AMERICA'S MAJOR PROBLEMS NEED CITIZEN ATTENTION
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“OF, BY & FOR THE PEOPLE”. BUT ARE THE CITIZENS REALLY IN ADEQUATE CONTROL OF GOV’T. TODAY? MANY THINK NOT. PERHAPS WE NEED TO AMEND THE CONSTITUTION TO ENSURE BETTER ADHERENCE TO THE IDEAL? PIQUE YOUR INTEREST? PLEASE READ ON.
A MODEST PROPOSAL: A BETTER PATH FOR AMERICA
President Lincoln’s famous Gettysburg quote has been an inspiration to Americans for a century and a half. But in recent years, it’s clear that the Government these days too often feels that they already know what’s best for the People. But is that truly the case? And how do we Citizens regain the influence over government that the Founders and Abe Lincoln revered so highly. That’s the issue, and some solutions, that we treat in this chart-form analysis.
A MODEST PROPOSAL: A BETTER PATH FOR AMERICA
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OVERVIEW
RETURNING CONSTITUTIONALISM TO AMERICA
GENERALIZING OUR PROBLEMS
MATCHING SOME PROBLEMS WITH SOLUTIONS
A MODEST PROPOSAL: A BETTER PATH FOR AMERICA
TOPICS COVERED
lAM
In this section, the purpose of this article is discussed. In brief, it is this: Many
National Leaders have discussed the specifics of various of America’s
problems. An example was the very recent address Senator Rand Paul gave , in
which he indicated grave disappointment with some of the waste that goes on
in our National spending. In particular, he contrasted it with President
Obama’s discussion of a few month’s ago, describing the impacts of the
“Budget Sequester”; e.g., to curtail TSA Agents and seriously degrade security
waits for those flying across our extensive airport system. Senator Paul
observed that this was largely a scare tactic as the Sequester budget still
contained enough waste and fraud to very comfortably adapt to the Sequester
impact. That’s a quite specific issue. But the broader vision is of our National
Executive and Legislative branches, so totally immersed in trivia that they
can’t and don’t prioritize their critical work, put energy behind the key priorities
and get the National Government out of the micromanagement of thousands of
aspects of Citizen’s lives. They seem totally unwilling to delegate this work
to the States, local governments and specifically, to the American Citizens as
stipulated in the 10th
Amendment of our Constitution.
Well, that generalized problem cries out for this generalized solution: Citizens
need to reassert their influence over our Government - - the Federal level most
specifically - - but lower levels as well. So this current article is an attempt, in
broad terms to try apply that approach to a series of 20 or so Problems. Then,
it is attempted to generalize the solutions to those problems and others in
(cont’d) next page)
OVERVIEW
8-10 or so legal provisions. This small set of solutions would then rationally
replace the vast government micromanagement of our lives and businesses by
(1) moving responsibility for these problems to lower levels of government and /
or (2) returning more responsibility back to the Citizens. The final result of this
article casts the solution set as a single Amendment to our U.S. Constitution.
The next few OVERVIEW charts embellish the above thoughts a bit before
getting into further specifics in the remaining sections:
• We start with a statement of principle by our 30th
President, Calvin Coolidge,
who tended to live that principle during his life of service to the Nation. Then a
piece of data from the Heritage Foundation, showing that the measure of
American freedom has been a victim of over-intrusive government. We also note
that a prime defect of government ineptness: bureaucracy - - which well-
intentioned as it may be, is simply not up to effective management of our
modern, complex Nation.
• Another reflection of Government failure is our ever-increasing federal
employment shown by the historical and projected debt load depicted across a
130 year spectrum.
• Then we hear a little about Citizens and governance from 6 American Leaders
of historical prominance.
• What’s an ideal output that we can strive for? Well, there’s one in our history
that we’re all familiar with. Of course the author of these actions sets a very
high goal to meet. But replication of this goal is not the objective. It’s simply to
remind us all that some actions, simply but profoundly stated, have a continuing
strong resonance with the People.
• Finally we look at the first set of Problems to be explored in this article.
These Problems are first stated in “popular terminology”, and then restated in
more general terms as prelude to looking at a few “general solutions”.
OVERVIEW
N!
OVERVIEW
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OVERVIEW
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OVERVIEW
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OVERVIEW
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OVERVIEW
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OVERVIEW
RETURNING CONSTITUTIONALISM TO AMERICA
GENERALIZING OUR PROBLEMS
MATCHING SOME PROBLEMS WITH SOLUTIONS
A MODEST PROPOSAL: A BETTER PATH FOR AMERICA
TOPICS COVERED
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In this section, we’ll be covering some thoughts in these charts:
• Newt Gingrich ‘s highly perceptive assertion that many of our problems arise
from governmental processes which are “broken”. I find it a quite profound
point of guidance and it is a foundation element of this article.
