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I) LOWER TAXES, LESS GOVERNMENT - MORE FREEDOM
I am committed to promoting fiscal
discipline and ensuring that the Missouri House spends your tax dollars
wisely. Fiscal constraint, eliminating wasteful spending and curbing
fiscal abuses are critical components of balancing the State budget.
Reversing the culture of those that believe the solution to every
problem involves more government and more spending is not easy, but
I am committed to promoting steps - and encouraging those serving
with me to take these steps - to ensure that Jefferson City spends
your tax dollars wisely.
II) TAX RELIEF
A prerequisite for business success
and economic growth is low taxes. Our economy is challenging now, and many feel the effect.
It has flourished largely because of tax relief and
sensible economic policies. Congress needs to continue to enact policies
that keep taxes low and regulations sane, so that businesses can create
jobs. The average family today pays more in taxes than it spends on food,
clothing, shelter and transportation combined. Also, families will work
the first 113 days of this year just to pay their federal, state and local
taxes. With rising costs to fill-up a gas tank or put food on the family
dinner table, increasing taxes will only further strain family budgets.
In the House, I am committed to fighting tax hikes so that on Tax Day,
April 15, Missourians are not overburdened. As your Representative, I will:
- Limit Real Estate Property Taxes for all Missourians by Forcing
Taxing Jurisdictions to roll back their taxes
- Phase out Personal Property Tax on Automobiles
- Allow Missourians a 100% State Income Tax Deduction For Federal
Income Taxes Paid
III) HEALTH CARE
One of my top priorities is to continue
helping families get the health care they need, including funding for mental
illness, early and preventative treatment, home health care, and more community
health centers. I am committed to reforms that will restore sanity to our health
care system, making health care affordable and available to all that need it.
We must reform the medical liability insurance system to control costs and allow
physicians to continue practicing. We should also help small businesses across
the country provide health insurance to their workers and dependents by pooling
together and access health insurance. Access to quality, affordable healthcare
is an issue that affects every family. The US health care system is a complicated
mix of private and public payers, using a patchwork of different providers to care
for patients. In this country, we have the best trained medical professionals,
the most state of the art facilities, and are the world leader in technology.
The US spends more on health care than any other country in the world. Ensuring
Missourians are able to afford the health care they need will be an important
priority for me in the House. I believe a more market based approach to healthcare
will lead to greater flexibility, efficiency, and lower costs. I seek to:
- Give Missourians more control over their health care by providing tax
relief to individuals and families who do not have access to employer
provided health care
- Ensure that Insurance Companies provide the Health Care Benefits
they Promise to Consumers
- Create a hybrid of Private Pay, Individual, and Incentive based ideas
to Insure Every Missourian
IV) EDUCATION
Education is not within the scope of the limited government
contemplated by the founders of our federal system. Rather, education is a function of state
and local government and a child's parents, who are best positioned to know what is best for
their child. I know that after parental involvement, the most important factor in a child's
education is the teacher. As your next State Representative, I will work to ensure that good
teachers are paid well and bad teachers are removed from the classroom, regardless of how
long they've been in the system. A study by the National Dropout Prevention Center showed
that low-achieving students increased performance by 53% when taught by highly effective
teachers. I strongly believe that we need to focus on giving good teachers the proper tools
and ample time to instill a passion for learning within our children. Another effective tool
for reducing the dropout rate is giving parents more options for their children's education.
Many in St. Louis County currently home school, access private education, or have advocated
for charter schools. It is time for the General Assembly to explore these options and expand
their reach to places outside Jefferson City and St. Louis County. As your Representative, I
will strive to:
- Ensure that children in Failing Districts have Access to a Quality
Education
- Strengthen the rights of parents in the education of their children
- Reflect the Principles of Accountability, Local Control, Funding for
programs that work, and Expand Parental Options
- Expand access to Higher Education for low and middle-income
students by:
- Strengthening student aid, student access, and minority serving
institutions
- Reducing red tape for students and graduates
- Removing barriers for non-traditional students
- Empower consumers through "sunshine" and transparency in
college costs & accreditation
V) JUDICIAL REFORM
As an attorney, I respect the important role of the judiciary,
but believe that judges should apply the law instead of legislating from the bench. I favor a
strict interpretation of the Constitution and supports judicial nominees who share this view.
