Missouri's 7th District, U.S. House of
Representatives
Bringing LIBERTY to
Capitol Hill -- 2010 OZARKS
VIRTUAL TOWN
HALL
Saturday Morning, July 31st, 2010, 10:30am
A Discussion of The President's Saturday Morning
Radio Address
Click here
to listen to the July 31st, 2010 Ozarks Virtual Town Hall
Notes and Summary of the President's Weekly Radio
Address:
Good News on Autos, Obstruction on Small Business
The
White House Press Office: – In this week’s address,
President Obama praised the successes of the auto industry
restructuring. When his administration decided to invest in the
American car companies, some said such a move was bound to fail.
But since GM and Chrysler have emerged from bankruptcy, the auto
industry has added 55,000 jobs – the strongest growth in 10 years
– and for the first time since 2004, all three companies are
operating at a profit. The President also called on Republican
leaders in the Senate to stop blocking a vote on a bill helping small
businesses. Even though this bill will help the recovery, and
has been endorsed by groups like the Chamber of Commerce and the
National Federation of Independent Business, the Republican Senate
leadership continues to hold it hostage to politics by denying an
up-or-down vote on the bill. (continued below)
The federal government only has the powers granted to it --
"enumerated" -- in the
Constitution.
The "General Welfare" clause is no
exception to this principle.
"States Rights" --
most government should be carried out on a local level.
The Constitution created a federal government with
very limited powers, bound down by
the "chains of the constitution."
The Bush-Obama Regime believes it has vast, unlimited powers to
cure all diseases, fund all causes, and bring salvation.
From this aspect, therefore, the whole of economics can be
reduced to a single lesson, and that lesson can be reduced to
a single sentence. The art of economics consists in
looking not merely at the immediate but at the longer effects
of any act or policy; it consists in tracing the consequences
of that policy not merely for one group but for all groups.
These are the reasons given by Osama bin Laden for declaring a
"fatwah" (holy war) against the U.S.
All of these accusations are true.
All of these government actions are contrary to the
Constitution.
The biggest cause of terrorism --
and the most dangerous threat to the personal safety and
security of ordinary Americans like you and me -- is the Federal
Government of the United States.
America's Founders envisioned the American people, acting as
businessmen, humanitarians, and missionaries, engaging in
commercial and charitable activities around the world, bringing
peace and receiving the admiration of the world.
"The great rule of conduct for us, in
regard to foreign nations is in extending our commercial
relations to have with them as little political
connection as possible."
— Washington, Farewell Address (1796) [Washington’s
emphasis]
"I deem [one of] the essential
principles of our government, and consequently [one] which
ought to shape its administration,…peace, commerce, and
honest friendship with all nations, entangling alliances
with none."
— Jefferson, First Inaugural Address (1801)
Bush's unconstitutional military invasion
of Iraq has destroyed Christianity in that country.
Under Saddam Hussein's secular government, Christians in
Iraq had greater freedom than in most other Arab nations,
and one of the largest Christian populations in the Muslim
world was in Iraq.
Iraq is now an Islamic theocracy under Sharia law. The
Christian population has been destroyed. Christian Churches
are burned and terrorized with impunity.
Obama is following in Bush's unconstitutional, anti-Christian
footsteps.
This money-creation system is immoral and unconstitutional. It
steals from the poor and elderly.
America's Founding Fathers would conclude that The First
Amendment had been repealed
There is no freedom of religion: the U.S. is officially atheistic.
There is no freedom of the press: the media is the lapdog of
"the Establishment."
Everyone who signed the Constitution, if they were here today,
would urge the repeal of the Constitution and the abolition
of the government created by that document.
From this aspect, therefore, the whole of economics can be
reduced to a single lesson, and that lesson can be reduced to
a single sentence. The art of economics consists in
looking not merely at the immediate but at the longer effects
of any act or policy; it consists in tracing the consequences
of that policy not merely for one group but for all groups.
In the twelve months before I
took office, American auto companies lost hundreds of thousands of
jobs. Sales plunged 40 percent. Liquidation was a very
real possibility. Years of papering over tough problems and
failing to adapt to changing times – combined with a vicious
economic crisis – brought an industry that’s been the symbol
of our manufacturing might for a century to the brink of collapse.
We
didn’t have many good options. On one hand, we
could have continued the practice of handing out billions of
taxpayer dollars to the auto industry with no real strings
attached. On the other hand, we
could have walked away and allowed two major auto companies to go
out of business – which could have wiped out one million
American jobs.