• Over-centralized government rests on a fatal flaw, for which I use the
analogy of an ant colony. It’s not that the ants (the government bureaucracy)
are not well intentioned and industrious. They are. And to build an anthill they
do a highly competent job. But would anyone assign them the task of building
a modern American City? Preposterous, of course! Now think about 535 + 1 +
many other gov’t. workers mostly ensconced along the banks of the Potomac - -
assigned the responsibility to manage a Nation of 300M+ Citizens with homes,
jobs, families, beliefs, utilities, industry, infrastructure, financial systems,
defense, police and fire protection, etc. etc. Does the ant analogy still seem
so preposterous?
• Further, look at even the very recent growth of government. A good trend?
• Our Founders didn’t think so. Some say “it’s now a different world”. But are
People’s ideals, ambitions, characters really so diferent? Most philosophers
and specialists in human behavior and ethics think not.
• Finally we look at a little “systems analysis” sketch of People relating to their
Governance. The intent is to illustrate some general solutions by looking at the
busy-ness of a currently problematic activity and compare it with a solution
that is a much simpler process leading to the need for much less central
government. The idea of the Fair Tax as a replacement for our current tax
system is given as a radiant example. We’ll see more of this later.
RETURNING CONSTITUTIONALISM TO AMERICA
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RETURNING CONSTITUTIONALISM TO AMERICA
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RETURNING CONSTITUTIONALISM TO AMERICA
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RETURNING CONSTITUTIONALISM TO AMERICA
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RETURNING CONSTITUTIONALISM TO AMERICA
INTRO TO THE NEXT FEW CHARTS
The next 3 charts are related and here’s a brief intro. These are 3 versions of a “systems analysis-type” chart as mentioned earlier. The idea is to show how Citizens relate to the Governmental and Private Enterprise environments they encounter in daily living. This set of 3 charts is to help explore the following:
1st chart: This is simply a 1st order depiction of Citizens, our Nation as an entity, and Private Enterprise entities as they are embedded within the philosophies and inclinations of Government and Private Enterprise.
2nd chart: Here are some specific interactions (arrows) between the 4 basic entities for the special case of our current American Tax system. Money flows and various other exchanges including lobbying and tax rules are shown. As noted, even this simplified depiction appears fairly complex.
3rd chart: Modification of our current tax system to some variant of the “Fair Tax ”system, shows that the need for much of the complication is no longer required (red X deletion).
RETURNING CONSTITUTIONALISM TO AMERICA
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EXAMPLE: THE TAX SYSTEM (CURRENT)
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EXAMPLE: THE TAX SYSTEM (UNDER “THE FAIR TAX”)
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OVERVIEW
RETURNING CONSTITUTIONALISM TO AMERICA
GENERALIZING OUR PROBLEMS 3 EXAMPLES:
• AMERICA’S ULTRA-COMPLEX TAX SYSTEM
• BUREAUCRATIC POLITICAL MEDDLING (e.g., THE IRS)
• CONGRESSIONAL SPENDING ACCOUNTABILITY
MATCHING SOME PROBLEMS WITH SOLUTIONS
A MODEST PROPOSAL: A BETTER PATH FOR AMERICA
TOPICS COVERED
INTRO TO THE NEXT FEW CHARTS
The next 3 sets of charts are related and here’s a brief intro. Each of the 3 sets relates to a single specific problem selected in this article to help explore the process of taking a specific Problem, then generalizing several specific problems into a “Problem Category”. Ultimately we’ll match the Problem Categories to a set of “Generalized Solutions”. The present examples serve to help “test” the true versatility of the proposed General Solutions, and ultimately the consolidation of the Solutions into a single proposed Constitutional Amendment. IDEALLY, ALL OF AMERICA’S PROBLEMS WOULD THEN BE AMENABLE TO SOLUTION BY ONE OR MORE OF THE GENERAL SOLUTIONS DEVELOPED. For our purposes here, 3 Problems have been selected to illustrate the technique used. The 3 problems and sets of charts to follow are these:
1. AMERICA’S ULTRA-COMPLEX TAX SYSTEM 2. BUREAUCRATIC POLITICAL MEDDLING (e.g. THE IRS) 3. CONGRESSIONAL SPENDING ACCOUNTABILITY
Of course, I don’t pretend to have the ultimate solution set here and now. Rather I hope this to be an introduction to others to help contribute their views toward the ideal objective of a single, simple Constitutional Amendment that will help put Citizens back in control of America and America back to the path of long-term beacon of Liberty for all Nations.
