Senator Jim DeMint (R-SC) has put pen to paper in an effort to remind Conservatives of what we are about and what we should expect from those in leadership positions. What policies we should be pursuing and what issues he and other Conservatives are going to push on our behalf. Personally, I say: "Good luck! You're gonna need it!"
From Town Hall:
As a Senate conservative, I will work with my colleagues to put forth principled conservative ideas for action in Congress.
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The biggest issue on the minds of most Americans right now is our economy. And one of the top problems with our economy is out of control Federal spending. We are 17 trillion dollars in debt, and much of that debt is held by foreign nations such as China. Reform is needed. We will propose a balanced budget amendment, to make sure we do not spend more than we take in. This amendment will make it harder for politicians to raise the taxes of Americans by requiring a supermajority vote in Congress.
We will also provide a comprehensive global competitiveness program to bring back companies and jobs which have gone overseas. The job losses we have seen are not the fault of the American worker, they are the fault of Washington politicians who see their mission to tax, regulate, and harass businesses until they finally move overseas. Liberals prefer to complain about the jobs that have left. Conservatives will fight to get them back, by lowering taxes on American companies, cutting red tape, and providing other reforms that create a business environment that becomes a global magnet for high quality jobs.
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FairTax anyone?
Mr. DeMint continues:
We must secure our border and enforce our immigration laws, without providing amnesty for illegal aliens. We will offer legislation to fund the entire border fence, increase the number of border patrol agents and provide our law enforcement the tools to enforce our immigration laws.
We must reform the way Washington spends your money. Last year, Congress passed an appropriations bill that was approximately 2 feet tall, 3,417 pages long, contained an estimated 9,170 earmarks, with no debate and only 46 hours and 8 minutes to read the bill. The system is a national disgrace. I commend the President for moving the ball forward on this issue. Conservatives in the Senate will carry the President’s call for reform by putting forth earmark reform legislation to provide transparency, disclosure, and reduction of wasteful earmarks.
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Of course, the Republicans could have done that any time between 2002 and 2006 when they held both the House and Senate. It wasn't until they realized that the base was feeling disenfranchised (i.e. after the disaster of November 2006) that they began listening to us. The problem is, I can't be sure if they are listening right now.
And If I remember right, the Democrats promised to reform earmarks during the 2006 mid-term campaign. Looks like the Dems are going to have some splainin' to do.
On other issues:
We will also propose fundamental tax reform. In the short term, we must support the President’s call to make the tax cuts permanent. We will also put forth a proposal to give all taxpayers the option of a flat tax. You can stay in the current system, or you can choose a flat tax with no deductions. It’s up to you, the taxpayer. In the long term, we want to scrap the current tax code altogether because it is loaded with special interest giveaways, loopholes, and complicated hidden taxes. It is time to move to a fair system that taxpayers can understand.
At the same time, we must deal with our entitlement system, which is in serious financial trouble. The first step to reforming Social Security is to stop the raid. The Social Security Trust Fund should have a massive surplus of funds paid by workers for their retirement. But, every year, Congress raids the trust fund to pay for wasteful spending and earmarks. If a business did this, they would be prosecuted. When politicians do it, they get re-elected. The public is starting to wake up to these accounting tricks, and with your help we will end them.
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Again, I have to ask. Why wasn't this done between 2002 and 2006? Did it take what President Bush called a "thumpin'" to finally wake you people up?
And this:
We must provide free market health care options for all Americans.
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Today, too many of our education dollars are being wasted on meddlesome bureaucrats in Washington who provide no added value to local schools. We will provide education reform to give flexibility to states and localities, eliminate burdensome regulations, and ensure that nearly all of our Federal education funds are being spent in the classroom, and decisions are being made by school boards, teachers, and parents – not politicians and bureaucrats.
We will also reform the corrupt and ineffective bureaucracy known as the United Nations. American taxpayers pay the largest contribution to the UN, and what do we get for it? We must refuse to continue sending billions of taxpayer dollars to the UN until it reforms the way it does business.
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Well, good luck, Mr. DeMint. Those are some very lofty goals, but we need to clean house first. We need to get the "Good Ol' Boys" out of Congressional leadership positions and put new, younger blood in their place. Personally, I don't see that happening anytime soon.
But you did write a good column. Too bad you are preaching to the choir.
You can access the complete column on-line here:
Real Change Requires Principled Conservative LeadershipSen. Jim DeMint (R-SC)
TownHall.com
January 29, 2008
