CRAIGforCONGRESS
Missouri's 7th District, U.S. House of Representatives

 

 

 

Bringing LIBERTY to Capitol Hill -- 2008
OZARKS VIRTUAL TOWN HALL
Saturday Morning, December 8, 2007, 10:30am

A Discussion of The President's Saturday Morning Radio Address


Ozarks Virtual Town Hall - Audio Replay - December 8, 2007
Download cleaner-sounding MP3

Notes and Summary of the President's Address -- Help for Homeowners

THE PRESIDENT: Good morning. Today I want to talk to you about some important policies affecting taxpayers and homeowners this holiday season.

How the President Differs from the American vision of "Liberty Under God":

  1. Government intervention in the housing market is unconstitutional and counterproductive.
  2. Government-chartered lending institutions create inflation by creating money for borrowers
  3. Government creation of money pushes everyone into higher tax brackets, increasing their tax burden
  4. High taxes and exorbitant government spending shows that President Bush and the Democrat-controlled Congress are completely out of touch with the original vision of America
    1. "The American Dream" was not having a mortgage hanging over your head for 30 years.
    2. "The American Dream" was not getting "something for nothing" -- it was the freedom to work, earn, save, invest, and help one's neighbors.
  5. America's Founding Fathers took up arms over British taxes that did not exceed 3-5%
    1. Americans today are victims of taxes ten times greater than those that fomented the American Revolution.
    2. Today's Income Tax began in 1913 as a 1% tax only on the super-rich (those earning more than half a million dollars in today's money).
    3. Today, all taxpayers -- even the middle class -- are deemed "super rich" by the government and pay 10-, 15-, or even 30 times more taxes than the richest Americans paid in 1913.
  6. The Government promises to be our Savior, and Taxes are our offerings to a false god.
    1. America is, on the one hand, a nation "under God."
    2. America is, on the other hand, a nation that ignores God and commits idolatry.
    3. Idolatry is when we fail to trust God (our national motto is "In God We Trust") and trust the Government to bring us "salvation."
  7. Americans must think about these issues, not just in terms of the Constitution, but in terms of the values enshrined in the Declaration of Independence -- the philosophy of "Liberty Under God."
President's Radio Address Liberty Under God
THE PRESIDENT: Good morning. Today I want to talk to you about some important policies affecting taxpayers and homeowners this holiday season. On Thursday, the United States Senate passed a bill to fix the alternative minimum tax, or AMT. The AMT was designed to ensure that the wealthy paid their fair share of taxes. But when Congress passed the AMT decades ago, it was not indexed for inflation. As a result, the AMT's higher tax burden is creeping up on more and more middle-class families, and as many as 25 million Americans would be subject to the AMT. On average, these taxpayers would have to send an extra $2,000 to the IRS next year. This is a huge tax increase that taxpayers do not deserve and that Congress must stop. Original 1913 tax rates: you earn half a million dollars (in today's money), you pay 1%

"bracket creep" is a result of the creeps in the Federal Reserve, who print money for their friends and make your money worth less.

Taxes of only 2-3% in 1776 led to Armed Revolution.

It wasn't the money: Founders were willing to "Risk our lives, our Fortune, and our sacred honor" to prevent such government tyranny.

Taxation is theft.

Inflation is theft.

The Government is a Thief.
I congratulate the United States Senate for acting to do so. Now it's up to the House of Representatives to move the bill. They've already delayed the bill so long that $75 billion in tax refund checks could be delayed next year.  
I urge the House of Representatives to get the Senate-passed AMT relief bill to my desk before they adjourn so I can sign it and protect millions of families from higher taxes and avert any further delay in the tax refund checks next year. Notice how the government - the thief - claims credit for "protecting" millions of families. The mugger says to you, "I'm here to protect you from losing your Rolex, by only stealing your wallet."
I also know many Americans are concerned about meeting their mortgage obligations. The private sector and the government both have a role to play. More than three months ago, I announced a series of targeted actions to help responsible homeowners avoid foreclosure. And on Thursday I met with Treasury Secretary Paulson and Housing Secretary Jackson, who updated me on the progress. We shouldn't always criticize the government. The willingness of Americans to go into debt is a serious problem. It is a spiritual problem as well as an economic problem.

The government has no role to play in home mortgages. Review the enumerated powers doctrine, the fundamental theory of our government. 99% of the budget is unconstitutional, and even constitutional programs (e.g. USPS) are unwise. Capitalism works, socialism fails.