GENERALIZING OUR PROBLEMS
In this section, we’ll be covering several charts with these thoughts:
• A graph illustrating the growth ot the U.S. Tax Code over the past 75 years.
This won’t be a surprise to anyone wrestling with his tax return every April.
• Several charts exploring in detail, some of the opportunities for simplification
in the lives of private Citizens. The Fair Tax is
an “elegant” solution to a branch of government, which currently wastes much
Citizen effort and government monies, which could be far better employed
tackling some real problems, such as creating an economic climate that
encourages maintaining American innovation, manufacturing and world
Leadership in the Principles of Freedom.
• There are then several charts on a 2nd
, related IRS Problem: just in recent
weeks the Agency has admitted a politicization of its activities. This
politicization is indeed a most heinous affront to every principle of freedom
that most Americans hold dear. And we don’t even touch on the arrogant
excesses and mis-use of taxpayer monies that have also come to light. These
are issues that can be laid directly on the doorstep of much-too-intrusive
central government and bureaucracy. And this example is only the tip of the
“big government” iceberg, nine tenths of which , as the word iceberg implies, is
hidden below the surface.
GENERALIZING OUR PROBLEMS
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OVERALL BACKGROUND
The current federal income tax system is large and growing. Moreover, it is so complex, most Americans (and most Elected officials) do not understand it. As discussed in covering Problem #1, It is a process rife with special loopholes developed to punish or reward politically selected population segments. This injustice is surely inimical to the intent of our American Constitution. Moreover, within this important tax framework, it is not feasible for Citizens to perform their necessary role of overseeing government revenue raising as it makes laws impacting our future.
A brief summary of Fair Tax (FT) features is this:
• It is structured like a National sales tax, is inherently simple, and is immune from special designations bestowed by Politicians. It abolishes Income, Capital Gains, Gift and Estate taxes. Rather, it is based on each Citizen’s personal consumption levels. Thus, the rich, who typically purchase more, will pay proportionally more in taxes. • Citizens will no longer have to fill out any yearly tax forms, since taxes are collected only from those businesses that sell new goods directly to the Citizen/Consumer. Re-sales of used goods are not taxed.
PROBLEM: AMERICA’S ULTRA-COMPLEX TAX SYSTEM
U.S. TAX CODE GROWTH – cchgroup.com
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Moreover, a unique accounting technique known
as the “prebate” is used to assure a uniform,
simple way provide for those in poverty. Every
Citizen/Family gets a monthly prebate payment,
directly equal to poverty level costs for single
individuals or family sizes, as determined by a
calculation currently in use to define the poverty
level in America. Thus those in need have the
funds to purchase their critical life needs. Those
spending beyond crtical needs, will, with their
purchases, be funding the National budget.
Many economists have analyzed and attested to
the multiple economic benefits the simpicity of
the FT would bring to, and greatly enhance, our
overall economy.
A highly important feature of the FT is this: The IRS Bureaucracy Is No Longer Needed. All of the FT payments will be collected by the businesses noted, then remitted to each of the 50 States within which the Citizen consumption took place, and thence transmitted by the States to the U.S. Treasury. In sum, our politically-tainted bureaucratic tax system will be replaced by a far simpler system driven by the collective choices of the American Citizenry. The process could hardly be fairer and more aligned to Citizen oversight. Plus, it is economically more productive for the Nation as a whole.
PROBLEM: AMERICA’S ULTRA-COMPLEX TAX SYSTEM
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SUMMARY PROBLEM STATEMENT
The Political abuse of IRS power, much in the news in recent weeks, has been going on since FDR’s “New Deal”. A key issue is that the persistent and complex growth of the IRS has become a camouflage for hiding many political twists and turns. The ultimate solution is to abolish the IRS, repeal the 16th Amendment and replace most existing Federal taxes with the far simpler FairTax, which is a national retail sales tax. In the broad picture, it is telling that so many government employees could participate in an unlawful attack on Conservative organizations and not realize that they were doing something wrong.
The FairTax would not involve collecting any information regarding individual citizens, yet be easily capable of collecting sufficient revenue to replace our current individual and corporate income taxes, payroll taxes, and death tax. A move to the FairTax would benefit the poor and the middle class the most. Moreover, the fairness level and simplicity of enforcement should appeal to many Americans, independent of political persuasion. E.g., even if a Citizen were employed “off the books” and received all of their income in cash, they would not be able to avoid paying the FairTax when they go shopping.
