A government debt is a government claim against personal income and private property – an unpaid tax bill. – Hans F. Sennholz,

All democracies institute programs for current voters and shift the debt to future workers, even the unborn.  Social Security, Medicare, prescriptions drug benefits for seniors are prime examples in America.

States and Debt

The New York Times opinion column partially explains the debt problem of most states in America:

Starved for revenue and accustomed to decades of overspending, many states have been overwhelmed. They are facing shortfalls of $140 billion next year. Even before the downturn, states jeopardized their futures by accumulating trillions in debt that they swept into some far-off future.  (The $140 billion is greatly inflated.  This is the amount The New York Times considers the ideally spending.  Not the difference between the previous budget and revenue projections.)

However, most states have feebly enforced constitutional restrictions, requiring balanced budgets.  Hence, states are in deep debt. What the NY Times did not emphasize is the states have promised lavish retirements and medical benefits to state employees.  Most are union employees that finance politicians which in turn provide the state workers with good salaries and retirement benefits.  Harmfully, this government scheme is corrupt and has greatly exacerbated the crisis.

Bob Williams, of State Budget Solutions, explains the enormous pension disaster:

Perhaps the single most troubling issue facing states is the sheer magnitude of unfunded pension liabilities. States are in way over their heads when it comes to constitutionally-required retirement and healthcare benefits owed to future and existing retirees.

The politically powerful, assisted by adoring media mavens, have created these gigantic debts, which must be repaid by our children and grandchildren.  Read how The NY Times proposes to solve the problem:  … federal stimulus money — which has been keeping many states afloat — is largely scheduled to expire. Renewing a portion of that aid would be one of the most effective ways to assist the economy.  In other words, print more money to prop up state governments and extend and enlarge the debt crisis.  This is a continuation of failed governance.

Advantageously, the American Enterprise Institute (AEI) has studied other countries debt reductions.  Clearly, successful reduction was achieved by cutting government payroll/employment and restructuring transfer payments. 

Now the NY Times implies the states have made all the cuts they can on transfer payments.  This is non-sense.  The new governor of Florida, Rick Scott, an expert on medical costs, wants the opportunity to reduce souring Medicaid costs.  Governor Perry of Texas recently asked for the same opportunity:

Instead, Washington should return money to the states via block grants without strings attached, allowing each state to identify the best way to use that money to meet the specific needs of its patients, families and taxpayers.

Not only would this allow states to tailor their programs to meet the specific challenges of their populations, it would also prime the pump of innovation.

There will definitely be similar requests from more governors.  Welfare reform is another example; after many years of program escalations and onerous federal regulations, the states were granted the opportunity to run their own programs.  The same must be allowed by the states in all social programs: employment, training, Food Stamps, Medicaid, and education to name a few.

Now, why the states?  After all, they have created debt and have a gigantic pension crisis.  Unfortunately change will not occur in the federal government, the politically powerful Members of Congress will cling to their power and are prone to increasing programs and regulations.  Likewise, the bureaucrats and supportive allies will assist the enlargement. The federal government stopped enlarging welfare only when the state governors and American people demanded an end to a growing and perverse entitlement.

Today, the debt crisis is much bigger.  The American people are demanding a restructuring of debt and transfer payments.  Strong governors are willing to make innovative changes.  Only, the states will make the changes. Without the federal government’s restrictive rules, the states will respond quicker and more directly with their citizens.

As to the state-pension crisis, the process will be ugly.  The threat of states defaulting on their debt is real.   Each state will struggle with a solution.  However, states can and must substantially reduce state employees.  Further, states must create 401k-defined contribution plans for new employees, which will eventually stop the pension crisis.

The states must have the opportunity to restructure the federal transfer payments.  The states must lower their cost of employment.  As Governor Rick Scott said, “Give us our power back. Give us our money and let us run our states.”

 America’s future is a stake.  Every minute the debt continues, it impairs the prosperity and freedom of our children and grandchildren.  Debt reduction is the crisis of our time.

