Long Live Independents--Real Ones : America is ripe for a third political party, one that isn’t based on personalities.

With increased discussion about the possibility of Colin Powell running for President as an Independent, Ross Perot’s recent convention in Texas and Bill Bradley’s saying he might run for President outside of the two-party system, there has been much media speculation lately about the possibility of a “third party.”

As the only Independent in Congress and one of the founders of, perhaps, the most successful third party effort in the country, it is my strong belief that much of the discussion is utter nonsense.

This country most certainly does need a third party, but not a centrist party based on personality--whether the personality is Perot’s, Bradley’s, or Powell’s.

We need a third party to do what the Republicans and Democrats are not doing: to represent the needs of the working people and the poor against a wealthy and powerful corporate elite who increasingly dominate our economic and political life.

Ross Perot, whatever his qualifications might be, would not be a serious candidate for anything if he were not a billionaire. A top-down Perot party would be symptomatic of precisely what is wrong with politics in this country: the power of big money.

Bill Bradley has, throughout his political career, received heavy support from corporate interests. He has strongly supported NAFTA and other disastrous “free trade” policies, as well as tax reform which benefits the rich.

Gen. Powell has received public acclaim as a war hero and a non-politician. It is an absurd political process that put him at the top of the polls before anyone even knew where he stood on the issues.

Any attempt at creating a real alternative to the two major parties must address the critical issue facing most Americans, that of a rapidly declining standard of living. Both major parties serve the interests of the rich and corporate America quite well. A real third party must stand up for the interests of America’s working men and women.

What should the platform of a serious, grass-roots, third political party include?

Progressive Tax Reform. This country cannot continue to have the most unfair distribution of wealth and income in the industrialized world. The richest 1% of the population owns more wealth than the bottom 90% and the gap between the rich and the poor is growing wider. While corporate profits soar, the real wages of American workers continue to decline. The wealthy and corporate America must begin paying their fair share of taxes.

End corporate welfare and cut military spending. We can move toward a balanced budget and lower taxes on the working people and middle class by eliminating the $125 billion a year wealthy special interests receive through subsidies and tax breaks. Now that the Cold War is over we do not have to spend $100 billion a year defending Europe and Asia against a nonexistent enemy.

Raise the minimum wage to $5.50 an hour and develop a jobs program which rebuilds America. Our workers cannot continue to survive on the low wage, part-time employment currently being created. We can create millions of decent paying jobs rebuilding our bridges, sewer systems, roads and mass transportation. We should also be investing in education, child care, disease prevention and environmental protection.

Create a single-payer national health care system. We must pull the plug on our current approach to health care which leaves over 40 million Americans uninsured and is the most costly and wasteful in the world.

End our disastrous trade policy and establish “fair trade,” not “free trade,” as our trade position. Repeal NAFTA, GATT and most favored nation status with China and demand that corporate America reinvest in this country. We cannot continue a trade policy which, this year, will run up to a $160 billion dollar trade deficit and cause the loss of 3 million decent-paying jobs.

Reform campaign and election finance policies. The rich and large corporations cannot be allowed to continue to buy political parties and candidates. Same day registration will encourage low-income people to vote and perhaps stop the United States from having the lowest voter turnout of any major democracy.

There is no sense in having a third party which is dominated by the same top-down interests who control the major two parties. A real third party must excite workers and the middle class, significantly increase votert urnout, and fight for a progressive agenda which focuses on the needs of ordinary Americans.