Missouri's 7th District, U.S. House of
Representatives
Bringing LIBERTY to
Capitol Hill -- 2008 OZARKS
VIRTUAL TOWN
HALL
Saturday Morning, February 7th,
2009, 10:30am
A Discussion of The President's Saturday Morning
Radio Address
Click here
to listen to a replay of the February 7th, 2009 Ozarks
Virtual Town Hall
Notes and Summary of the President's Address:
"Stimulus: Good News or Bad News?"
THE
PRESIDENT: There was bad news and then there was good news.
Yesterday we learned that in January, the country suffered its largest
one-month job loss in 34 years.
But last night, the Senate struck a compromise on the economic recovery
plan and put us on our way to giving the economy the short-term jolt and
long-term investments it needs. . (continued
below)
How the President Differs from the American vision of
"Liberty Under God":
This morning I'd like to talk
about some good news and some bad news as we confront our economic
crisis.
No, wait a minute . . .
that was last week's address.
Yesterday began with some
devastating news with regard to our economic crisis. But I'm
pleased to say it ended on a more positive note.
There . . . now that's
"news."
In the morning, we received yet
another round of alarming employment figures – the worst in more
than 30 years. Another 600,000 jobs were lost in
January. We've now lost more than 3.6 million jobs since
this recession began.
Government is not the job-creator.
Government is the job-destroyer.
Jobs require wealth.
Government destroys wealth.
But by the evening, Democrats and
Republicans came together in the Senate and responded
appropriately to the urgency this moment demands.
No response from Washington D.C. is either constitutionally
or economically "appropriate."
• The Constitution gives no authority to the federal
government to respond to a single person losing a job.
• The economy is poisoned every time the government
intervenes in response to a problem.
Loss of a job may not even be a problem. Was the loss of
jobs in the horse-and-buggy industry a hundred years ago a
"problem," or was it growth?
What is the "appropriate" response for a family, a
business, or a government that is bankrupt.
Spend more?
In the midst of our greatest
economic crisis since the Great
Depression, the American
people were hoping that Congress would begin to confront
the great challenges we face. That was, after all, what last
November's election was all about.
This is a lie. The American
people were generally opposed to the old bailout bill, as well as
the new one.
The November election was a demand for the Bush II Bailout?
CBS
Poll: Support For Stimulus Falls
"Asked whether higher government spending or tax cuts for
business would be more effective in ending the recession, 59
percent choose the tax cuts. Just 22 percent prefer more
government spending.
"The public is not optimistic about the impact of the
economic stimulus bill: Just 21 percent believe it will
significantly shorten the recession. An additional 18 percent
believe it will shorten the recession slightly. Forty-five percent
say it will not shorten the recession at all.
The Previous Bailout was met with overwhelming opposition from
Americans, and the House initially voted against it. Congress was
then "taken out to the woodshed" by the Bush powers that
be, and told to vote for it anyway, which they dutifully did.
Obama could not even persuade all Democrats in the House to vote
for his bailout, and it will be passed by the Senate.
It should be obvious that Congress does not represent the
American people -- and certainly does not lead
America in a Constitutional, Free Enterprise direction. What was
it America's Founding Fathers said about "No Taxation Without
Representation?" What would they say about today?
I saw one TV poll which asked how soon the "stimulus
package" would end the recession, with choices like "6
months, one year, or not at all." No option to say that the
actions of Congress will make the recession worse or
prolong the depression like
the New Deal did. Most Americans don't believe it will work,
according to a CNBC
online poll.
Legislation of such magnitude
deserves the scrutiny that it's received over the last month, and
it will receive more in the days to come. But we can't
afford to make perfect the enemy of the absolutely
necessary. The scale
and scope of this plan is right. And the time for
action is now.
"Perfect" would be
no federal bailout at all.
Because if we don't move swiftly
to put this plan in motion, our economic crisis could become a
national catastrophe. Millions of Americans will lose their
jobs, their homes, and their health care. Millions more will
have to put their dreams on hold.
The more the federal government
adds economic toxins to the economy, the worse it will get.
The federal government is destroying dreams. The government is
destroying the future of every dollar you own.
Let's be clear: We can't
expect relief from the tired old theories that, in eight short
years, doubled the national debt, threw our economy into a
tailspin, and led us into this mess in the first place. We
can't rely on a losing formula that offers only
tax cuts as the answer to all our problems while ignoring
our fundamental economic challenges – the crushing cost of
health care or the inadequate state of so many schools; our
addiction to foreign oil or our crumbling roads, bridges, and
levees.
Bailout II will not increase the
national debt?
Were people actually paying fewer dollars in taxes under Bush?
Bush didn't also engage in massive government spending?
Where is the "change?"
The American people know that our
challenges are great. They don't expect Democratic solutions
or Republican solutions – they expect American solutions.
