If I were President...

I know it's Freedom Friday but I have been thinking a lot about this. It's a tough job, I mean seriously next to being a parent this job has so much influence and responsibility it would be overwhelming.

So what would I do???

First I would really want to eliminate the tax code to either a straight flat tax for all or a national sales tax so even those here illegally could build up the coffers. Our tax code is so messed up, complicated and a lot people spend a lot of time trying to find their way around paying their part.

I would go back to basics on federal government and give the states back more power to control what goes on in their states. I feel like if people have more direct control of the money spent in their neighborhood they will care. And hopefully the states would allow local governments more power in their own areas. What role should the federal government have? Protect our country and our freedoms. Freedom doesn't mean we are entitled to a certain lifestyle. It means if we are born poor we can dream big because if we "work hard and are kind, amazing things can happen."

I would propose suspending unnecessary programs that are not our responsibility and have them phased out and during that time offer employees training to find new jobs once the phase out is complete. IE I would give all the money people have put into the SS program and let them invest it privately as it seems to them appropriate. And discontinue a bankrupted system.

What about welfare? Well, I would really encourage the development of job and educational training and help for those needing to get back on their feet a system they would borrow from and then pay a percentage back over time until it is all paid off so others could participate in the program as well. Kind of like the micro-loans done in 3rd world countries they buy chickens with the borrowed money and earn money to get out of poverty and then start paying back the system. Of course this means I am counting on the goodness of others to step to donate to this and help those disabled. But I feel that if people are given the chance they do help their neighbor if no one else is, for example Haiti...people are helping despite being without or living in difficult times the donations are coming. I think that there are a lot of creative solutions to poverty. Greg Mortensen of 3 Cups of Tea learned the best way to build a school in Pakistan and Afghanistan was to put the locals in charge, they had to provide land and labor he took care of the funding and teacher training. He is doing this without help from any government just good people donating. I believe it can be done. People will be happier if they are providing a solution to their own problem and they won't feel guilt or humiliation because they are doing something.

What about health care? Well, I feel strongly government mettles too much in these things--tons of laws and regulations. Let the insurance companies compete across the nation, beyond states and let doctors compete and those who are bad will be weeded out. Let people decide what and where their health care is... The government can barely handle my mail so how is it going to handle my health? Also, there is no money for health care, medicare etc. Ask people on Medicaid how it's going for them? I think again we can come up with more creative solutions than making all of us pay for lousy health care. Because the amount they will make us pay will not cover what is necessary and so it will go sub-par and therefore the elderly and disabled will get some morphine and get sent home--if they are lucky. And we won't have anywhere to go if we get sick--MANY, MANY people come HERE from Canada and England to get treatment because their system is broke, it will not provide what they need. So why would we want to set our system up to be like theirs? It's insane and it doesn't work.

Cut spending...I should have put that first. Cut, cut,cut. When a family losses some or all of it's income, they don't go out and buy a new car and max out their credit card--if they are wise. They cut out the unnecessary: eating out all the time, going to newest movie releases, buying the latest clothing...they make do, find another job or few extra jobs to keep themselves a float. They have a savings for such an emergency. We have nothing, we are part of the global economy and the other countries are getting wise and they are not buying our bonds anymore. We are on the brink of inflation and total failure of the dollar because of trillions of dollars in spending, for what? Clown ballet? Yes, stimulus money was spent on that and other RIDICULOUS things. When the government is so big how can it track every penny or hundreds of thousands of dollars? That's why it's better spent locally, the people there can keep track and be held responsible for it too! Part of cutting spending is the salaries that congress gets and other federal employees. Their salaries should be no higher than the average teacher, they are serving us, right? So minimal compensation and retirement, only what they earn in office that they invest instead of a pension they get forever!

I think I would also follow Greg Mortensen's example in working in foreign countries. All the aid we send them usually doesn't end up helping the locals. It needs to be better planned and the locals need to be involved in the rebuilding of their communities, and I think because of Greg they are starting to do that. But I say zero tolerance for terrorists they are just grown up babies wanting attention and should get none!

So there's my 2, or 3 cents! I will never be president but I can dream still because it is America:)