Senator Mark Dayton Backs Peace Campaign

[seemslikeadream]

Last update: September 22, 2005
Dayton backs peace campaign
Kevin Diaz, Star Tribune Washington Bureau Correspondent
September 23, 2005 PEACE0923


WASHINGTON, D.C. -- In what peace activists call a milestone, Sen. Mark Dayton, D-Minn., introduced legislation Thursday backing a long-shot citizen lobbying effort to create a U.S. Department of Peace and Nonviolence.

He is the first and, so far, only member of the U.S. Senate to publicly endorse the plan.

A remnant of the quixotic 2004 presidential candidacy of Rep. Dennis Kucinich, D-Ohio, the idea of a "Peace Department" has been derided by critics as utopian and naïve, while supporters say it is an idea whose time has come.

Almost half of Minnesota's congressional delegation -- all the Democrats but one -- have lined up in support of the campaign, which calls for a cabinet-level secretary to develop an array of policies from international conflict-resolution to reducing domestic abuse and violence against animals.

Nobody gives the plan much of a chance in a Republican Congress. But backers in Minnesota -- where Kucinich turned in one of his best performances -- say their support is intended as a political statement.

"It sends the right message," said Rep. Betty McCollum, D-Minn. "It's about promoting justice, expanding human rights and preventing conflict."

Besides McCollum, Minnesota Democrats Martin Sabo and Jim Oberstar are cosponsoring Dayton's bill.

more
http://www.startribune.com/stories/587/5630393.html

[Helga Scow Stern]

1. Recommended. Good for Dayton.

[BayCityProgressive]

2. I like the premise

However, I feel like DLC and Republican congresses could use the well meaning department as an orwellian "war is peace" tool.

[deadparrot]

3. Didn't George Washington want a Department of Peace? nt

[longship]

4. Breakthrough event.

:kick:ed and recommended.

[eridani]

5. From the Peace Alliance--

On September 22nd, 2005, Senator Mark Dayton (D-MN) introduced the Department of Peace legislation into the U.S. Senate, calling for an elevation of the Reagan-established "Institute of Peace" to a Cabinet-level position.

This is a huge moment for our campaign, and for the future of the Department of Peace! Senator Dayton's leadership and enthusiastic support will take us to the next level in our work as we continue to advocate for this historic legislation.

Speaking from the Senate floor, Dayton said, "If we are to remain the world's leader, and if we are to lead the world into a more secure and more prosperous future, we must become better known and more respected for our peacemaking successes than for our military forces. Peace, to have any lasting value, must be advanced, expanded and strengthened continuously. Doing so requires skill, dedication, persistence, resources, and, mostimportantly, people."

Appropriately, Dayton's legislation coincides with the 44th anniversary of the nation's oldest federal agency dedicated to peace. On September 22nd, in 1961, President Kennedy signed legislation that created the Peace Corps, an idea originally proposed by Senator Hubert Humphrey in 1957.

Many thanks to our Department of Peace activists from Minnesota who met with Senator Dayton this past week at our conference and encouraged him to take this on. In particular we thank three of our youth leaders: Chelsea Skog, Eric Skog and Raven Kinnell who also met with the Senator. Senator Dayton said he was doing it for them, and for all our youth.

TAKE ACTION:

We ask that each of you help continue this momentum by calling your own Senators today and urging them to support (bill forthcoming). Contact your Senator at the U.S. capitol switchboard: [phone]. To find your Representative, visit http://www.vote-smart.org Tell the staffer who answers your call that you want your Senator to sign on as a co-sponsor of the Department of Peace legislation. Request a written response explaining your Senator's position and the reasoning behind it. It's most effective if you call first, then follow-up with a fax or email.

http://kucinich.us/archive/home/display.php?src=k_20050916_qbc.cuc

[KitchenWitch]

6. Wellstone would have backed this as well

:cry:

[KitchenWitch]

7. Oh, I kicked and nominated this as well!

:kick:

[frictionlessO]

8. I want Clark and Dean to back this... badly.

Anyone else feel that way?

Want to start a campaign lobbying them to?

[eridani]

9. Write your congresscritters now!

:kick: :kick: :kick: :kick:

[Ben Ceremos]

10. In my experience,

Minnesotans are usually out in front on progressive issues and I hope Dayton is a bellweather of the peace movement. Go Cindy, Go Mark, Go Americans for Peace and Justice!!!

[mirror wall]

11. Too bad he's decided to opt out of 06.

Not that he was perfect by any stretch of the imagination, but he's a fair sight better than most of the scum that sits in the Senate. I guess he feels that now that he doesn't have anything to lose politically he can speak his mind.

[lakeguy]

12. yeah, isn't it sad that so many politicians are afraid to speak their mind

for fear of not being re-elected. just imagine what the rethugs would do to dayton if he did this and decided to run again...

[seemslikeadream]

13. Senator Mark Dayton speaking his mind

Transcript of Sen. Dayton's remarks on NORAD
Friday, July 31, 2004 at Congressional hearings on "The 9/11 Commission Report"

(Transcribed by Kyle Hence of 9/11 Citizens' Watch)

Senator Dayton: Thank you Madame Chairman, and I , I also want to commend you for holding this hearing in quick response to the 9/11 Commission's Report. Mr. Chairman, Mr. Co-chairman, I want to say again to you that we are all indebted to you, to the other eight members of the Commission and the staff for this critically important work that you have provided the nation.