Suppose the federal
government a hundred years ago had been subsidizing the
horse-and-buggy industry, as well as placing heavy tariffs and
regulatory burdens on the new "horseless carriage"
industry. Should the government have just stood by and allowed all
those jobs in the horse and buggy industry to be "wiped
out?"
Was the federal government wrong to allow the following
"icons of American industry" to disappear:
The list of well-known corporations that have experienced
bankruptcy is long. What makes federal bureaucrats more
qualified than millions of shareholders and consumers to
decide which corporations shall live or die? To whom has the Constitution
given the right to make
these decisions?
I refused to let that happen.
I guess that's
Obama's answer.
So we came up with a third
way. We
said to the auto companies – if you’re willing to make the
hard decisions necessary to adapt and compete in the 21st century,
we’ll make
a one-time investment in your future.
Imagine that your
next-door neighbor has $100,000 in credit card debt, and is
defaulting on two $450,000 mortgages. Should this man "make
a one-time investment" in some corporation deemed he
deems "too big to fail?"
Of course, if some folks had
their way, none of this would be happening at all. This
plant might not exist.
Or the plant would
have been sold to Toyota or some other corporation that knows how
to run a car company in the black.
There were leaders of the “just
say no” crowd in Washington who argued that standing by the auto
industry would guarantee failure. One called it “the worst
investment you could possibly make.” They said we should
just walk away and let these jobs go.
Or let these
workers be hired by more effective management.
Today, the men and women in this
plant are proving these cynics wrong. Since GM and Chrysler
emerged from bankruptcy, our
auto industry has added 55,000 jobs – the strongest period of
job growth in more than ten years. For the first time since
2004, all three American automakers are operating at a profit.
Sales have begun to rebound. And plants like this that
wouldn’t have existed if all of us didn’t act are now
operating maximum capacity.
General Motors has slashed its U.S. work force from 468,000
in 1970 to 52,000 hourly workers today.
What’s more, thanks to our investments,
a lot of these auto companies are reinventing themselves to meet
the demands of a new age. At this plant, they’re hard at
work building the high-quality, fuel-efficient cars of tomorrow
– cars like the plug-in hybrid Chevy Volt that can run 40 miles
before taking a sip of gasoline. Throughout Michigan, an
advanced battery industry is taking root that will power clean
electric cars – an industry that produced only 2 percent of the
world’s advanced batteries last year, but will now be able to
produce as much as 40 percent in a little over five years.
That’s real progress.
There’s no doubt that we
have a long way to go and a lot of work to do before folks here
and across the country can feel whole again. But what’s
important is that we’re
finally beginning to see some of the tough decisions we
made pay off. And if we
had listened to the cynics and the naysayers – if we
had simply done what the politics of the moment required – none
of this progress would have happened.
Still, even as these icons
of American industry are being reborn, we also need to
stand shoulder-to-shoulder with America’s small businessmen and
women, as well -- particularly since they’re the ones who create
most of the new jobs in this country.
As we work to rebuild our
economy, I can’t imagine anything more common-sense than giving
additional tax breaks and badly-needed lending
assistance to America’s small business owners so they can grow
and hire. That’s what we’re trying to do with the Small
Business Jobs Act – a bill that has been praised as being good
for small businesses by groups like the Chamber of Commerce and
the National Federation of Independent Business. It’s a
bill that includes provision after provision authored by both
Democrats and Republicans. But yesterday, the Republican
leaders in the Senate once again used parliamentary procedures to
block it. Understand, a majority of Senators support the plan.
It’s just that the Republican leaders in the Senate won’t even
allow it to come up for a vote.
Instead of a new act -- the "Small Business Jobs
Act" -- why not just repeal all the previous government
acts that have raised taxes and hurt small businesses?
That isn’t right. And I’m
calling on the Republican leaders in the Senate to stop holding
America’s small businesses hostage to politics, and allow an
up-or-down vote on this small business jobs bill.
At a time when America is just
starting to move forward again, we can’t afford the do-nothing
policies and partisan maneuvering that will only take us backward.
I won’t stand here and pretend everything’s wonderful. I
know that times are tough. But what I also know is that
we’ve made it through tough times before. And we’ll make
it through again. The men and women hard at work in this
plant make me absolutely confident of that.