Wherever politics intrudes upon economic life, political success is readily attained by saying what people like to hear rather than what is demonstrably true. Instead of safeguarding truth and honesty, the state then tends to become a major source of insincerity and mendacity. – Hans F. Sennholz

 Fearing legislated failures, the politician’s speech is seldom precise or logically reasoned.  Seeking a favorable image, the politician talks in generalities, exaggerates and obfuscates.

Social Security – Fairness for Young Americans

This is an election year, which exacerbates political gamesmanship and mendacity.  Currently, the DC joust is the payroll tax cut.  And Democrats probably have a political advantage in reducing the payroll tax by 2% for every worker in American – 160 million workers.  Workers will have up to $2000 in additional take-home pay.  Who doesn’t want more spendable income?

This week, President Obama, in the State-of-the-Union speech, demanded, “Pass the payroll tax cut without delay.”  However, the following statement is probably more accurate, “Pass $325 billion more Social Security debt on to young Americans and even the unborn.”  The payroll tax is intended to pay for Social Security benefits.  Generally, the Social Security tax is 12.4% of a worker’s income – 6.2% is paid by the employer, and 6.2% by the employee.

Immorally, the Social Security tax revenues for over 40 years have been raided and misappropriated by many administrations – Republicans and Democrats alike.  Previous administrations intentionally and wrongly used the money for general government programs, and wrote IOU’s to Social Security.  Hence, America has enormous unfunded Social Security obligations, which must be paid by more taxes – in addition to the 12.4% Social Security tax.

Immorally, Presidents like Lyndon Johnson used a budget gimmick and the Social Security revenues to hide the cost of the Vietnam War.  Richard Nixon raised the benefits by 20%, which he made known by a note attached to the seniors check just before the 1972 presidential election.    Johnson and Nixon didn’t care about future federal debt obligations.  Once again, President Obama, the Democrats and some Republicans also don’t care.  They want a winning issue for the November 2012 election.

Realistically, most of the 160 million American workers do not understand the ramifications of their increased pay checks.  They don’t appreciate that the unfunded, Social Security liabilities must be paid by additional taxes, and that Social Security will probably become a welfare program. Depending on personal savings at retirement some of today’s workers will receive benefits, many will receive reduced benefits and some will receive none.  How is that fair to every worker that paid the 12.4% tax?

Worse, future workers most surely will be taxed more to maintain some semblance of the Social Security program – government hates to terminate a program, especially Social Security.  Thus, young workers – who never had an opportunity to object to government’s forty years of deceit – will be burdened with increased taxes and reduced benefits.  This is modern America’s “taxation without representation.”

Most likely the 2012 tax-cut gambit to influence 160 million voters will become law, and the Social Security swindle and deception will continue.  The following is a solution which would permit young people to be free of the Social Security burden and fraud.

The Freedom Bargain:

Allow young American workers to put their entire payroll tax into an IRA.  That is 6.2% of their income.  In exchange for investing in their IRA, the worker forgoes any and all claims to Social Security.

Call this the Freedom IRA, which is in addition to all other forms of retirement accounts – 401k, Roth 40Ik, private accounts and others.  .

Mechanics of the Freedom IRA:

In exchange, a worker that elects to create a Freedom IRA puts 6.2% of their income into an IRA and irrevocably gives up Social Security.  The employer deposits the money directly into worker’s IRA.

Young workers will benefit from private accounts which they own. Young workers will also be free from the manipulations and deceits of the politicians.

Today’s politicians cannot claim that which will destroy Social Security.  Wrongfully for over 40 years, thousands of politicians have already raided and redirected the money intended to pay benefits.

Free young people from political gamesmanship and fraud.  Allow them to save 6.2% of their earnings in their own Freedom IRA.  America, at least, should be fair to young workers and those who are about to become workers.

