Created some new policies to go with the ones already existing in the unmodified game. Featured are 'Globalization', 'Internationalism vs Isolationism', 'Asia-Pacific Pivot' and 'Working Families'.
Credit goes to RedArrow for instructions on how to mod.
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<Issue>
<Tag>BLACKLIVES</Tag>
<Display>#BlackLivesMatter</Display>
<Image>Gun</Image>
<Icon>Gfx\Issue_Images\Issue_Gun_Pos.png</Icon>
<Description>Some highly visible incidents involving the deaths of black men in police custody, have led to a movement complaining about the mistreatment black Americans suffer at the hands of the police. Called #BlackLivesMatter, its supporters demand justice for black people and reform in the way we train and manage police. Opponents feel that existing laws adequately protect black lives and worry that the movement masks acts of violent civil disobedience.</Description>
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<Party_Position PartyID="Indy" StateID="23">6</Party_Position>
</Issue>
<Issue>
<Tag>GOVBUILDSB</Tag>
<Display>Gov. Builds Business</Display>
<Image>Jobs</Image>
<Icon>Gfx\Issue_Images\Issue_Jobs_Pos.png</Icon>
<Description>"You Didn't Build That"?||Democrats argue that the services the government provides play a vital role in the businesses entrepreneurs create. Republicans see the role of the individual as the defining factor, and government often as an obstacle.</Description>
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</Issue>
<Issue>
<Tag>WORKING FAMILIES</Tag>
<Display>Working Families-American Dream Opportunities</Display>
<Image>Family</Image>
<Icon>gfx\Issue_Images\Issue_Family_Pos.png</Icon>
<Description>The middle class and lower income families have been struggling because of high inequalities in wealth, income and opportunity from 2001 onwards. Adjusted for inflation, the economic crisis, globalization, and the decline of unions and compared to the gains made by the wealthiest, their incomes have stagnated. The Obama Administration tried to redress the issue through repetitive tax cuts as part of the various stimulus packages. Liberals believe that progressive policies supporting tax credits expanded and reformed welfare benefits, universal health care, access to quality education, and a sound financial system are necessary to get the American Dream back on track.
Republicans believe that such initiatives corrode the ethics of rugged individualism, responsibility and enterprise in a free market economy. They also believe that prosperity is guaranteed by a low-tax, small government state.
Some Republicans even voted against tax cuts for the middle class because they wanted to pay for tax cuts for “job creators”, i.e the one percent. </Description>
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<Issue>
<Tag>STRONGMILITARY</Tag>
<Display>A Strong Military</Display>
<Image>War</Image>
<Icon>Gfx\Issue_Images\Issue_War_Pos.png</Icon>
<Description>The United States has the most powerful military in the world, giving it a unique advantage in protecting national interests and determining global policy. Supporters feel that the costs of keeping such a massive military are worth it for such unique benefits. Opponents feel that these significant resources can be better spent elsewhere.</Description>
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</Issue>
<Issue>
<Tag>ABORTION</Tag>
<Display>Abortion Rights</Display>
<Image>Family</Image>
<Icon>Gfx\Issue_Images\Issue_Family_Pos.png</Icon>
<Description>Abortions have been a divisive issue in the United States for decades. Supporters of abortion rights feel that the government should not interfere with what a woman does to her own body. Opponents feel that the unborn fetus also has rights that are being violated during an abortion, and advocate for increased limits, if not outright bans, to be placed on abortions and abortion providers.</Description>
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<Issue>
<Tag>CLIMATECHA</Tag>
<Display>Addressing Climate Change</Display>
<Image>Energy</Image>
<Icon>Gfx\Issue_Images\Issue_Energy_Pos.png</Icon>
<Description>Scientists warn that the Earth's temperature is rising as a result of man-made greenhouse gases, and predict this will lead to a variety of unwelcome impacts to the planet's climate. Ending this would require the reduction of activities which produce greenhouse gases. Opponents of such actions doubts the validity of the current science, and worry that the economic and social impacts of the required changes will be too great.</Description>
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</Issue>
<Issue>
<Tag>ALTENERGY</Tag>