So to all the naysayers out
there, I say this: Don’t ever bet against the American
people. Because we
don’t take the easy way
out. That’s not how we
deal with challenge. That’s not how we
build this country into the greatest economic power the world has
ever known. We
did it by summoning the courage to persevere, and adapt, and push
this country forward, inch by inch. That’s the spirit I
see in this plant today, and as long as I have the privilege of
being your President, I will keep fighting alongside you until we
reach a better day.
“Why
Americans Should
Celebrate Christmas
365 Days
a Year”
The word "Christ" means "King." The Message
of Christmas and the Principles set forth by the Christ (the
Messiah) who came that first Christmas are the real solution to
America's problems. The Federal Government is at war with Christmas
and "The
Way of Peace" announced by the Prince
of Peace. The Government should be on His
shoulders (Isaiah
9:6-7). Abolishing a Messianic State
is the only appropriate way to honor the Messiah. Otherwise
Christmas becomes mass hypocrisy.
The Word became flesh. The Creator of the universe
becomes a human being. He came to His own, but His own did
not receive Him, preferring darkness rather than light.
John the Baptist prepares the way for the Messiah, as
prophesied of Elijah.
As you read the
Gospel accounts, ask yourself how you would react if you knew
these accounts were really true. Not just true in some
"religious" sense, but reported in the New York
Times, proven in a court of law, or acknowledged by your
personal hero. (How do you know something
is true? Do you even have any "heroes?") How should
you change your life if your Creator became a human being? How
should Washington D.C. react if this human being claimed to be
the true Ruler?
The Prophet Micah predicted
that the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem. Jesus'
parents lived in Nazereth. Therefore God predestined
Caesar to issue a decree (probably relating to taxes) that
would bring Joseph and Mary to Bethlehem before Jesus was
born.
Bush claims the same global
power of confiscation and migration as Caesar did. Thousands
of Christians have been forced to move out of Iraq to make way
for Bush's Islamic Theocracy.
An army of angels announces the birth of the Messiah,
saying,
“Glory to God in the highest,
And on earth peace
to those with whom He is pleased!”
Man's chief
end is to glorify God and live in
peace. The Bush Administration's chief end is to erect a
"wall of separation"
between God and government so that the State gives no glory to
God, and to wage war, thereby "stimulating the
economy."
“Now when they had seen Him, they made widely
known the saying which was told them concerning this
Child. And all those who heard it marveled at those things
which were told them by the shepherds.”
When Herod got word of the birth of a rival king, he
behaved in a perfectly logical way (for someone who wants
to protect his power): he massacred all male babies
the age of Jesus. Herod recognized that Jesus was a threat
to Herod's power.
Every day in America 4,000
unborn babies are murdered. These babies must threaten
something.
Millions of Americans who call themselves Christians, on
the other hand, are no threat to tyranny.
None of them are being killed. Bush has killed a thousand
times more human beings than Herod did, and confiscated a
billion times more wealth than Herod did.
Herod's son Antipas played a small role in the execution
of Jesus Christ. But Jesus rose from the dead, was
enthroned on the throne of David at the right hand of God,
and assumed the rightful role of King over all nations.
"Beginning today and
culminating on Sunday morning, Christians will celebrate with
their families the resurrection of Christ, His victory over
death. We will remember that He gave His body and His
blood—washing clean the faults and the
shortcomings of the world. In our rejoicing we will renew
the hope that is ours through the risenLord." Ronald
Reagan: Statement on the Celebration of Passover and Easter
Every American could be born with a comfortable
inheritance for education, a first home, or medical care; instead,
every American is born in great debt.
Washington D.C. central planning increases debt, does not create
the "Vine &
Fig Tree" life.
Response of the Republican Party
Saturday Morning Radio Address
Saturday, July 31st, 2010
Once again, the Republican
Party leadership has asked Congressman
Ron Paul to deliver . . . wait a minute . . . I'm sorry . .
.
Sen. Mike Johanns of Nebraska delivered the
GOP Weekly Address
Hello, I’m Senator Mike
Johanns from the great state of Nebraska.
I begin with a very sincere
question for our President.
Isn’t it time, Mr. President,
to tone down the rhetoric and to govern?
"Governing"
is the problem.
I’m a relatively new member
of the U.S. Senate. But, I’ve had an opportunity to
serve in the Cabinet; to govern a state; and to serve as the
Mayor of a wonderful community.
