Federal Budget
The federal government should not be allowed to enact laws that require the spending of taxpayer’s dollars unless its purpose is specifically stated in the U.S. Constitution. The following forms of spending should be eliminated: military force without official declaration of war, foreign aid, funding to world organizations such as the U.N., the Department of Education, the National Endowment for the Arts, the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, Department of Housing and Urban Development, the Center For Disease Control, educational grants, the FDA, FEMA, Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, the Department of Energy, the redundant Department of Homeland Security, and all subsidies.
Whenever possible, government services should funded by user fees, rather than taxes.
All federal spending should be periodically reviewed every five years for effectiveness and waste. Each appropriations bill should consist of only one item. A separate vote in Congress should be required for renewal of each individual spending measure every five years. Every department and every government agency should be audited annually. I agree with President Bush’s proposal for the creation of a Sunset Commission.
The national debt is an issue of great concern, which is largely ignored by the two major parties. The budget deficits should not be allowed to occur. There should only be so much that the Congress can spend, after that, any further spending should be illegal. I favor a balanced budget amendment. The actual federal debt should be reported not just the “on budget” debt. The Congress should not be allowed to commit to future spending without already having the funds to spend it, except for national security. The government should not write any blank checks--all spending should be required to be definite. Congress should not authorize spending for a war unless war has been officially declared. Most federal lands and property should be sold to pay down the national debt. The priorities of the budget should be first national defense, then reducing the national debt, then reducing taxes. Some of the National Debt should be declared null and void. (Read my Money and Banking section.)
Whenever possible, government services should funded by user fees, rather than taxes.
All federal spending should be periodically reviewed every five years for effectiveness and waste. Each appropriations bill should consist of only one item. A separate vote in Congress should be required for renewal of each individual spending measure every five years. Every department and every government agency should be audited annually. I agree with President Bush’s proposal for the creation of a Sunset Commission.
The national debt is an issue of great concern, which is largely ignored by the two major parties. The budget deficits should not be allowed to occur. There should only be so much that the Congress can spend, after that, any further spending should be illegal. I favor a balanced budget amendment. The actual federal debt should be reported not just the “on budget” debt. The Congress should not be allowed to commit to future spending without already having the funds to spend it, except for national security. The government should not write any blank checks--all spending should be required to be definite. Congress should not authorize spending for a war unless war has been officially declared. Most federal lands and property should be sold to pay down the national debt. The priorities of the budget should be first national defense, then reducing the national debt, then reducing taxes. Some of the National Debt should be declared null and void. (Read my Money and Banking section.)
Trade and Tariffs
Article I, Section 8, of the Constitution states that Congress shall have the power "To regulate Commerce with foreign Nations." I am in favor of restoring this power to the Congress alone. Therefore, I am against the existence of the Office of Special Trade Representative, NAFTA, CAFTA, GATT, and the WTO. I am against the "fast track" and "Trade Promotion Authority" that has been given to the President. Trade agreements should be considered treaties, and therefore should require a 2/3 vote of the senate to be approved. An agreement should be considered void if they violate the Constitution or if the other party violates its terms. If this is the case, Congress can and should revoke it by a simple majority without consent of the other party.
It should be illegal to import a product into America if the methods by which that product was produced violate American laws. This would include safety standards, child labor laws, health standards, environmental standards, minimum wage and all other labor laws. At the very least, a tariff equal to the difference in cost of production due to less stringent laws should be paid to avoid unfair competition and protect American jobs. Foreign entities operating within the United States must comply with all national, state, and local laws as they apply. American companies or their subsidiaries that operate internationally should be required to comply with these laws and all laws in the country in which they are operating at all of their facilities in that country.
Under no circumstances should there be any subsides or tax exemptions given to corporations for outsourcing American jobs. No subsides or tax exemptions should ever be given to any foreign or multinational cooperation. The government should not insure investments made abroad.
In the area of national security, foreign interests have been abetted in gaining access to America's high-tech secrets under the guise of commercial enterprise. Technology transfers which compromise national security should be made illegal, and I want all violators to be prosecuted. I demand that all weapons systems, military uniforms and equipment purchased for the American military be domestically produced in their entirety along with all their component parts.
I oppose the practice of any officer of the United States government, or spouse thereof, who, subsequent to Federal government employment is employed to represent a foreign government or other foreign entity, public or private, for purposes of influencing public opinion or policy on matters affecting U.S. trade with such foreign government or entity.
Foreign companies whose governments subsidize their exports to the U.S. should pay compensating U.S. taxes on goods imported to the U.S. for sale. Countries conducting any other unfair trade practices must be required to provide compensating benefits to the U.S. on the import of those products.