<Display>Alternative Energy</Display>
<Image>energy</Image>
<Icon>gfx\Issue_Images\Issue_Energy_Pos.png</Icon>
<Description>Fossil fuels have a number of negatives attached to them. First, they pollute the air and in many cases must be imported from hostile regimes.||Alternative energy advocates desire federal programs to subsidize new energy sources to help them compete in the market. Opponents argue that it is not the place of the federal government to play favorites in the market and that no alternative energy is remotely ready to take the place of fossil fuels.</Description>
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</Issue>
<Issue>
<Tag>BIGGOVERNMENT</Tag>
<Display>Big Government</Display>
<Image>generic</Image>
<Icon>gfx\Issue_Images\Issue_Generic_Pos.png</Icon>
<Description>Some things can be efficiently handled by a central government while others are best handled by private enterprise. No-one has ever agreed on which is which. Supporters of a larger government generally approve of regulations, government spending, and higher taxes. Opponents support lower regulations, less spending, and lower taxes.</Description>
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</Issue>
<Issue>
<Tag>FEDERALRESEARCHFUNDING</Tag>
<Display>Federal Research Funding</Display>
<Image>generic</Image>
<Icon>gfx\Issue_Images\Issue_Generic_Pos.png</Icon>
<Description>Federal Research Funding The US has a large network of national laboratories, programs and universities [public and private] that contributed to America’s position as the science and technology superpower of the 20th century. DARPA not only ensured that America remained strong militarily; its research eventually laid the groundwork for the Internet and an explosion of economic growth. The National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health are also seen as growth engines that have a large role to play in enhancing the quality of life in the respects of fighting disease, energy insecurity and ecological crises.Whilst Democrats, Independents and some Republicans believe that funding for these programs, in partnership with the private sector, must continue, Tea Partiers believe that the market should be solely responsible for deciding what areas of research should be supported, without any input from the government. Tax payers shouldn’t be called upon to fund research that may fail, or even if it succeeds, may not be directly applicable to them. The only area of research in which the Federal Government should play a role is in Defense and National Security. Moreover, Conservative Populists like Limbaugh accuse these institutions of having an elitist and sinister agenda that aims to dupe ordinary Americans.Liberals say that the free market can’t be solely relied on to fund potentially long term breakthrough scientific discoveries because private sector firms eager for profits that generate gains for their shareholders may want to invest only in projects guaranteed to be completed quickly, leading to potentially hundreds of billions of dollars of net losses in benefits to society. An America that invests in expanding the knowledge base is far more likely to remain economically powerful than an America that doesn’t make an effort to utilize all of its resources in the New “New” Economy. For example, a society that could cure pediatric leukemia is one where there is less inequality of opportunity, more social justice, greater quality of life, happiness, and where the potential workforce is stronger and more energetic, as well as more innovative and economically dynamic. They also point to the fact that some energy exploration innovations that could unlock trillions of cubic meters of natural gas and billions of barrels of oil [fracking] was supported by research grants from the Energy Department.</Description>
<Default_Party_Importance PartyID="Left">10</Default_Party_Importance>
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</Issue>
<Issue>
<Tag>ASIA-PACIFIC</Tag>
<Display>Relations with China:Asia-Pacific Pivot.</Display>
<Image>War</Image>
<Icon>Gfx\Issue_Images\Issue_War_Pos.png</Icon>
<Description>Relations with Chian:Asia-Pacific Pivot China is the rising Great Power of the 21st century and could stand to challenge America for its leadership role. It has been vastly expanding its navy and air-force capabilities so that it could prevent the US from exercising strategic power within what China sees as its historical sphere of influence in the Pacific region, particularly in Taiwan, and waters and sea lanes that are not only crucial for world trade, but may be hydrocarbon rich. This increases tensions with South Korea, Japan, and the ASEAN countries.