In order to get power and retain it, it is necessary to love power; but love of power is not connected with goodness but with qualities that are the opposite of goodness, such as pride, cunning, and cruelty. – Leo Tolstoy

Supreme Court rules for Religious Freedom

By unanimous decision, the Supreme Court strongly rebuked the Department of Justice’s claim that the Americans with Disabilities Act has supremacy over the Constitution’s Free Exercise and Establishment of Religion Clauses.  Chief Justice John Roberts wrote:

“…hard to square with the text of the First Amendment itself, which gives special solicitude to the rights of religious organizations. We cannot accept the remarkable view that the Religion Clauses have nothing to say about a religious organization’s freedom to select its own ministers.”

People in power always desire to impose their rule on others.  The Justice Department wanted to impose its power on religious organizations.  The Justice Department (what an oxymoron) went so far to claim religion is the same as a social group.

Knowledgeable and discerning, the Wall Street Journal reminds us of the purpose of the Constitution – control and limit the coercive power of government.

Hosanna-Tabor is an important reminder that the core religious freedoms guarded by the First Amendment were not to protect the public from religion, but to protect religion from government.

In this case, the Supreme Court ruled in accordance with the Constitution.  Good.  However, We the People cannot rely on the Supreme Court.  They, too, are human and crave power, and have often imposed their authority while ignoring and superseding Constitutional restrictions of power.  Unfortunately, the love of power described by Tolstoy inevitably prevails.  Hence, the power of the federal government continues to expand, which leads to the most important case of our era – ObamaCare.

Few times in the history of America has such a momentous decision been made by the Court.  If the government prevails, President Obama, Majority Leader Reid and former Speaker Pelosi with the approval of the Supreme Court will have forever increased the power of government.  ObamaCare will control and determine health care for all Americans.  Additionally, a government victory will be precedent to enlarge DC’s power over all aspects of American life.

Potentially, and at best, the Court will merely repeal the individual mandate.  Assuredly, the Obama Administration, similar to the Department of Justice, will continue to pursue their expansion of universally health care and federal supremacy.

Regardless of the Court’s ruling in ObamaCare, We the People must reduce the power and reach of the federal government.  In accordance with the Tea Party Budget, ObamaCare must be repealed.  Further, and major, improvements to America’s system of governance must take place – reduce the size and scope of the government and devolve most social programs to the states and local communities.  We must stop the expansion of power by Members of Congress, the President, bureaucrats and even the Supreme Court.

We must have more direct involvement and influence in the decisions of government.   Only We will restore limited government and freedom in America.

Successful … politicians are insecure and intimidated men. They advance politically only as they placate, appease, bribe, seduce, bamboozle or otherwise manage to manipulate the demanding and threatening elements in their constituencies. – Walter Lippmann (1889-1974), American Journalist and Author

In a democracy, the politician must favorably influence the majority of their voting constituents.  In all political decisions, the politician calculates how many votes are gained by voting-money spent on interest groups versus how many votes are lost.

Keystone:  Obama’s Re-Election Gambit Endangers America

By rejecting the pipeline, President Obama pandered to the environmentalists over dependable energy and America’s workers.  Every politician calculates how many votes are gained and lost on a political decision.  Obama counted and chose the environmentalists.  The reason is obvious, the greens are zealous and passionate activists, and their support is crucial for the president in 2012.

Robert Samuelson in Real Clear Politics called this decision an act of national insanity: 

President Obama’s rejection of the Keystone XL pipeline from Canada to the Gulf of Mexico is an act of national insanity.  …  All it tells us is that Obama is so obsessed with his re-election that, through some sort of political calculus, he believes that placating his environmental supporters will improve his chances.

How insane is Obama’s decision?  It does not help the green agenda.  Canada will still develop oil.  Worse, Canada most likely will build a pipeline to the Pacific Coast and ship the fuel to China.  Besides the potential for sea disasters, China will certainly pollute the atmosphere more than the EPA controlled United States.

What is the impact on the American economy?  Reasonable estimates are 10,000 high-paying construction jobs are lost over the next two years.  These are shovel-ready jobs that Obama has long-been promising.   Again, Samuelson:

And Keystone XL is precisely the sort of infrastructure project that Obama claims to favor.

