realize its potential in becomingan effective participant in the reforestation program.

We will support broader use of resource recovery and recycling processesthrough removal of economic disincentives caused by unnecessary governmentregulation.

One of the important issues at stake in the United Nations Law of theSea Conference is access to the mineral resources in and beneath the sea.

Technology, developed by United States industry, is at hand which canunlock resources of petroleum, manganese, nickel, cobalt, copper and otherminerals. We will safeguard the national interest in development and useof these resources.

Science and Technology

Every aspect of our domestic economy and well-being, our internationalcompetitive position, and national security is related to our past and presentleadership in basic and applied research and the development of our technology.But there can be no complacency about our continued commitment to maintainthis leadership position.

In the past, most of these accomplishments have been achieved througha unique partnership between government and industry. This must continueand be expanded in the future.

Because our society is so dependent upon the advancement of science andthe development of technology, it is one of the areas where there must bea central federal policy. We support a national science policy that willfoster the public-private partnership to insure that we maintain our leadershiprole.

The national space program plays a pioneer role in exploring the mysteriesof our universe and we support its expansion.

We recognize that only when our technology is fully distributed can itbe assimilated and used to increase our productivity and our standard ofliving. We will continue to encourage young Americans to study science andengineering.

Finally, we support new initiatives to utilize better the recoverablecommodities from solid waste materials. We can no longer afford the luxuryof a throw-away world. Recycling offers environmental benefits, economicexpansion, resource conservation and energy savings. We support a policywhich will reward it and economic incentives which will encourage its expansion.

Arts and Humanities

The arts and humanities offer an opportunity for every American to becomea participant in activities that add fullness, expression, challenge andjoy to our daily lives. We Republicans consider the preservation of therich cultural heritages of our various ethnic groups as a priority goal.

During our bicentennial year we have celebrated our anniversary withcultural activities as varied and colorful as our cultural heritage. TheRepublican Party is proud of its record of support to the arts and humanitiesduring the last eight years. We are committed to steadily increase our supportthrough the National Endowments for the nation's museums, theaters, orchestras,dance, opera and film centers as well as for individual artists and writers.

This upward trend in funding for the National Arts and Humanities Endowmentsdeserves to continue. But Washington's presence should never dominate; itmust remain limited to supporting and stimulating the artistic and culturallives of each community.

We favor continued federal assistance to public broadcasting which providesus with creative educational and cultural alternatives. We recognize thatpublic broadcasting is supported mainly through private sector contributionsand commend this policy as the best insurance against political interference.

In 1976 we have seen vivid evidence that America's history lives throughoutthe nation. We support the continued commemoration throughout the bicentennialera by all Americans of those significant events between 1776 and 1789 whichcontributed to the creation of this nation. We support the efforts of boththe public and private sectors, working in partnership, for the historicpreservation of the unique and irreplaceable historic sites and buildings.

We propose safeguarding the rights of performing artists in the copyrightlaws, providing tax relief to artists who contribute their own talents andart works for public enjoyment, and encouraging the use of one per centof the cost of government buildings for art works.

Much of the support of the arts and humanities comes from private philanthropy.This generosity should be encouraged by government policies that facilitatecharitable donations.

Fiscal Responsibility

As Republicans, we are proud that in this Platform we have urged taxreductions rather than increased government spending. With firm restrainton federal spending this Platform pledges that its proposals for tax changes‹ reductions, structural adjustments, differentials, simplificationsand job-producing incentives ‹ can all be achieved within the balancedfederal budgets we also demand as vital to the interests of all Americans.Without such spending restraint, we cannot responsibly cut back taxes. Wereaffirm our determination that any net reduction of revenues must be offsetby reduced government spending.

Foreign Policy, National Defense and International Economic Policy

Prologue

The foreign policy of the United States defines the relationships weseek with the world as a whole, with friends and with adversaries. Our policymust be firmly rooted in principle and must clearly express our goals. Ourprinciples cannot be subject to passing whim; they must be true, strong,consistent and enduring.

We pledge a realistic and principled foreign policy designed to meetthe needs of the nation in the years ahead. The policies we pursue willrequire an informed consensus; the basis of that consensus will be the Americanpeople, whose most cherished desire is to live in freedom and peace, securefrom war or threat of war.

The United States is a world power with world-wide interests and responsibilities.We pledge the continuation of efforts to revitalize our traditional alliancesand to maintain close consultation with our friends. International cooperationand collaboration is required because we can achieve neither our most importantobjectives nor even our own security in the type of "splendid isolation"which is urged upon us by so many strident voices. The regrettable emergenceof neo-isolationism often expressed in Congress and elsewhere is detrimental,we believe, to a sound foreign policy .