PROBLEM: AMERICA’S ULTRA-COMPLEX TAX SYSTEM
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Moreover, our Elected and Agency officials would be freed of spending significant time continually honing the massive details of the current system. This time could now be spent more wisely by Elected officials, for example: pruning other government Programs of duplication and activities no longer serving their initial purpose. Furthermore, arcane Citizen expertise to fulfill their oversight role of government would be lessened - - as indeed it should be.
The current IRS scandal demonstrates that the existing tax “patchquilt” cannot be “reformed” into something compatible with a free society. Citizens need to work for a better system. The IRS is one of the subtle tools of Progressivism which holds that control over the lives of ordinary Americans should not be vested in the people themselves, but should instead be wielded by “government experts”. However, the Founders saw the political temptations in direct taxation, and that’s why they prohibited it when they wrote the Constitution. The latest IRS scandal is a wakeup call. The 16th Amendment was a mistake. The income tax process gives the federal government more information about, and power over, citizens than is compatible with the freedom created by our Founders and defended by our Servicemen.
THE
FAIR TAX:
AN IDEA
WHOSE
TIME
HAS
COME
….UHH…
IS LONG
PAST
DUE !
PROBLEM: AMERICA’S ULTRA-COMPLEX TAX SYSTEM
Because the FairTax would not tax savings and investment at all, and because its compliance costs would be nil, the Fair Tax would deliver the highest rate of economic growth of any tax system. Here’s why. Both GDP and jobs are driven by capital investment. The Fair Tax would maximize GDP growth because it would maximize private sector savings and investment. Under the FairTax, every large corporation in the world would move its headquarters to the U.S. to avoid the corporate taxes imposed by other nations. At the larger growth rates stimulated by the Fair tax, our federal debt should quickly become manageable. Both Social Security and Medicare could then be sustainable without benefit-cutting “reforms”.
Grateful Acknowledgement: ref sources 1., 2.
ROOT CAUSE ISSUES
(PROBLEM CATEGORIES A,B, C)
As the introductory discussion illustrates, the following Root Causes characterize this issue: A. The complexity of tax collection imposes significant waste of time for both
Elected Officials and the Citizenry. Both groups could be far more productive by spending their time on (1) advancing American progress and economic health, and 2) managing the Nation’s Budgets and Debt accumulation.
B. Government complexity due to size and mass of regulations is a recipe for abuse of power by Electeds and the fundamental Rights of Citizenry. The Tax System opaqueness has enabled favoritism, waivers and loopholes that undermine Citizen confidence in basic fairness.
C. Additionally, the savings to all of the Fair Tax simplicity, could readily enable improved focus by both Officeholders and Citizens on better accountability of
the former to the latter.
PROBLEM: AMERICA’S ULTRA-COMPLEX TAX SYSTEM
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GENERALIZED SOLUTION
A. KEEP THE SOLUTION SIMPLE, WITHIN THE BOUNDARIES OF CONSTITUTIONAL AUTHORITY, WITH THE OBJECTIVE OF SMALL TO ZERO ROLE FOR THE FEDERAL GOV’T. THE FBI WILL INVESTIGATE AND DOCUMENT ANY CITIZEN ALLEGATION OF ANY FEDERAL ELECTED OFFICIAL FAILING TO LIVE UP TO HIS OATH OF OFFICE.
B. GOV’T REVENUES, BUDGETING AND DEBT: EMPLOY THE FAIR TAX; MORE CITIZEN TRANSPARENCY; CITIZEN CHOICE; AND CITIZEN OVERSIGHT OF BUDGETING AND DEBT ACCUMULATION.
C. ENSURE CONGRESSIONAL FOCUS. LIMITED # BILLS PER SESSION AND LIMITED WORDS PER BILL. ADEQUATE TIME FOR CAREFUL DELIBERATION, PUBLISHED EXPERT ANALYSIS & CITIZEN FEEDBACK. DELEGATION OF AUTHORITY TO REGULATORY AGENCIES IS RESTRICTED TO OVERSEEING IMPLEMENTATION, BUT ZERO ADDITION TO, OR EXPANSION OF, DULY ENACTED CONGRESSIONAL LAW..