The decision of unelected judges to overturn the will of the people of California on the question
of same-sex marriage demonstrates the lengths that unelected judges will go to substitute their
own worldview for the wisdom of the American people I will:
- Support Real Tort Reform Legislation that clogs up our courts and
costs us money
- Create True Justice by providing an increase in pay for attorneys
who represent indigent clients
VI) ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION
The United States of America was always a nation which welcomed
immigrants with open arms, and we should continue to allow hard-working people who want better
lives for themselves and their families to come to this country legally. I am proud of the
record our country has for welcoming legal immigrants who want to become Americans and contribute
to society while pursuing their own American Dream. I recognize that many here illegally are
hard-working individuals making important contributions to industry. With that said, I do not
support their permanently residing in our country as illegals, a practice now accepted as normative.
I believe greater authority should be given to state, county, and local law enforcement agencies
across the state to identify, scrutinize the status and, when appropriate, deport illegal citizen.
I will fight against any attempts to give illegal immigrants benefits that are paid for with your
tax dollars. It is also important for us as Americans to realize that we all are descendent of
immigrants who also came here legally and through a beaurocratic process. Moreover, we all as
legal U.S. citizens pay a significant percentage of our hard-earned money in taxes. I do not
believe that hard working Missouri citizens want to give tax amnesty to illegal aliens, nor do
I believe that hard working Missouri citizens want to have their tax dollars used towards giving
illegal aliens and their families entitlement to welfare programs. I believe that hard working
American citizens want to protect their tax dollars and use them to help others who live here in
our state legally. As your representative, I will strive to:
- Eliminate public benefits for Illegal Immigrants
- Hold Employers Accountable for Workers They Hire
- Support a program that speeds up the process to turnover Illegal
Immigrants to Immigration Control
- Smuggling illegal aliens into Missouri would become a felony offense
punishable by five years in prison - per victim
VII) SEASONED CITIZENS
Seasoned citizens are an integral, vitally important part of our
communities. Your concerns are OUR community concerns. Our elders have been through tough times
like these before. They fought to preserve our freedoms. They have also played a significant role
in our progress. They have invested many years into our communities and into this country. Men and
women who have worked hard their entire lives should not have to worry about financial or health
security. And our elders should not have to worry about being victimized by those taking advantage
of their frailty or poor health. Programs like Social Security and Medicare have provided an important
safety net for American seniors who might otherwise live in poverty. I have worked to strengthen these
programs and to ensure that all seniors are treated fairly and with compassion in their later years.
We are grateful for their service and sacrifice for our country. We value our senior citizens just as
we value all members of our communities. We respect and need their counsel, experience and values as
we address our challenges. Streamlined access to information as well as to home and community services,
including information that will enable people to plan ahead for long term care needs addressing today.
We must all work together to ensure that every older person in this great country is treated with dignity
and respect and moreover, has the opportunity to make the choices they desire to enjoy a healthy and
rewarding future. Information about cost-effective prevention practices and activities will improve
health and quality of life and reduce risk of disease, disability and injury. Lastly, we need innovative,
affordable and flexible options of care and support that will provide an array of choices about
how and where to live.
VIII) SMALL BUSINESSES
I am a firm believer in the power of small business -
not only as an engine of economic progress, but a social good that stands at the core
of the American identity. That's why I will advocate for lower taxes rates for small
businesses, a market-based approach to health insurance that would lower the cost
for employee and employer alike, and a streamlining of the regulatory red tape that
in far too many cases does more harm than good. Here are some of my ideas to help
small businesses grow:
- Get rid of needless legislation that creates a noose around the necks
of small business owners and hinders free enterprise.
- Develop guaranteed non-collateralized low interest loan programs
for small business owners who cannot obtain loans at banks (Current
loan programs require you to have collateral and a moderately high
credit rating. My proposal will work similar to the federal student
loan program does.)
- Extend small business tax relief deadlines
- Reduce the self-employment tax for businesses in operation less
than five years
IX) EMINENT DOMAIN
Citizens must maintain their right and liberty to own property.
The U.S. Supreme Court's Kelo decision recently eroded some of our basic principles.
Once protected and considered sacred, to now be vulnerable to the swing of a judge's gavel.
Your private property may now be seized by the government to be sold to private developers and
investors. Seizure of land by invoking eminent domain cannot be allowed except in very narrowly
defined circumstances that do not include the profiting of government or private groups. The
state has no right to seize our property for private development, and I hope to see this legislation
pass in the upcoming session. If it does not, however, rest assured that I will relentlessly pursue
its passage as your next State Representative. This right must be defined and protected in a Property
Rights Amendment to our Constitution. I will support or sponsor legislation that will move
that amendment forward.
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Constitutional Conservative
Traditional Christian
Forward Thinker
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