The branches of government can and should work together as the necessaryprerequisite for a sound foreign policy. We lament the reckless intrusionof one branch into the clear constitutional prerogative of another. Confrontedby so many challenges and so many crises, the United States must again speakwith one voice, united in spirit and in fact. We reject partisan and ideologicalquarrels across party lines and urge Democrats to join with us to lay thefoundations of a true bipartisan spirit. Let us speak for this country withone voice, so that our policies will not be misunderstood by our alliesor our potential adversaries.

Effective policy must rest on promises which are understood and shared,and must be defined in terms of priorities. As the world has changed ina dynamic fashion, so too have our priorities and goals, and so too havethe methods of debating and discussing our objectives. When we assumed Executiveoffice eight years ago, we found the national security and foreign policymachinery in shambles. Last-minute reactions to crises were the practice.The National Security Council, so effective under President Eisenhower,had fallen into disuse. As an important first step, the National SecurityCouncil machinery was streamlined to cope with the problems of the momentand long-range planning. This restored process allows once again for exhaustiveconsideration of all the options from which a President must choose. Farfrom stifling internal debate and dissent as had been the practice in thepast, Republican leadership now invites and stimulates evaluation of complexissues in an orderly decision-making process.

Republican leadership has also taken steps to report comprehensivelyits foreign policy and national security objectives. An annual "Stateof the World" message, designed to increase communication with thepeople and with Congress, has become a permanent part of Presidential practice.

A strong and effective program of global public diplomacy is a vitalcomponent of U.S. foreign policy. In an era of instant communications. theworld is infinitely and forever smaller, and we must have the capacity tocommunicate to the world‹to inform, to explain and to guard againstaccidental or willful distortion of United States policies.

Interdependence has become a fact of international life, linking ouractions and policies with those of the world at large. The United Statesshould reach out to other nations to enrich that interdependence. Republicanleadership has demonstrated that recognition of the ties that bind us toour friends will serve our mutual interests in a creative fashion and willenhance the chances for world peace.

Morality in Foreign Policy

The goal of Republican foreign policy is the achievement of liberty underlaw and a just and lasting peace in the world. The principles by which weact to achieve peace and to protect the interests of the United States mustmerit the restored confidence of our people.

We recognize and commend that great beacon of human courage and morality,Alexander Solzhenitsyn, for his compelling message that we must face theworld with no illusions about the nature of tyranny. Ours will be a foreignpolicy that keeps this ever in mind.

Ours will be a foreign policy which recognizes that in internationalnegotiations we must make no undue concessions; that in pursuing detentewe must not grant unilateral favors with only the hope of getting futurefavors in return.

Agreements that are negotiated, such as the one signed in Helsinki, mustnot take from those who do not have freedom the hope of one day gainingit.

Finally, we are firmly committed to a foreign policy in which secretagreements, hidden from our people, will have no part.

Honestly, openly, and with firm conviction, we shall go forward as aunited people to forge a lasting peace in the world based upon our deepbelief in the rights of man, the rule of law and guidance by the hand ofGod.

National Defense

A superior national defense is the fundamental condition for a secureAmerica and for peace and freedom for the world. Military strength is thepath to peace. A sound foreign policy must be rooted in a superior defensecapability, and both must be perceived as a deterrent to aggression andsupportive of our national interests.

The American people expect that their leaders will assure a nationaldefense posture second to none. They know that planning for our nationalsecurity must be a joint effort by the President and Congress. It cannotbe the subject of partisan disputes. It should not be held hostage to domesticpolitical adventurism.

A minimum guarantee to preserve freedom and insure against blackmailand threats, and in the face of growing Soviet military power, requiresa period of sustained growth in our defense efforts. In constant dollars,the present defense budge will no more than match the defense budge of 1964,the year before a Democrat Administration involved America so deeply inthe Vietnam War. In 1975 Soviet defense programs exceeded ours in investmentby 85 per cent, exceeded ours in operating costs by 25 per cent, and exceededours in research and development by 66 per cent. The issue is whether ourforces will be adequate to future challenges. We say they must be.

We must always achieve maximum value for each defense dollar spent. Alongwith the elimination of the draft and the creation, under a Republican President,of all-volunteer armed services, we have reduced the personnel requirementsfor support functions without affecting our basic posture. Today there arefewer Americans in the uniformed services than at any time since the Fallof 1950. Substantial economies have been made in weapons procurement andwe will continue to act in a prudent manner with our defense appropriations.