It is a profoundly disturbing report because it chronicles in excruciating detail the terrible attack against our homeland, the despicable murder of so many American citizens and the horrible destruction to countless other lives and liberties throughout this nation.

And because of the utter failure to defend them by their federal government, by their leaders, and the institutions that were entrusted to do so and because of serious discrepancies between the facts that you've set forth and what was told to the American people, to members of Congress, and to your own Commission by those, some of those authorities.

There's way too much to cover here but I will begin.

According to your report the first of the four airliner hijackings occurred on September 11th at 8:14 Eastern time. At 10:03 AM, almost two hours later, an hour and forty-nine minutes to be exact, the fourth and last plane crashed before reaching its intended target, the U.S. Capitol, because of the incredible heroism of its passengers, including Minnesota native Thomas Burnett Jr. During those entire 109 minutes to my reading of this report this country and its citizens were completely undefended.

Yes, it was a surprise attack. It was unprecedented. Yes, it exposed serious flaws and as you noted our imagination, our policies, capabilities and our management designs but what I find much more shocking and alarming were the repeated and catastrophic failures of the leaders of the leaders in charge, and the other people responsible, to do their jobs.

To follow established procedures.

To follow direct orders from civilian and military commanders.

And then they failed to tell us the truth later.

It doesn't matter whether they were Republicans, Democrats or neither, it matters what they did or did not do. According to your findings, FAA authorities failed to the inform military command, NORAD, the North American Aerospace Defense Command, about three of the four hijackings until after the planes had crashed into their targets at the second World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and the ground in Pennsylv÷in Pennsylvania which was not their target.

The direct FAA notification of the military regarding the first plane twenty-three minutes after it was hijacked and only nine minutes before it struck the first World Trade Tower.

NORAD then scrambled one of only two sets of fighter planes on alert in the entire eastern third of the country, one in Massachusetts and one in Virginia but it didn't know where to send them; because the hijackers has turned off the plane's transponder so NORAD couldn't locate them on their radar and they still looking for it when it exploded into its target at 8:46AM.

The second hijacking began, according to your report, one minute later. NORAD wasn't notified until the same minute the same plane struck the second World Trade tower. It was five more minutes before NORAD's mission commander learned about that explosion; which was five minutes after thousands of Americans saw it on live television. By this time the third plane's transponder was off; communication had been severed, yet it was fifteen minutes before the flight controller decided to notify the regional FAA center which in turn did not inform FAA headquarters for another fifteen minutes.

So at that point 9:25 AM FAA's National Command Center knew that there were two hijacked planes that had crashed into the two World Trade Centers and a third plane had stopped communicating and disappeared from its primary radar yet no one in FAA headquarters asked for military assistance with that plane either. NORAD was unaware that the plane had even been hijacked until after it crashed into the Pentagon at 9:34.

This is just unbelievable negligence. It doesn't matter if we spend $550 billion annually on our national defense, if we reorganize our intelligence or if we restructure congressional oversight if people don't pick up the phone to call one another. If we're not told if somebody needs a new radar system and doesn't stall it when it's provided. And this was not an occasional human or failure. This is nothing but human error and failure to follow established procedures and to use common sense.

Unfortunately, the chronicle is not over. The NORAD mission commander ordered his only three other planes on alert in Virginia to scramble and fly north to Baltimore. Minutes later when he was told that a plane was approaching Washington he learned that the planes were flying East over the Atlantic Ocean away from Baltimore and Washington so that when the third plane struck the Pentagon NORAD's fighters were 150 miles away, farther than they were before they took off.

By then FAA's Command Center had learned of the fourth hijacking and called FAA Headquarters specifically asking that they contact the military at 9:36AM and at 9:46AM the FAA Command Center updated FAA headquarters that United Flight 93 was "29 minutes out of Washington, D.C." Three minutes later your document records this following conversation between the Command Center and FAA headquarters.

Command center - 'Uh, do we want to, uh, think about scrambling aircraft?' - FAA headquarters - 'Oh God, I don't know.' - Command center - 'Uh, that's a decision somebody's going to have to make probably in the next 10 minutes.' - FAA headquarters - 'Uh, yeah, you know, everybody just left the room."

At 10:03 United Flight 93 crashed into the Pennsylvania farm soil and nobody from the FAA headquarters had contacted the military. NORAD didn't know that this fourth plane was hijacked until after it crashed 35 minutes later. The fighter planes that reached Washington seven minutes after that crash they were told by the Mission Commander, "negative clearance to shoot the aircraft" over the Nation's Capitol.

Yet one week, yet one week after 9/11, in response to initial reports that the military failed to defend our domestic airspace during the hijacks NORAD issued an official chronology that stated that the FAA notified NORAD of the second hijacking at 8:43, wrong, FAA notified NORAD of the third hijacking at 9:24, according to your report wrong, FAA notified NORAD of the fourth hijacking at an unspecified time and that prior to the crash in Pennsylvania Langley F-16 combat air patrol planes were in place, remaining in place, to protect Washington, D.C..

All untrue.

In public testimony before your 9/11 Commission in May of 2003 NORAD officials stated, I assume under oath , that at 9:16 they had received the hijack notification of United Flight 93 from the FAA. That hijacking did not occur until 9:28; there was a routine cockpit transmission recovered at 9:27.

And in that testimony before you NORAD officials stated also that at 9:24 they received notice of the hijacking of the third plane, American flight 77, also untrue according to your report; which states that NORAD was never notified that flight was hijacked.