Insanely, because of this sinister political decision, America remains dependent on foreign oil controlled by many nations and people that want to destroy us.  American and Canadian energy supplies are enormous and if utilized can drastically reduce our dependence on foreign oil.  Again, Samuelson:

The more oil we produce domestically and import from neighbors, the more we’re insulated from dramatic interruptions of global supplies. After the United States, Canada is the most dependable source of oil — or was until Obama’s decision.

Clearly, President Obama made this decision in his personal interest at the expense America.  One more time Samuelson:

 It isn’t often that a president makes a decision that has no redeeming virtues…

Obviously, the great political observer and writer Walter Lippmann never knew President Obama.   However, Lippmann identified Obama’s character, which is that of a run-of-the mill politician.  They advance politically only as they placate, appease, bribe, seduce, bamboozle or otherwise manage to manipulate the demanding and threatening elements in their constituencies.

As government expands, liberty contracts.
-President Ronald Reagan

Obama: “The government we have is not the government that we need.” 

President Obama claims government needs major, structural reform.  He is absolutely correct.  He is absolutely wrong, however, about the solution.  As President, Mr. Obama has increased spending, executive orders, policy czars, environmental regulations, health insurance mandates, the national debt, taxes on future workers and so on.  The list is practically endless.

In another election year ploy, Mr. Obama claims reorganization will save money.  This is bogus.  As disingenuous as President Clinton was in claiming, “The era of big government is over.”  Disastrously, Presidents Bush and Obama have expanded government to the detriment of freedom and prosperity.

President Reagan correctly analyzed, “As government expands liberty contracts.”  Liberty gives everyone a choice in how to invest their time, intellect and resources, which is the genius that propels a great society.  Obama’s czars, debts, taxes and government edicts retard innovation and human expansion.

Reagan, in his famous Berlin speech at Brandenburg Gate, extolled liberty and prosperity:

…. importance of liberty—that just as truth can flourish only when the journalist is given freedom of speech, so prosperity can come about only when the farmer and businessman enjoy economic freedom.

Lower taxes, tariffs and regulations propelled West Germany past the totalitarian East Germany, and Reagan proudly proclaimed:

“Freedom leads to prosperity. …”

Freedom and prosperity are what America needs – immediately.  Presently, the only proposal to offer a solution is the Tea Party Budget.  In order to survive, America must reform our basic systems of governance; the federal government protects our nation, and the state and local government take care of our day-to-day needs.  The Tea Party Budget suggests the following actions to advance freedom and prosperity in America:

• Repeals ObamaCare in total.
• Eliminates four Cabinet agencies — Energy, Education, Commerce, and HUD — and reduces or privatizes many others, including EPA, TSA, Fannie Mae, and Freddie Mac
• Ends farm subsidies, government student loans, and foreign aid to countries that don’t support us – luxuries we can no longer afford.
• Saves Social Security and greatly improves future benefits by shifting ownership and control from government to individuals, through new SMART Accounts
• Gives Medicare seniors the right to opt into the Congressional health care plan.
• Suspends pension contributions and COLAs for Members of Congress, whenever the budget is in deficit.

Yes, it is a bold plan.  But just as President Reagan challenged the Soviet Union to “tear down this wall,”  America must reduce the power and scope of federal government.  America must tear down the walls of its our own government and make drastic changes in order to save our country.   We must stop the expansion of government for freedom and prosperity to excel.

Government is not, as some people like to say, a necessary evil; it is not an evil, but a means, the only means available to make peaceful human coexistence possible.  … Ludwig von Mises

Governance Controls Destiny

Good governance is crucial for peace, prosperity and the expansion of human capacity.  Charles Krauthammer in Washington Post writes of the importance of politics: 

… This is the work of politics — understood as the ordering of society and the regulation of power to permit human flourishing while simultaneously restraining the most Hobbesian human instincts.

