The Democratic Party is a big tent – nationally and locally. Our views are not monolithic. The Morris Township Democratic Committee (MTDC) is the local boots-on-the-ground force, the voice, and the energy of our party for the over 7000 Democrats who live in Morris Township, NJ.
Morris Township Democrats are currently working on an initiative to clarify the shared values, principles, and positions on issues – both locally and state/nationally – that define who we are and what we stand for as your local Democratic Party organization.
EDUCATION
We support public education as a cornerstone of our democracy. We also believe that competition is good – it raises the bar for everyone. The challenge is how to ensure fair competition. We believe that the same rules – a level playing field – must apply to all.
To qualify for public tax dollars, schools should be subject to the same instructional and service requirements as the public schools. They should be open to all students and provide the same range of services.
HEALTH CARE
We see health care as a right, not a privilege. Health care is a unique industry that should not be run by private insurance companies solely on a for-profit basis. We believe that government has a role to play in ensuring that all citizens get essential health care services. For example, many of us favor the inclusion of a public option in the individual market to help to ensure competition with private insurers.
We oppose the dismantling of the Affordable Care Act. We oppose the “voucherizing” of Medicare. We reject the notion that the insurance industry, on its own, can fix our ailing health care system.
We favor smart government intervention in ways that reduce costs and improve health care for all.
PLANNED PARENTHOOD
We support funding for Planned Parenthood. We see the recent efforts to defund Planned Parenthood as based on a skewed understanding of the facts about what Planned Parenthood does and the effects that result from defunding it.
The vast majority (97%) of Planned Parenthood’s work involves preventative services such as contraception, cancer screening, and STD treatment. Defunding Planned Parenthood would increase the number of unwanted pregnancies, the number of undetected cancers, and the spread of STDs. It will hit low-income women especially hard
In 2015, the Morris Township Democratic Committee signed a resolution supporting funding for Planned Parenthood. We are proud of that action.
GUNS
We believe in the 2nd Amendment right to gun ownership, but we also support common-sense regulation in the interest of public safety.
Nearly 90% of Americans support universal background checks, yet Congress cannot pass this common-sense requirement.
We favor a regulatory process for guns similar to that which applies to obtaining a driver’s license and driving a car: registration with the state, periodic permit renewal, evidence that basic safety training has been met, revocation subject to violations of the law, etc. At a minimum, it should not be more difficult to buy cough syrup than to buy a gun. Children’s toys should not be subject to more rigorous safety standards than guns.