"It does not require a majority to prevail, but rather an irate, tireless minority keen to set brush fires in people's minds." Samuel Adams

Monday, March 14, 2016

My first 100 days


I heard John Kasich talking about what he would do in his first 100 days in office, so I started thinking about what I would do in my first 100 days if I were elected president (which won't happen):

1. I would propose six amendments to the Constitution. The first would establish under law that the right to life begins at conception and cannot be taken away except through due process (just like everyone else). The second would establish that in the United States, marriage is a lawful union between a man and a women. The third would establish that nothing in the Constitution prohibits Congress from passing laws to criminalize desecration of the American flag. The fourth would establish that Representatives would be limited to five terms in office and Senators would be nominated by state legislatures, ratified by the citizens of the state, and limited to two terms. The fifth would establish that Supreme Court Justices would serve 18 year terms with one justice being replaced every two years (this amendment would also deal with other federal judges who are appointed to life terms). The sixth would clarify what constitutes natural born citizenship and would eliminate the concept of "anchor babies."

2. I would ask the Joint Chiefs to give me a 3-month plan for obliterating ISIS.

3. I would appoint Ben Carson to construct a detailed plan to replace Obamacare based on his proposal for individual health accounts.

4. I would appoint Chris Christie as Attorney General and have him conduct an immediate investigation into (among other things) the killing of Miriam Carey by Capitol police and the Secret Service in October 2013.

5. I would propose legislation that would give every undocumented person within the borders of the US six months to come forward (maybe three months). If a person has overstayed a visa, that person will be subject to a fine or deportation (a judge can evaluate the circumstances). I would also make clear that any person who has overstayed their visa but does not come forward and is caught will be immediately deported and will forfeit any opportunity to re-enter the US at any time in the future. Anyone who crossed the border illegally and comes forward may, after police and FBI clearances, be granted a temporary work visa. This visa will be good for 3 to 5 years and may be renewed if the person pays their taxes and does not commit any crimes. Anyone who does not come forward and is caught shall be immediately deported and will forfeit any opportunity to re-enter the US at any time in the future. Of course, this proposal will include effectively sealing the border, establishing an effective system for keeping track of those here on visas, and bringing severe penalties on employers who hire undocumented aliens. I would also make very clear that no person who has entered our country without going through proper channels will ever be granted the privilege of becoming a US citizen.

6. I would invite Vlad Putin to Camp David and try to discern if there is any hope for the US and Russia getting on the same page.

7. I would suspend the Iranian deal and demand that it be re-negotiated. Of course, this would probably result in no deal at all. I would tell the Iranians they have 3 months to agree to a better deal or we will begin re-instituting sanctions. I would also let the Israelis know that they are free to do whatever they believe to be in the best interests of their survival as a nation. They will be no push back from the US.

8. I would privatize all VA hospitals.

9. I would propose legislation to break up the "too big to fail" financial institutions so that none of them are too big to fail.

10. I would propose legislation that would eliminate all federal income tax and replace it with a flat tax on goods at the wholesale level. Whenever an item is purchased at the retail level, the receipt would be required to show the amount of the purchase price that was tax. This legislation would also require each state to make an annual federal payment based on population (and perhaps other factors). The state would be free to raise this payment any way it chooses. It would also authorize the federal government to assess either states or individuals with a temporary "war tax" as needed to pay for the cost of going to war. This way we all have a stake in it.

11. I would begin a process for eliminating the Federal Reserve.

There might be more I would do, but that would be the start.

3 comments:

Tom said...

Replace the federal reserve with what? What would be the flat tax percentage? How would you explain to the Germans, Russians etc. on suspending the Iran agreement? I doubt they would approve and go along with it.

Dave said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Dave said...

We managed for a long time without a central bank, and I believe the case can be made that we were better off. The meltdown of 2008 ought to be the proof of that. The Fed caused it (as per the video you sent me) and the big banks consolidated and reaped a harvest of cash.

I'm not sure what the tax rate would be. I would need someone smarter than me to calculate it. It's the principle I'm concerned about. I would rather tax spending than income. You can't cheat.

As for whether the Germans and Russians would get on board, that's where good leadership comes in.