As judged against other systems of government, Americans have historically had superior governance.  America prospered because citizens for over 200 years were free to think, believe, exchange ideas, goods and services with little interference from government.  Ludwig von Mises, a great Austrian/America economist, understood how good governance fosters freedom, which expands human capability:

The distinctive principle of Western social philosophy is individualism.  It aims at the creation of a sphere in which the individual is free to think, to choose, and to act without being restrained by the interference of the social apparatus of coercion and oppression, the State. All the spiritual and material achievements of Western civilization were the result of the operation of this idea of liberty.

America was blessed to be founded by the philosophy of freedom as stated in the Declaration of Independence and followed by the institutions of governance within the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.  Benefiting from winning the Revolutionary War and geographic separation, a small cadre of very knowledgeable people versed in the history of government, formed and codified America’s government.  Understanding England’s kings, wars, parliaments, compromises, charters and declarations of rights, our Founders sought strong institutional restraints to control the awesome power of government.  Overarching, our Founders feared the tyrannical powers of monarchs, factions (special interests), and the majority rule.  Our Founders believed in individualism – freedom to think, to choose and to act without restraint by government.

Today, the American government when compared to excellence – utopia – rates as poor.  Worse, it is descending.  Government, particularly the federal government, has been on a jihad to command and control Americans.  Here are a few examples:

• Obamacare, passed by overt corruption, instituted by bureaucratic zealots and enforced by a government czar – Sebelius.
• Pelosi dictates light blubs for every American.
• The Dodd-Frank financial regulations empowering their Northeastern bank empires.
• Green energy schemes order by another government czar and paid for by all working Americans – Solyndra.
• High price energy by restricting oil and gas production.
• Poor education produced by the NEA unions at the expense of young Americas.

James Madison warned of this abuse of power:  The essence of Government is power; and power, lodged as it must be in human hands, will ever be liable to abuse.

Horrifically, our politicians are totally focused on November elections.  Does any politician appreciate the importance of governance and respect the institutions that govern us?  Does any politician care?

No, the next eight months will be about obtaining power – first, to be elected and then to be in the majority.  We the People must remind every politician of the importance of freedom, and why America has been exceptional.  We the People must ask our elected politicians to respect and embrace the Constitution of limited government and honor our freedom, where the individual is free to think, to choose, and to act without being restrained by the interference of the social apparatus of coercion and oppression.

Successful … politicians are insecure and intimidated men. They advance politically only as they placate, appease, bribe, seduce, bamboozle or otherwise manage to manipulate the demanding and threatening elements in their constituencies.
– Walter Lippmann (1889-1974), American Journalist and Author

Like Nixon – Obama Manipulates Social Security to Buy Votes

 President Nixon increased Social Security benefits prior to the 1972 election by an enormous 20%.  Infamously, just prior to the election Nixon attached a note to each beneficiaries’ check lauding their big gift.  Because of the political deceit and political incompetence, Social Security was broke in six years.

In the early 80’s the Greenspan Commission raised the tax rates, increased people and incomes taxed and extended the age of eligibility.  These government manipulations altered the contract with working Americans and raised the amount of money confiscated by the government.

Last year, Obama and Congress lowered the Social Security tax rate for all workers.  Recently, Obama demanded a two month extension of the cuts.  Similar to Nixon, Obama extolled the benefit he provided to workers:

“Because of this agreement, every working American will keep their tax cut,” … “When Congress returns, I urge them to keep working without drama, without delay, to reach an agreement that extends this tax cut as well as unemployment insurance through all of 2012.” 

Obama’s statement was directed to 160 million workers – all potential voters.  Coordinated with Obama’s pandering to workers, his campaign manager Jim Messina emailed this devious attack claiming the Republicans want to: 

… gut Social Security to pay for more tax cuts for millionaires and corporations.

