Dr. Ron Paul and His Economic Prescription

Dr. Paul’s prescription for prosperity
Fri, 25 Jan 2008 19:00:31
By Texas congressman Ron Paul

Following is the full length text of presidential hopeful Ron Paul’s comprehensive reform package which he believes will revive the US economy:

Introduction:
America became the greatest, most prosperous nation in human history through low taxes, constitutionally limited government, personal freedom and a belief in sound money. We need to return to these principles so our economy can thrive again. When enacted, my plan will provide both short-term stimulus and lay the groundwork for long-term prosperity.
Other candidates talk a lot about stimulus packages, but my record stands alone. I have fought for these measures for years as a member of Congress and will make them a top priority as president.

 

Ron Paul, a 10-term Republican Congressman from Texas’s 14th District, is currently the ranking member of the House Financial Services Committee’s Subcommittee on Domestic and International Monetary Policy, Trade, and Technology. He has been named “Taxpayers’ Best Friend” for 10 consecutive years by the National Taxpayers’ Union. Ron Paul is also the author of several books on monetary policy and economics.

The Four-Point Plan
1. Tax Reform: Reduce the tax burden and eliminate taxes that punish investment and savings, including job-killing corporate taxes.
2. Spending Reform: Eliminate wasteful spending. Reduce overseas commitments. Freeze all non-defense, non-entitlement spending at current levels.
3. Monetary Policy Reform: Expand openness at the Federal Reserve and require the Fed to televise its meetings. Return value to our money.
4. Regulatory Reform: Repeal Sarbanes/Oxley regulations that push companies to seek capital outside of US markets. Stop restricting community banks from fostering local economic growth.

 

1. Tax Reform
- Eliminate Taxes on Dividends and Savings. The basis of capitalism is savings, and Americans who do so should be rewarded.
Pass HJ Res. 23 to encourage savings over consumption.
- Repeal the Death Tax. Attacking small businesses and breaking up family farms smothers growth and kills jobs.
Pass H.R. 2734 to make the Bush tax cuts permanent.
- Cut Taxes for Working Seniors. Grandmothers and grandfathers working to make ends meet should keep all the fruits of their labor.
Pass H.R. 191 to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to repeal the inclusion in gross income of Social Security benefits.
- Eliminate Taxes on Social Security Benefits. That money belongs to seniors, not the government. They paid into the system for a lifetime, and they should be free to spend every penny as they see fit.
Pass H.R. 192 to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to repeal the 1993 increase in taxes on Social Security benefits.
- Accelerate Depreciation on Investment. We need to help companies grow and create jobs.
Pass H.R. 4995 to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to reduce corporate marginal income tax rates.
- Eliminate Taxes on Capital Gains. Investment should be embraced and rewarded.
Pass H.J. Res 23 (The “Liberty Amendment”), proposing an amendment to the Constitution of the United States relative to abolishing personal income, estate, and gift taxes and prohibiting the United States Government from engaging in business in competition with its citizens.
- Eliminate Taxes on Tips. The single parents and working students who earn their income chiefly through tips deserve to keep all of their money. This tax on “estimated income” is unfair and should be ended.
Pass H.R. 3664 to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to provide that tips shall not be subject to income or employment taxes.
- Support the Mortgage Cancellation Relief Act. Working families who lost their homes should not be punished a second time with a big IRS bill.
Pass H.R. 1876 to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to exclude from the gross income of individual taxpayers discharges of indebtedness attributable to certain forgiven residential mortgage obligations.

 

2. Spending Reform
- Reduce Overseas Military Commitments. Our bases and troops should be on our soil. It’s time to stop subsidizing our trading partners in Europe, Japan and South Korea.
- Freeze Non-Defense, Non-Entitlement Spending at Current Levels. I vote against all bloated, pork laden spending bills and will veto them as president.

 

3. Monetary Policy Reform
- Televise Federal Open Market Committee Meetings. An institution as powerful as the Federal Reserve deserves full public scrutiny.
- Expand Transparency and Accountability at the Federal Reserve.
Pass H.R. 2754 to require the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System to continue to make available to the public on a weekly basis information on the measure of the M3 monetary aggregate and its components.
- Return Value to Our Money. Legalize gold and silver as a competing currency.
Level the long-term boom and bust business cycle by passing H.R. 4683, which would repeal provisions of the federal criminal code relating to issuing coins of gold, silver, or other metal for use as current money and making or possessing likenesses of such coins.

4. Regulatory Reform
- Repeal Sarbanes/Oxley. It has seriously wounded our capital markets and helped make the UK a financial center at our expense. Ending these misguided regulations would bring jobs flooding back to the United States.
Pass H.R. 1049 to reform Sarbanes-Oxley and reduce the burden it places on small businesses.
- Repeal or Remove Costly and Unnecessary Federal Regulations. Neighbors know best how to help their neighbors. We need to make it easier for community banks, credit unions, and other financial institutions to better serve their communities and to help people in these communities get access to credit and capital.
Pass H.R. 1869 to enhance the ability of community banks to foster economic growth and serve their communities, boost small businesses, increase individual savings, and for other purposes.

http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=40296&sectionid=3510304

Impeach Bush/Cheney

Kucinich ‘will file Bush impeachment’
Fri, 25 Jan 2008 22:44:56

Congressman Dennis Kucinich says he will introduce articles of impeachment against President Bush for deceiving the American nation.

