Democratic Party Platform Aims at Issues, Not Polls

As the state regional director and volunteer responsible for implementing Democratic State Chair Phil Angelides’ directives to hold platform hearings in Orange County, I am responding to his letter (“Adler Gets Some Bipartisan Praise,” Oct. 6) and County Democratic Chair Howard Adler’s recent Commentary (“It’s Time to Address the Issues That Voters Really Care About,” Sept. 29) about the Democratic platform hearings.

Every one of us who participated in the platform hearings Oct. 5 agree that our messages must address today’s problems, be delivered stronger, more often, and respected by the Democratic legislators. Many said they would not advocate positions based on voter polls, but on issues they believe would win the allegiance of the majority of the 70% of the citizens who did not vote in previous elections.

Legislators have caved in to lobbyists and weakened proposed legislation because of President Bush’s or Gov. Wilson’s threatened vetoes, rather than be strong leaders. We believe voters can be won back (by) taking principled stands to guarantee full employment, enforce worker safety laws and protect pensions; create incentives for renewable and non-polluting energy sources; establish a national health program; nurture public education; advance gun-control laws to make safer streets; guarantee non-discrimination in jobs and housing; protect the individual’s rights concerning reproductive choices and safe access to family-planning counseling, and support economic measures to reverse the Reagan/Bush policy which has allowed the wage and salary income of the richest 1% of individuals to rise 121% from 1977 to 1988, while the income of 90% of the population fell by 3.5%.

The debate on platform issues, engaged vociferously by Orange County Democrats, will continue throughout the state and ultimately be voted upon at the 1992 California Democratic State Convention.

Then comes the crunch. . . . Will the candidates speak to the platform issues or will they pander to voter polls, and will the media just talk about how strong or weak the candidates are or where they are in the polls, instead of their stands on issues? I can hardly wait!

SALLY J. ALEXANDER, Huntington Beach