Obviously, gut Social Security to pay for more tax cuts for millionaires and corporations has been tested by the political spin masters and is proved to scare seniors and outrage the Democratic base.  This mantra will be stated repeatedly until the November election. This is crass politicking at it’s finest.  Similar to Nixon, if not worse, Obama’s tax cut will cause Social Security to go broke earlier and every American workers; taxes will increase.

The tax cuts Obama has requested will reduce revenue flowing to Social Security by roughly $220 billion.  Ultimately (and soon), every American worker will be taxed more.  Most likely, it will not be in the form of an increased payroll tax, which is too blatant.

However,  there will be an attempt to raise the tax-ceiling on the rich, which will not raise enough revenue.  Then, politicians will look to income tax and everything else the federal government taxes.

For example, to partially pay for the two month extension, Congressed levied “fees” collected by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac on home mortgages.  Dangerously, there is no limit to government’s thirst to tax.  Plus, at some point of time, Congress will attempt to introduce an additional tax – the value added tax (VAT).  And again, every American will be taxed to some degree.

Nixon and Obama are not the only politicians to misuse Social Security system.  Bush II created the prescription drug benefit just before the 2004 election, which, once more, was buying senior votes and exacerbating America’s debt crisis.

There is only one sure way to stop this despicable and dangerous political gamesmanship and subterfuge – workers invest their Social Security taxes in a tax-free IRA.  Only when a person owns their retirement accounts will politicians stop this deceit.

Never trust a politician with your money.  They will manipulate and use your money for their political advantage.  Ownership is the only sure method to stop these political hucksters.   Saving and investing will propel America forward economically, socially and morally, which benefits everyone in the long-run.

Additional reading:

For an in depth review of Congress and Social Security read The Congressional Response to Social Security Surpluses, 1935-1994  by John Cogan of the Hoover Institute.

Successful … politicians are insecure and intimidated men. They advance politically only as they placate, appease, bribe, seduce, bamboozle or otherwise manage to manipulate the demanding and threatening elements in their constituencies.
– Walter Lippmann (1889-1974), American Journalist and Author

In a democracy, the politician must favorably influence the majority of their voting constituents.  In all political decisions, the politician calculates how many votes are gained by voting-money spent on interest groups versus how many votes are lost.

Temporary Tax Gimmicks Damage America – We Must have a Budget

Congress and the President have fled DC.  In their haste to leave the city, they employed a procedural gimmick by agreeing to no motions and no debate.  Hence, the payroll tax-cut has been extended for two months.

Great!   However, the real gimmick is the payroll tax-cut.  It was pure fraud on the American voter, and retards economic grow.  In truth, the payroll debate was a political contest to buy votes.  A game played by the President, Congress, Republicans and Democrats.

The fraud:  temporary infusion of money to Americans does not stimulate sustainable recoveries. John Taylor of Stanford University writes in the Wall Street Journal:

Like the one-time rebate of 2001, the temporary tax cut of 2008, the cash-for-clunkers and stimulus payments of 2009, or similar policies tried back in the 1970s, these temporary policies consistently fail to stimulate sustainable recoveries. And as this history shows, extending the temporary reduction from two months to six months or even to 12 months would be at best a marginal improvement.

The DC politicians must halt the despicable jousting for political advantage and make vital, long-term decisions.  Again Taylor writes:

But the policies are worse than doing nothing at all. Rather than stimulate the economy, they hold the economy back by creating policy unpredictability and by distracting Washington from crucial long-term reforms that are key to restoring economic growth and creating jobs.

Congress and the President are immoral stewards of fiscal and tax policy.  The Senate has not passed a budget in over two years.  Hence, there is no structure or restraint on spending.  Worse, governmental debt has increased by trillions of dollars.

FreedomWorks and thousands of citizens have presented the Tea Party Budget, which cuts spending by 9 trillion dollars in 10 years.  Now, Congress must pass a budget – their most fundamental and indispensable duty.

America must have a plan to reduce government debt.  The politicians have a moral duty to present and defend their plans.  Without a doubt, FreedomWorks will advocate for the Tea Party Budget.   All Americans must have the opportunity to know and participate in this critical budget debate, which will determine America’s future.