Our national defense effort will include the continuation of the majormodernization program for our strategic missile and bomber forces, the developmentof a new and intercontinental ballistic missile, a new missile launchingsubmarine force and a modern bomber ‹ the B-1 ‹ capable of penetratingthe most sophisticated air defenses of the 1980's. These elements will comprisea deterrent of the first order.

We will increase our army to 16 divisions, reinforce our program of producingnew tanks and other armored vehicles, and support the development of new,highly accurate precision weapons.

Our Navy, the guarantor of freedom of the seas, must have a major shipbuildingprogram, with an adequate balance between nuclear and non-nuclear ships.The composition of the fleet must be based on a realistic assessment ofthe threat we face, and must assure that no adversary will gain naval superiority.

An important modernization program t for our tactical air forces is underway. We will require new fighters and interceptor aircraft for the Air Force,Navy and Marines. As a necessary component of our long-range strategy, wewill produce and deploy the B-1 bomber in a timely manner, allowing us toretain air superiority.

Our investments in military research: and development are of great importanceto our future defense capabilities. We must not lose the vital momentum.

With increasing complexity of weapons, lead times for weapons systemsare often as long as a decade, requiring careful planning and prudent financialdecisions. An outstanding example of this process is the development anddeployment of the cruise missile, which incorporates pinpoint precisionby means of sophisticated guidance systems and is an exceptionally economicalweapon to produce.

Security assistance programs are important to our allies and we willcontinue to strengthen their efforts at self-defense The improvement oftheir capabilities can help to ensure that the world balance is not tippedagainst us and can also serve to lessen chances for direct U.S. involvementin remote conflicts.

As a vital component of our over-all national security posture, the UnitedStates must have the best intelligence system in the world The effectivenessof the intelligence community must be restored, consonant with the reformsinstituted by President Ford. We favor the creation of an independent oversightfunction by Congress and we will withstand partisan efforts to turn anypart of our intelligence system into a political football. We will takeevery precaution to prevent the breakdown of security controls on sensitiveintelligence information. endangering the lives of U.S. officials abroador affecting the ability of the President to act expeditiously wheneverlegitimate foreign policy and defense needs require it.

NATO and Europe

Fundamental to a stable, secure world is the continuation of our traditionalalliances. The North Atlantic Treaty Organization now approaching the endof its third decade, remains healthy and vigorous .

The threat to our mutual security by a totalitarian power bent on expansionbrought 15 nations together. The expression of our collective will to resistresulted in the creation and maintenance of a military deterrent which.while not without occasional strains, has served our vital interests well.Today that threat continues.

We have succeeded in extending our cooperation within NATO and have takenbold new steps in economic cooperation with our partners. Faced with a seriouscrisis in the energy field following the imposition of the oil boycott,we demonstrated that it was possible to coordinate our joint activitieswith the other NATO nations.

The economic strength of Western Europe has increased to the point whereour NATO partners can now assume a larger share of the common defense; inresponse to our urging, our allies are demonstrating a greater willingnessto do so. This is not the time to recommend a unilateral reduction of Americanmilitary forces in Europe. We will, however, pursue the balanced reductionof forces in both Western and Eastern Europe, based on agreements whichdo not Jeopardize the security of the Alliance. With our Alliance partners.we affirm that a strong NATO defense. based on the United States militarypresence, is vital to the defense of Western Europe.

Some of our NATO allies have experienced rapid and dynamic changes. Weare encouraged by developments in the Iberian peninsula, where both Portugaland Spain now face more promising futures. Early consideration should begiven to Spain's accession to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

At the same time we would view with concern any political developmentselsewhere in Europe which are destabilizing to NATO interests. We supportthe right of all nations to choose their leaders. Democracy and freedomare best served by ensuring that those fundamental rights are preservedand extended for future generations to choose in freedom.

The difficult problem of Cyprus, which separates our friends in Greeceand Turkey should be addressed and resolved by those two countries. Theeastern flank of NATO requires restored cooperation there and eventually,friendly relations between the two countries.

Republican leadership has strengthened this nation's good relations withthe European Economic Community in an age of increasing competition andpotential irritations. We will maintain and strengthen the excellent relationswe have achieved with the EEC.

