The seven Principles used in the Legislator Scorecard are identified on the following pages. The Principles are clearly defined on the POL website at ww.principlesofliberty.org. Every one of these seven Principles are supported to some extent by statements made within the 2012 Republican Party Platform, the 2012 Libertarian Party Platform, and the 2012 Democratic Party Platform. As evidence, below are direct quotes that are related to the POL Principles on this year’s scorecard that were pulled from the published 2012 National Party Platforms of all three political parties.
Individual Liberty:
2012 Democrat Party Platform:
- “…come to this nation with the same desires and ideals the forefathers had; liberty, justice, and the pursuit of happiness.”
- “…principle of religious liberty…”
- “… liberty of individuals.”
2012 Libertarian Party Platform:
- “As Libertarians, we seek a world of liberty.”
- “(2) the right to liberty of speech and action…”
- Principle 1.0 “Personal Liberty”
- “Government exists to protect the rights of every individual including life, liberty and property.”
- “The only legitimate use of force is in defense of individual rights — life, liberty, and justly acquired property — against aggression.”
- Principle 2.0 “Economic Liberty”
- “… liberty of contract…”,
- Principle 3.0 “Securing Liberty”
- “Whenever any form of government becomes destructive of individual liberty, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it, and to agree to such new governance as to them shall seem most likely to protect their liberty.
2012 Republican Party Platform:
- “…expands personal liberty…”
- “… do so to promote greater economic liberty.”
- “promote greater economic liberty…”
- “…ordered liberty that makes the U.S. the world’s freest, most stable, and most prosperous nation.”
- “…rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”
- “The Republican Party, born in opposition to the denial of liberty, stands for the rights of individuals…”
- “… if we trade liberty for security, we shall have neither…”
- “Liberty alone fosters scientific inquiry, technological innovation, entrepreneurship, and information exchange. “
- “…advocacy of religious liberty…”
- “…shared belief in… personal liberty…”,
- “The Fourth Amendment: Liberty and Privacy”
- “The Ninth Amendment: Affirming People’s Rights”
Personal Responsibility:
2012 Democrat Party Platform:
- “… responsibility should be rewarded…”
- “… hard work and personal responsibility.”
- “… where hard work pays, and where responsibility is rewarded.”
- “… responsible homeowners…”
- “…reward hard work and demand personal responsibility.”
2012 Libertarian Party Platform:
- “Individuals should be free to make choices for themselves and to accept responsibility for the consequences of the choices they make.”
- “…the education of children is a parental responsibility…”
- “Parents should have control of and responsibility for all funds expended for their children’s education.”
- “Retirement planning is the responsibility of the individual, not the government.”
2012 Republican Party Platform:
- “… responsible borrowers.”
- “…promotes personal responsibility…”
- “With every right comes a responsibility.”
- “… we recognize the individual responsibility…”
- “… personal responsibility for health maintenance.”
- “… take responsibility for planning their own retirement decades from now.”
- “…cooperation, patience, mutual respect, responsibility, self-reliance – are
- fundamental to the order and progress of our Republic.”
- “We believe that taking care of ones health is an individual responsibility.”
- “… we must foster personal responsibility…”
- “Parents are responsible for the education of their children.”
Property Rights:
2012 Democrat Party Platform:
- The protection of “intellectual property” is mentioned 6 times, always in an international context.
- Interestingly, this is the only use of the word “property” in the entire Democrat Platform. There is no mention in the entire 32 page document of “private property” or “property rights”, nor is there any other use of the word “property” in the 2012 Democratic Party Platform.
2012 Libertarian Party Platform:
- (3) the right to property — accordingly we oppose all government interference with private property, such as confiscation, nationalization, and eminent domain, and support the prohibition of robbery, trespass, fraud, and misrepresentation.”
- “People should not be forced to sacrifice their lives and property for the benefit of others.”
- “…be secure in our persons, homes, and property.”
- “Government exists to protect the rights of every individual including life, liberty
- and property.”
- “The only legitimate use of force is in defense of individual rights — life, liberty, and justly acquired property — against aggression.”
- “The only proper role of government in the economic realm is to protect property rights, adjudicate disputes, and provide a legal framework in which voluntary trade is protected.”
- “Property rights are entitled to the same protection as all other human rights. The owners of property have the full right to control, use, dispose of, or in any manner enjoy, their property without interference, until and unless the exercise of their control infringes the valid rights of others.”
- “We oppose all violations of the right to private property, liberty of contract, and freedom of trade.”
- “Free markets and property rights stimulate the technological innovations and behavioral changes required to protect our environment and ecosystems.”
