The Unite America Party derives its vision from the history behind the Preamble of the Declaration of Independence adopted by Congress on July 4, 1776, which declares:

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

Our vision also has its roots in the language of the Preamble of the Constitution. This affirms the correct and limited role and mission of our national government, expressing that:

We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.

The vision of the Unite America Party is further supported by America’s Bill of Rights, without which the Constitution would not have been approved by founders such as George Mason. These first ten amendments to the Constitution set limits on the power of the Federal government vis-à-vis the people, reinforcing the civilization-changing ideal that the true source of power and rights rests with the people, not government.

The Unite America Party bases much of its agenda and fundamental principles on the largely ignored Ninth Amendment of the Constitution, which reads:

The enumeration in the Constitution of certain rights shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.

This Amendment subordinates the coercive powers of government to the God-given sovereignty, freedom, dignity and “unalienable rights” of each human person. Such fundamental human rights include the right to own property, which forbids turning people into property. These rights are inherent in human nature and are based on each person’s capacity to reason and independently develop moral virtues, which America’s founders devoted their “lives, fortunes and sacred honor” to defend.

By reviving popular understanding and support for America’s founding principles, our Party will bring about a new unity among now divided Americans. We reject the premise that people are incapable of developing systems that would allow today’s politically polarized Americans to work together and thrive. What distinguishes this new party is our approach to uniting Americans through a non-partisan coalition on the politically suppressed issue of who should own and control the future wealth of our nation.

The commitment of Americans to “property” was best expressed in the Virginia Declaration of Rights authored by George Mason and approved on May 15, 1776 by the Virginia Convention “as the basis and foundation of government.” Section 1 of the Virginia Declaration’s Preamble reads:

That all men are by nature equally free and independent and have certain inherent rights, of which, when they enter into a state of society, they cannot, by any compact, deprive or divest their posterity; namely, the enjoyment of life and liberty, with the means of acquiring and possessing property, and pursuing and obtaining happiness and safety.

Therefore, the question is, why did Thomas Jefferson leave out “property” when revolutionary thinkers like John Locke, Thomas Paine, John Adams and many others considered the preservation of private property rights as the highest purpose of government? Many believe that Jefferson, a slave owner, left out “property” as an essential founding principle in authoring the Declaration of Independence because he was not prepared politically to address America’s “original sin” — the institution of slavery.

Slavery violated the “unalienable” right of human beings to own themselves and other things that can help them become more independently productive to meet their consumption needs. Slavery dehumanized people by treating them as “things” whose bodies and economic productiveness would belong to and be totally controlled by the slave owners, not the enslaved victims.

America’s Civil War, followed by Abraham Lincoln’s successful promotion of the 13th Amendment to the Constitution, ended the legality of the institution of slavery. Yet the current economic system of America and the world continues to perpetuate a more subtle form of slavery.

The Unite America Party seeks to emancipate and empower all of today’s “wage slaves,” “welfare slaves,” “charity slaves,” and “debt slaves.” We will lift all unjust institutional and legal barriers to equal opportunity for every citizen to become an economically empowered owner of productive capital (in other words, wealth-creating, income-earning assets), without taking away property rights over existing assets from today’s owners. We believe that a unified culture based on economic democracy, freedom and justice for all will inspire every child, woman and man to work collaboratively for the common good, which aims toward the prosperity and fullest development of every person.

The fundamental right of every person to become an owner is asserted in Article 17 of The Universal Declaration of Human Rights 4 adopted on December 10, 1948 by the United Nations. Article 17 reads:

(1) Everyone has the right to own property alone as well as in association with others.

(2) No one shall be arbitrarily deprived of his property.

It should be sadly noted, however, that no nation in the world systematically promotes and protects this fundamental human right. The Declaration, in promoting the right to own, would have been strengthened by adding the language in the Virginia Declaration of Rights emphasizing access to “the means of acquiring and possessing” property.

The central feature in the platform of the Unite America Party is its proposed Capital Homestead Act. 5 This proposal calls for a comprehensive restructuring of America’s economic policies to grow a sustainable economy in ways that create a nation of citizen owners. As all citizens gain equal access to the most effective financial means to become owners — through insured capital credit repayable with “future savings” 6 — the growing dependency of most citizens today for their economic well-being on big government, big business, and big labor would be reversed.

The Capital Homestead Act is based on the Party’s “Just Third Way” 7 philosophy. This philosophy embodies a morality, respect for life and human dignity, and sense of the common good that is more just than socialism (which institutionalizes envy) or capitalism (which institutionalizes greed). Because it is based on changing the system for financing future growth to equalize future ownership opportunities, Capital Homesteading will empower poor and middle-income Americans, without redistributing existing wealth from today’s ownership elite.

Through the democratization of the economic system and money power (now controlled by today’s super-rich in partnership with the political elite of both major parties) to all citizens under the Capital Homestead Act, our political democracy will be strengthened. With a more just foundation, the Unite America Party will attract authentic and responsible leaders to run for offices at all levels. From political independents and frustrated activists of other parties, the Party will seek out leaders who are willing to dedicate their lives to serving, teaching, and empowering others.

The Unite America Party will create, from the bottom up, the political order envisioned by America’s revolutionary founders of “one nation under God, with liberty and justice for all.” In similar fashion Abraham Lincoln, viewing America as “the last best hope of earth,” offered ownership of America’s western lands to property-less citizens through the Homestead Act of 1862.

By combining land grants supported by land grant universities under this Act, our young nation was elevated to the top of the most productive agricultural nations in the world. In turn, our agricultural success freed former farm workers to shift their creative initiatives to industry, commerce, education and research, development of new communities and infrastructure and today’s advanced technology post-industrial frontier.

While the nation’s land frontier is finite, our capital frontier has no known limits. We therefore can open up economic opportunity for all citizens to become owners, without having to take away anyone’s private property rights or current accumulations.

We recognize and acknowledge that the principles set forth in the U.S. Constitution require a sound economic base upon which we can build a free and just social order. Without a fair and democratic economic system, society can never attain social justice. A government of, by and for the people can only be supported and sustained by a stable and just money system and a tax system that is fair and simple to understand.

As part of a movement respectful of civilization’s most humanizing traditions, the Party can help overcome the so-called “clash of civilizations” by bringing out the best of all cultures in their common understanding of justice as a necessary moral framework for peace, freedom, and democracy. America, by creating a culture based on universal values and sound ideas, will serve as a model and beacon of hope for every nation seeking a more free, just, and life-enhancing future for all of its citizens.

 

[FULL TEXT OF THE UNITE AMERICA PLATFORM]