In the final analysis, the NATO Alliance will be as effective as ourwill and determination, as well as that of our allies, to support it. Thefunction of collective security is to deter wars and, if necessary, to fightand win those wars not successfully deterred. Our vigilance is especiallyrequired during periods of prolonged relaxation of tensions with our adversariesbecause we cannot permit ourselves to accept words and promises as a substitutefor deeds. We are determined that the NATO Alliance shall not be lulledinto a false sense of security. It can and must respond vigorously whencalled upon to act.

Asia and the Pacific

The United States has vital interests in the entire Pacific Basin andthose interests lie foremost in Asian tranquility and stability.

The experience of ending direct American involvement in a difficult andcostly war initiated during Democrat Administrations has taught us a greatdeal about how we ought to define our interests in this part of the world.The United States is indisputably a Pacific power. We have sought to expressour interests in the area through strengthening existing friendly ties andcreating new ones.

Japan will remain the main pillar of our Asian policy. We have helpedto provide the framework, over the course of thirty years, for the developmentof the Japanese economy, which has risen to second place among free worldnations. This nation without natural resources, has maximized its greatestresource, the Japanese people to achieve one of the world's most significanteconomic advances. We will continue our policy of close consultation andcooperation with this valued friend. We have succeeded in establishing anexceptional relationship with Japan. Our long-range goals of stability andeconomic cooperation are identical, forming the essential strength of arelationship which both countries seek actively to deepen.

With respect to the Republic of Korea a nation with which we have hadtraditionally close ties and whose economy has grown rapidly in recent years,we shall continue our policy of military and economic assistance. UnitedStates troops will be maintained in Korea so long as there exists the possibilityof renewed aggression from North Korea. Time has not dimmed our memoriesof the sudden assault against South Korea. We reaffirm the commitment ofthe United States to the territorial integrity and the sovereignty of theRepublic of Korea. Simultaneously we encourage the Governments of SouthKorea and North Korea to institute domestic policy initiatives leading tothe extension of basic human rights.

When Republicans assumed executive office in 1969, we were confrontedwith a war in Vietnam involving more than 500,000 U.S. troops, and to whichwe had committed billions of dollars and our national honor and prestige.It was in the spirit of bipartisan support for Presidential foreign policyinitiatives, inaugurated in the postwar era by Senator Arthur Vandenberg,that most Republicans support the United States commitment to assist SouthVietnam resist Communist-sponsored aggression. The human cost to us wasgreat; more than 55,000 Americans died in that conflict, and more than 300,000were wounded.

A policy of patient, persistent and principled negotiations extricatedthe United States from that ill-fated war with the expectation that peacewould prevail. The refusal of the Democrat-controlled Congress to give supportto Presidential requests for military aid to the beleaguered nations ofSouth Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos, coupled with sustained military assaultsby the Communists in gross violation of the Paris Peace Accords, broughtabout the collapse of those nations and the subjugation of their peopleto totalitarian rule.

We recognize that there is a wide divergence of opinion concerning Vietnam,but we pledge that American troops will never again be committed for thepurpose of our own defense, or the defense of those to whom we are committedby treaty or other solemn agreements, without the clear purpose of achievingour stated diplomatic and military objectives.

We must achieve the return of all Americans who may be held in SoutheastAsia, and a full accounting for those listed as Missing in Action. We stronglyurge continued consultation between the President and the National Leagueof Families of American Prisoners and Missing in Southeast Asia. This countryowes at least this much to all of these courageous people who have anguishedso long over this matter. To this end, and to underscore our top prioritycommitment to the families of these POWs and MIAs, we recommend, among otheractions, the establishment of a Presidential Task Force headed by a specialPresidential representative.

We condemn the inhumane and criminal retributions which have taken placein Cambodia, where mass executions and forced resettlements have been imposedon innocent civilians.

The important economic developments taking place in Singapore, Indonesia,Malaysia, the Philippines and other Asian countries will lead to much improvedliving standards for the people there. We reaffirm our friendship with thesenations. Equally, our relationships with Australia and New Zealand are historicand important to us; they have never been better and provide a firm baseon which to build.

United States-Chinese Relations

A development of significance for the future of Asia and for the worldcame to fruition in 1972 as our communications were restored with the People'sRepublic of China. This event has allowed us to initiate dialogue with theleaders of a quarter of the earth's population, and trade channels withthe People's Republic have been opened, leading to benefits for each side.