REF SOURCES :
1. “IRS Scandal Is The Latest Evidence That We Need A Fair Tax”, Lous Woodhill,
5/22/2013 , Forbes.com
2. http://www.fairtax.org
PROBLEM: AMERICA’S ULTRA-COMPLEX TAX SYSTEM
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OVERVIEW
RETURNING CONSTITUTIONALISM TO AMERICA
GENERALIZING OUR PROBLEMS 3 EXAMPLES:
• AMERICA’S ULTRA-COMPLEX TAX SYSTEM
• BUREAUCRATIC POLITICAL MEDDLING (e.g., THE IRS)
• CONGRESSIONAL SPENDING ACCOUNTABILITY
MATCHING SOME PROBLEMS WITH SOLUTIONS
A MODEST PROPOSAL: A BETTER PATH FOR AMERICA
TOPICS COVERED
lAM
OVERALL BACKGROUND
THIS IS A PROBLEM ABOUT A CHILLING
EFFECT ON CITIZEN’S 1ST AMENDMENT
FREE SPEECH AND FREE PRESS RIGHTS.
SOME ELEMENTS OF THE CHILL, WHICH
CURIOUSLY SEEM TO HAVE IN COMMON,
OPPOSITION TO ADMINISTRATION POLICIES:
• THE DOJ ISSUED A DEMAND FOR TWO
MONTHS OF OFFICE, CELLULAR AND HOME
TELEPHONE RECORDS FROM MULTIPLE
ASSOCIATED PRESS REPORTERS AND
EDITORS TO INVESTIGATE AN ALLEGED
BREACH OF NATIONAL SECURITY, IN
CONNECTION WITH A FOILED TERRORIST
PLOT.
• OBAMA ADMINISTRATION IRS AGENTS TARGETED CONSERVATIVE
ORGANIZATIONS BY SELECTIVELY DELAYING APPROVALS FOR TAX-EXEMPT
STATUS TO GROUPS WITH "TEA PARTY" AND "PATRIOT" IN THEIR NAMES. ANTI-
ABORTION GROUPS WERE ASKED TO PLEDGE THAT THEY WOULD NEVER
PICKET PLANNED PARENTHOOD CLINICS.
• MULTIPLE ORGANIZERS WERE ASKED NUMEROUS PERSONAL QUESTIONS,
INCLUDING WHAT THEY SAID IN THEIR PRAYERS.
PROBLEM: BUREAUCRATIC POLITICAL MEDDLING (eg, IRS)
“GEE! IT DOESN’T SAY HERE THAT
THEY ONLY SUPPORT PROGRESSIVES !
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THE ACTING DIRECTOR OF
THE IRS WAS TOLD ABOUT
THIS ACTIVITY IN MAY
2012. GIVEN THAT IRS
PERSONNEL ARE LARGELY
DEMOCRATIC, THE
SUSPICION EXISTS THAT
THIS WAS POLITICALLY
DESIGNED TO PREVENT
THE STORY FROM
COMING OUT JUST
BEFORE THE 2012
ELECTION.
SO, IS ALL THIS JUST WATER OVER THE DAM? NOT EXACTLY. SARAH HALL INGRAM, WHO SERVED AS HEAD OF THE IRS OFFICE HANDLING TAX-EXEMPT ORGANIZATIONS BETWEEN 2009 AND 2012 -- WHEN THE TARGETING WAS GOING ON - - THIS PERSON IS NOW HEAD OF THE IRS DIVISION RESPONSIBLE FOR POLICING OBAMACARE. IT WILL IMPOSE PENALTIES ON AMERICANS WHO CAN AFFORD HEALTH INSURANCE BUT CHOOSE NOT TO BUY IT. IT WILL IMPOSE PENALTIES ON COMPANIES WITH MORE THAN 50 EMPLOYEES WHO WORK 30 HOURS A WEEK AND DON'T PROVIDE GOVERNMENT-MANDATED POLICIES. DOES GOVERNMENT ARROGANCE AND INTRUSION HAVE NO BOUNDS?
PROBLEM: BUREAUCRATIC POLITICAL MEDDLING (eg, IRS)
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ROOT CAUSE ISSUES
(PROBLEM CATEGORIES A,C,G)
A.) A GOVERNMENT AGENCY IS SUBVERTING THE CONSTITUTIONAL FREEDOMS OF CITIZENS AS PROTECTED BY THE 1st AMENDMENT. C.) THE AGENTS WHO HAVE THIS POWER ARE NOT ELECTED BY THE CITIZENS AND CONSEQUENTLY ARE NOT DIRECTLY ACCOUNTABLE TO CITIZENS. CONGRESS SHOULD BE REQUIRED TO FORMALLY SIGN OFF ON ALL RULES AND REGULATIONS PROMULGATED BY AGENCIES WHOSE TOP MANAGEMENT IS NOT DIRECTLY ACCOUNTABLE TO THE CITIZENS. G.) CITIZENS NEED TO TO BE ABLE TO LODGE SIGNIFCANT COMPLAINTS, REQUIRING TIMELY INVESTIGATIVE FOLLOW UP AND PUBLIC REPORTING, REGARDING THE ARROGANCE AND MIS-USE OF POWER BY THESE AGENCIES.