And I learned early on that to
advance an agenda, a leader needs to pull people together.
You talk about creating jobs
and that sounds good, but your policies just do the opposite –
with a fiercely anti-business tone.
Let’s take an honest look at
the impact of your agenda.
More than 80 percent of jobs
are provided by the private sector. Those are the jobs
that put food on the table, pay the mortgage, and send our
children to college.
Our small businesses generate
65 percent of the new jobs.
In Nebraska, we like to call
them our Mom and Pop enterprises.
These are really good people
who don’t want to get caught-up in a political debate.
They want to get up in the
morning, head to work and find creative ways to build their
businesses.
And your policies, Mr.
President, are hurting them.
Let me give you an example: embedded in your health care law
– under Section 9006 – is a job-crushing provision.
It affects every business,
every church and charity; every state and local government.
It requires all of them to
track their purchases and when they hit $600 with any vendor in
a year – for any services or supplies – your health care law
requires them to file a 10-99 form with the IRS and with that
vendor.
This will create a mountain of
new paperwork – increasing it by as much as 2,000 percent,
according to one study.
One small business owner in
Nebraska did an analysis and came to the conclusion it will cost
his business an extra $15 thousand dollars a year.
Now that may not sound like
much here in Washington, but to a small business in Nebraska,
that would go a long way to putting another American to work.
Instead, that money will pay
for paperwork… and for what purpose, Mr. President?
Even the National Taxpayer
Advocate – a division of the IRS itself – predicts there
will be little benefit and a mess of erroneous tax penalties.
This foolish policy hammers our
business community when we should be supporting their job
growth.
It’s only one example of how
the Administration’s promise to support small businesses
really rings hollow.
Then there’s the employer
mandate in the health care law, which studies confirm will
divert money from wages.
It forces employers to provide
government-approved coverage or pay a tax of $2,000 per
employee.
Another example: the new
Medicare tax.
The majority of small
businesses pay taxes at the individual level, so this new $210
billion tax will hurt; hitting businesses that employ between 20
and 200 workers especially hard.
And that’s one-quarter of our
workforce.
To put it simply; your actions
thus far, Mr. President, don’t encourage small businesses to
hire employees.
You’re signaling to the
business owners that they best be very cautious, not only
because of the flurry of new taxes and regulations, but also
because a national energy tax is next on your agenda.
It's time to stop pushing
anti-growth policies and start supporting a real job growth
agenda.
After all, what matters most is
what we actually do, not what we say.
I'm Senator Mike Johanns of
Nebraska. Thank you for your time.
Republican rhetoric
is usually pretty good when they are out of power, criticizing
the party in power. During the healthcare debate, Republicans
offered many good proposals, such as allowing people to buy
insurance from companies in other states. But when Republicans
were in power, and owned all three branches of government, they
did none of these things, and actually increased government
involvement in healthcare, and added trillions of dollars in
unfunded liabilities to the nation's healthcare bill.
If you take nothing else with you from
today's "Virtual Town Hall," remember this:
Third, the purposes
for which today's government uses taxes
are destructive of civilization itself.
What Would America's Founding Fathers Do?
The men who threw tea into the Boston Harbor over a tax of 3 pence
per pound would not be happy with a tax ten times greater on
every gallon of gas. Those who took up muskets over a total tax burden
of less than 3% would not be happy with
the fact that the federal government now takes more
than half of everything you earn.
Today it is illegal for public school teachers to teach their
students that the Declaration of Independence is really true (and not
just an outdated historical document). The federal government is
clearly at war with everything the Founding Fathers stood for.
America's greatest Americans would abolish
today's federal government.
Muskets are Not an Option
There are two reasons why we should not take up arms to pull off
the violent overthrow of the federal
government, even if America's Founders would surely do so. First, the
feds have nukes. Second, violent revolution is unChristian and
unBiblical. We must beat our swords into
plowshares and use persuasion to
abolish tyranny. This is time for a
revolution of ideas.
Revolution Won't Come in a Day
John Adams once wrote that the American
Revolution began in 1761, when Massachusetts attorney James Otis
began legal challenges to the Writs
of Assistance. He lost the case, but "American
independence," Adams wrote, "was
then and there born." Now do the math. That means it took 15
years to convince the rest of America to declare Independence
(1776). Then another seven years of war was required before a
Peace Treaty was signed (1783), and then six years before the
Constitution was finally ratified (1789). That's almost 30 years. (And
Jefferson said we shouldn't go 20
years without another rebellion!) How can we hope to convince
Americans to fight for principles they were never taught in government
schools? We need to be in this battle for the long term. "Eternal
Vigilance is the Price of Liberty."
