To build toward our vision of a more perfect union and a democracy that truly puts the people first, We Are NEXT prioritizes the most urgent and actionable needs within each issue area — from education to health care, to immigration, housing, national security, and beyond — and presents policy briefs of recommendations to be implemented on ‘Day One’ and within ‘Year One’ of a new Presidential administration.

Day One policies are actionable and implementable by the executive branch of the federal government within the first 100 days (a metaphorical 'Day One') of a new presidential administration. The objectives of Day One policies are to:

1. Immediately implement critical, actionable, durable policies across a broad spectrum of issues, and

2. Initiate a framework that builds momentum toward enacting our broader vision over the coming months and years.

Starting with policies that are actionable on ‘Day One’ means doing as much as is physically, logistically, and legally possible within the system that we will inherit on Day One of a new administration. We Are NEXT is committed to upholding the rule of law throughout its platform. That means developing Day One policy proposals that maximize existing statutes and legal frameworks to achieve maximum immediate impact within current legal and constitutional parameters.

Proposing unlawful action is not a template for responsible policy-making, especially since our goal is to implement reforms that withstand judicial review and deliver real, tangible benefits to the American people. Additionally, unlawful action can trigger lawsuits that lead to courts narrowing existing statutes, so it is critical for We Are NEXT’s Day One actions to remain grounded in existing legal authorities. Pioneering novel policy ideas within existing legal frameworks is one thing; proposing legally impossible mechanisms is another. 

To maximize existing legal authorities, our Day One policy platform proposes using existing policy levers to the furthest edge of what the law allows — not rhetorically, but in concrete statutory terms. Some examples include:

• Directing HHS and related agencies to reinterpret core civil-rights statutes so that denials of medically necessary care can be treated as civil-rights violations

• Declaring national emergencies that would leverage existing authorities to deliver immediate wins in climate and tech reform.

• Using every available antitrust law to mount the broadest enforcement operation on unlawful monopolies since the mid-20th century.

• Auditing foreign-linked PACs through the Department of Justice and Treasury using FARA standards

‘Year One’ policies are actionable and implementable by the executive branch of the federal government within the first 12-18 months (a metaphorical ‘Year One’) of a new Presidential administration. The objectives of Year One policies are the same as those of Day One, yet also recognize that some policy actions require more time for research, collaboration, regulatory review, rulemaking, agency hiring, etc., which require an implementation timeline that extends beyond ‘Day One.’

As with our recognition of the legal and constitutional parameters within which government must operate, our Year One framing conveys the responsibility and reality of deliberative, robust governance.

While the system’s current constraints and flaws are often a significant source of frustration for reformers, we believe that by immediately maximizing the existing system, our Day One and Year One policies will generate the momentum needed to sustain longer-term reform. For example, robust executive action on Day One to achieve a slate of health policy reforms will help to foster the public and political momentum necessary to pass substantive universal health care legislation in Congress.

We Are NEXT identified an urgent need to prepare these Day One and Year One policies to shift the public conversation about what is possible and to be expected from our government, and to support a new President and Executive Branch that aligns with our mission and vision.

We believe a democracy that works for everyone is not inherited - it is built, strengthened, and defended, generation by generation. Each individual, citizen, and organization has a role to play in creating the America we want for ourselves, our neighbors, and future generations. At We Are NEXT, our focus is to provide an actionable manual for urgent transition toward competent governance in service of our vision and values.

While it is not our focus area at We Are NEXT, we understand the importance of longer-term, robust, and visionary reforms across all issue areas. We recognize, support, and seek to collaborate with organizations that are developing research, expertise, and policy recommendations at all levels of government, in specific issue areas, for the immediate and long term.