Eckersley vs. Craig

Eckersley	Craig
His Own Man I've stood up for Missourians here at home and I'll stand up for Missourians in Washington. I believe folks here need a candidate who won't blink when toe-to-toe with a challenge. I'm an independent thinker who won't back down. It's time for personal and party interests to be replaced by someone committed to real public service. Fiscally Conservative Risking too much by spending too much isn’t good leadership. The effects of deficit spending are being seen across the globe and we are all feeling it here at home. It's time to make a course correction. I will fight to ensure a balanced budget, cut taxes, and take sure steps to reduce the national debt. Lower taxes and responsible fiscal policy will put more money in more pockets. Lower taxes on businesses will stimulate investment and create jobs. Our country needs to provide a stable economic environment to ensure our future prosperity. Open Government Open government means taking ownership and holding our elected officials accountable. I've fought for open government laws because they are one of the only ways citizens are able to extract accountability from government leaders. Against great odds, I stood up, fought back, and won. I'm asking you to stand up with me, fight with me, and together we can win.	All "public service" is a *dis*service to the public. Real service is private, not compulsory; competitive, not funded by extortion. The federal government is the greatest enemy of the American vision -- "Liberty Under God" -- on the planet. I view my role in Congress as protecting America from Washington D.C.
Education Our educational standards need to be set high. Our kids need to compete worldwide and the federal government has a role to play in setting these standards and incentivizing performance thereto. We are all stakeholders. It is up to parents, school boards, local communities, the state, and federal government to ensure our children's success. I would like to see a return to neighborhood-based elementary schools. I support initiatives such as Race-To-the-Top that encourage creativity and innovation. Un-funded mandates are not the answer. No Child Left Behind is a good example of what not to do for public education. Additionally, the federal government needs to set low interest rate loans for college students. Rising tuition costs and high rates of return are burying our students in debt.
Cutting Federal Debt Southwest Missourians know how to live on a budget. They know how to balance their checkbook. We should expect no less from our federal government. It's time to exercise serious "fiscal constraint" in government spending. We must both plan and take steps certain to balance the federal budget. Entitlement programs need to be addressed to ensure fiscal viability. Income taxes must be reduced on individuals and capital gains taxes need to be reduced to spur business investment and jobs creation.
Gulf Oil Spill There is an oil company that owes Americans a lot of money. We need off-shore drilling to decrease our dependence on foreign oil. By putting in place stronger regulations and bigger penalties for failures, fewer failures will result. I support drilling for oil to decrease our dependence on middle-east oil. It is also important to protect park lands. The bottom line is that it's time for business and environmental policy advocates learn to work together. Responsible environmental policy is good business.
Partisan Bitterness My experience has shown me some of the uglier sides of politics. I saw a lot of people putting personal and party interests above their constituents interests. That's not what I'm about. I never have been. The fingerpointing needs to stop. The people of Southwest Missouri are interested in creative solutions to our pressing problems. The people of Southwest Missouri are looking for the right individual, not a party.
Earmarks I oppose funding of projects in non-germane/inappropriate legislation or those earmarks that result from unsavory back-room deals. I strongly support the appropriations process in which constituents request funding for important projects and programs for their district. If the $22.6 million for the Jordan Valley Innovation Center had not been secured for Springfield, those dollars would have gone elsewhere. My job will be to bring federal dollars back home to this district. I support earmark limits and the elimination of earmarks entirely if applied to all members. But until that day comes, I plan to bring federal money home to fund projects that create jobs and enhance our community
Economic Growth and Jobs We must reduce taxes on individuals and small business in order to spur economic growth and provide jobs. Sixty percent of our nations economy rests on the back of small business. We need to loosen restrictions on credit for these businesses to keep the jobs we already have and create new ones. Government debt and out-of-control spending chill investment and stagnate job growth. These steps toward stability will spur investment, innovation, and prosperity will follow.
Government Spending Every government program has a degree of wasteful spending within it. No program is immune, and every program has room for improvement. Each must be fair game for assessment with the goal of raising efficiencies, even if that assessment results in reduction or elimination. Given the size of our national debt, there’s no longer any room for sacred cows. Just like a family trying to make ends meet during difficult times, we’ve got to lay out everything on government’s kitchen table, make some tough decisions, balance the books, clear the debt, and make America our own again.
Social Security Reform The problem presented by Social Security is yet another by-product of mismanagement of the federal budget. I will find fiscally responsible solutions to meet the complex challenges facing Social Security. All options should be on the table. Revisiting FICA withholding processes, retirement age, administrative costs and benefit distribution should all be carefully examined for savings. Bad fiscal polices have imperiled programs that generations have counted on and made us vulnerable to foreign interests. When recently asked to name the No. 1 threat to our national security, the Joint Chiefs of Staff responded that it was our federal deficit. I couldn’t agree more.
Taxes Taxes are too high. We must reduce taxes on individuals and small business in order to spur economic growth and provide jobs. Government debt and out-of-control spending chill investment and stagnates job growth. It's time for congress to balance the budget and make the cuts necessary to unburden the American taxpayer. These steps toward stability will spur investment, innovation, and prosperity will follow.
Immigration I believe in strong families and strong borders. Americans are calling for comprehensive immigration reform and I'm listening. It is not a state-by-state issue, but a federal problem requiring urgent federal action. Reform begins with a secure border. I stand with Southwest Missourians for comprehensive reform of our current broken system
War on Terror This war has lasted too long and cost too much. Now is the time to aggressively pursue our military course to stabilize and secure Iraq for its citizens and for our troops to transition home. That said, I do not support setting a firm deadline for withdrawing our troops. The last thing anyone wants is to undermine the progress we have made to this point. As the saying goes, "We have all the watches, but they have all the time." Our brave service men and women have paid a great price for the gains we have made. It would dishonor their service and sacrifice to allow political pressure and expediency to take the place of sound judgement and compromise the progress both countries have made thus far.
Abortion I am pro-life. I oppose abortion with exceptions in the case of rape, incest and maternal health. My convictions are personal, not exaggerated or calculated to win votes and gain endorsements.
Health Care Reform I am not interested in political gimmickry such as repealing the healthcare bill. The fundamental question is can we afford this bill. We cannot. I submit that it must undergo significant revision to be sustainable. I don't think Nancy Pelosi's solution to the problems the healthcare industry faces is the right way to go. The solution to the country's healthcare crisis is in improving the health of its citizens. I would like to see creative, bipartisan support for a revision of this bill that focuses on the root cause of health costs and not a more expensive bandage.
Individual Freedoms vs Terrorism It's a delicate balance. We live in a free country. The government is expected to protect its citizens. The government and its agencies need to share information and take the least intrusive approach to safeguarding America and protect its principles of freedom.
Responding to Constituents The issue is whether anyone is really listening in Washington. With a 16 percent approval rating, most of us give Republicans and Democrats in Congress a failing grade. I’ve seen politicians put personal and party interests ahead of the people they should be serving. I am an independent voice willing to change that. New media provides incredible access to elected officials and vice-versa. Through Internet, mail and phone, there is no excuse for voters not to be heard. But all the fancy new media in the world can’t replace a leader who isn’t listening. I care. I will listen. I will act.
Term Limits Nobody should spend a career in Congress. That’s not what our forefathers intended. Thanks to technological advances in the past decade, though, voters now have more information than ever to make well-informed choices at the polls. When it comes to determining who should or shouldn’t remain in Congress, voters should decide, not some law that sets some arbitrary limit. Term limits is a big brother-style policy that assumes that voters can’t make their own choices. It preempts a very basic right that our citizens cherish, and that doesn’t make for good public policy.