Obama announced a pivot to Asia in diplomatic and defense resources because he believes that, whilst America should not try to contain or stop China’s economic and political rise, she has a responsibility to ensure that China realizes that any overtly aggressive and hegemonic ambitions over Asia would be checked. America’s allies ranging from ROK, Japan, Taiwan, India and The Philippines as, well as old foes like Vietnam and Burma, need to be reassured that their interests would be protected. The rest of the world also has an interest in a strong American presence to ensure that the global economy, whose new center of growth will be Asia-Pacific, isn’t undermined by military tensions.
Meanwhile, amicable relations with China must continue. By exposing China to liberal international and institutional norms, it is hoped that the dragon will eventually evolve into a genuinely free society with economic and political liberties guaranteed. Even if this premise doesn’t bear fruit for a long time, if at all, it is believed that a China that is fully engaged in multilateral world order and economically interdependent with the US won’t act to pull the system down. America also needs Chinese cooperation on intellectual property rights, the global financial system, climate change and energy, and security issues such as the nuclear armed and unstable North Koreans. The North Korean state may collapse sooner or later and America, China, South Korea and Japan will have to coordinate their actions to prevent nuclear, civil war, failed state, humanitarian and economic catastrophes.
Finally, trade relations shouldn’t be viewed as a zero-sum game in which China wins by producing goods with contractors of American and other Western multinationals. Whilst there is a trade deficit in China’s favor, a lot of the goods are American designed, such as Ipads, Nikes and some General Motors vehicles, the profits for actually innovating, designing and marketing the goods still flow to America. The trade balance stands to be further corrected in America’s favor because a Chinese economy and society that is assisted in its development stands to demand high end American goods and services, whether it is buying Apple and Hewlett Packard products, Boeing airplanes, agricultural, energy, mining and industry related machinery, legal and financial services, and the work of American engineers and other professionals such as venture capitalists, consultants and architects. America’s college and university system also stands to gain, as do American workers whose jobs will be created due to changes in America’s favor, such as rising labor and bureaucratic costs in China, and new energy discoveries.However, relations with China are not especially popular with the voting public. Democrats and unions fear lost jobs, human rights violations [especially on workers, hence the low cost of production] and sloppy environmental standards while Republicans wish to take a stronger military stance as they see a potential threat. It doesn’t help matters that China has a history of uncompetitive and uncooperative trade relations and that some Chinese nationalists love to stymie the US in key areas of strategic interests and that its government, by promoting the China model of development, implicitly promotes authoritarianism in developing countries.</Description>
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</Issue>
<Issue>
<Tag>PUBLIC OPTION</Tag>
<Display>The Public Option</Display>
<Image>Health</Image>
<Icon>gfx\Issue_Images\Issue_Health_Pos.png</Icon>
<Description> </ The public option, was a proposal to create a government-run health insurance agency which would compete with other health insurance companies within the United States. The proposal was initially part of the debates surrounding the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, but was not passed in the final reconciled bill. Liberals hope that the plan will be adopted at the state level, and that, over time, the success of health care reform would generate support for further reform. It acts to ensure that the private insurers will boost their quality of service and lower costs to remain competitive.<Description>
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<Default_Party_Importance PartyID="Indy">4</Default_Party_Importance>
<Default_Party_Position PartyID="Indy">0</Default_Party_Position>
</Issue>
<Issue>
<Tag>GLOBALIZATION</Tag>
<Display>Globalization and The iEconomy</Display>
<Image>Economy</Image>
<Icon>gfx\Issue_Images\Issue_Economy_Pos.png</Icon>