NORAD officials testified that they scrambled the Langley, Virginia fighters to respond to those two hijackings yet taped recordings of both NORAD and FAA both reportedly documented that the order to scramble was a response to an inaccurate FAA report that American Flight 11 had not hit the first World Trade tower and was headed to Washington. That erroneous alert was transmitted by the FAA at 9:24AM, thirty-eight minutes after that airplane had exploded into the World Trade tower. Yet NORAD's public chronology of 9/18/01 and their Commission testimony 20 months later covered up those truths. They lied to the American people, they lied to Congress and they lied to your 9/11 Commission to create a false impression of competence, communication, coordination and protection of the American people.

And we can set up all the oversight possible at great additional cost to the American taxpayers and it won't be worth an Enron pension if the people responsible lie to us; if they take the records and doctor them into falsehoods, and if they get away with it. For almost three years now NORAD officials and FAA officials have been able to hide their critical failures that left this country defenseless during two of the worst hours in our history.

And I believe that President Bush must call them, those responsible for those representations to account. If the Commission's accounts are correct, he should fire whoever at FAA, at NORAD or anywhere else who betrayed the public trust by not telling us the truth.

And then he should clear up a few discrepancies of his own.

Four months after September 11th on January 27th 2002, the Washington Post's Dan Balls and Bob Woodward authored an insider's retrospective on top administration officials' actions on 9/11 and thereafter. They reported that very shortly after the Pentagon was struck at 9:34 quote Pentagon officials ordered up the airborne command post used only in national emergencies; they sent up combat air patrol in the Washington area and a fighter escort for Air Force One. Secretary Rumsfeld was portrayed as "taking up his post at the National Military Command Center." And all that reportedly occurred before 9:55AM. Right thereafter "Bush then talked to Rumsfeld to clarify the procedures military pilots should follow before firing on attack planes. With Bush's approval Rumsfeld passed the order down the chain of command."

This was supposedly taking place according to that article before the fourth plane crashed in Pennsylvania at 10:03. Looks very impressive. The President acting swiftly and decisively; giving orders to the Secretary of Defense and on down the chain of command, combat air patrol planes are patrolling Washington directed by an airborne command post all before 10:03AM; however, according to your commission, President Bush spoke to Secretary Rumsfeld for the first time that morning shortly after 10AM. Based on White House notes and Ari Fleischer notes of the conversation the Commission's report states that it was a brief call in which the subject of the shootdown authority was not discussed.

The Commission then states that the Secretary of Defense did not join the NMCC's conference call until just before 10:30AM. The Secretary of Defense himself told the Commission he was just gaining situation awareness when he spoke with the Vice-President at 10:39AM. That transcript is on page 23, page 43. My time is out but it reflects the Vice-President's honest mistaken(ly) belief that he had been given an order, after talking with the President, to shoot down any plane that would not divert, yet incredibly÷the NORAD commander

Senator Collins (Chairwomen): The Senator's time has expired.

Senator Dayton: I am just going to finish this if I may. Yet incredibly the NORAD commander did not pass that order to the fighter planes because he was "unsure how the pilots would or should proceed with this guidance." As you say Mr. Chairman, 'the situation is urgent' but we don't get protected in those circumstances but it's even worse when it's covered-up.
http://www.911truth.org/article.php?story=2004080509560...

[lakeguy]

18. yes, that was good too.

[kwolf68]

14. No Chance because of Republicans?

Wasn't Jesus Christ the "Prince of Peace?"

Seems to me they'd sign on to this.

I didn't think I could hate people as much as I hate Republicans, but this type of hypocrisy is breathtaking.

Mark Dayton usually doesn't do too much, but this is a good deal.

[goodhue]

15. Way to go Sen Dayton!

http://www.thepeacealliance.org/main.htm

[leesa]

16. I so love Mark Dayton. I wish he could afford to run again

[myrna minx]

17. That's my Senator. Too bad he isn't running again.

:-(

[txaslftist]

19. We'll see in 2007 how it fares in a Democratic Congress.

[goodhue]

20. kick

[seemslikeadream]

21. CREATING A CABINET-LEVEL DEPARTMENT OF PEACE AND NONVIOLENCE --

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x2109773

paineinthearse (1000+ posts) Fri Sep-23-05 02:16 PM
Original message
BREAKING NEWS: Senator Dayton will introduce a Dept. of Peace bill in the
by email

Greetings,

Great news! Senator Mark Dayton of Minnesota has agreed to introduce a Department of Peace bill in the Senate. This is a major breakthrough in getting a mainstream public discussion about a Department of Peace going in this country.

Please send a fax or call your Senators and ask them to co-sponsor. Home and DC office contact information is at www.senate.gov

Keep talking about the Department of Peace to everyone you can. Our
efforts are working!

Best Regards,

Jason White.

--
Visit http://www.propeace.net, the propeace community web site.



http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/D?r109:1:./temp/~r1... ::

Introduction of Rep. Kucinich's HR 3760

CREATING A CABINET-LEVEL DEPARTMENT OF PEACE AND NONVIOLENCE -- (House of Representatives - September 14, 2005)

---
(Mr. KUCINICH asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. KUCINICH. Mr. Speaker, from our deepest silence, from that place within each of us that knows peace , from our heart of hearts which connects us to the world and to the heart of the world, we know that fear leads to violence, that violence leads to war, that war leads to total destruction. Yet we do not want to fear, we do not want violence, we do not want war, we want peace . We desire peace so intensely that we are willing to do almost anything to achieve it, including spending half of our resources for arms to help feel secure.

We know we cannot continue on this perilous path of seeking peace through violence. We know that this approach offers our children no future at all.

