Principles for America

First it must be stated that though this article is a reflection of Republican principles identified by the Chairman of the Republican National Committee I must emphasize it is not about the source. It is about whether the principles being discussed are right for America. Principles in this article are a framework from which actions can be taken in a common sense manner to change the direction of our country. The first principle to be addressed is the Constitution. All of us know what this represents but we have come to question whether our elected officials in Washington understand what it represents.

The oath of office for our elected and appointed officials in Washington involves supporting and defending the Constitution. This I am sad to say in many instances has gone by the wayside. The Constitution is the first principle of the eleven to be discussed. With regards to this important document the action being proposed is that it should be preserved, valued and honored. Today our government has seen many laws and regulations which appear to step on the rights embodied in the Constitution which we hold dear. Actions by Congress should honor this document through their legislative proposals addressing the critical issues facing our country. Honoring the Constitution not only in principle but action affects everything Congress does as a legislative body.

The next principle involves the economy as it is today. Washington’s economy has been growing by leaps and bounds while America’s economy not so much. The details laid out in this principle involve the need to create a growth environment where hard-working Americans see better wages and more opportunity. How this will be accomplished may be found in legislation which has not seen the light of day in the Senate. Our economy is hurting and in need of actions by Congress to create an environment beneficial to the American Economy not the economy of Washington.

A critical aspect of how Washington works involves the current culture regarding the budget which is the next principle. This part of the framework involves developing a strategy and proposal to amend the Constitution to add a Balanced Budget Amendment. While this may take some time and overall is a good idea the objective is to create a more efficient government and leave the next generation with more opportunity not debt as is the current path.

The next principle involves the healthcare segment of our economy. The objective according to the way it was presented is to reform the current structure under the current law to put patients and their doctors in charge, not unelected bureaucrats in Washington. This area will most likely receive wide support as individuals are overwhelmingly unhappy about the costs and the deductibles which must be satisfied. There are many great things in the current legislation but other requirements have seen a negative impact which was not as it was presented.

While there have been some actions regarding the next principle of veterans and their healthcare more still needs to be done. As stated in the principle veterans have earned our respect and gratitude and no veteran should have to wait in line for months or years just to see a doctor. They put their lives on the line each day when they serve and along with their families that endure many sacrifices. We owe a large debt to these individuals which well will never be able to repay but a start would be to revamp the healthcare system for veterans and if it cannot meet the need of veterans they need to have the availability to go to the private sector to receive the healthcare service they require.

During these times we as a country face many problems not the least of which is the security of our country and the protection of our citizens around the world. The principle of security under this framework has several objectives not the least of which is keeping America safe by ensuring we have a strong military with the capability to address any issues which face our country. Another aspect of security is growing the economy. The security of our country has a relationship with the growth of our economy. This connection involves having jobs for those individuals who are able to work. When individuals work tax money is received by the government. The more individuals that work reduces the need to borrow.

Another aspect of our security needs involves the need to be energy independent. With the energy resources we know we have today and that may be discovered tomorrow the need to purchase energy from countries who do not like us puts our security in jeopardy. We need to access these resources not restrict the access to them. Our energy production is increasing but only through private land not government land. The impact has seen high employment and an unemployment rate which is well below the national average. Some say that utilizing these resources will not have a large impact on the job market but the government only needs to look at the exploding economies where our energy resources have been accessed. In addition as to the impact on price one only need to look at the principle of supply and demand. Increasing the supply of energy reduces the price we pay utilizing the principle of supply and demand. We need only look at the impact with our oversea import sources increase their production we see a lower price at the pump.

The current situation with the security of our borders is the last element identified under the security principle of this framework. We must have secure borders. Those who are entering our country today in the large numbers put our security and safety and the security and safety of our country at risk. Examples have been reported in the media of individuals crossing the border between Mexico and the United States are from foreign lands some of which are countries which have known terrorists organizations within their borders. As individuals cross into our country they need to monitored to ensure criminals and/or terrorists never enter the country.

The principle concerning the education of our future leaders is a simple one. The objective in this area is to ensure each child has the opportunity to get a great education and no parent should be forced to send a child to a failing school.

The details of the poverty principle involve an objective to instill a focus on helping individuals get off the poverty rolls. We have more individuals on poverty today than we have had in recent years. A large segment of society is now receiving some kind of government check. Government should be focused on getting people off the poverty rolls by helping them find a job. The detail of this principle is provided below:

“The best anti-poverty program is a strong family and a good job, so our focus should be on getting people out of poverty by lifting up all people and helping them find work.”

Today the values we once had seem to be diminishing not necessarily on a personal level but as a country. The traditions of family, life, religious liberty and hard work should be embraced and this is what the principle of values is about in this framework. It is meant to focus on the objective to get our country back on track to what our founding fathers envisioned. In particular our religious liberty continues to be attacked by those who either do not believe or want to suppress the right we have to express our religious beliefs. In addition hard work should be recognized by those for whom we work but more importantly hard work should be appreciated by our government not penalized through laws and regulations.

Creating an environment for becoming energy independent by using our supply of domestic energy specifically our oil reserves is another principle to be embraced by our federal government. Encouraging investment in domestic energy is part of the objective of this principle as presented by the GOP. Additionally the objective is to achieve lower prices and create jobs at home. We have an abundance of energy reserves such as oil and natural gas. A Recent report indicated that there was an oil resource which was as large as the supply in Saudi Arabia. Increasing the supply of oil by building the Keystone XL pipeline will accomplish two things. One is an increase in the number of high paying jobs and lower prices at the pump. Some disagreements exists as to the number of jobs building this pipeline will generate but the evidence is clear areas where oil reserves have been tapped have seen an enormous growth in jobs not only directly but through support services. Having a platform to address the need for energy independence is a positive step to take for our country. Currently there are eleven states which have known oil reserves and they only need to be tapped. The government should join in this effort by eliminating restrictions to processes which have been proven to be successful in accessing the oil reserves currently known to us. While some controls are necessary to protect the environment, the controls currently in place do more damage than good.

The last principle involved as part of the principles for America is the need address our current immigration problems. The first and most important is to enforce the present immigration laws and regulations. The system we have now has flaws in that our borders are not secure and they need to be to protect the security of our country. This principle if put in place along with the others in this article brings the rule of law back into focus. Enforcing the law in this segment of our economy will result in a deliberate effort to secure our borders.

The eleven principles discussed above is a start to fix the problems with our economy. The government needs to open the reserves which have been reported to be in the billions and allow our country to create a better outlook into the future. These principles though they were presented by the Chairman of the National Republican Committee. It is not about the source of the plan but the plan itself and the impact it can have on the country.