Missouri's 7th District, U.S. House of Representatives
Bringing LIBERTY to Capitol Hill -- 2008 OZARKS VIRTUAL TOWN HALL
Saturday Morning, November 22, 2008, 10:30am
A Discussion of The President's Saturday Morning Radio Address
Click here to listen to a replay of the November 22, 2008 Ozarks Virtual Town Hall
Notes and Summary of the President's Address: The U.S. vs. the Free Market
THE PRESIDENT: Good morning. This weekend I am in Lima, Peru, meeting with leaders from nations in the Asia Pacific region at our annual summit.. (continued below)
How the President Differs from the American vision of "Liberty Under God":
THE PRESIDENT: Good morning. This weekend I am in Lima, Peru, meeting with leaders from nations in the Asia Pacific region at our annual summit.
This summit comes at a time of serious turmoil in the global economy. It also comes at a time of unprecedented cooperation. A week ago in Washington, I hosted the first in what will be a series of international meetings to address the financial crisis. We reviewed the actions we have taken to manage the crisis. And we agreed on principles and specific actions to modernize our financial structures for the 21st century and help prevent another crisis.
See last week's Ozarks Virtual Town Hall. These leaders made significant changes to America's economic policy, even changes to our own government. These leaders were not elected by Americans, and our not bound down by the chains of the Constitution, but they have been elevated to the status of George Bush's "partners" in governing our nation.
The Federal Reserve was supposed to prevent the Great Depression. It didn't. It caused it. The policies of the Bush-Obama regime will cause a future crisis. Guaranteed.
As we work to rebuild confidence in our financial systems in the short term, we must also work to promote long-term economic growth. Together, our nations must focus our efforts on three great forces that drive this growth -- free markets, free trade, and free people.
"Our nations" is a contradiction in terms. Their nations are not our nations, their leaders are not our "partners." Government action contradicts -- it does not establish -- "free markets, free trade, and free people." Only by abolishing government restrictions, laws, and regulations can you have freedom.
No region of the world demonstrates the power of these forces more vividly than the Asia Pacific. Free markets have helped millions lift themselves out of poverty. Free trade has helped small nations turn themselves into global economic powers. And as more people in the Asia Pacific are free to develop their talents and pursue their ambitions, the whole region has grown in prosperity. We're facing a difficult challenge and there will be tough days ahead. But by relying on these principles, we can be confident in the future of our Nation and the world.
This paragraph is true.
Bush and our European "partners" are moving in the exact opposite direction that Hong Kong, Singapore and other areas moved in to become economically powerful. Hong Kong is far freer than the United States. What does the United States (the federal government) have to teach Hong Kong when it comes to freedom?
Back at home, one of the most serious economic challenges we face is the situation in our auto industry. America's auto manufacturers are facing severe and urgent financial shortfalls. Earlier this fall, I signed a bill that authorized up to $25 billion in loans to help these automakers make more fuel-efficient vehicles. Under the law, this money is not available to help auto companies with their immediate funding challenges. So this past week, Senators Bond, Levin, and Voinovich came forward with a new proposal that would allow auto companies to access the loans they need -- as long as they're willing to restructure to become financially viable.
Government loans take away money that could be loaned by actors in the Free Market. It raises interest rates in the Free Market. This money will be stolen from those of us who live and work in a Free Market.
Why is it that voters have not voluntarily been willing to loan to Detroit? What right does Washington D.C. have to take our money (which we have already decided we did not want to invest in Detroit) and invest it in Detroit?
This proposal earned support from both sides of the aisle on Capitol Hill. Unfortunately, the leadership in Congress adjourned without even allowing this measure to come up for a vote.
My position is clear: If the automakers are willing to make the hard decisions needed to become viable, they should be able to receive the funds Congress already allotted to them for other purposes. This is a critical issue for our economy and our country. The American people expect their elected leaders to do what it takes to solve it.
If the American people really expect politicians in Washington D.C. to solve problems, then the American people deserve all the problems they get.
In this present crisis, government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem.
The The Democratic Radio Address was delivered by Barack Obama, the Democrat Party Presidential nominee. In past weeks, the Democrat party has not gotten their party's address online for a couple of weeks.
Remarks of President-elect Barack Obama
November 22, 2008
No transcript available.
At the website of the "office" of the President-elect, Barack Obama promised that the government will create 2.5 million jobs by January of 2011. This includes jobs building roads and bridges, more public schools (though he admits our present government schools are failing to educate children), and "wind farms" and "solar panels."
Government-run education has been a horrifying tragedy. Once #1 academically, twenty-five nations are now academically ahead of the United States. When the Constitution was signed, students rose to their feet when the teacher entered the classroom. Today teachers are fearful of children who are beyond rude and disrespectful, to the point of threatening and dangerous.
Would you invest in a car company whose cars regularly ignited into a ball of flames? But Obama wants to invest more of your money in the government education monopoly.
Why is it that 150 million individual investors, pension fund managers, insurance company executives, mutual fund administrators, and brokers, all of whom do not have the luxury of obtaining investment funds by passing a law, but must earn their investment dollars, have not invested in wind farms and solar panels?
The answer is obvious: despite the best efforts of green entrepreneurs to sell green technology to investors, all the information available to these millions of investors shows that "green technology" holds no promise of being able to provide cheap energy. By "cheap" I mean "costing less than the money invested." If a $100 solar panel will never produce more than $85 worth of electricity, would you spend the $100? If $100 invested in a hydro-electric dam will produce $200 worth of electricity, wouldn't you rather invest your money there?
You do not have, have not had, and will not have that choice under the Clinton-Bush-Obama regime. The government will spend your money for you. One President, 100 Senators, 435 Congressmen and a city full of bureaucrats knows more about how to invest your money and the money of 300 million other Americans than the Free Market does.
Book Review: Knowledge and Decisions by Thomas Sowell | The Foundation for Economic Education
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 is from the JBS website, powered by "CapWiz," from Capitol Advantage. Lots of organizations use capwiz. If you don't want to go through the JBS, search for capwiz on Google and find another organization that uses it.
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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).
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