So today we make a new beginning with House bill 3760, legislation to create a Cabinet-level department of peace and nonviolence. In doing so, dozens of Members of this Congress announced that we choose courage over fear and hope over despair. We announce our desire to create a new America and a new world.

HR 3760 Text:


http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/C?c109:./temp/~c109...

HR 3760 IH


109th CONGRESS

1st Session

H. R. 3760
To establish a Department of Peace and Nonviolence.


IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

September 14, 2005
Mr. KUCINICH (for himself, Mr. ABERCROMBIE, Ms. BALDWIN, Mr. BOSWELL, Ms. CORRINE BROWN of Florida, Mr. BROWN of Ohio, Ms. CARSON, Mr. CLAY, Mr. CONYERS, Mr. CUMMINGS, Mr. DAVIS of Illinois, Mrs. DAVIS of California, Mr. DEFAZIO, Mr. EVANS, Mr. FALEOMAVAEGA, Mr. FARR, Mr. FILNER, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. GUTIERREZ, Mr. HINCHEY, Mr. HOLT, Mr. HONDA, Mr. JACKSON of Illinois, Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas, Ms. EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON of Texas, Mrs. JONES of Ohio, Ms. KAPTUR, Ms. KILPATRICK of Michigan, Ms. LEE, Mr. LEWIS of Georgia, Mrs. MALONEY, Ms. MCCOLLUM of Minnesota, Mr. MCDERMOTT, Mr. MCGOVERN, Ms. MCKINNEY, Mr. MEEKS of New York, Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California, Ms. MOORE of Wisconsin, Mr. NADLER, Mr. OBERSTAR, Mr. OLVER, Mr. OWENS, Mr. PAYNE, Mr. RAHALL, Mr. RANGEL, Mr. RYAN of Ohio, Mr. SABO, Mr. SANDERS, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. SERRANO, Mr. SHERMAN, Ms. SOLIS, Mr. STARK, Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi, Mr. TOWNS, Ms. WATERS, Ms. WATSON, and Ms. WOOLSEY) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Government Reform, and in addition to the Committees on International Relations, Judiciary, and Education and the Workforce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


A BILL
To establish a Department of Peace and Nonviolence.


Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

(a) Short Title- This Act may be cited as the `Department of Peace and Nonviolence Act'.

(b) Table of Contents- The table of contents for this Act is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.

Sec. 2. Findings.

TITLE I--ESTABLISHMENT OF DEPARTMENT OF PEACE AND NONVIOLENCE

Sec. 101. Establishment of Department of Peace and Nonviolence.

Sec. 102. Responsibilities and powers.

Sec. 103. Principal officers.

Sec. 104. Office of Peace Education and Training.

Sec. 105. Office of Domestic Peace Activities.

Sec. 106. Office of International Peace Activities.

Sec. 107. Office of Technology for Peace.

Sec. 108. Office of Arms Control and Disarmament.

Sec. 109. Office of Peaceful Coexistence and Nonviolent Conflict Resolution.

Sec. 110. Office of Human Rights and Economic Rights.

Sec. 111. Intergovernmental Advisory Council on Peace and Nonviolence.

Sec. 112. Consultation required.

Sec. 113. Authorization of appropriations.

TITLE II--ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS AND TRANSFERS OF AGENCY FUNCTIONS

Sec. 201. Staff.

Sec. 202. Transfers.

Sec. 203. Conforming amendments.

TITLE III--FEDERAL INTERAGENCY COMMITTEE ON PEACE AND NONVIOLENCE

Sec. 301. Federal Interagency Committee on Peace and Nonviolence.

TITLE IV--ESTABLISHMENT OF PEACE DAY

Sec. 401. Peace Day.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

Congress finds the following:

(1) On July 4, 1776, the Second Continental Congress unanimously declared the independence of the 13 colonies, and the achievement of peace was recognized as one of the highest duties of the new organization of free and independent States.

(2) In declaring, `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', the drafters of the Declaration of Independence, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the World, derived the creative cause of nationhood from `the Laws of Nature' and the entitlements of `Nature's God', such literal referrals in the Declaration of Independence thereby serving to celebrate the unity of human thought, natural law, and spiritual causation.

(3) The architects of the Declaration of Independence `with a firm reliance on the protection of divine providence' spoke to the connection between the original work infusing principle into the structure of a democratic government seeking to elevate the condition of humanity, and the activity of a higher power which moves to guide the Nation's fortune.

(4) The Constitution of the United States of America, in its Preamble, further sets forth the insurance of the cause of peace in stating: `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.'

(5) The Founders of this country gave America a vision of freedom for the ages and provided people with a document which gave this Nation the ability to adapt to an undreamed of future.

(6) It is the sacred duty of the people of the United States to receive the living truths of our founding documents and to think anew to develop institutions that permit the unfolding of the highest moral principles in this Nation and around the world.

(7) During the course of the 20th century, more than 100,000,000 people perished in wars, and now, at the dawn of the 21st century, violence seems to be an overarching theme in the world, encompassing personal, group, national, and international conflict, extending to the production of nuclear, biological, and chemical weapons of mass destruction which have been developed for use on land, air, sea, and in space.

(8) Such conflict is often taken as a reflection of the human condition without questioning whether the structures of thought, word, and deed which the people of the United States have inherited are any longer sufficient for the maintenance, growth, and survival of the United States and the world.