All products imported into the U.S. should be inspected to ensure that no U.S. laws are being violated. Importers should have to pay fees that would cover the cost of these inspections.
It should be illegal to import a product into America if the methods by which that product was produced violate American laws. This would include safety standards, child labor laws, health standards, environmental standards, minimum wage and all other labor laws. At the very least, a tariff equal to the difference in cost of production due to less stringent laws should be paid to avoid unfair competition and protect American jobs. Foreign entities operating within the United States must comply with all national, state, and local laws as they apply. American companies or their subsidiaries that operate internationally should be required to comply with these laws and all laws in the country in which they are operating at all of their facilities in that country.
Under no circumstances should there be any subsides or tax exemptions given to corporations for outsourcing American jobs. No subsides or tax exemptions should ever be given to any foreign or multinational cooperation. The government should not insure investments made abroad.
In the area of national security, foreign interests have been abetted in gaining access to America's high-tech secrets under the guise of commercial enterprise. Technology transfers which compromise national security should be made illegal, and I want all violators to be prosecuted. I demand that all weapons systems, military uniforms and equipment purchased for the American military be domestically produced in their entirety along with all their component parts.
I oppose the practice of any officer of the United States government, or spouse thereof, who, subsequent to Federal government employment is employed to represent a foreign government or other foreign entity, public or private, for purposes of influencing public opinion or policy on matters affecting U.S. trade with such foreign government or entity.
Foreign companies whose governments subsidize their exports to the U.S. should pay compensating U.S. taxes on goods imported to the U.S. for sale. Countries conducting any other unfair trade practices must be required to provide compensating benefits to the U.S. on the import of those products.
All products imported into the U.S. should be inspected to ensure that no U.S. laws are being violated. Importers should have to pay fees that would cover the cost of these inspections.
Taxes
There shall be no excise taxes imposed on any goods produced within the United States if all of its components are produced within the United States by American-owned producers. Tariffs, excise taxes, and corporate revenue taxes shall be the source of at least fifty percent of the total taxes collected by the Federal Government of the United States. I believe that the remainder of federal receipts should be from usage fees and sales taxes, which shall be uniform among all citizens. If after these taxes have been spent, there is a remaining budget deficit, this deficit should be divided up among the States according to population, and the States should be responsible for meeting the obligation of their portion of the debt.
The IRS should be eliminated and the 16th amendment should be repealed. Many legal experts believe that the 16th amendment was never properly ratified in the first place. I support ratification of the Liberty Amendment which would repeal the Sixteenth Amendment, and provide that "Congress shall not levy taxes on personal incomes, estates, and/or gifts." I shall also work toward the effectual elimination of all state and local income taxes by immediately and unceasingly reducing the tax in an aggressive, structured, and responsible manner until the tax is nonexistent. I am against taxing inheritances.
I tend to think that property taxes are an unfair invasion of a person’s privacy. However, it seems like this could be the fairest way for local governments to fund their law enforcement and fire fighting operations. Under no circumstances should property taxes be used to fund public schools.
Automobile fuel taxes above the normal sales tax rate should only be used for building and maintaining roads. I am against all tax incentives, subsides, tax abatements, etc. I am against the use of taxpayer’s dollars for building sports stadiums or any other economic developments.
The government should stop giving people tax incentives to buy certain things while at the same time they give them tax incentives not to buy anything (i.e. to save for retirement). What a foolish self-defeating policy! People should be allowed to spend their money on whatever they please and whenever they please. The government should not take your money away and then promise to give it back to you if you spend it the way that they want you spend it. This is a form of theft.
It is unconstitutional to tax the transport of goods across state lines (Article I section 9). People making purchases though catalogs or over the Internet should have to pay the sales tax rate of the state from which the goods are being purchased. This should be charged to them by the seller, just as a store purchase. Law-abiding citizens should not have to worry about reporting such purchases on income tax forms, while others do not and get away with it, since this way of taxing so poorly enforced.
The IRS should be eliminated and the 16th amendment should be repealed. Many legal experts believe that the 16th amendment was never properly ratified in the first place. I support ratification of the Liberty Amendment which would repeal the Sixteenth Amendment, and provide that "Congress shall not levy taxes on personal incomes, estates, and/or gifts." I shall also work toward the effectual elimination of all state and local income taxes by immediately and unceasingly reducing the tax in an aggressive, structured, and responsible manner until the tax is nonexistent. I am against taxing inheritances.
I tend to think that property taxes are an unfair invasion of a person’s privacy. However, it seems like this could be the fairest way for local governments to fund their law enforcement and fire fighting operations. Under no circumstances should property taxes be used to fund public schools.
