Healthcare: A First Step

Voluntary Medicare for All. Allow anyone, individual or small business, to buy into Medicare for a fee based on income or payroll, respectively. The younger may opt for simple catastrophic insurance. While older may choice to purchase private sector "Gap" insurance or use tax exempt medical savings accounts. But medicare will strive, through efficiency and cost control, to close the 20% "Gap".
Allowing this "buy-in" will increase the pool of younger and healthy workers into the medicare system and create a much needed cash in-flow.
Mr Sherman's Vision is of an America where our families, our friends and our neighbors do not have to live in fear of the next illness that may leave them bankrupt and homeless.
In regards to prescription medications We must end patent protection after three years. Firm. There is no reason that the company that held the patent rights, which already has the production capital in place will not be able to profit and compete with other manufacturers.

Energy: End Oil Now

It took a Great Leader to call on our nation to commit to the vision of reaching for the Moon. It will take an equally Great Leader to call for an end to our nation's and our economy's dependence on oil.
By using a Carbon Tax That progresses at set increases at set intervals over the next decade. This will encourage Business' and Individuals to look to the future and move now to find new ways. through technology and conservation, to anticipate the coming tax increase. The Carbon Tax will also be needed to offset demand associated price drops. Oil must never be allowed to be the cheapest alternative or we will defeat our vision for an oil-free future.
Create a Manhattan Project for alternative energy sources. Use the proceeds from the Carbon Tax as funding for the search for Clean Energy and as an offset to increases in personal deductions for lower incomes tax brackets to minimize the impact of the carbon tax on those most vulnurable..
Mr Sherman's vision sees a nation where oil, has lost it's strangle hold on our economy, does not dictates our foreign policy or pollutes the planet for our children.

Strengthening the Middle Class:

Believing that Investing in the future is the key to middle class stability Mr Sherman will eliminate the Capital Gains Tax, from long term investments, on income of less then $1million. Above one million a progressive tax capped at 25%.
Mr. Sherman also believes that his plans for healthcare will bring unpresidented competative pressures to the private sector insurance markets creating cost savings and offering greater stability to the American Family.

Iraq: Step Back

We do not support our troops by making them sitting ducks in the middle of a civil war. Democracy must be forged it can not be imposed. History has shown over and over again that change comes from an energized popular movement. People amassed in the streets bring about real positive change not tanks rolling down Main street.
George Bush and members of his Administration's view of a "New American Century" has in fact created a "New American Disaster". The Neo-Con world view has cost, directly or indirectly, the lives of hundreds of thousands of innocent people and we as a people must reputiate that philosophy, take responsiblity for the actions of our leaders and hold some accountable on the world stage.
Mr. Sherman view of a way forward in Iraq call for immediate "Step Back". All US troops are to pull out from metropoliton areas to either regional locations or bases outside the cities and begin plans for total withdraw. We have an obligation to maintain a presents to offer humantiarian aid to refugees of a civil war that George Bush has unleashed. We also need to establish a regional summit to agressively pursue comprehensive middle east peace, promote democratic ideals and secular government.
Mr. Sherman energy proposels will also allow for a gradual disengagement in middle east politics.

Defense Spending: Enough is Enough

The American people have the right to demand The Pentagon spend our tax dollars efficiently. Reports of a (T)illion plus dollars unaccounted for or contractor being paid for substandard or even no work must come to an end. Mr. Sherman will establish a 9/11 style commission to investigate Pentagon spending practices. The panel will include Prominent Individuals outside the military industrial complex with high ethical standards including some from the private sector with expertise in economies of scale to offer recommendations on streamline proceedures and increase accountability.

Confronting Terrorism & Homeland Security:

Terrorism is primarily a criminal enterprise that must be confronted with a global emphasis on intelligence and aggressive criminal justice. An enemy that can dissolve into a neighborhood can not be fought with a cruise missile or an aircraft carrier.
Saving generated from a Pentagon review should be redirected to the Intelligent services, law enforcement, disaster preparedness and Increased measures to protect American assets such as Chemical Plants, Transportation infrastructure, boarders and ports.

Establish a K-8 voucher system. Each Student receives a voucher worth $10,000. Encourage those with teaching certificates, either individual or small partnerships, to start neighborhood micro-schools. Reduce the Department of Education to creating and monitoring standardized tests. Hold the Teachers responsible for national standardized tests with blind test scores available to the parents (i.e. the customer) of current or prospective students,. Allowing an "Invisible Hand" to encourage better accountability from teacher and to force out of business bad teachers. The ultimate goal is to eliminate government run k-8 education and replace it with a market driven, results based system.
In our high school ,we need to reinvent the roll of the guidance counselor to that of a mental health professional. We need to move aggressively toward a system of screening and early detection of children with mental illness. It is of the utmost importance that we detect and begin to deal with issues of mental health before the child turns 18 and becomes much more difficult, legally, to deal with. The involvement of parents is crucial for early intervention.

Global Warming:

Regardless of the question of whether global warming is being caused by humans, which Mr. Sherman strongly believes it is, regardless of that fact, we must prepare for the effects of more extreme weather conditions. Katrina has given us a glimpse of the potential for a large storm to scatter a population to the wind. Global warming has the potential to create a worldwide refugee crises as sea levels rise and storm intensity increases.
Mr. Sherman also believe his energy policies will work to minimize or even reverses the effects of global climate change.
On the question of nuclear energy, Mr. Sherman believes that nuclear energy is a false choice. until we have a way to deal effectively with the waste nuclear is not an option.

Equal Rights:

As our first Gay President Mr. Sherman will represent a national image of strength through diversity, tolerence and acceptance of the most basic human rigths.
With that in mind, We must push for a global effort to bring equal rights to all woman through out the world. Enough of the treatment of woman as property and second class citizens. We must also grant equal protection for homosexuals and grant equal access to marriage and all the benefits and protections that it provides.

Allow for Gay and Lesbians to serve openly in our military.
 

Fighting Aids:

Here at home, we must eliminate waiting lists for AIDS medications and create uniformity to benefits at the state level. People should not be forced to move from one state to another because there home state is trying to starve them out.
Internationally We must move to remove the Bush era gag rule requirements for HIV funding.