Economy Is Still Bad

                The liberty principle for this Freedom Friday is the simple fact that we need a strong economy in order to be free.  Our economy is in the dumps and has been for more than four years, but our current leaders are doing nothing about it.  The economy is the “elephant in the room” that no politician wants to discuss because they can longer blame George W. Bush for it. 

                Even though politicians will not discuss the economy, American citizens continue to be concerned about it and express their concerns in poll after poll.  Participants in a recent poll by Fox News were asked what they considered to be the most important issue facing our nation.  The results of that poll show where the concerns of the people are:  economy (42 percent), deficit (17 percent), guns (5 percent), and immigration (4 percent).  The people express their concerns, but the politicians are not listening to them. 

The people want jobs in order to provide for their families, but the politicians are engulfed in discussions about an Internet sales tax bill and a “comprehensive” immigration bill that is nothing more than an offer for amnesty.  These two bills alone will destroy much of our freedom if they become law.  The Internet sales tax bill will enable politicians to collect taxes for all sales on the Internet and force businesses to collect those taxes without having any representation in the states that actually receive the money.  The amnesty bill will cost American taxpayers millions and millions of dollars as our government will have more and more people to entice into the entitlement programs meant to benefit American citizens.  Already our federal government is giving food stamps to illegal aliens and encouraging more “undocumented immigrants” to apply for them.

Conservative governments in some states, like South Carolina, Texas, and Wisconsin, are showing the nation that conservative principles such as limited government, lower taxes, and balanced budgets bring economic freedom.  These governments are offering economical solutions that benefit all their citizens.  Washington could learn a few things from these states, but the bureaucrats there do not seem to care.

Derrick Morgan at The Heritage Foundation discussed some ways that Washington could help our economy.  “Washington could do a number of things to improve the economy.  Here are three especially relevant now:  (1) reverse the New Year’s tax hikes that are already hurting economic growth, (2) take steps, even modest ones supported by both parties, to reduce the unfunded long-term obligations of entitlement programs and get us on a path to balance the budget in 10 years (because adding debt slows the economy), and (3) repeal, or at least delay, Obamacare, whose crushing mandates and costs are destroying jobs and trampling on the religious liberty of employers from Hobby Lobby to social service ministries to homeless shelters.

“If those sound too partisan, why not take an easy first step and approve the Keystone XL pipeline?  It would create thousands of well-paid jobs.  The President could act, but if he does not, then Congress should approve the pipeline and force the President to veto it.  During the Senate budget debate, an amendment from Senator John Hoeven (R-ND) supporting Keystone passed 62-37.”

                Our economy is hurting.  It is like a nightmare from which we cannot awaken because our politicians continue to refuse to listen to the people.  The liberals who are controlling the Senate and the White House have their agenda and have stopped doing the will of the people, and the RINOs are following in the footsteps of the Left.  We the people must awaken and take control of our country – while we still have one that we can recognize.