Automobile fuel taxes above the normal sales tax rate should only be used for building and maintaining roads. I am against all tax incentives, subsides, tax abatements, etc. I am against the use of taxpayer’s dollars for building sports stadiums or any other economic developments.
The government should stop giving people tax incentives to buy certain things while at the same time they give them tax incentives not to buy anything (i.e. to save for retirement). What a foolish self-defeating policy! People should be allowed to spend their money on whatever they please and whenever they please. The government should not take your money away and then promise to give it back to you if you spend it the way that they want you spend it. This is a form of theft.
It is unconstitutional to tax the transport of goods across state lines (Article I section 9). People making purchases though catalogs or over the Internet should have to pay the sales tax rate of the state from which the goods are being purchased. This should be charged to them by the seller, just as a store purchase. Law-abiding citizens should not have to worry about reporting such purchases on income tax forms, while others do not and get away with it, since this way of taxing so poorly enforced.
Wage and Price Control
I am against all domestic wage and price controls. But as long as we have them, all foreign and multinational corporations that do business with America should have to also abide by these controls, or else their products and services should be banned in the U.S. Otherwise, American companies are put at an unfair disadvantage.
Taxes on tips should be eliminated to help lower income workers instead of enacting minimum wage laws.
Protecting our Oceans and Fishing Rights
I am against excessive regulations on the American fishing industry. The American fishing industry has been decimated by treaties and regulations which give away fishing rights to foreign nations, and which reduce fish quotas unnecessarily. Many Americans have been put out of work for these reasons, and I want to put a stop to this! I am against the existence of the U.S. Oceans Commission. The oceans should be protected from pollution which reduces the quality and quantity of seafood and fish. I am against the Law of the Sea Treaty. The fishing industry has also be decimated as a result of caps on damages for oil spills. I oppose these caps.
Money and Banking
Our current monetary system is unconstitutional because only Congress has the authority to coin money, not a cartel of private banks.
Here is my plan:
1. Immediately repeal or nullify all legal tender laws except for gold and silver coins at the state level.
2. All contracts made in Federal Reserve Notes, past, present and future would remain legally valid except securities purchased from the Federal Government and currently held by the Federal Reserve Banks would be immediately declared void.
3. Abolish the Federal Reserve and its Board of Governors by repealing the Federal Reserve Act.
4. It may be necessary to temporarily fold portions of the Federal Reserve System into the Treasury Department. Federal Reserve notes will continue to pass out of existence as bank loans are paid off.
5. Increase the Federal production of gold and silver coins.
Bankruptcy Protection Laws
I call for an end to the current bankruptcy protection laws. The authority to make bankruptcy laws rests solely with the Congress and these laws must be uniform throughout the country (Article I Section 8 of the U.S. Constitution). It is therefore illegal for states or local governments to enact any bankruptcy laws, and these should not be enforced. Those who cannot or will not meet their financial obligations should go to jail or be ordered to perform services to those owed at a judge’s discretion.
If a corporation cannot meet obligations made to creditors (including employee benefits), then the owners and/or stockholders of the corporation should liable to pay these obligations out their own pockets, in proportion to how much of the corporation they own. The PBGC should be abolished. CEOs should be held criminally responsible for bad accounting practices. I am against any form of corporate bailout or buyout by the government.
To help ease the financial burden of those who prone to over-borrow, I favor usury laws that would limit the amount of interest and fees that can be charged against a debtor. I need to do more research on what the interest and fee limits should be and how to make the laws so that they don’t violate Constitutional principles. All debts should be cancelled every seven years by federal law as Deuteronomy 15:1-6 says. The states should have the right to prosecute national banks in cases where they defraud or deceive their debtors. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency should only get involved in cases where constitutional federal laws concerning commerce are not being enforced by state or local law enforcement.
If a corporation cannot meet obligations made to creditors (including employee benefits), then the owners and/or stockholders of the corporation should liable to pay these obligations out their own pockets, in proportion to how much of the corporation they own. The PBGC should be abolished. CEOs should be held criminally responsible for bad accounting practices. I am against any form of corporate bailout or buyout by the government.
To help ease the financial burden of those who prone to over-borrow, I favor usury laws that would limit the amount of interest and fees that can be charged against a debtor. I need to do more research on what the interest and fee limits should be and how to make the laws so that they don’t violate Constitutional principles. All debts should be cancelled every seven years by federal law as Deuteronomy 15:1-6 says. The states should have the right to prosecute national banks in cases where they defraud or deceive their debtors. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency should only get involved in cases where constitutional federal laws concerning commerce are not being enforced by state or local law enforcement.
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About Me
- Matt
- I am born again Christian with a strong interest in politics, doctrine, science, and how these relate to one another.