PROBLEM: BUREAUCRATIC POLITICAL MEDDLING (eg, IRS)
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GENERALIZED SOLUTION:
A.) KEEP THE SOLUTION SIMPLE, WITHIN THE BOUNDARIES OF CONSTITUTIONAL AUTHORITY, WITH THE OBJECTIVE OF SMALL TO ZERO ROLE FOR THE FEDERAL GOV’T. THE FBI WILL INVESTIGATE AND DOCUMENT ANY CITIZEN ALLEGATION OF ANY FEDERAL ELECTED OFFICIAL FAILING TO LIVE UP TO HIS OATH OF OFFICE.
C.) ENSURE CONGRESSIONAL FOCUS. LIMITED # OF BILLS PER SESSION AND LIMITED WORDS PER BILL. ADEQUATE TIME FOR CAREFUL DELIBERATION, PUBLISHED EXPERT ANALYSIS & CITIZEN FEEDBACK. DELEGATION OF AUTHORITY TO REGULATORY AGENCIES IS RESTRICTED TO OVERSEEING IMPLEMENTATION, BUT ZERO ADDITION TO, OR EXPANSION OF, DULY ENACTED CONGRESSIONAL LAW.
G.) ALL CONGRESSIONAL LEADERSHIP ASSIGNMENTS AND CHAIRMANSHIPS WILL BE SUBJECT TO ROTATION OF THE JOBHOLDER EVERY 4 YEARS. ELECTED OFFICIAL ACCOUNTABILITY: EVERY FEDERAL ELECTED OFFICIAL AND EVERY CABINET LEVEL OFFICER SHALL BE SUBJECT TO FBI INVESTIGATION AND PUBLIC REPORTING OF ANY CITIZEN-SUBMITTED REPORT, WITH GREATER THAN 100 SIGNATURES, DOCUMENTING AN OFFICAL WHO FAILS TO LIVE UP TO HIS OATH OF OFFICE.
REF SOURCES :
1. “IRS and AP Scandals Cast a Big Chill on Free Speech”
Michael Barone , May 20, 2013, townhall.com
2. “Unions break ranks on ObamaCare”, Kevin Bogardus - 05/21/1, thehill.com
PROBLEM: BUREAUCRATIC POLITICAL MEDDLING (eg, IRS)
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OVERVIEW
RETURNING CONSTITUTIONALISM TO AMERICA
GENERALIZING OUR PROBLEMS 3 EXAMPLES:
• AMERICA’S ULTRA-COMPLEX TAX SYSTEM
• BUREAUCRATIC POLITICAL MEDDLING (e.g., THE IRS)
• CONGRESSIONAL SPENDING ACCOUNTABILITY
MATCHING SOME PROBLEMS WITH SOLUTIONS
A MODEST PROPOSAL: A BETTER PATH FOR AMERICA
TOPICS COVERED
lAM
OVERALL BACKGROUND
Government waste, fraud, abuse and duplication is nothing new at all levels of government. But in recent years, and particularly in the current recession, this extravagance becomes more and more outrageous. Some quantification of the duplocations can be seen in the Figure. The government has 76 programs to treat drug abuse spread across 15 different agencies. It has 47 programs for job training. And there are three federal agencies that inspect catfish. These are among the findings in a new Government Accountability Office report that found 162 areas where services are duplicated or money is being wasted in the Federal government. The annual cost of duplicative or wasteful programs is estimated at roughly $250 billion, according to fiscal hawk Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla. The Government Accounting Office does some assessments to expose this waste. But by and large there is not a stable resolution and this is due to the difficulty of establishing accountability for the various government components involved.
PROBLEM: CONGRESSIONAL SPENDING ACCOUNTABILITY
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Now, part of the
problem seems to
be that Congress
spends so much
time on less
important matters
that they lack time
to follow the
progress (or lack of)
of previously
legislated
Programs. So some
thought must be
given to how to put
effort into more
productive output.
Part of the answer would seem to be more prioritization and focus on the major issues imposed on the Congress by the Constitution. Other issues should be left to the States and the People. Moreover a mechanism must be in place to establish a total boundary on the budget within which priorities can be assessed and established.