<Description>Globalization and The New iEconomy. The 21st century global economy is dramatically different from that of the mid-20th. In the words of the NYT columnist Thomas Friedman, the world has become “flat” in that the movement of goods, services, people, capital and ideas is both faster and more efficient than ever before. At the same time, the development and rapid economic growth of emerging markets such as China, India, Brazil and Eastern Europe and continuing technological gains have contributed to increased commerce, the middle class in many established economic powers, especially the US, have seen declines in income and wage growth as their jobs are undermined or at risk of being replaced or outsourced/offshored. The sense of American decline, terrorism and the growth of immigration add further to the unease felt by Americans across the political spectrum regarding this topic. Liberals feel pressured to adopt protectionist rhetoric while Conservatives sometimes adopt nationalist and in some cases, isolationist rhetoric. However, there is hope that the right mix of bipartisan policies and political courage would not only increase the enthusiasm for globalization and free trade deals like the Trans-Pacific and Trans-Atlantic Trade and Investment Partnership among the voters, but ensure that America can maintain its edge as a dynamic economic superpower, especially if the emphasis is given to investments in education, science, technology and infrastructure alongside governmental, entitlement, tax and regulatory reform. Description>
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</Issue>
<Issue>
<Tag>COALMINING</Tag>
<Display>Coal Mining</Display>
<Image>Jobs</Image>
<Icon>Gfx\Issue_Images\Issue_Jobs_Pos.png</Icon>
<Description>Coal remains one of the cheapest energy sources within the United States, and new technologies promise to reduce its environmental impact. Supporters of coal mining want this cheap source of energy to continue to be exploited. Opponents doubt the effectiveness of these new technologies to mitigate coal's substantial environmental impacts and would prefer government resources and subsidies be spent on other, cleaner sources of energy.</Description>
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<Issue>
<Tag>COMMONCORE</Tag>
<Display>Common Core</Display>
<Image>School</Image>
<Icon>Gfx\Issue_Images\Issue_School_Pos.png</Icon>
<Description>The Common Core is a group of national educational standards that set out what students should know at each level of a K-12 education. They are an attempt to resolve differences between the capabilities and skills of high school graduates in different parts of the country, and better prepare them for college and employment. Opponents of Common Core worry they override state and local school districts' abilities to do what's best for their own students.</Description>
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<Default_Party_Importance PartyID="Indy">2</Default_Party_Importance>
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</Issue>
<Issue>
<Tag>CONFEDERAT</Tag>
<Display>Confederate Flag Display</Display>
<Image>Generic</Image>
<Icon>Gfx\Issue_Images\Issue_Generic_Pos.png</Icon>
<Description>The flag used by the Confederate army during the American Civil War is still flown in many places in the Southern United States. Although locals often view the flag as a symbol of regional pride, opponents consider the flag a symbol of racism and wish for it to be removed from public places.</Description>
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<Default_Party_Importance PartyID="Right">1</Default_Party_Importance>
<Default_Party_Position PartyID="Right">1</Default_Party_Position>
<Default_Party_Importance PartyID="Indy">1</Default_Party_Importance>
<Default_Party_Position PartyID="Indy">-1</Default_Party_Position>
<Party_Importance PartyID="Left" StateID="44">8</Party_Importance>
<Party_Importance PartyID="Right" StateID="44">8</Party_Importance>
<Party_Position PartyID="Right" StateID="44">8</Party_Position>
<Party_Importance PartyID="Indy" StateID="44">8</Party_Importance>
<Party_Position PartyID="Indy" StateID="44">3</Party_Position>
</Issue>
<Issue>
<Tag>RUSSIASMIL</Tag>
<Display>Curbing Russian Might</Display>
<Image>War</Image>
<Icon>Gfx\Issue_Images\Issue_War_Pos.png</Icon>
<Description>Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, Russia's military power has weakened significantly. In recent years however, Russia has begun flexing its strength again, most notably by interfering with a civil war in the Ukraine and sending its military into Syria. Some worry Russia's actions will lead to another Cold War, and desire that the United States take aggressive steps to prevent this. Others feel that diplomacy will work better.</Description>
