WASHINGTON STATE DEMS BUILD BOLD PLATFORM

Tommy Thompson is busy cobbling together the Republican Party platform
on which his pal George W. Bush will seek the presidency this fall.
While this exciting task has taken Wisconsin's gallivanting governor
to hot spots like Billings and Dayton, it hasn't taken him outside the
box.

So far, the "ideas'' that have been pitched at the platform hearings
have been about as predictable as those advanced in the
platform-drafting circles of the Democratic Party. Indeed, the once
adventurous process of platform writing has become such a cautious
endeavor that even the candidates dismiss the documents; remember the
1996 Republican presidential nominee Bob Dole's proud announcement
that he didn't even plan to peruse his party's official agenda, let
alone campaign on its tenets?

Perhaps Thompson and his Democratic counterparts should take a cue
from the authors of the new platform of Washington state's Democratic
Party. Delegates to the party's mid-June convention were in a
rambunctious mood -- as an example, they booed Energy Secretary Bill
Richardson, a prospective Democratic vice presidential pick, for his
nuclear policies. And they drew up a campaign canon that made news.

Big news, as it turns out. "Democrats take big step to left in their
platform,'' announced the headline in the Seattle Times.

In addition to affirming that "food, shelter, medical care, education
and jobs are basic human rights,'' the delegates declared that they
"oppose all discrimination in employment, housing, public
accommodations, military service, insurance, licensing or education
based on race, religion, age, sex, sexual orientation, gender
identity, disability, size, political affiliation, and/or national
origin.''

They came out for "the creation of a single, universal, publicly
funded, accountable Washington state health care system including
prenatal and preventive care, hospital and ambulatory care,
prescription drugs, vision and hearing care, substance-abuse
counseling and treatment, and funding for confidential family planning
and reproductive choice.''

The delegates backed complete separation of church and state,
condemned "any law, regulation or government action restricting legal
rights and private matters regarding one's reproductive functions,''
and stated that "because marriage is a basic human right and
individual personal choice, the state should not interfere with
same-gender couples who choose to marry and share fully and equally in
the rights, responsibilities and commitment of civil marriage.''

In the criminal justice section of the platform, the delegates
declared, "Prevention of crime is as important as reaction to crime.
We believe that government has the responsibility to help alleviate
the social conditions which contribute to crime.'' Of course, they
opposed capital punishment -- this is a civilized state, not Texas.

It was actually in the area of drug policy that the Washington state
Democrats really pushed the limits of contemporary politicking. "We
believe drug use to be a concern for the medical community, not a
criminal issue,'' they declared, going on to state their full support
for decriminalization of marijuana.

A resolution adopted by a close vote of the convention went even
further, proposing that legalized marijuana be sold through cafes,
bars and state liquor stores with the tax money raised from the sales
"spent in the fulfillment of health and human needs.''

Radical? Maybe. But no more radical than the reforms ordinary people
talk about all the time. And, say Washington state Democrats, they're
betting that by standing for positions that are controversial rather
than cautious, they'll draw thousands of disengaged citizens back to
the polls. Says Party Chairman Paul Berendt, the best way to get
people to the polls is to give them a platform designed to "get people
fired up.''