PROBLEM: CONGRESSIONAL SPENDING ACCOUNTABILITY
ROOT CAUSE ISSUES
(Primarily PROBLEM CATEGORIES A, C, D,
G but also some of E, and F) A.) Government complexity and lack of focus leaves Congress little time to truly manage Federal expenditures. This results in continuing wastage of of taxpayer monies on old and newly-legislated programs. C.) Congress needs the discipline of careful budget analysis, firm budget limitations and a mechanism to ensure open deliberation and spending prioritizations. D.) There is no justification for any law to be voted upon without a careful, transparent , and rigorous cost-benefit analysis . G.). The Constitution stipulates an allocation of responsibilities between the Federal government and “to the States respectively, or to the People”. But this wisdom is increasingly ignored.
PROBLEM: CONGRESSIONAL SPENDING ACCOUNTABILITY
GENERALIZED SOLUTION:
A. Each Congressman will be assigned RESPONSIBILITY TO PRIORITIZE a dif ferent Budget segment comprising approximately 1/535th of the total budget based on the immediately prior approved Budget tabulation, and to publish an annual REPORT TO THE PEOPLE.
B. Congress will enlist the support of the CBO and/or GAO for budget analysis, but each Congressional submittal of its share of the budget shall: (1) be published in a 500 word report to the Citizens, (2) turned into a newly created, ongoing, Special Joint, Congressional Budget Sub-Committee (SJCBS) for a full, integrated budget prioritization, and (3) contain a recommendation by the submitting Congressperson for deletion of the loweprioritization as summarized in the SJCBS REPORT . st 15% of the priority tabulation. The SJCBS shall similarly, but for the total budget, identify the lowest 10 % of their priority tabulation which shall be published yearly.
C. In any given year in which the proposed budget exceeds the 20% GDP limit (see Section 2. of the Proposed Constitutional 28 th Amendment) by YY%, the SJCBS shall submit for full Senate and House vote, deletion of YY% of the Budget based upon the Congressional prioritization as summarized in the SJCBS REPORT.
REF SOURCES : 1. “Actions Needed to Reduce Fragmentation, Overlap, and Duplication and
Achieve Other Financial Benefits”, GAO 2013 ANNUAL REPORT, GAO-13-279SP, Apr 9, 2013
2. “2012 WASTEBOOK”, Senator Tom Coburn, M.D., October 2012
PROBLEM: CONGRESSIONAL SPENDING ACCOUNTABILITY
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OVERVIEW
RETURNING CONSTITUTIONALISM TO AMERICA
GENERALIZING OUR PROBLEMS
MATCHING SOME PROBLEMS WITH SOLUTIONS
A MODEST PROPOSAL: A BETTER PATH FOR AMERICA
TOPICS COVERED
In this section, we illustrate briefly some of the synthesis of a
“generalized problem” and “solution” as compiled in the final
section. For simplicity, just the example of IRS POLITICAL
MEDDLING is illustrated. In the 4 step process ( next chart),
We start with simply a phrase that most Citizens will recognize
as a specific problem due to treatment in the various news
media. Next a common Problem Category is created broadly
enough to apply to several selected Problems . Then a short
Solution phrase is created that responds to the Problem
Category. Finally, we create a Generalized Solution statement
suitably containing the What, When and How verbiage that
might be used in a formally proposed Constitutional
Amendment. Each of these Solution statements will be used
as a formal section of the final Amendment. The next chart
illustrates the correspondence achieved between the selected
Problem and a shortened version of the Generalized Solution.
To conclude, it is reitereated again that We’d really be
interested in any thoughts or additions that any reader might
think would add to the collection of Problems and thereby also
add to an extension of the list of Solutions.
MATCHING PROBLEMS TO GENERALIZED SOLUTIONS
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MATCHING PROBLEMS TO GENERALIZED SOLUTIONS
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A MODEST PROPOSAL: A BETTER PATH FOR AMERICA
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OVERVIEW
RETURNING CONSTITUTIONALISM TO AMERICA
GENERALIZING OUR PROBLEMS
MATCHING SOME PROBLEMS WITH SOLUTIONS
A MODEST PROPOSAL: A BETTER PATH FOR AMERICA
TOPICS COVERED
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PROPOSAL: AMENDMENT XXVIII; 20XX
VALIDATING AND CLARIFYING CITIZEN
PARTICIPATION IN GOVERNMENT
Section 1. IF APPROVED, THIS AMENDMENT WILL CLARIFY AND STIPULATE 7 DISTINCT WAYS (see Sections 2-8) THAT CITIZENS SHALL EXERT CONTROL OVER THE LEGISLATIVE AND EXECUTIVE BRANCHES IN ACCORD WITH THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE AND THE UNITED STATES CONSTITUTION.