The People's Republic of China can and will play an increasingly importantrole in world affairs. We shall seek to engage the People's Republic ofChina in an expanded network of contacts and trade. Such a process cannotrealistically proceed at a forced or incautious pace; the measured but steadygrowth of our relations best serves our interests. We do not ignore theprofound differences in our respective philosophies, governmental institutions,policies and views on individual liberty, and we are hopeful that basichuman rights will be extended to the Chinese people. What is truly fundamentalis that we have established regular working channels with the People's Republicof China and that this process can form an important contribution to worldpeace.

Our friendly relations with one great power should not be construed asa challenge to any other nation, large or small. The United States government,while engaged in a normalization of relations with the People's Republicof China, will continue to support the freedom and independence of our friendand ally, the Republic of China, and its 16 million people. The United Stateswill fulfill and keep its commitments, such as the mutual defense treaty,with the Republic of China.

The Americas

The relations of the United States with the Americas are of vital andimmediate importance. How we conduct our affairs with our neighbors to theNorth and South will continue to be a priority.

In the recent past our attention has at times been diverted to more distantparts of the world. There can be no sensible alternative to close relationshipsand understanding among the nations of this hemisphere.

It is time for a series of new departures in our relations with Canada.Canada is our most important trading partner, and we are hers. We, as Americans,feel a deep affinity for our Canadian friends, and we have much at stakein the development of closer relationships based on mutual understandingand complete equality.

To our neighbors in Mexico, Central America and South America, we alsosay that we wish the opportunity to expand our dialogue. The needs of ourfriends are great, but this must not serve as an obstacle for a concertedeffort to work together more closely. The United States has taken stepsto adjust tariffs so as to maximize access to our markets. We recognizethat our neighbors place no value on complex and cumbersome aid schemes;they see self-help, modernization, and expanded trade as the main sourcesof economic progress. We will work with them to define specific steps thatwe can take to help them achieve greater economic strength, and to advanceour mutual interests.

By continuing its policies of exporting subversion and violence, Cubaremains outside the Inter-American family of nations. We condemn attemptsby the Cuban dictatorship to intervene in the affairs of other nations;and, as long as such conduct continues, it shall remain ineligible for admissionto the Organization of American States.

We shall continue to share the aspirations of the Cuban people to regaintheir liberty We insist that decent and humane conditions be maintainedin the treatment of political prisoners in the Cuban jails, and we willseek arrangements to allow international entities, such as the InternationalRed Cross, to investigate and monitor the conditions in those jails.

The present Panama Canal Treaty provides that the United States has jurisdictionalrights in the Canal Zone as "if it were the sovereign." The UnitedStates intends that the Panama Canal be preserved as an international waterwayfor the ships of all nations. This secure access is enhanced by a relationshipwhich commands the respect of Americans and Panamanians and benefits thepeople of both countries. In any talks with Panama, however, the UnitedStates negotiators should in no way cede, dilute, forfeit, negotiate ortransfer any rights, power, authority, jurisdiction, territory or propertythat are necessary for the protection and security of the United Statesand the entire Western Hemisphere.

We reaffirm our faith in the ability of the Organization of AmericanStates, which remains a valuable means of inter-American consultation.

The Middle East

The preservation of peace and stability in the Middle East is a paramountconcern. The efforts of two Republican Administrations, summoning diplomaticand political skills, have been directed toward reduction of tensions andtoward avoiding flashpoints which could serve as an excuse for yet anotherround of conflict between Israel and the Arab countries.

Our commitment to Israel is fundamental and enduring. We have honoredand will continue to honor that commitment in every way ‹ politically,economically and by providing the military aid that Israel requires to remainstrong enough to deter any potential aggression. Forty per cent of all UnitedStates' aid that Israel has received since its creation in 1948 has comein the last two fiscal years, as a result of Republican initiatives. Ourpolicy must remain one of decisive support for the security and integrityof Israel.

An equally important component of our commitment to Israel lies in continuingour efforts to secure a just and durable peace for all nations in that complexregion. Our efforts have succeeded, for the first time since the creationof the state of Israel in moving toward a negotiated peace settlement whichwould serve the interests and the security of all nations in the MiddleEast. Peace in the Middle East now requires face-to-face, direct negotiationsbetween the states involved with the recognition of safe, secure and defensibleborders for Israel.

At the same time, Republican Administrations have succeeded in reestablishingcommunication with the Arab countries, and have made extensive progressin our diplomatic and commercial relations with the more moderate Arab nations.

As a consequence of the Middle East convict of 1973, the petroleum producingstates imposed an embargo on the export of oil to most of the advanced industrialcountries. We have succeeded in creating numerous cooperative mechanismsto protect ourselves, working in concert with our allies, against any futureembargoes. The United States would view any attempt to reimpose an embargoas an essentially hostile act. We will oppose discriminatory practices,including boycotts of any type.