(9) Promoting a culture of peace has been recognized by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) through passage of a resolution declaring an International Decade for a Culture of Peace and Non-Violence for the Children 2001-2010. The objective is to further strengthen the global movement for a culture of peace following the observance of the International Year for the Culture of Peace in 2000.

(10) We are in a new millennium, and the time has come to review age-old challenges with new thinking wherein we can conceive of peace as not simply being the absence of violence, but the active presence of the capacity for a higher evolution of the human awareness, of respect, trust, and integrity; wherein we all may tap the infinite capabilities of humanity to transform consciousness and conditions which impel or compel violence at a personal, group, or national level toward developing a new understanding of, and a commitment to, compassion and love, in order to create a `shining city on a hill', the light of which is the light of nations.

TITLE I--ESTABLISHMENT OF DEPARTMENT OF PEACE AND NONVIOLENCE

SEC. 101. ESTABLISHMENT OF DEPARTMENT OF PEACE AND NONVIOLENCE.

(a) Establishment- There is hereby established a Department of Peace and Nonviolence (hereinafter in this Act referred to as the `Department'), which shall--

(1) be a cabinet-level department in the executive branch of the Federal Government; and

(2) be dedicated to peacemaking and the study of conditions that are conducive to both domestic and international peace.

(b) Secretary of Peace and Nonviolence- There shall be at the head of the Department a Secretary of Peace and Nonviolence (hereinafter in this Act referred to as the `Secretary'), who shall be appointed by the President, with the advice and consent of the Senate.

(c) Mission- The Department shall--

(1) hold peace as an organizing principle, coordinating service to every level of American society;

(2) endeavor to promote justice and democratic principles to expand human rights;

(3) strengthen nonmilitary means of peacemaking;

(4) promote the development of human potential;

(5) work to create peace, prevent violence, divert from armed conflict, use field-tested programs, and develop new structures in nonviolent dispute resolution;

(6) take a proactive, strategic approach in the development of policies that promote national and international conflict prevention, nonviolent intervention, mediation, peaceful resolution of conflict, and structured mediation of conflict;

(7) address matters both domestic and international in scope; and

(8) encourage the development of initiatives from local communities, religious groups, and nongovernmental organizations.

SEC. 102. RESPONSIBILITIES AND POWERS.

(a) In General- The Secretary shall--

(1) work proactively and interactively with each branch of the Federal Government on all policy matters relating to conditions of peace;

(2) serve as a delegate to the National Security Council;

(3) call on the intellectual and spiritual wealth of the people of the United States and seek participation in its administration and in its development of policy from private, public, and nongovernmental organizations; and

(4) monitor and analyze causative principles of conflict and make policy recommendations for developing and maintaining peaceful conduct.

(b) Domestic Responsibilities- The Secretary shall--

(1) develop policies that address domestic violence, including spousal abuse, child abuse, and mistreatment of the elderly;

(2) create new policies and incorporate existing programs that reduce drug and alcohol abuse;

(3) develop new policies and incorporate existing policies regarding crime, punishment, and rehabilitation;

(4) develop policies to address violence against animals;

(5) analyze existing policies, employ successful, field-tested programs, and develop new approaches for dealing with the implements of violence, including gun-related violence and the overwhelming presence of handguns;

(6) develop new programs that relate to the societal challenges of school violence, gangs, racial or ethnic violence, violence against gays and lesbians, and police-community relations disputes;

(7) make policy recommendations to the Attorney General regarding civil rights and labor law;

(8) assist in the establishment and funding of community-based violence prevention programs, including violence prevention counseling and peer mediation in schools;

(9) counsel and advocate on behalf of women victimized by violence;

(10) provide for public education programs and counseling strategies concerning hate crimes;

(11) promote racial, religious, and ethnic tolerance;

(12) finance local community initiatives that can draw on neighborhood resources to create peace projects that facilitate the development of conflict resolution at a national level and thereby inform and inspire national policy; and

(13) provide ethical-based and value-based analyses to the Department of Defense.

(c) International Responsibilities- The Secretary shall--

(1) advise the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of State on all matters relating to national security, including the protection of human rights and the prevention of, amelioration of, and de-escalation of unarmed and armed international conflict;

(2) provide for the training of all United States personnel who administer postconflict reconstruction and demobilization in war-torn societies;

(3) sponsor country and regional conflict prevention and dispute resolution initiatives, create special task forces, and draw on local, regional, and national expertise to develop plans and programs for addressing the root sources of conflict in troubled areas;

(4) provide for exchanges between the United States and other nations of individuals who endeavor to develop domestic and international peace-based initiatives;

(5) encourage the development of international sister city programs, pairing United States cities with cities around the globe for artistic, cultural, economic, educational, and faith-based exchanges;

(6) administer the training of civilian peacekeepers who participate in multinational nonviolent police forces and support civilian police who participate in peacekeeping;

(7) jointly with the Secretary of the Treasury, strengthen peace enforcement through hiring and training monitors and investigators to help with the enforcement of international arms embargoes;

(8) facilitate the development of peace summits at which parties to a conflict may gather under carefully prepared conditions to promote nonviolent communication and mutually beneficial solutions;

(9) submit to the President recommendations for reductions in weapons of mass destruction, and make annual reports to the President on the sale of arms from the United States to other nations, with analysis of the impact of such sales on the defense of the United States and how such sales affect peace;

(10) in consultation with the Secretary of State, develop strategies for sustainability and management of the distribution of international funds; and

(11) advise the United States Ambassador to the United Nations on matters pertaining to the United Nations Security Council.