2012 Republican Party Platform:
- “intellectual property” is mentioned 4 times
- “The Fifth Amendment: Protecting Private Property”
- “… for without property rights, individual rights are diminished.”
- “The Fifth Amendment: Protecting Private Property”
Free Markets:
2012 Democratic Party Platform:
- “… we will continue to work to protect… the functioning of fair and competitive markets…”
- “We know that the free market only works when there are rules of the road to ensure that competition is fair, open, and honest.”
- “Currencies must be market-driven so no nation has an unfair advantage.”
2012 Libertarian Party Platform:
- “…the resultant economic system, the only one compatible with the protection of individual rights, is the free market.”
- “A free and competitive market allocates resources in the most efficient manner.”
- “Free markets and property rights stimulate the technological innovations and behavioral changes required to protect our environment and ecosystems.”
- “We favor free-market banking…”
- “Industries should be governed by free markets.”
- “Education is best provided by the free market…”
- “We favor restoring and reviving a free market health care system.”
2012 Republican Party Platform:
- “Republicans will pursue free market policies…”
- “… committed to the principles of open markets…”
- “… we will not pick winners and losers in the energy marketplace. Instead, we will let the free market and the public’s preferences determine the industry outcomes.”
- “… a market-based approach for renewable energy resources…”
- “Then the American people, through the free market, can advance affordable and responsible healthcare reform that meets the needs and concerns of patients and providers.”
- “Consumer Choice in Education”
Limited Government:
2012 Democrat Party Platform:
- “Rules should be simpler and more flexible, and regulations should be based on sound science and secure Americans’ freedom of choice.”
- “Looking to make our government leaner, smarter, and more consumer- friendly…”
- Interestingly, there is not a single comment in the 2012 Democratic Party Platform on “limiting” the role of government. The only things that the Democratic Party Platform mentions a desire to limit are “greehouse gas emissions”, “fossil-fuel-fired power plants”, and working internationally “… toward an agreement to set emission limits in unison with other emerging powers.”
2012 Libertarian Party Platform:
- “Criminal laws should be limited to violation of the rights of others through force or fraud…”
- “Government is constitutionally limited so as to prevent the infringement of individual rights by the government itself.”
2012 Republican Party Platform:
- “Trust people. Limit government.”
- “It must be downsized and limited…”
- “Perhaps the greatest political document ever written, it defines the purposes and limits of government…”
- “We must limit injunctions by activist judges…”
- “…limit federal requirements on both private insurance and Medicaid…”
- “… limits on judicial discretion…”
- “We call for a reduction, through attrition, in the federal payroll of at least 10 percent and the adjustment of pay scales and benefits to reflect those of the private sector.”
Fiscal Responsibility:
2012 Democrat Party Platform:
- “… Democrats took decisive steps to restore fiscal responsibility…”
- “… making the hard decisions to cut our deficit and put our fiscal house in order.”
- “In our current fiscal environment, we must also make tough budgetary decisions across the board…”
2012 Libertarian Party Platform:
- “Government should not incur debt, which burdens future generations without their consent. We support the passage of a “Balanced Budget Amendment” to the U.S. Constitution, provided that the budget is balanced exclusively by cutting expenditures, and not by raising taxes.”
2012 Republican Party Platform:
- “The Republican Party is committed to saving Medicare and Medicaid. Unless the programs’ fiscal ship is righted,…”
- “To restore public trust in the system, Republicans are committed to setting it on a sound fiscal basis…”
- “Cutting spending is not enough…”
- “We must also change the budget process itself.”
- “We call for a Constitutional amendment requiring a super-majority for any tax increase with exceptions for only war and national emergencies, and imposing a cap limiting spending to the historical average percentage of GDP so that future Congresses cannot balance the budget by raising taxes.”
Equal Protection / Rule of Law:
2012 Democrat Party Platform:
- “We are committed to a mulitidimensional approach that… strengthens the rule of law…”
- “… bring them in line with the rule of law.”
- “Promoting… the Rule of Law”
- “…Democrats know that a commitment to the rule of law… are essential…”
- “Because the public’s rights, freedoms, and access to economic opportunity depend on the rule of law…”
2012 Libertarian Party Platform:
- “All efforts by government to redistribute wealth, or to control or manage trade, are improper in a free society.”
2012 Republican Party Platform:
- “Adhere to he rule of law.”
- “Promoting Transparent, Accountable Governance and the Rule of Law”
- “…strengthens the rule of law…”
- “… bring them in line with the rule of law.”
- “a commitment to the rule of law and effective judicial institutions are essential to sustainable economic development and must remain a core American value in the years to come.”
- “…access to economic opportunity depend on the rule of law…”,
- “In this country, the rule of law guarantees equal treatment to every individual…”
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