Forum Post: List of Possible Demands
Posted 13 years ago on Oct. 7, 2011, 3:21 p.m. EST by amagnum37
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- Real campaign finance reform. Get money out of Washington. Power leads to corruption!
- Term limits for Congress. 10 yrs House; 12 yrs Senate
- Compromise in Washington.
- Congress should work for us; not themselves.
- Congress must NOT sacrifice OUR economy strictly because of the upcoming election!
- Accountability & transparency must be strictly enforced!
i like the campaign finance reform and term limits elements. so much good can flow from those.
1) Congressional term limits – 3 terms Congressman – 2 terms Senator – maximum of 26 years combined federal service Congressional and Executive Branch – professional politicians only care about their re-elections, lets take away the “I must keep my job” so that the minority cannot take away the voice of the majority
2) Reduce rules and regulations where it makes sense to accelerate commerce and stimulate jobs. We have too many rules created by too many special interests that benefit only a few – e.g. it should not take years and hundreds of thousands of dollars to build a back country outhouse in a national forest; but it does due to rules.
3) Our healthcare system is completely broken. Period. Over 17% of our GDP goes to healthcare every single year, the highest percentage of GDP in the world. The average citizen pays/costs the health care system costs over $8,000 a year. Despite this, over 50 million Americans have no health insurance coverage. Amazingly, 60 % to 65% of the current spending for healthcare comes from the federal government from Medicare, Medicaid, TriCare, and Veterans Administration. We already have government provided healthcare – we cannot let fear stop this. No one in 21st century America should have to decide on medication or food, which finger to reattach after an injury, or die from a toothache. And that includes our retirees and our veterans; especially our veterans, who are volunteer citizen soldiers of which we have a Patriotic duty to support.
4) End corporate “private citizen” protection. Corporations have hidden behind this protection to break laws, abuse consumers, other business, and government alike, and throw mountains of special interest dollars at legislators at every level. We are a nation of the corporations, by the corporations, for the corporate directors.
5) We must have massive campaign finance reform. We must take special interest, lobby, and PAC money out of elections and legislation at every level. We must not have any loopholes that allow charitable corporations, PAC, or shadow organizations to provide massive funding for pet projects that mostly benefit a small group, typically within a single corporation.
6) We need a comprehensive energy and transportation policy in this country utilizing both existing and future green technologies hand-in-hand. Our cities are blessed with sidewalks, roads, buses, subways and trains, but unreasonable fuel economy policies and green initiatives are squeezing those who live in rural areas, including those we depend on like farmers, with unrealistic expectations and expenses. A family farmer can barely compete today, add on the expense of manufactured congestion, manipulated fuel prices, and arbitrary CAFÉ standards, it only applies more pressure – no one is going to haul their tomatoes to market via a bicycle – and taking a Greyhound bus isn’t practical. We need a real policy for energy and transit that everyone can live with. Where cities can enjoy clean, modern efficient transit and commerce while reducing traffic – but not at the expense of one of our greatest gifts. The ease of mobility from point A to point B free of any restrictions.
Our tax structure is completely broken. The bloated, outdated IRS has massive administrative costs. The average citizen should not have to hire an accountant, consultant, or buy specialized software to prepare their annual tax return to assure they make no errors, and get the maximum benefit. The current overly complicated tax code, like so many other things in our government is riddled with perks and benefits for special interests, corporations and provides government interfere and influence into the free market economy. There should be a four tier tax system, and every citizen, regardless of income should make SOME contribution. No corporation, large or small, that makes a profit based on income generated in the United States, its territories, or its government branches, including overseas military operations and bases, should be exempt from paying taxes. There should not be any loopholes that any creative accountant, no matter how brilliant, can formulate to shelter corporations from their fair contribution to the well being of this nation.
Washington IS POWER. It attacks money and favors because it has power. There is no regulation that will change this fact. Only by LIMITING what government can do in corporate interests can we ever have a chance of retaining our wealth.
Why? what if there were GOOD Congressmen? Should we shuffle them off?
Compromise? Principles should never be compromised in the name of expediency.
Congress works for their re-election. That means they play to big-union interests, special interest groups, and races/classes. They go after the biggest bloc of voters they can find, and try to appease them. They cannot represent every one of us at once.
So get the govt. out of the private, free, voluntary economy.
By whom? The govt? The Supreme Court that has repeatedly been Congress's lap dog? If we weren't FORCED into a monopoly govt, we could hold them accountable by switching to a different govt provider. Anything else is just smoke and mirrors.
Obamas' 2012 Finance Director is the son of BANK OF AMERICAS former CEO.... the guy who got us in this mess!!! Keeping it all in the Family