The Citizens Party of the United States (Citizens Party) is a political party in the United States. Founded by Michael Thompson in Wayne, Pennsylvania in 2004 as the New American Independent Party (NAIP), the first meeting took place in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania on the day of the general election in 2004. The New American Independent Party changed its name to the Citizens Party in January 2011. The transition to the name Citizens Party lasted several months.

Ideology

Member engagement

Citizens can submit questions and vote on questions through

social media Social media are interactive media technologies that facilitate the creation and sharing of information, ideas, interests, and other forms of expression through virtual communities and networks. While challenges to the definition of ''social medi ...

that all Citizens Party presidential candidates are required to answer before the convention. Members of the public can suggest potential candidates and draft candidates to run as party candidates.

Main Street Platform

As can be seen in its 2012 platform, the Citizens Party advocates for an end to US participation in the

World Trade Organization The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an intergovernmental organization that regulates and facilitates international trade. With effective cooperation in the United Nations System, governments use the organization to establish, revise, and ...

Central American Free Trade Agreement Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object. Central may also refer to: Directions and generalised locations * Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...

and North American Free Trade Agreement. In addition to eliminating the trade and budget deficits, the party aims to fund and evangelize American manufacturing while introducing financial penalties for companies that outsource it. Part of its plan to invest in American infrastructure includes research and development efforts with an emphasis on renewable energy and

natural gas Natural gas (also called fossil gas or simply gas) is a naturally occurring mixture of gaseous hydrocarbons consisting primarily of methane in addition to various smaller amounts of other higher alkanes. Low levels of trace gases like carbo ...

. Specifically, it opposes

fracking Fracking (also known as hydraulic fracturing, hydrofracturing, or hydrofracking) is a well stimulation technique involving the fracturing of bedrock formations by a pressurized liquid. The process involves the high-pressure injection of "frac ...

and hopes to make all drilling operations subject to environmental assessments. The Citizens Party's strategy against corruption includes auditing of the Federal Reserve, bans on various lobbying activities and reviving the Glass–Steagall Act in order to eliminate bailouts based on a "

too big to fail "Too big to fail" (TBTF) and "too big to jail" is a theory in banking and finance that asserts that certain corporations, particularly financial institutions, are so large and so interconnected that their failure would be disastrous to the great ...

" mentality. Groups in need of assistance according to its platform include veterans, family farmers and the long-term unemployed. The platform also mentions health care reform, more affordable education and a simplified tax code. Stricter immigration laws feature prominently in the party's approach, including limits on H1B and L1 visas and deterrents for companies that hire illegal workers. Regarding foreign policy, the Citizens Party claims to have a non-partisan stance on the Israeli / Palestinian conflict. It aims to limit the use of the military to non-interventionist deployments that directly benefit American national security. The party supports same-sex marriage, the

second amendment The second (symbol: s) is the unit of time in the International System of Units (SI), historically defined as of a day – this factor derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes and finally to 60 seconds each ...

, and

Roe v. Wade ''Roe v. Wade'', 410 U.S. 113 (1973),. was a landmark decision of the U.S. Supreme Court in which the Court ruled that the Constitution of the United States conferred the right to have an abortion. The decision struck down many federal and s ...

. It was an early supporter of organic foods and industrial hemp.

Candidates

The Citizens Party encourages members to start draft campaigns to convince qualified individuals to run for office as Citizens Party candidates.

Citizens Questions

The Citizens Party requires all of its declared presidential candidates to answer a set of "Citizens Questions" at least 60 days before the 2016 Citizens Party National Convention. The "Citizens Questions" are selected from questions submitted by Citizens Party members via the party website or

YouTube YouTube is a global online video sharing and social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by Google, and is the second mo ...

. The party states that the responses to the "Citizens Questions" will be posted on the internet for the public to view.

Previous candidates (2006–2012)

In 2006, Michael Thompson ran as the party's first candidate when he ran for State Representative in

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

's 165th Legislative District and received 2.84% of the vote. In March 2008, the New American Independent Party nominated Frank McEnulty as its first presidential candidate. In July, McEnulty also became the vice-presidential nominee of the Reform Party. He continued his campaign as the NAIP presidential nominee in states where the Reform Party was unable to obtain ballot status. McEnulty received 828 votes (placing 15th of 23 ballot-qualified Presidential tickets nationwide) as the New American Independent Party nominee and 481 votes on the Reform Party ticket (placing 22nd out of 23 ballot-qualified Presidential tickets nationwide). In October 2009, the NAIP endorsed independent candidate

Chris Daggett Christopher Jarvis Daggett (born March 7, 1950) is an American businessman who is the president and CEO of the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, one of the largest foundations in New Jersey. A former regional administrator of the United States En ...

for

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

. Daggett finished third with 6% of the vote. The Citizens Party did not nominate a presidential ticket in 2012 and ran no candidates nationwide.

References

External links

VoteCitizens.Org
Citizens Party Official Social Network {{United States political parties 2004 establishments in Pennsylvania Centrist political parties in the United States Political parties established in 2004 Political parties in the United States