The Democrat said Wednesday that he would introduce the articles on January 28, the day US President George W. Bush is scheduled to deliver his State of the Union speech.
“We already know the State of the Union,” Kucinich said. “It’s a lie!”
“[The] Bush administration led the nation to war on the basis of erroneous information that it methodically propagated and that culminated in military action against Iraq on March 19, 2003,” the 61-year-old congressman quoted the Center for Public Integrity’s recently released report on Washington lies prior to the Iraq invasion.
“In short, the [US] president and the vice president [Dick Cheney] lied and four-thousand of our soldiers died,” Kucinich said during his speech in the United States House of Representatives.
“The president and the vice president lied and a million innocent Iraqis died in a war that has cost us 2 trillion dollars, when people here in the States are losing their jobs, their healthcare, their homes, their dignity,” he continued.
“If impeachment is off the table, then the truth is off the table. If the truth is off the table, this House will be living a lie,” he exclaimed.
Kucinich’s statements wreaked havoc on the House floor; Republicans strongly voiced their objection to his remarks.
Florida’s Republican congressman, Cliff Stearns, termed Kucinich’s statements a ‘clear and egregious violation of House rules’.
“Kucinich used the House floor to launch a personal attack against President Bush and Vice President Cheney and accused them of lying to the American people,” Stearns added.
Many Americans remain dissatisfied with the Iraq war, claiming it was launched with no justification other than ‘Bushite lies’. The US president and his top echelons invaded Iraq under the false pretext that Iraq has weapons of mass destruction.

http://www.presstv.ir/Detail.aspx?id=40338&sectionid=3510203

Minot Scandal + New Nuke Policy

Minot scandal prompts new nuke policy
Fri, 25 Jan 2008 19:17:57

The Air Force changes its nuclear warhead handling protocol in the wake of the Minot scandal in which nukes were flown across the US.

The key change in the policy directive is that it firmly prohibits storing nuclear and non-nuclear armed weapons in the same storage facility.
US army officials played down as a ‘mix-up’ the August 29 incident in which a crew at Minot Air Force Base mounted six missiles containing dummy warheads and six carrying nuclear warheads onto a B-52 bomber from a single hangar.
The aircraft flew for more than three hours over several states.
In the aftermath of the Minot incident, four Air Force colonels were relieved of command, and 65 low-ranking officers and airmen were ‘disciplined’.
The new instructions also dictate that all non-nuclear munitions and missiles should contain signs identifying them as ‘trainer’ or ‘empty’ to ensure ‘a clear distinction between nuclear and non-nuclear munitions/missiles’.
http://www.presstv.ir/Detail.aspx?id=40301&sectionid=3510203

Mc Cain Does Not Know Economics

McCain: I don’t understand economics
Fri, 25 Jan 2008 22:20:48

Republican presidential frontrunner John McCain has raised eyebrows by confessing that he ‘doesn’t really understand economics’.

At a recent meeting with the Wall Street Journal editorial board, the presidential hopeful said he would rely on his adviser and former Senate colleague Phil Gramm as an expert on the subject.
A source familiar with the events that took place at the meeting has confirmed the incident.
The Arizona Senator’s office has not returned multiple requests for comment. The Wall Street Journal refuses to comment on meetings that take place privately with their editorial board as part of its company policy, The Huffington Post reported.
After the incident, the question arose as to whether the Republican frontrunner, who has made light of his lack of economic policy understanding, would be the right man to take charge of White House affairs.
This is while Republican hopeful Ron Paul introduced a ‘comprehensive economic revitalization plan’ on January 24, affirming that it could save the US from recession in the long run.

http://www.presstv.ir/Detail.aspx?id=40334&sectionid=3510203

Kim Wright and Oklahoma

Kim Wright, founder of Oklahoma Independents, drafted an open letter to the Governor and is collecting signatures on an open letter to the Governor to protest actions by the state Attorney General who recently indicted 3 activists. The indictments came after efforts to put a tax reform initiative on the ballot and are widely viewed as an effort to undercut the right to initiative and referendum and discourage grassroots democracy. Read Kim’s letter and the Wall Street Journal editorial supporting the group.

Dear Governor Henry,

As Independent voters, we are concerned that the initiative and referendum process in Oklahoma is being threatened. Three initiative leaders were brought up on criminal charges by the Attorney General for hiring out-of-state petition carriers to help place an initiative on the ballot, after they had been assured that it was legal. More than 300,000 Oklahomans signed the petition. However, the court ultimately ruled the initiative off the ballot and it was never voted on.

Now, almost a year later, the Attorney General has indicted the three initiative leaders for “willfully violating” the state’s residency requirements. His persecution of the initiative leaders is a blow to the democratic rights of Oklahoma citizens. It serves only to frighten and intimidate voters from exercising their constitutional rights to participate in the initiative process.

We urge you to call on the Attorney General to drop this indictment and to defend our right to initiative and referendum.

Kim Wright
Founder, Independent Voters of Oklahoma