Because we have such fundamental interests in the Middle East, it willbe our policy to continue our efforts to maintain the balance of power inthe Mediterranean region. Our adversaries must recognize that we will notpermit a weakening of our defenses or any attempt to disturb valued Alliancerelationships in the Eastern Mediterranean .

We shall continue to support peace initiatives in the civil war in Lebanon;United States envoys engaged in precisely such an initiative were murdered,and we express our sorrow for their untimely deaths and for all other dedicatedgovernment employees who have been slain elsewhere while in service to theircountry. In Lebanon, we stand ready to provide food, medical and other humanitarianassistance.

Africa

The United States has always supported the process of self-determinationin Africa. Our friendship for the African countries is expressed in supportfor continued peaceful economic development, expansion of trade, humanitarianrelief efforts and our belief that the entire continent should be free fromoutside military intervention. Millions of Americans recognize their historicaland cultural ties with Africa and express their desire that United Statespolicy toward Africa is a matter of great importance.

We support all forces which promote negotiated settlements and racialpeace. We shall continue to deplore all violence and terrorism and to urgeall concerned that the rights of tribal, ethnic and racial minorities beguaranteed through workable safeguards. Our policy is to strengthen theforces of moderation, recognizing that solutions to African problems willnot come quickly. The peoples of Africa can coexist in security, work togetherin freedom and harmony, and strive together to secure their prosperity.We hope that the Organization of African Unity will be able to achieve matureand stable relationships within Africa and abroad.

The interests of peace and security in Africa are best served by theabsence of arms and greater concentration on peaceful development. We reservethe right to maintain the balance by extending our support to nations facinga threat from Soviet-supplied states and from Soviet weapons.

United States-Soviet Relations

American foreign policy must be based upon a realistic assessment ofthe Communist challenge in the world. It is clear that the perimeters offreedom continue to shrink throughout the world in the face of the Communistchallenge. Since 1917, totalitarian Communism has managed through bruteforce, not through the free electoral process, to bring an increasinglysubstantial portion of the world's land area and peoples under its domination.To illustrate, most recently South Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos have fallenunder the control of Communist dictatorships, and in that part of the worldthe Communist pressure mounts against Thailand, the Republic of China, andthe Republic of Korea. In Africa, Communist Cuban forces, brazenly assistedby the Soviet Union, have recently imposed a Communist dictatorship uponthe people of Angola. Other countries in Africa and throughout the worldgenerally await similar fates. These are the realities of world power inour time. The United States is thoroughly justified in having based itsforeign policy upon these realities.

Thirty years ago relations between the United States and the Soviet Unionwere in a phase of great difficulty, leading to the tensions of the ColdWar era. Although there have been changes in this crucial superpower relationship,there remain fundamental and profound differences between us. RepublicanPresidents, while acknowledging the depth of the gulf which separates ourfree society from Soviet society, have sought methodically to isolate anddevelop those areas of our relations which would serve to lessen tensionand reduce the chance of unwanted conflict.

In a world beset by countless opportunities for discord and armed conflict,the relationship between the United States and the Soviet Union is criticallyimportant; on it rests the hopes of the world for peace. We offer a policythat maintains our fundamental strength and demonstrates our steadfast determinationto prevent aggressive use of Soviet power.

The role of a responsible, participating Congress in maintaining thisdiplomatic and military posture is critical to success. The United Statesmust remain a loyal and dependable ally, and must be prepared to carry outcommitments and to demonstrate a willingness to act. Resistance to openaggression, such as the Soviet-sponsored Cuban intervention in Angola, mustnot be allowed to become the subject of a partisan debate, nor can it beallowed to become an unchallenged and established pattern of internationalbehavior, lest our credibility and deterrent strength be greatly diminished.

Soviet military power has grown rapidly in recent years, and while weshall prevent a military imbalance or a sudden shift in the global balanceof power, we shall also diligently explore with the Soviet Union new waysto reduce tensions and to arrive at mutually beneficial and self-enforcingagreements in all fields of international activity. Important steps havebeen taken to limit strategic nuclear arms. The Vladivostok Agreement ofNovember 19t4 placed a ceiling on the strategic forces of both the UnitedStates and the Soviet Union. Further negotiations in arms control are continuing.We shall not agree for the sake of agreement; on the contrary we will makesure that any agreements yield fundamental benefits to our national security.

