THE ECONOMY
National debt > $9.1 trillion
U.S. Population > 303,000,000
Debt per person > $33,000
The rate at which the U.S. Government spends present and future taxpayer dollars jeopardizes the very prosperity of America and its citizens. Rampant waste on pork-barrel projects, the war in Iraq, and inefficient, bureaucratic institutions has led to the greatest national debt ever incurred by our country. A streamlined government coupled with an ethical and compromising Congress cannot but reduce the size and operating cost of our government and embrace the concept of democracy envisioned by our Founding Fathers.
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HEALTH CARE
While health care is not a guaranteed American birthright, our democratic society has, by its very nature, an obligation to support the common weal and extend assistance to those in need. Unfortunately, the ranks of the needy have swelled in recent years due to rising health care costs, forcing citizens to go either uninsured or insured at excessive premiums. Approximately half of all declared bankruptcies result, in some part, from medical debts, effectively crippling many a family's economic stability. The American health care system is inefficient, bloated, expensive, confusing, and rife with fraud. For such reasons, I fully support its prompt and efficacious overhaul, using the proven and controlled Federal Employee Health Benefits Program (FEHBP) as a first revisional step.
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ENERGY
America is highly dependent on fossil fuels, the known reserves of which, at the current rate, will be depleted within 50 years. If alternate energy sources are not developed as viable replacements for those on which we now rely, the future of the country will be imperiled. I fully support legislation that imposes a 40+ mpg mileage rating on all newly manufactured four-person passenger vehicles and grants R&D funding to scientific and corporate entities for the purpose of energy "exploration." Solar collectors, wind power, hydropower, hybrids, hydrogen fuel cells and energy-efficient architectural technologies, among others, are all areas requiring further development and exploitation. It's time to stop wasting time.
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EDUCATION
If a parent values education, I believe that that parent will instill a similar value in his or her children and ensure that they appreciate the merits of learning. If, on the other hand, a parent has no interest in education—or sees no benefit or purpose in it, no utility—then hope is not lost for his or her children, who still may long for the knowledge their parent eschews. These children's educational avenues will merely be rockier and strewn with obstacles, but not impossible to navigate. Above all, these children need the best that a school and community can offer them. The most precious resource we have as a nation in the globalized 21st century is our intellectual innovation, our ingenuity. Without well-educated children, the future of America will suffer. Thus, I believe every child should have access to skilled and passionate teachers. Sometimes, an engaging teacher proficient in a given subject is all it takes to kindle a child's interest in learning more.
While the No Child Left Behind Act is well-intended and has produced some educational improvements, the repeated drilling of students in preparation for associated standardized tests like the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT) indicates the need for reform. If our children are continually preparing for the FCAT, they are not, consequently, getting an education but are, instead, merely learning how to excel on the FCAT. In addition, such tests only measure a narrow band of skills, namely reading, writing, and math.
Recall that, in 1895, Albert Einstein failed his college entrance exam for engineering school. He did, however, score well on the math and physics sections and was younger than most others taking the test. Still, what sort of FCAT grade could Einstein have expected to get? 33%? 50%?
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AFGHANISTAN AND IRAQ
In 2001, American forces invaded Afghanistan in a worthy cause to eradicate a known terrorist breeding ground and apprehend Osama bin Laden, architect of the 9/11 tragedies, who still remains at large. The 2003 invasion of Iraq, however, was a political choice founded on specious claims regarding the presence of weapons of mass destruction. Although initial military efforts were successful, the occupation of Iraq costs our country dearly in American lives, tax dollars, and political capital, all in an effort to unify religious factions that have ideologically and physically warred since 632 A.D. Although I support any humanitarian and military efforts to rebuild Iraq and sow the seeds of democracy, I would prefer to have American soldiers either safe at home or engaged in the hunt for Osama bin Laden as soon as diplomatically possible.
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CAMPAIGN FINANCE AND ELECTION REFORM
The 21st-century American political system is riddled with corruption. Wealthy individuals and political action committees (PACs) contribute vast sums of money to various connected candidates, all in accordance with the Federal Election Campaign Act (FECA). An American citizen can currently contribute up to $4,600 to a candidate in a given election cycle. Who do you know that a) has that kind of money to give and b) would actually give it away in such a fashion? The answers: a) rich people and b) rich people looking to buy influence or throw a bone to their rich candidate friends. $4,600 is, after all, just a drop in the bucket to them.
PACs, in and of themselves, are not necessarily bad, being merely groups of like-minded people who want to effect some sort of governmental change. The problem with PACs arises when they are permitted to give money to candidates, thereby buying a degree of influence. Elected officials should not be beholden to their contributors.
People—candidates included—have been duped into thinking that money is important to getting elected, that the candidate with the most money must be worthy and viable because he or she got people to contribute. All it really takes to get elected is informed voters. Do you really want your public official to be a shrewd, crafty moneygrubber who wastes natural resources by blanketing the land with propaganda and signs?
I support extreme campaign finance reform that bans PAC contributions, limits individual contributions to a maximum of $200 and caps candidate contributions at $15,000 per election cycle. These rates would only be adjusted for inflation every ten years.
In addition, no American citizen should ever have to pay or petition to run as a candidate for public office. The most anyone should have to do is file a form. The temporal and financial expenses required by state governments only dissuade many qualified people from exercising their American birthrights.
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THE U.S. CONGRESS
Many issues are at stake in the American political arena, but few of them will be resolved until the U.S. Congress experiences drastic membership changes.
The U.S. House of Representatives has 435 members, over one-third of whom are lawyers or judges by profession. Another 13 percent are businesspeople and yet another 13 percent were public officials prior to election.
According to the U.S. Census data for 2000, there are about 83 million year-round full-time (YRFT) workers in our country, with approximately 960,000 of those involved with the legal profession as lawyers, judges, paralegals, or legislators. That’s roughly 1.2 percent of the working population.
Our Congress has a disproportionate number of legal professionals, businesspeople, and career politicians deciding the fate of America and its people. The representative government envisioned by the Founding Fathers is hardly representative of the people over two centuries later.
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Paid for and approved by Fry for Congress.
