The Dems in a nutshell

Barbara Lee, a Democrat who represents Oakland in the House, gave her State of the District speech.  It’s useful because the story that quotes from and summarizes her speech gives as perfect a précis as you’re ever likely to see of about 80% of the Democratic “to do” list, something to keep in mind come November:

“We must forge beyond our progress in delivering economic security for all by providing a living wage for all Americans, by making housing a fundamental right, by finally delivering on universal health care for all, by ensuring every child has access to a quality public education at all levels and by ensuring our trade polices are just and fair,” Lee said.

She went on to pinpoint bringing the troops home from Iraq, ending genocide in Darfur and preventing the spread of HIV and AIDS on a global level as steps of great importance to Americans.

Shutting down Guantanamo Bay and preventing war in Iran were also high on Lee’s list.

“We must forge beyond our progress in protecting the environment and toward achieving energy independence by tackling global warming, and; by making sure that in California, our waiver to more aggressively curb car emissions is given the green light,” said Lee.

As this post title indicates, that’s almost all of it, in a nutshell.  The only major issue that was left out — and the one that is the deciding factor for the Democratic moms in my neighborhood, is to prevent any limits being imposed on abortion or the right of young girls to have unfettered access to birth control.