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<Default_Party_Position PartyID="Left">-1</Default_Party_Position>
<Default_Party_Importance PartyID="Right">2</Default_Party_Importance>
<Default_Party_Position PartyID="Right">6</Default_Party_Position>
<Default_Party_Importance PartyID="Indy">2</Default_Party_Importance>
<Default_Party_Position PartyID="Indy">-1</Default_Party_Position>
</Issue>
<Issue>
<Tag>DEFICITREDUCTION</Tag>
<Display>Deficit Reduction</Display>
<Image>Economy</Image>
<Icon>Gfx\Issue_Images\Issue_Economy_Pos.png</Icon>
<Description>The United States has run a significant deficit at various points during its history, and has built up a substantial amount of debt. Supporters of a balanced budget believe it is time to reduce our budgetary deficit, and reduce our government's total debt load. Opponents feel that the economic stimulating effects of increased spending are still valuable in our current unsettled economy.</Description>
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<Default_Party_Importance PartyID="Right">2</Default_Party_Importance>
<Default_Party_Position PartyID="Right">4</Default_Party_Position>
<Default_Party_Importance PartyID="Indy">2</Default_Party_Importance>
<Default_Party_Position PartyID="Indy">4</Default_Party_Position>
</Issue>
<Issue>
<Tag>DRONEWARFA</Tag>
<Display>Drone Warfare</Display>
<Image>War</Image>
<Icon>Gfx\Issue_Images\Issue_War_Pos.png</Icon>
<Description>Unmanned aircraft have been used with increasing frequency in the past decade, and have been implicated in a number of incidents where civilians have been killed. Supporters of Drone Warfare feel that the benefits of these systems outweigh the costs, and that collateral damage from drone warfare is lower than the various alternatives. Opponents feel that drones are overused, and wish for limits to be placed on their deployment.</Description>
<Default_Party_Importance PartyID="Left">1</Default_Party_Importance>
<Default_Party_Position PartyID="Left">-1</Default_Party_Position>
<Default_Party_Importance PartyID="Right">1</Default_Party_Importance>
<Default_Party_Position PartyID="Right">-4</Default_Party_Position>
<Default_Party_Importance PartyID="Indy">1</Default_Party_Importance>
<Default_Party_Position PartyID="Indy">1</Default_Party_Position>
</Issue>
<Issue>
<Tag>DROUGHTASS</Tag>
<Display>Drought Assistance</Display>
<Image>Energy</Image>
<Icon>Gfx\Issue_Images\Issue_Energy_Pos.png</Icon>
<Description>Many parts of the country are suffering through serious droughts, most notably California. Although little can be done to make it rain, the government can invest in infrastructure to better capture new sources of water. Additionally, new regulations can mandate increased water efficiency in the residential, commercial, and agricultural sectors.</Description>
<Default_Party_Importance PartyID="Left">1</Default_Party_Importance>
<Default_Party_Position PartyID="Left">4</Default_Party_Position>
<Default_Party_Importance PartyID="Right">1</Default_Party_Importance>
<Default_Party_Position PartyID="Right">-1</Default_Party_Position>
<Default_Party_Importance PartyID="Indy">1</Default_Party_Importance>
<Default_Party_Position PartyID="Indy">1</Default_Party_Position>
<Party_Importance PartyID="Left" StateID="4">7</Party_Importance>
<Party_Position PartyID="Left" StateID="4">6</Party_Position>
<Party_Importance PartyID="Right" StateID="4">7</Party_Importance>
<Party_Position PartyID="Right" StateID="4">3</Party_Position>
<Party_Importance PartyID="Indy" StateID="4">7</Party_Importance>
<Party_Position PartyID="Indy" StateID="4">6</Party_Position>
</Issue>
<Issue>
<Tag>ENDINGHUMA</Tag>
<Display>Ending Human Trafficking</Display>
<Image>War</Image>
<Icon>Gfx\Issue_Images\Issue_War_Pos.png</Icon>
<Description>The increase in refugees and migrants fleeing the Middle East and North Africa has led to a rise in human trafficking groups offering to assist these migrants cross the Mediterranean. Unregulated and poorly equipped, these groups have been implicated in the deaths of several groups of migrants. Whether and how to police these groups has proven to be an election issue.</Description>
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<Default_Party_Position PartyID="Left">4</Default_Party_Position>
<Default_Party_Importance PartyID="Right">2</Default_Party_Importance>
<Default_Party_Position PartyID="Right">4</Default_Party_Position>
<Default_Party_Importance PartyID="Indy">2</Default_Party_Importance>
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