The government's largest role is encouraging people to go into debt. The government does this by manipulating the currency and credit system. Everything about this government role is unconstitutional and evil.
The first step we took was to launch a new initiative at the Federal Housing Administration called "FHA Secure." This program gives the FHA greater flexibility to offer refinancing to homeowners who have good credit histories but cannot afford their current payments. In just three months, the FHA has helped more than 35,000 people refinance their homes. And in the coming year, the FHA expects this program to help more than 300,000 families. We have what's called a Fiat Money System. "Fiat" is the Latin word for "let there be." In the Latin Bible, God says "Fiat lux" -- "Let there be light!" and there was light. The government says, "Let there be MONEY" and there is money -- lots of money. And when the government creates more money, it makes the money that already exists worth less. This is called "inflation."
Second, we helped assemble the HOPE NOW Alliance, which includes lenders, loan servicers, investors, and mortgage counselors. HOPE NOW is an example of the government bringing together members of the private sector to voluntarily address a national challenge -- without taxpayer subsidies or government mandates. This group has agreed on a set of industry-wide standards to help struggling homeowners by refinancing an existing loan into a new private mortgage, or by moving them into an FHA Secure loan, or by freezing their current interest rates for five years. Whenever a government-chartered lending institution creates a loan for someone, you are "subsidizing" the borrower. The government is taking purchasing power from your dollars and giving that purchasing power to the borrower. The borrower gets a new home, the homebuilder gets paid and goes to the store and gets in line ahead of you, because your dollars are worth less.

Now Bush wants to take credit for keeping the government out of the private sector.
Lenders are already refinancing and modifying mortgages on a case-by-case basis. By taking a systemic approach, HOPE NOW will be able to help large groups of homeowners all at once. HOPE NOW estimates that up to 1.2 million homeowners could be eligible for assistance. And HOPE NOW has set up a counseling hotline that Americans can call 24 hours a day. I urge homeowners who are worried about rising mortgage payments to call 1-888-995-HOPE to get help. You see, the government really does care about YOU.
Third, the federal government is working to reduce the likelihood of similar problems in the future. Regulators are taking action to make the mortgage industry more transparent, reliable, and fair. Our goal is to ensure that homeowners receive complete, accurate, and understandable information about their mortgages. According to Bush, without the government, the mortgage industry would be murky, unreliable, and unfair. Homeowners (read: "borrowers") just did not receive "complete, accurate, and understandable information about their mortgages." This is nonsense. What borrowers thought they were getting was something for nothing. They thought they were getting a big home when all they had earned was a small apartment. They thought they were getting a low-interest loan when they knew their credit rating only entitled them to a high-interest loan. The government repeatedly encourages people to believe that it can give them something for nothing. The government is our Savior. The government is Santa Claus.
These measures will help many struggling homeowners -- and Congress has the potential to help even more. Yet in the three months since I made my proposals, Congress has not sent me a single bill to help homeowners. If Members are serious about responding to the challenges in the housing market, they can start by taking several important steps.  
Congress needs to pass legislation to modernize the FHA. This bill could allow the FHA to help 250,000 families by the end of 2008. Congress needs to temporarily reform the tax code to help homeowners refinance during this time of housing market stress. And Congress needs to pass funding to support mortgage counseling. With this funding, we could help more homeowners choose the mortgage that is right for them. The FHA has no Constitutional authority. It should be abolished.
As well, Congress needs to pass legislation to reform Government Sponsored Enterprises like Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae. By strengthening the independent regulation of these institutions, we can ensure they focus on their mission to expand homeownership in a fiscally responsible way. These agencies are also unconstitutional, and should be abolished.
These common-sense measures have been before Congress for months. Congress needs to pass these measures quickly -- and send them to my desk, so we can help homeowners in need and protect the American Dream for all our citizens. What is the "American Dream?" How do we get it? Is the American Dream a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage? America's Founding Fathers described the American Dream as every man dwelling safely under his vine and fig tree. We need to return to that Christian worldview.
Thank you for listening.  

The Democrat Party Radio Address:

Illinois Senator Dick Durbin delivered the The Democratic Party Radio Address, covering a dozen assorted issues. The Democrats, he promises in effect, make a better Messiah than the Republicans.
"After the Battle of Antietam, President Lincoln was angered when General McClellan wouldn't go on the attack in the Civil War. Lincoln asked his General, 'If you're not going to use your army, may I borrow it?' I'd like to ask the Republican leaders on Capitol Hill, if you're not going to use your power to solve the problems facing our nation, may we borrow it?"
Government creates problems; it does not solve them.

Additional Resources:

Kevin Craig's Platform:

Click here for a replay of this edition of the Ozarks Virtual Town Hall