What is "the American
solution" if not free enterprise?
From the beginning, this recovery
plan has had at its core a simple idea: Let's put Americans
to work doing the work
America needs done. It will save or create more than
3 million jobs over the next two years, all across the country –
16,000 in Maine, nearly 80,000 in Indiana – almost
all of them in the private sector, and all of them jobs
that help us recover today, and prosper tomorrow.
Who decides what work "needs
to be done?"
Jobs that upgrade classrooms and
laboratories in 10,000 schools
nationwide – at least 485 in Florida alone – and train an army
of teachers in math and science.
Not private schools.
Jobs that modernize our health
care system, not only saving us billions of dollars, but countless
lives.
Jobs that construct a smart
electric grid, connect every corner of the country to the
information superhighway, double our capacity to generate renewable
energy, and grow the economy of tomorrow.
There will be no "grid"
in the future.
Jobs that rebuild our crumbling roads,
bridges and levees
and dams, so that the tragedies of New Orleans and Minneapolis
never happen again.
More public works.
It includes immediate tax relief
for our struggling middle class in places like Ohio, where 4.5
million workers will receive a tax cut of up to $1,000. It
protects health insurance and provides unemployment insurance for
those who've lost their jobs. And it helps our states and
communities avoid painful tax hikes or layoffs for our teachers,
nurses, and first responders.
Where are the private sector
jobs? (Where is the remaining private sector?)
That's what is at stake with this
plan: putting Americans back to work, creating
transformative economic change, and making a down payment on the
American Dream that serves our children and our
children's children for generations to come.
Americans across this country are
struggling, and they are watching to see if we're equal to the
task before us. Let's show them that we are. And let's
do whatever it takes to keep the promise of America alive in our
time.
Thank you.
Kevin Craig's Platform:
"Vine & Fig
Tree" - the original American Dream - work,
profit, save, invest, enjoy - not "easy to borrow,"
perpetual debt; not "invade other nations" to secure our
own wealth.
Making the New Year Extraordinary by
Celebrating Christmas
all year long
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 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.
This is Michael Steele,
Chairman of the Republican National Committee. Democrats have
controlled both branches of government for less than a month.
And you have to wonder if all that power has gone to their
heads.
For the last two weeks, they’ve
been trying to force a massive spending bill through Congress
under the guise of economic relief.
All
of us –- Republicans and Democrats -– agree the government
must act to kick-start the American economy.
American families are doing their best to balance their own
budgets and pay their mortgages.
This sums up the
entire reason for the existence of "The Ozarks Virtual Town
Hall." There is another side to the story. The Demoblican
and Republicrat vision is not the only vision. But it is a united
vision.
The fastest way to help those
families is by letting them keep more of the money they
earn. Individual empowerment: that’s how you stimulate
the economy.
But the Democrats have a
different philosophy. Instead of leaving money in the
family checkbook, they want to send it to Washington, run it
through a slow and inefficient government, and hope that does
some good.
But Republicans are
going to vote for the Democrat philosophy
When families keep the money,
they spend it, save it, or invest it. And the private sector
economy benefits when families and businesses buy consumer goods
or invest it for the future. But when Washington spends the
money, some of it may flow into the economy, but all too often,
much gets wasted.
Even if the
Washington money "flows into the economy," that's
actually bad. It does not flow where Americans wanted it to
flow. By definition.
Democrats in Congress want a
one-trillion dollar spending bill. You’ve heard about the
pork-barrel programs they want to fund… 45 million dollars for
ATV trails and removal of fish passage barriers is one that
caught my eye. Exactly what is a fish passage barrier and why
does it cost 45 million dollars to stimulate the economy with
it?
That’s why Republicans in the
House voted against uncontrolled spending. This is not a
bragging point, but rather a statement that at least Republicans
would stand with the American taxpayer.
But voting ‘no’ is not
enough… and Republicans have offered innovative ideas to help
struggling families and small businesses. We’ve offered plans
to spark job creation and investment through lower taxes, to
stop the taxation of unemployment benefits, and to help
Americans keep their jobs and their homes.
These
"innovative ideas" are still government
ideas.
Lowered taxes are fine, but not when accompanied by massive
government spending.
The comprehensive Republican
plan would lower taxes for all working American families.
If you’re married, the first 16,750 dollars you make this year
will be taxed at 10%. Why don’t we cut that rate in half to
give instant buying power to every working American family?
Good ideas… lots of them…
all left out of this plan by the Democrats in Congress.
Republicans stand ready to work with reasonable Democrats to do
what is right for America. But it will take more than bipartisan
words from the president. It will require fair-minded action
from Democrats in Congress.
The
Republicans are going to pass a massive spending bill.
Ultimately they have no principles.
Thanks for listening.
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."
Contact Congress -- this
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Action E-List Sign up for the JBS Action E-List and be notified when you can
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