GeorgeWashingtonCoaching.com
Every great athlete has a coach.
If you want to be a great American you need a coach.
If you want to achieve great things for your country, you need a
coach.
Imagine what you could do if George Washington, "the Father of
his Country,"
could travel through time and be your personal coach.
The results could be extraordinary.
Find out why you need a personal coach, and why GeorgeWashingtonCoaching.com
is the foundation for an extraordinary life.
Contact Congress --
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make a critical difference on important issues.
Help End the Mexican Civil
War
Black-market profits caused by drug prohibition fund a civil
war in Mexico that's threatening to spill over our borders.
Drug profits also fuel the terrorists who are killing U.S.
soldiers in Afghanistan. It's time to dry up the black-market
profits. It's time to end drug prohibition.
Make
Congress Read Their Bills Before Voting
Make Congress read every word of every bill they create before
they vote on it.
Urge your Representative and your Senators to sponsor
DownsizeDC.org's “Read the Bills Act” (RTBA).
End
the FED
The Federal Reserve System constantly inflates and deflates the
supply of money and credit, causing booms and busts. It's time
to get off this roller-coaster. It's time to end the Fed.
No
Bailouts!
No government money, whether borrowed or taxed, should ever be
used to bailout private financial interests. If you agree,
please send Congress a message telling them so.
TWIC
- A Backdoor Real ID Card
Real ID is dying. But the Department of Homeland Security has a
new plan to subject every American to a national ID card anyway.
They plan to pick off one occupational field at a time, starting
with the maritime industry. One man is fighting back. Meet him,
and help stop this backdoor Real ID plan.
Stop
the Killer Horse Hormones
The FDA "outlawed" the use of Estriol, an estrogen
medication that's bio-identical to human estrogen. Doctors must
now prescribe animal-derived estrogen instead. Are bio-identical
hormones dangerous, while animal-derived hormones are safe? No.
The practice of medicine is moving to chemically identical to
human hormones and away from animal hormones. Learn why the FDA
decided to endanger women's health in this way, and take action.
End
Asset Forfeiture
If the government suspects you used your house or car in a
crime, they can take it and sell it at auction. They don't even
have to prove your guilt. They call this practice civil asset
forfeiture, but it's really theft. It violates the 4th, 5th,
6th, 8th, 9th and 14th Amendments. It also encourages law
enforcement to put profits before justice. Tell Congress to end
civil asset forfeiture.
Support
an Iraq Referendum
Americans keep debating when, how, or if to leave Iraq. Maybe
we should ask the Iraqi people what they want. After all, it's
their country. Tell Congress to request that the Iraqi
government hold a public referendum on the U.S. occupation. Learn
more »
Make Congress read every word of
every bill they create before they vote on it.
Urge your Representative and your Senators to sponsor
DownsizeDC.org's “Read the Bills Act” (RTBA).
Unelected bureaucrats create
tens-of-thousands of new dictates each year. Making rules is
the job of Congress, not bureaucrats.
DownsizeDC.org has drafted the “Write the Laws Act” to
end bureaucratic “legislation without representation.”
Click here . . .
"Cap
and Trade" is not the way
The politicians seem to be unifying around "cap and
trade" as a way to cut CO2 emissions. If they take this
step it may be the largest increase in the size, scope, and
intrusiveness of government since the creation of Medicare.
Worse still, it may not even achieve its purpose. Please
tell Congress to oppose "cap and trade." Learn
more »
Iraq
Waste
Big government prospers through failure. Each new failure is
used to justify more spending and new powers. Wasteful spending
in Iraq is the latest example. One way to change this is to hold
government accountable. A new bill in Congress seeks to provide
some of the needed accountability. Please support it. Learn
more »
Stop
the War for Terror U.S. policy has inflamed the Middle East. It has made
terrorism more likely rather than less. We seem to be fighting
a war for terror, rather than on
terror. This policy must stop. The place to start stopping is
with Iran. We must not attack Iran. War with Iran
would devastate our economy, disrupt world oil supplies, and
recruit more terrorists. Click
here to stop this war before it starts.
Click herefor a replay of this edition of the Ozarks
Virtual Town Hall