(d) Human Security Responsibilities- The Secretary shall address and offer nonviolent conflict resolution strategies to all relevant parties on issues of human security if such security is threatened by conflict, whether such conflict is geographic, religious, ethnic, racial, or class-based in its origin, derives from economic concerns (including trade or maldistribution of wealth), or is initiated through disputes concerning scarcity of natural resources (such as water and energy resources), food, trade, or environmental concerns.

(e) Media-Related Responsibilities- Respecting the first amendment of the Constitution of the United States and the requirement for free and independent media, the Secretary shall--

(1) seek assistance in the design and implementation of nonviolent policies from media professionals;

(2) study the role of the media in the escalation and de-escalation of conflict at domestic and international levels and make findings public; and

(3) make recommendations to professional media organizations in order to provide opportunities to increase media awareness of peace-building initiatives.

(f) Educational Responsibilities- The Secretary shall--

(1) develop a peace education curriculum, which shall include studies of--

(A) the civil rights movement in the United States and throughout the world, with special emphasis on how individual endeavor and involvement have contributed to advancements in peace and justice; and

(B) peace agreements and circumstances in which peaceful intervention has worked to stop conflict;

(2) in cooperation with the Secretary of Education--

(A) commission the development of such curricula and make such curricula available to local school districts to enable the utilization of peace education objectives at all elementary and secondary schools in the United States; and

(B) offer incentives in the form of grants and training to encourage the development of State peace curricula and assist schools in applying for such curricula;

(3) work with educators to equip students to become skilled in achieving peace through reflection, and facilitate instruction in the ways of peaceful conflict resolution;

(4) maintain a site on the Internet for the purposes of soliciting and receiving ideas for the development of peace from the wealth of political, social and cultural diversity;

(5) proactively engage the critical thinking capabilities of grade school, high school, and college students and teachers through the Internet and other media and issue periodic reports concerning submissions;

(6) create and establish a Peace Academy, which shall--

(A) be modeled after the military service academies;

(B) provide a 4-year course of instruction in peace education, after which graduates will be required to serve 5 years in public service in programs dedicated to domestic or international nonviolent conflict resolution; and

(7) provide grants for peace studies departments in colleges and universities throughout the United States.

SEC. 103. PRINCIPAL OFFICERS.

(a) Under Secretary of Peace and Nonviolence- There shall be in the Department an Under Secretary of Peace and Nonviolence, who shall be appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. During the absence or disability of the Secretary, or in the event of a vacancy in the office of the Secretary, the Under Secretary shall act as Secretary. The Secretary shall designate the order in which other officials of the Department shall act for and perform the functions of the Secretary during the absence or disability of both the Secretary and Under Secretary or in the event of vacancies in both of those offices.

(b) Additional Positions- (1) There shall be in the Department--

(A) an Assistant Secretary for Peace Education and Training;

(B) an Assistant Secretary for Domestic Peace Activities;

(C) an Assistant Secretary for International Peace Activities;

(D) an Assistant Secretary for Technology for Peace;

(E) an Assistant Secretary for Arms Control and Disarmament;

(F) an Assistant Secretary for Peaceful Coexistence and Nonviolent Conflict Resolution;

(G) an Assistant Secretary for Human and Economic Rights; and

(H) a General Counsel.

(2) Each of the Assistant Secretaries and the General Counsel shall be appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate.

(3) There shall be in the Department an Inspector General, who shall be appointed in accordance with the provisions in the Inspector General Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.).

(4) There shall be in the Department four additional officers who shall be appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate. The officers appointed under this paragraph shall perform such functions as the Secretary shall prescribe, including--

(A) congressional relations functions;

(B) public information functions, including providing, through the use of the latest technologies, useful information about peace and the work of the Department;

(C) management and budget functions; and

(D) planning, evaluation, and policy development functions, including development of policies to promote the efficient and coordinated administration of the Department and its programs and encourage improvements in conflict resolution and violence prevention.

(5) In any case in which the President submits the name of an individual to the Senate for confirmation as an officer of the Department under this subsection, the President shall state the particular functions of the Department such individual will exercise upon taking office.

(c) Authority of Secretary- Each officer described in this section shall report directly to the Secretary and shall, in addition to any functions vested in or required to be delegated to such officer, perform such additional functions as the Secretary may prescribe.

SEC. 104. OFFICE OF PEACE EDUCATION AND TRAINING.

(a) In General- There shall be in the Department an Office of Peace Education and Training, the head of which shall be the Assistant Secretary for Peace Education and Training. The Assistant Secretary for Peace Education and Training shall carry out those functions of the Department relating to the creation, encouragement, and impact of peace education and training at the elementary, secondary, university, and postgraduate levels, including the development of a Peace Academy.

(b) Peace Curriculum- The Assistant Secretary of Peace Education and Training, in cooperation with the Secretary of Education, shall develop a peace curriculum and supporting materials for distribution to departments of education in each State and territory of the United States. The peace curriculum shall include the building of communicative peace skills, nonviolent conflict resolution skills, and other objectives to increase the knowledge of peace processes.

(c) Grants- The Assistant Secretary of Peace Education and Training shall--

(1) provide peace education grants to colleges and universities for the creation and expansion of peace studies departments; and

(2) create a Community Peace Block Grant program under which grants shall be provided to not-for-profit community and nongovernmental organizations for the purposes of developing creative, innovative neighborhood programs for nonviolent conflict resolution and local peacebuilding initiatives.

SEC. 105. OFFICE OF DOMESTIC PEACE ACTIVITIES.

