2020 Candidate Forum

25JAN

THE OVERRIDING QUESTION

Today all nations face common planet-wide social, physical and political challenges. The U.S. has a huge global footprint affecting critical, interrelated arenas including the world economy, climate and environment, military action, powerful nuclear arsenals, and global refugee and immigration pressures. Along with the outsized U.S. footprint comes large U.S. responsibility. This forum encourages the candidates to address a selection of the issues and concerns shared across an increasingly unstable global community.

How will the next U.S. President respond to growing, complex, interdependent and interconnected global challenges? To date, public conversations with presidential candidates have emphasized important domestic issues. Many pressing global concerns have yet to emerge in the general debates. This timely and unique Forum will help voters to explore the following vitally important international issues.

    • Evolving Global Climate Catastrophes
    • Growing Risks of a Nuclear Exchange
    • Burgeoning Costs and Use of Military Force
    • Deepening Environmental Degradation and Biosphere Collapse
    • Engaging in Multilateral Work such as the UN to tackle the above challenges

THE PROGRAM FOR THE FORUM HAS EVOLVED INTO AN ISSUE FORUM

Our basic mission is to provide public education on these important issues and what positions to expect from a President. Therefore, we have, between June 2019 through January 2020, invited candidates from both major parties to appear or to provide surrogates that can present their policies on this Forum’s set of international topics. As of January 24, we have confirmed Abshir Omar as a surrogate for the Bernie Sander's Campaign in Iowa. No other campaigns have been able to schedule with us.

We have now scheduled several nonpartisan experts to provide background on the five international issues chosen for this Forum that may help voters in making their own decisions.

ISSUE CONTENT EXPERTS

These experts will will assume a role as if they are Presidential advisers and will respond to the questions that we are asking about each campaign's positions and policies.

Ward Wilson PhD, will be forum moderator and will speak on the growing risk of nuclear war. Other experts are Jerald Schnoor PhD on the evolving climate catastrophes, Aaron Marr Page LLD, on multilateralism especially as it affects human rights and international law, Jeff Weiss MA on costs of over-reliance on military as we search for security, Maureen McCue MD PhD on impending biosphere collapse, and Jim Olson PhD on the importance of the United Nations in most global issues.

ABOUT THE FORUM

PSR Iowa is the convening organizer of this forum. Forum organizers also include Veterans for Peace, Peace Iowa, Union of Concerned Scientists, and Iowa City Foreign Relations Council.