Again, the DC politicians must halt the despicable jousting for political advantage and make vital long-term decisions.

When a person enters Congress or the Presidency, they seek and use the coercive power of government.

Cowardice asks the question—is it safe? Expediency asks the question—is it politic? Vanity asks the question—is it popular? But conscience asks the question—is it right? … There comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular, but one must take it because it is right.
-Martin Luther King

Force DC to Right Their Wrongs

 America’s economic crisis is the result of two political wrongs:

• Government does not provide a stable and predictable legal order  allowing people – especially small businesses – to make educated economic and personal decisions.
• Government has spent years recklessly accumulating debt by politicians and leaving it as an unpaid tax bill which is now due.

Richard W. Fisher, President and CEO of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, knows banks and businesses have plenty of money.  However, an unstable and uncertain legal order prevents these institutions from hiring and investing. Obamacare, tax policy and regulatory uncertainty stop businesses from hiring.  Fisher states: 

I maintain that no matter how much cash you have on your balance sheet, or how compliant your banker might be, or how cheap the cost of money, you will not commit substantial capital to expanding your payroll or investing significant amounts to expand plant and equipment until you know what it will cost you to run your business; until you know how much you will be taxed; until you know how federal spending will impact your customer base; until you know the cost of employee health insurance; until you are reassured that regulations that affect your business will be structured so as to incentivize rather than discourage expansion…

Worse, Fisher knows that Presidents and Congresses have willfully and recklessly caused the debt crisis.

All I know is that the “honorable” members of Congress and presidents past, Republicans and Democrats alike, have conspired over time, however unwittingly, to drive fiscal policy into the ditch. They purchased their elections and reelections with popular programs so poorly funded that they now threaten the economic well-being of our children and our children’s children. Instead of passing the torch on to the successor generation of Americans, they have simply passed them the bill. This is the opposite of honorable.

Fisher believes We the People must force the politicians to pass legislation that is right for America.

The Christmas spirit may be overwhelming my judgment, but I believe that the American people—from the mainstream to the Tea Party to the unemployed and disaffected who have taken to the streets—are in the process of forcing politicians to get their act together. There is a loud, distinct, clarion call for leadership—for the people we entrust to right the rules that determine our economic future, cast away cowardice, expediency and vanity, and get on with leading us out of our fiscal wilderness.

For the economy to recover and prosper major fiscal corrections must occur.  The Tea Party Budget is the only serious proposal.  The Budget cuts over $9 trillion, devolves most social programs to the states and puts Social Security and Medicare on a path to solvency.

Join FreedomWorks and support the Tea Party Budget.  As Fisher strongly implies; only We the People can force the politicians to do what is right. If We the People fail, our future is dismal.  Fisher also alluded to the horrors of war:

But the face of both the economist and businessman turn into something akin to Edvard Munch’s Scream when contemplating the frightful consequences of indecision and political mischief at both ends of Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington.

America has suffered too long from political cowardice, expediency, and vanity.  We the People must unite behind the Budget and force politicians to do what is right.  Only We the People can force the DC politicians to be responsible and honorable.

Government, in its last analysis, is organized force. – Woodrow Wilson

Government, within its jurisdiction, has a monopoly on power.  Government has the power to tax and enforce the collection of taxes, the power to regulate, the power to incarcerate and even the power take the life of a person.

Every act of government has an element of power, which is executed by force or coercion.  Every government rule and regulation involves compliance with the power of government.  For example, public education is overwhelmingly accepted as a public good.  However, all aspects of public education are enforced by the power of government: taxation, compulsory attendance, jurisdiction, and curriculum.

Revolting Against Bad Governance

Tony Blankley, Washington Times, writes that Americans are shocked by the ineptitude of government.  Assessing the American citizens’ search for a leader and good governance, Blankley writes:

Perhaps this is so because the last 3 to 4 years have been a shocking time of discontinuities and reversals for America.  Really, America has been bewildered, shocked and disoriented since Sept. 11, 2001. The economic collapse and the unprecedentedly statist policies of the last three years have just compounded the anxiety. The rise of China, the fall of Europe and the chaos in the Middle East have been startling in their swiftness — and the lack of American leadership as these dramatic events unfold is sending a shudder throughout the world.

