“We the People” Pledge

On Tuesday, January 3 the entire House of Representatives and one-third of the Senate will take an oath of office. Here it is:

“I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter: So help me God.”

In addition to assumed, simple things like ‘tell the truth,’ here’s some things I propose be added to that pledge.

Earmarks – I will vote against any bill that contains earmarks, i.e., expenditures for items or projects not related to the main purpose of the bill or that contains special provisions/exclusions for the purpose of buying votes.
Taxes – I will vote against any bill that increases taxes of any type. I support lower individual income tax rates, permanent elimination of the death tax and no corporate taxes when they are taxed twice via dividends. At the same time I will support a minimum income tax for every person required to file a tax return, so everyone participates in funding essential federal responsibilities. I will not support any national sales or value added tax.
Size of government – I will work to reduce the size of the federal government, and work to eliminate expenditures for non-essential activities not provided for in the Constitution. I believe the non-war, federal budget should be less than 20% of GDP.
Spending limited to income – I will work to balance the federal budget by reducing expenditures.
Regulations – I will review all federal regulations and apply cost/benefit analysis to each. I will propose/support action to repeal all regulations that do not pass that test – eliminating bureaucracy and cost to the government and the private sector. I will limit the writing of regulations beyond implementation of a law and require all proposed regulations after that to be approved by the Congress.
Subsidies & Bailouts – I will work and vote for no federal government subsidies of any privately produced products nor bailouts of private sector companies.
Healthcare – I will not support government funding for health insurance for able-bodied citizens and not support healthcare funding for illegal aliens. I will support legislation to reduce the cost of healthcare and enhance the role of, and competition in, the private sector.
Entitlements – I will work to make Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid fiscally sound for the long-term. I will not support incentives for single-parent families.
Illegal Immigration – I will work to seal the borders and support local and State efforts in dealing with illegal immigration and drug smuggling. I will work to amend the law to eliminate entry by potential immigrants lying about religious or political persecution and/or oppression in their country of origin.
Respect State’s rights – I will support no unfunded mandates and no federal funding for State and local responsibilities and activities, including education.
Energy Independence – I will work to open to lease all federally owned land to drilling for oil and natural gas. I will be part of the development of a comprehensive plan for energy independence, being sensitive to realistic environmental concerns and supportive of alternative energy sources. I will not support any effort to cool the earth unless and until the science proves global warming is happening and reasonable analysis is done on the cause(s), timing, impact and alternate promising solutions.
Economy – I will not vote for any tax incentives or stimulus that assumes market manipulation. I believe in the free market. I will not support any federal government intrusions on pay scales, bonuses, profits, dividends or operations of private businesses.
Federal Debt – I will work to not only reduce but eliminate the federal debt.
Private Charities and Non-Profits – I will work to enhance the role of, and incentives for people to support, local charitable efforts and activities by non-profit organizations. Volunteering and voluntary support is still the culture of this country and my constituents. I will work to eliminate tax deductions for non-profit organizations not fitting a ‘charitable’ definition.
Judicial Activism – I will ask proposed judicial appointees their stance on judicial activism, defined as the occurrence when a Judge or Justice decides an issue based on personal or political ideology or pressure from special interests – instead of abiding by the Constitution and/or sound precedent. I will not support a judicial appointee who believes the Constitution is a ‘living’ document.
Protect the Constitution – I will have as my standard the upholding and protection of the Constitution. I will work to repeal those portions of the Patriot Act that are in violation of the Bill of Rights and the Constitution. I will work to protect our country and its citizens within the scope of our founding documents. I will not support any activity or proposal that extends the rights of U.S. citizens to non-citizens. I will not support any attempt to reduce or eliminate any of the rights guaranteed by the Constitution as amended. I will sponsor and/or support legislation that narrows and limits the power of presidential executive orders to cover only federal operations and personnel.
Listen to the People – I will use all the methods available to listen and learn, as well as communicate my views and actions to my constituents. I will reject any Political Party stance with which I personally and my constituents disagree.
I will read and understand an entire bill before voting on it.
Lobbyists – I will not accept contributions or in-kind favors from individuals or organizations whose purpose is to influence any of my votes. I will not accept employment by/with any lobbying activity or organization for at least five years after I leave office.
Income and Net Worth– I will not use my office to increase my personal financial gain. I will only listen to my constituents and compromise when necessary to get the best possible outcome for my constituents and the country.

What would you add or subtract as a pledge for our Congress – regardless of political party?

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Have a great and prosperous week.

Hug somebody.

SPIDER Bites

TCU and Georgia for the national college football championship. Two high scoring games.

This week’s (easy) trivia question is: Which famous Welsh actor, mainly known for his roles in Hannibal and The Silence of the Lambs was born on the 31st of December 1937? (Last week’s answer: Lady Gaga)

Gee, Elon Musk resigned as CEO of Twitter. He’s dumb like a fox. I wonder who will hire the new CEO?

Speaking of Musk, his Space X Falcon rocket made its 57^th launch of the year last week. Included in the cargo was the 3,000^th Starlink satellite – geared to expand and improve internet services. Once again Space X recovered the first stage rocket by landing it on a drone ship. Amazing!

Walmart began its home delivery program via drone in FL, TX & AZ just prior to Christmas. Limited to COVID test kits to date, the retail giant is planning grocery and other deliveries as 2023 unfolds. DroneUp is the company Walmart is using to launch airborne deliveries. Expect FedEx, UPS, and Amazon to be close behind in using drones. Walmart is dropping packages in front and back yards and on driveways – following FAA drone guidelines.

The headlines are holiday sales were up 7.6% this year over last, “despite inflation.” When I saw this, I shook my head because inflation is up that and more, so comparing total dollar sales ignores that fact. It doesn’t mean any more goods and services were purchased – likely even less. Dah. In any case, I’m skeptical about any national numbers now and how they’re reported.

Southwest Air is taking it on the chin for the fiasco of terrible customer service during and after the huge storm that hit most of the country a week ago. It’s a well-deserved black mark against the once best customer service, low-cost airline. Of course the fact new government regulations forced it to “diversify” its employees and now retire all pilots once they reach 65 years of age doesn’t help develop and keep good employees. But those rules now apply to all airlines, so it’s not an excuse. The market will take care of Southwest, the Feds should just let it.

The communist party in China, applying its Zero COVID policy has the population in an uproar as more businesses are shut down and more people are restricted to their living quarters. China didn’t learn a thing from us that shutdowns and lockdowns don’t work – along with paper and cotton masks.

We now know the $1.7T monstrosity passed by Congress a week ago contains 7,500 earmarks totaling in excess of $16B. It also specifically states and provides no money for border control – our biggest problem at the moment – while everything else gets much more. 18 Republican Senators voted “aye.” Neither Party is worth much to the people of the country at the moment. For signing, the bill was flown to the Caribbean vacationing President.