NYSCWA Venus vs. Mars - Winter 2012

I would work on jobs and increasing the amount of cash that hard¬working Americans could spend to keep the economy growing.

√ I do believe that we should be trying to be environmentally friendly however, I would delay it for a few years because we really can’t afford it now. I would create jobs by only using US oil. We have plenty of oil in the United States, but we need pipelines and wells to make it available to us. This would create job. If you don’t believe me take a look at North Dakota where the employment is increasing while the rest of the county is seeing increasing unemployment. I would eliminate the use of foreign oil completely. This would drive the price down. If oil was reduced to $2.50 a gallon that would give a lot of Americans additional cash to spend on other items. I would also make sure a portion of the price of our oil would be spent on making the US more environmentally friendly within 10 years.

√ I would also repair and improve our infrastructure. It should go out to bid to private companies so that they would be competitive. We have so many roads, bridges and rails that need major repairs that would create a lot of jobs. More jobs – more money in the economy.

√ Employers need a reason to take the risk of hiring new employees. They should receive a tax credit for any new positions to encourage hiring additional employees instead of just increasing hours or workload for current employee.

√ I would address the student loan debt. We have allowed the biggest injustice to our children. Students are signing loan papers and they do not have any understanding as to what their payments will be after graduation. They believe Sallie Mae is a government agency instead of being the predatory lender that it is. Sallie Mae, with help of lobbyists, has become the only debt that cannot be rolled into a bankruptcy. That gave them a position of strength so they have no desire to help our new graduates consolidate to fixed rate loans so they can afford their payments. Our young college graduates are drowning in student loan debt with interest rates 5 percent higher than current mortgage rates. This has prevented them from buying houses, cars, and other goods even if they have good jobs. For graduates who have not been
fortunate enough to get jobs, their credit has been ruined and that will take them years to repair, not to mention the compounding interest.

√ The housing market also needs to come back before we see a better economy. The new guidelines allowing homeowners who have continued to pay their mortgages on time even though they are upside down in value to refinance to get a lower rate is a great start. I would also continue tax credits for home improvements such as new heating systems, windows, etc. to keep the construction industry working.

√ Last, but certainly not least, I would pass a law that would not allow a Senator or Representative to begin their next campaign until six months before an election. If we could get them to stop running for their next term six months after they get in office, maybe they would stop grandstanding on issues and agree to help us get out of this mess. I would also implement term limits. Maybe if they were not so busy trying to be reelected they would get to work and get something accomplished.

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Politics has never been a strong suit of mine so answering this
question is quite difficult. I don’t know why anyone would want the job of President of The United States today. It just seems that getting anything accomplished is impossible. There is too much bipartisan baloney going on and most politicians seem to be more concerned with their own agendas than the people they represent.

As a small business owner my whole life, I would have to say that if I ever became President I would certainly want to make a lot of changes to the laws that govern small business. Year after year it gets more costly and less desirable to own a small business. There needs to be more incentives for operating a business in this country. Unemployment is at all time highs in parts of the country, but the incentives for companies to hire just aren’t great enough to put a dent in the problem.

As far as health insurance goes, it is just ridiculous that the cost goes up 15 percent or more year after year. I don’t know whose fault it is, though, the president or the insurance companies. But whoever is at fault, something certainly needs to be done with that because it is just not going to be affordable soon. Good health care is something that everyone should be able to afford.

I also never understood the whole income tax scale, which is based on your income. I would make income taxes a fixed percentage of your income. I don’t understand why someone should have to pay a greater percentage just because he/she earned more money. A fixed percentage income tax I think would be the fairest plan of any.