We don’t know what to make of events. We have not been convinced that either President George W. Bush or incumbent President Obama have had a clue about how to make things right. 

In the article, Blankley continues to argue for the election of his former boss Newt Gingrich.  The reader can decide for themselves.

Importantly, citizen dissatisfaction isn’t just an American phenomeon. The communication revolution has people throughout the world observing, assessing and discussing their governance.  The Tea Party, Occupy Wall Street, Arab Spring, Greek riots, Chinese demonstrations, Russian protests and others are indictments against bad governance.

Governments of all types – democracies, communists, theocracies – cannot control the flow of information or citizens witnessing and communicating with fellow citizens about their governing bodies.  The Internet has changed the world.  Ruinously, the political elites of the world continue to arrogantly plan and control their citizens’ lives.  Worse, the political elites voraciously seek more power.  Hence, the world is in various forms of revolt.

In the past decade, Americans have witnessed government folly and ineptitude:

• Bush II started the Iraqi war on the assertion of stopping weapons of mass destruction.
• A financial collapse caused by government policies, e.g., Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
• An Afghanistan war that most Americans think is not in our national interest.
• Financial bail outs of big banks and insurance companies, which gave enormous campaign contributions to federal politicians.
• A federal reserve that endlessly prints money.
• The corruption of bankruptcy laws in favor of unions, i.e., General Motors.
• The political corruption associated with passing ObamaCare, e.g., Louisiana Purchase and the Cornhusker Kickback.
• Thousands of waivers from ObamaCare.
• Bureaucrats making the rules for ObamaCare.
• Trillion dollar deficits.
• Congress has not passed a budget for over two years.
• Totally incompetent, Congress cannot trim a trillion dollars of spending increases over 10 years – The Super Committee.

Most Americans fear big government.  America has always been concerned about central government and the abuse of power.  The Declaration of Independence, the Constitution and the Bill of Rights concentrate on the force of government and attempt to restrict and defuse the power of politicians.  Recently, Americans have attempted to limit the power and control of government, e.g., term limits and spending caps.

Most Americans want smaller and locally controlled governance.  Citizens want more say in how they are governed.  If democracy and freedom are to survive, government must be restricted to necessary core functions.  The federal government must focus on defense and the enumerated powers conferred in the Constitution.  State government and local communities attend to education and social policies.  The era of central controlling and planning cannot continue.  The citizen must have more say over government, which can only be effective in local communities.

So far there is only one bold plan to restructure the powers between the federal, state and local communities, the Tea Party Budget.  Thousands of people contributed to this budget.  The Budget restricts federal spending, as follows:

• Cuts, caps, and balances spending
• Balances the federal budget without tax hikes
• Reduces federal spending by $9.7 trillion over the coming decade
• Eliminates 4 Departments (Energy, Education, Commerce, and HUD)
• Privatizes and downsizes dozens of departments, agencies, and programs
• Reduces federal outlays from their current level of 24 percent of gross domestic product (GDP), the highest since World War II, to a more realistic 16 percent
• Gives individuals more ownership, choice, and control of their retirement through optional Social Security accounts
• Lets seniors enroll in the Congressional health care plan.

Following the example of welfare reform, the Budget devolves federal programs to the states and local communities.  Education, Food Stamps, work ready programs and many ohte programs are returned to the States, where Americans have more input and control.

The Budget moves America boldly back toward the Founders’ vision of limited, constitutional government.  In the age of the Internet, nothing is impossible.  Support the Tea Party Budget.  The countries that restrict arrogant politicians and support personal freedom will control this century and devolve government back to the people.  It is essential for our children and grandchildren.  It will not be easy, but it can be accomplished.