(a) In General- There shall be in the Department an Office of Domestic Peace Activities, the head of which shall be the Assistant Secretary for Domestic Peace Activities. The Assistant Secretary for Domestic Peace Activities shall carry out those functions in the Department affecting domestic peace activities, including the development of policies that increase awareness about intervention and counseling on domestic violence and conflict.

(b) Responsibilities- The Assistant Secretary for Domestic Peace Activities shall--

(1) develop policy alternatives for the treatment of drug and alcohol abuse;

(2) develop new policies and build on existing programs responsive to the prevention of crime, including the development of community policing strategies and peaceful settlement skills among police and other public safety officers; and

(3) develop community-based strategies for celebrating diversity and promoting tolerance.

SEC. 106. OFFICE OF INTERNATIONAL PEACE ACTIVITIES.

(a) In General- There shall be in the Department an Office of International Peace Activities, the head of which shall be the Assistant Secretary for International Peace Activities. The Assistant Secretary for International Peace Activities shall carry out those functions in the Department affecting international peace activities and shall be a member of the National Security Council.

(b) Responsibilities- The Assistant Secretary for International Peace Activities shall--

(1) provide for the training and deployment of all Peace Academy graduates and other nonmilitary conflict prevention and peacemaking personnel;

(2) sponsor country and regional conflict prevention and dispute resolution initiatives in countries experiencing social, political, or economic strife;

(3) advocate the creation of a multinational nonviolent peace force;

(4) provide training for the administration of postconflict reconstruction and demobilization in war-torn societies; and

(5) provide for the exchanges between individuals of the United States and other nations who are endeavoring to develop domestic and international peace-based initiatives.

SEC. 107. OFFICE OF TECHNOLOGY FOR PEACE.

(a) In General- There shall be in the Department an Office of Technology for Peace, the head of which shall be the Assistant Secretary of Technology for Peace. The Assistant Secretary of Technology for Peace shall carry out those functions in the Department affecting the awareness, study, and impact of developing new technologies on the creation and maintenance of domestic and international peace.

(b) Grants- The Assistant Secretary of Technology for Peace shall provide grants for the research and development of technologies in transportation, communications, and energy that--

(1) are nonviolent in their application; and

(2) encourage the conservation and sustainability of natural resources in order to prevent future conflicts regarding scarce resources.

SEC. 108. OFFICE OF ARMS CONTROL AND DISARMAMENT.

(a) In General- There shall be in the Department an Office of Arms Control and Disarmament, the head of which shall be the Assistant Secretary of Arms Control and Disarmament. The Assistant Secretary of Arms Control and Disarmament shall carry out those functions in the Department affecting arms control programs and arms limitation agreements.

(b) Responsibilities- The Assistant Secretary of Arms Control and Disarmament shall--

(1) advise the Secretary on all interagency discussions and all international negotiations regarding the reduction and elimination of weapons of mass destruction throughout the world, including the dismantling of such weapons and the safe and secure storage of materials related thereto;

(2) assist nations, international agencies and nongovernmental organizations in assessing the locations of the buildup of nuclear arms;

(3) develop nonviolent strategies to deter the testing or use of offensive or defensive nuclear weapons, whether based on land, air, sea, or in outer space;

(4) serve as a depository for copies of all contracts, agreements, and treaties that deal with the reduction and elimination of nuclear weapons or the protection of outer space from militarization; and

(5) provide technical support and legal assistance for the implementation of such agreements.

SEC. 109. OFFICE OF PEACEFUL COEXISTENCE AND NONVIOLENT CONFLICT RESOLUTION.

(a) In General- There shall be in the Department an Office of Peaceful Coexistence and Nonviolent Conflict Resolution, the head of which shall be the Assistant Secretary for Peaceful Coexistence and Nonviolent Conflict Resolution. The Assistant Secretary for Peaceful Coexistence and Nonviolent Conflict Resolution shall carry out those functions in the Department affecting research and analysis relating to creating, initiating, and modeling approaches to peaceful coexistence and nonviolent conflict resolution.

(b) Responsibilities- The Assistant Secretary for Peaceful Coexistence and Nonviolent Conflict Resolution shall--

(1) study the impact of war, especially on the physical and mental condition of children (using the ten-point agenda in the United Nations Childrens Fund report, State of the World's Children 1996, as a guide), which shall include the study of the effect of war on the environment and public health;

(2) publish a monthly journal of the activities of the Department and encourage scholarly participation;

(3) gather information on effective community peacebuilding activities and disseminate such information to local governments and nongovernmental organizations in the United States and abroad;

(4) research the effect of violence in the media and make such reports available to the Congress annually; and

(5) sponsor conferences throughout the United States to create awareness of the work of the Department.

SEC. 110. OFFICE OF HUMAN RIGHTS AND ECONOMIC RIGHTS.

(a) In General- There shall be in the Department an Office of Human Rights and Economic Rights, the head of which shall be the Assistant Secretary for Human Rights and Economic Rights. The Assistant Secretary for Human Rights and Economic Rights shall carry out those functions in the Department supporting the principles of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights passed by the General Assembly of the United Nations on December 10, 1948.