As an example of hardheaded bargaining, our success in concluding agreementslimiting the size of peaceful nuclear explosions and nuclear weapons testswill, for the first time, permit the United States to conduct on-site inspectionsin the Soviet Union itself. This important step can now be measured in practicalterms. All such agreements must stand the test of verification. An agreementthat does not provide this safeguard is worse than no agreement at all.

We support the consolidation of joint efforts with our allies to verifythat our policies regarding the transfer of technology to the Soviet Unionand its allies are in concert and that consultation will be designed topreclude the sale of those technology-intensive products to the Soviet Unionby the United States and our allies which will directly or indirectly jeopardizeour national security.

Our trade in nonstrategic areas creates jobs here at home, substantiallyimproves our balance-of-payments position, and can contribute to an improvedpolitical climate in the world. The overseas sale of our agricultural productsbenefits American farmers and consumers. To guard against any sudden shiftin domestic prices as the consequence of unannounced purchases, we haveinstituted strict reporting procedures and other treaty safeguards. We shallnot permit concessional sales of agricultural products to the Soviet Union,nor shall we permit the Soviet Union or others to determine our agriculturalexport policies by irregular and unpredictable purchases.

The United States and the Soviet Union remain ideological competitors.We do not shrink from such a challenge; rather, we welcome the opportunityto demonstrate that our way of life is inherently preferable to regimentationand government-enforced orthodoxy. We shall expect the Soviet Union to implementthe United Nations Declaration on Human Rights and the Helsinki Agreements,which guarantee the conditions for the free interchange of information andthe right to emigrate, including emigration of Soviet Jews, Christians,Moslems and others who wish to join close relatives abroad. In this spiritwe shall expect the immediate end of all forms of harassment, includingimprisonment and military service, aimed at preventing such emigration.America must take a firm stand to bring about liberalization of emigrationpolicy in countries which limit or prohibit free emigration. Governmentswhich enjoy the confidence of their people need have no fear of cultural,intellectual or press freedom.

Our support for the people of Central and Eastern Europe to achieve self-determinationwill continue. Their ability to choose their future is of great importanceto peace and stability. We favor increasing contact between Eastern andWestern Europe and support the increasing economic ties of all the countriesof Europe. We strongly support the continuation of the Voice of America,Radio Free Europe and Radio Liberty with adequate appropriations. Strictreciprocity must govern our diplomatic relations with the Soviet Union.We express our concern for the safety of our diplomatic representativesin the Soviet Union, and we insist that practices such as microwave transmissionsdirected at the United States Embassy be terminated immediately.

Thus our relations with the Soviet Union will be guided by solid principles.We will maintain our strategic and conventional forces; we will oppose thedeployment of Soviet power for unilateral advantages or political and territorialexpansion; we will never tolerate a shift against us in the strategic balance;and we will remain firm in the face of pressure, while at the same timeexpressing our willingness to work on the basis of strict reciprocity towardnew agreements which will help achieve peace and stability.

International Cooperation

Strong support for international cooperation in all fields has been ahallmark of United States international policy for many decades. Two RepublicanAdministrations have strengthened agencies of international cooperationnot only because of our humanitarian concern for others, but also becauseit serves United States interests to be a conscientious member of the worldcommunity.

The political character of the United Nations has become complex. With144 sovereign members, the U.N. experiences problems associated with a large,sometimes cumbersome and diverse body. We seek to accommodate to these changesin the spirit of friendly concern, but when the United Nations becomes arrayedagainst the vital interest of any of its member states on ideological orother narrow grounds, the very principles of the organization are threatened.The United States does not wish to dictate to the U.N., yet we do have everyright to expect and insist that scrupulous care be given to the rights ofall members. Steamroller techniques for advancing discriminatory actionswill be opposed. Actions such as the malicious attempt to depict Zionismas a form of racism are inconsistent with the objectives of the United Nationsand are repugnant to the United States. The United States will continueto be a firm supporter and defender of any nation subjected to such outrageousassaults. We will not accept ideological abuses in the United States.

In the many areas of international cooperation which benefit the averageAmerican ‹ elimination of terrorism, peacekeeping, nonproliferationof nuclear weapons, termination of the international drug trade, and orderlyuse of ocean resources ‹ we pledge to build new international structuresof cooperation. At the same time, we shall seek to insure that the costof such new structures, as well as the cost of existing structures, aremore equitably shared among participating nations. In the continued traditionof American concern for the quality of human life everywhere, we shall givevigorous support to the non-political work of the specialized agencies ofthe United Nations which deal with such areas as nutrition and disasterrelief for the world's poor and disadvantaged.

