Democratic Presidential candidate John Kerry Thursday unveiled his plan to unleash the productive potential of the American economy by investing in technology, research and education. In addition to bringing the benefits of broadband to communities across the country, Kerry’s plan will create millions of high-tech, high-wage jobs in the industries of the future and keep America on the cutting edge of technology.
“At the dawn of the 21st century, the possibilities are limitless,” Kerry said. “But they won’t just happen. We have to invest more in our people and their ideas. And America must lead, not follow, other countries in the great discoveries that bring greater prosperity.”
New technologies and scientific discoveries have the power to transform the American economy, but the Bush administration has failed to lead on science and innovation. Under Bush’s watch, America has slipped from 4th to 10th in adoption of broadband and lost 800,000 high-tech jobs. His administration has put politics over science and cut virtually every area of research critical to our economic growth.
Kerry believes discovering and adopting new technologies are key to economic growth and building a stronger America. By ensuring investments in research and fostering innovation, his technology plan will tap into America’s optimistic, can-do spirit to ignite job growth in the industries of the future - broadband Internet, clean energy, nanotechnology, biotechnology and advanced manufacturing – and strengthen education, health care and our quality of life.
The Kerry plan:
- Encourage Technological Innovation in the United States. Kerry is committed to creating a business environment that will promote private sector investment, innovation, competition and the formation of new businesses. He will eliminate capital gains taxes for long-term investments in small businesses, and reform or eliminate regulations that impede America’s high-tech competitiveness.
- Create Jobs, Expand Opportunity and Improve Safety with Universal Broadband. Broadband technology can transform the way we learn, work and deliver digital opportunity throughout the country. Through tax incentives and marketplace solutions, Kerry will speed the deployment of Broadband infrastructure, which could add $500 billion to the U.S. economy and generate more than 1.2 million jobs. Because broadband networks enable rapid and seamless communication between federal and local authorities, Kerry will ensure universal broadband for first responders by the end of 2006.
- Make Research Into the Industries of the Future a Priority. Government-funded university research is critical to innovation. While the Bush administration has proposed cutting research, Kerry will provide broad-based increases in research, helping to create the jobs of the future, cut health care costs and find new cures.
- Build a High-Tech Workforce Ready for the Jobs of the Future. Building a high-tech workforce is needed for economic growth. Kerry will build the workforce of the future by investing in K-12 math and science education, rewarding colleges for increasing the number of science and engineering degrees, and creating state-of-the-art online learning technologies.
- Improve Quality of Life by Creating an Information Society. New information and communications technologies can do more than change the way we shop and do business. Used creatively, they can also improve our quality of life and advance some of our most time-honored values. Working with the private sector, Kerry will promote key applications of Information Technology that improve our quality of life, including advances in health care and education.
“This technological revolution is the foundation of a 21st century economy,” Kerry said. “But it’s up to us to build on that foundation so that we can create and expand 21st century jobs. We won’t get very far with a government that wants to stifle or ignore the creativity and entrepreneurship that will produce the next big idea: we need to encourage it and invest in it.”
Kerry's plan will be paid for by accelerating the transition to digital television. This will not only raise $30 billion at public auction to fund science and technology innovation, but also free up spectrum to provide wireless broadband to all first responders and expand the spectrum that is available for unlicensed wireless broadband.
“This nation is destined to think big and dream big, and it’s time America had a president who once again will look toward a future of discovery with hope and confidence,” Kerry said. “Today, I’ve offered an economic agenda focused on high-tech, high-wage job growth. It is an optimistic agenda for prosperity. It recognizes that the promise of the Information Age was not a bubble; it is a breakthrough that will continue to lift our economy and our lives.”
For more information on nanotechnology, click here or check out www.AZoNano.com, The A to Z of Nanotechnology.
Posted June 28th, 2004