(b) Responsibilities- The Assistant Secretary for Human Rights and Economic Rights shall--

(1) assist the Secretary, in cooperation with the Secretary of State, in furthering the incorporation of principles of human rights, as enunciated in the United Nations General Assembly Resolution 217A (III) of December 10, 1948, into all agreements between the United States and other nations to help reduce the causes of violence;

(2) gather information on and document human rights abuses, both domestically and internationally, and recommend to the Secretary nonviolent responses to correct abuses;

(3) make such findings available to other agencies in order to facilitate nonviolent conflict resolution;

(4) provide trained observers to work with nongovernmental organizations for purposes of creating a climate that is conducive to the respect for human rights;

(5) conduct economic analyses of the scarcity of human and natural resources as a source of conflict and make recommendations to the Secretary for nonviolent prevention of such scarcity, nonviolent intervention in case of such scarcity, and the development of programs of assistance for people experiencing such scarcity, whether due to armed conflict, maldistribution of resources, or natural causes;

(6) assist the Secretary, in cooperation with the Secretary of State and the Secretary of the Treasury, in developing strategies regarding the sustainability and the management of the distribution of funds from international agencies, the conditions regarding the receipt of such funds, and the impact of those conditions on the peace and stability of the recipient nations; and

(7) assist the Secretary, in cooperation with the Secretary of State and the Secretary of Labor, in developing strategies to promote full compliance with domestic and international labor rights law.

SEC. 111. INTERGOVERNMENTAL ADVISORY COUNCIL ON PEACE AND NONVIOLENCE.

(a) In General- There shall be in the Department an advisory committee to be known as the Intergovernmental Advisory Council on Peace and Nonviolence (hereinafter in this Act referred to as the `Council'). The Council shall provide assistance and make recommendations to the Secretary and the President concerning intergovernmental policies relating to peace and nonviolent conflict resolution.

(b) Responsibilities- The Council shall--

(1) provide a forum for representatives of Federal, State, and local governments to discuss peace issues;

(2) promote better intergovernmental relations; and

(3) submit, biennially or more frequently if determined necessary by the Council, a report to the Secretary, the President, and the Congress reviewing the impact of Federal peace activities on State and local governments.

SEC. 112. CONSULTATION REQUIRED.

(a) Consultation in Cases of Conflict- (1) In any case in which a conflict between the United States and any other government or entity is imminent or occurring, the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of State shall consult with the Secretary concerning nonviolent means of conflict resolution.

(2) In any case in which such a conflict is ongoing or recently concluded, the Secretary shall conduct independent studies of diplomatic initiatives undertaken by the United States and other parties to the conflict.

(3) In any case in which such a conflict has recently concluded, the Secretary shall assess the effectiveness of those initiatives in ending the conflict.

(4) The Secretary shall establish a formal process of consultation in a timely manner with the Secretary of the Department of State and the Secretary of the Department of Defense--

(A) prior to the initiation of any armed conflict between the United States and any other nation; and

(B) for any matter involving the use of Department of Defense personnel within the United States.

(b) Consultation in Drafting Treaties and Agreements- The executive branch shall consult with the Secretary in drafting treaties and peace agreements.

SEC. 113. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out this Act for a fiscal year beginning after the date of the enactment of this Act an amount equal to at least 2 percent of the total amount appropriated for that fiscal year for the Department of Defense.

TITLE II--ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS AND TRANSFERS OF AGENCY FUNCTIONS

SEC. 201. STAFF.

The Secretary may appoint and fix the compensation of such employees as may be necessary to carry out the functions of the Secretary and the Department. Except as otherwise provided by law, such employees shall be appointed in accordance with the civil service laws and their compensation fixed in accordance with title 5 of the United States Code.

SEC. 202. TRANSFERS.

There are hereby transferred to the Department the functions, assets, and personnel of--

(1) the Peace Corps;

(2) the United States Institute of Peace;

(3) the Office of the Under Secretary for Arms Control and International Security Affairs of the Department of State;

(4) the Gang Resistance Education and Training Program of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms; and

(5) the SafeFutures program of the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention of the Department of Justice.

SEC. 203. CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.

Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary shall prepare and submit to Congress proposed legislation containing any necessary and appropriate technical and conforming amendments to the laws of the United States to reflect and carry out the provisions of this Act.

TITLE III--FEDERAL INTERAGENCY COMMITTEE ON PEACE AND NONVIOLENCE

SEC. 301. FEDERAL INTERAGENCY COMMITTEE ON PEACE AND NONVIOLENCE.

There is established a Federal Interagency Committee on Peace and Nonviolence (hereinafter in this Act referred to as the `Committee'). The Committee shall--

(1) assist the Secretary in providing a mechanism to assure that the procedures and actions of the Department and other Federal agencies are fully coordinated; and

(2) study and make recommendations for assuring effective coordination of Federal programs, policies, and administrative practices affecting peace.

TITLE IV--ESTABLISHMENT OF PEACE DAY

SEC. 401. PEACE DAY.

All citizens should be encouraged to observe and celebrate the blessings of peace and endeavor to create peace on a Peace Day. Such day shall include discussions of the professional activities and the achievements in the lives of peacemakers.

END

[Autonomy]

22. Repubs are still sticking with that "utopian and naive"

retort? After seeing their foreign policy vision manifested in the last few years, I am surprised they have to nerve to call anyone else "naive".

[CrazyForKucinich]

23. What took him so long?

1900 deaths in Iraq?

Really. What took him so long?

[goodhue]

24. The timing relates to the recent DOP conference in DC.

MN attendees met with him at that time before the bill was reintroduced by Kucinich on Sept 14. It has only been 8 days since.

[Nothing Without Hope]

25. Related new thread in LBN here:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x2109773
thread title: Breaking: Senator Dayton will introduce a Dept. of Peace bill in Senate

Among other things, it has the summary and text of the Kucinich bill in the House.