The United States should promptly withdraw from the International LaborOrganization if that body fails to stop its increasing politicization.

Eight years ago we pledged to eliminate waste and to make more business-likethe administration of United States foreign aid programs. We have endeavoredto fulfill these pledges. Our foreign economic assistance programs are nowbeing operated efficiently with emphasis on helping others to help themselves,on food production and rural development, on health programs and sound populationplanning assistance, and on the development of human resources.

We have sought to encourage others, including the oil producing countries,to assume a larger share of the burden of assistance. We shall continueour efforts to secure adequate sources of financing for economic projectsin emerging countries.

The world's oceans, with their vast resources, must become areas of extendedcooperation. We favor a successful conclusion to the Law of the Sea Conferenceprovided it will suitably protect legitimate national interests, freedomof the seas and responsible use of the seas. We are determined to maintainthe right of free and unmolested passage for ships of all nations on thehigh seas and in international waterways.

We favor an extension of the territorial sea from three to twelve miles,and we favor in principle the creation of a 200 mile economic zone in whichcoastal states would have exclusive rights to explore and develop naturalresources.

We strongly condemn illegal corporate payments made at home and abroad.To eliminate illegal payments to foreign officials by American corporations,we support passage of President Ford's proposed legislation and the OECDDeclaration on Investment setting forth reasonable guidelines for businessconduct.

The growth of civilian nuclear technology, and the rising demand fornuclear power as an alternative to increasingly costly fossil fuel resources,combine to require our recognition of the potential dangers associated withsuch developments. All nations must work to assure that agreements and treatiescurrently governing nuclear technology and nuclear exports are carefullymonitored. We shall work to devise new multilateral policies governing theexport of sensitive nuclear technologies.

International Economic Policy

The tumultuous events of the past several years in the world economywere an enormous challenge to our creativity and to our capacity for leadership.We have emerged from this difficult period in a new position in the world,and we have directed and guided a sound recovery.

To assure the permanence of our own prosperity, we must work with othersdemonstrating our leadership and the vitality of our economy. Together withthe industrial democracies, we must ensure steady, non-inflationary growthbased on expanded international cooperation.

The Republican Administration will cooperate fully in strengthening theinternational trade and monetary system, which provides the foundation forour prosperity and that of all nations. We shall bargain hard to removebarriers to an open economic system, and we shall oppose new restrictionsto trade. We shall continue to represent vigorously our nation's economicinterests in the trade negotiations taking place in Geneva, guard againstprotectionism, and insist that the principles of fair trade be scrupulouslyobserved. When industries and jobs are adversely affected by foreign competition,adjustment assistance under the Trade Act of 1974 is made available. ThisAct must be under continuous review to ascertain that it reflects changingcircumstances.

The Republican Party believes that cooperation in the energy field isindispensable to international stability. Most of the industrial democraciesand the less developed countries are increasingly dependent on importedoil, which causes them to be politically, economically and strategicallyvulnerable. Through the establishment of the International Energy Agency,steps have been taken to expand consumer cooperation. We shall also continuethe dialogue with the oil producing countries

We shall continue to work closely with the less-developed countries topromote their economic growth. Those countries will be encouraged to enterinto mutually beneficial trade relationships with us that contribute toworld peace. To achieve this, we must strengthen the confidence of the majorindustrial countries as they take part in discussions with less-developedcountries. There is no reason for us to be defensive; our combined assetscan be used in a coordinated strategy to make our influence effective. Wewill not yield to threats or confrontational politics.

While we shall support a global increase of investment in natural resourcesof all types, we shall also oppose the replacement of the free market mechanismby cartels, price-fixing arrangements or commodity agreements. We shallcontinue policies designed to assure free market consumers abroad that theUnited States will remain a dependable supplier of agricultural commodities.

Conclusion

The American people can be proud of our nation's achievements in foreignpolicy over the past 8 years.

We are at peace.

We are strong.

We re-emphasize the importance of our ties with the nations of the Americas.

Our relations with allies in the Atlantic community and with Japan havenever been closer.

Significant progress has been made toward a just and durable settlementin the Middle East.

We have sought negotiation rather than confrontation with our adversaries,while maintaining our strategic deterrent.

The world economic recovery, led by the United States, is producing sustainablegrowth.

In this year of our nation's bicentennial, the American people have confidencein themselves and are optimistic about the future.

We, the Republican Party, proudly submit our record and our platformto you.