Section 2. IT SHALL BE A PRIMARY OBJECTIVE OF THE EXECUTIVE AND LEGISLATIVE BRANCHES TO ASSURE THAT THE SIZE OF GOVERNMENT, IN TERMS OF MONIES AUTHORIZED AND SPENT, SHALL NOT EXCEED ANNUAL APPROPRIATIONS OF 20% OF THE AVERAGE OF THE PRIOR 5 YEARS OFFICIAL GDP LEVEL, UNLESS AUTHORIZED BY A 2/3 MAJORITY VOTE OF BOTH HOUSES OF CONGRESS. Section 3. THE METHOD OF INDIVIDUAL CITIZEN TAXATION CURRENTLY IN USE SHALL BE MODIFIED TO A PROCESS THAT TAXES CONSUMPTION ONLY, AND NOT INCOME, INVESTMENT EARNINGS, SAVINGS OR ANY OTHER SOURCE. THE METHOD SHALL NOT REQUIRE ANY IRS FILING BY ANY CITIZEN. SUCH FILINGS SHALL BE LIMITED TO TAXING BUSINESSES THAT SELL GOODS OR SERVICES DIRECTLY TO THE CITIZEN CONSUMER. A “PREBATE” TECHNIQUE SHALL BE USED TO ASSURE THAT THE TRULY NEEDY CITIZEN IS ABLE TO PURCHASE NECESSARY GOODS AND SERVICES AS CURRENTLY CONSIDERED IN THE FEDERAL ASSESSMENT OF POVERTY LEVEL.
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Section 4. TO ENSURE: CITIZEN UNDERSTANDING OF THE LAW; CONGRESSIONAL FOCUS; AND TO LIMIT EVER-GROWING LEGISLATIVE OVERREACH - - CONGRESS SHALL, UPON PASSAGE OF THIS AMENDMENT, BE LIMITED TO PASSAGE OF NOT MORE THAN 100 BILLS PER CONGRESSIONAL SESSION. MOREOVER, EACH BILL (EXCLUDING , AT CONGRESSIONAL OPTION) 3 SINGLE- SUBJECT BILLS, SHALL BE LIMITED TO A MAXIMUM OF 5000 WORDS PER BILL, WITH NO APPENDICES OR OTHER KINDS OF CLARIFYING REFERENCES.
ADEQUATE TIME FOR: CAREFUL DELIBERATION; PUBLISHED EXPERT ANALYSIS; AND CITIZEN FEEDBACK; SHALL BE PROVIDED IN ACCORD WITH THE REQUIREMENT THAT EVERY BILL MUST BE PUBLICALLY ISSUED AT LEAST 120 DAYS PRIOR TO A FINAL VOTE BY EITHER HOUSE OF CONGRESS EXACTLY TO THE VERBATIM FORM OF THE PREVIOUSLY-ISSUED VERSION. DELEGATION OF AUTHORITY TO REGULATORY AGENCIES IS TO BE RESTRICTED TO OVERSEEING IMPLEMENTATION OF THE NEW LAW, BUT WITH ZERO ADDITION TO, OR MODIFICATION OF THE DULY ENACTED CONGRESSIONAL LAW. ALL REGULATIONS HENCEFORTH MUST BE APPROVED BY AT LEAST ONE APPROPRIATE COMMITTEE OF EACH HOUSE OF CONGRESS. ALL EXISTING REGULATIONS SHALL BE FULLY RE-ASSESSED AND RE-AUTHORIZED BY CONGRESS OVER A PERIOD OF 5 YEARS FROM THE DATE OF APPROVAL OF THIS AMENDMENT. AFTER THE 5-YEAR REVIEW, THE TOTAL VERBIAGE PAGE COUNT OF ALL FEDERAL REGULATIONS SHALL NOT EXCEED THE SIZE IN FORCE ON THE DAY OF THE 78th BIRTH ANNIVERSARY OF PRESIDENT CALVIN COOLIDGE.
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Section 5.
TO ASSURE CITIZEN AND
LEGISLATOR FULL COMPREHENSION
OF THE COST AND BENEFIT IMPACTS
OF ALL LEGISLATION, A SPECIFIC
COST-BENEFIT ANALYSIS OF ALL
BILLS SHALL BE PERFORMED AND
PUBLISHED BY 2 SOURCES OF
EXPERTISE: (1) THE GAO AND/OR
CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
AND (2) A NEWLY CREATED AND
DESIGNATED 8 PERSON PANEL OF
PRIVATE CITIZENS WITH EXPERTISE
COMMENSURATE WITH THE TASK.
THE PANEL SHALL BE EQUALLY DIVIDED IN ACCORD WITH THE 2 POLITICAL PARTIES EXHIBITING THE MOST CONGRESSIONAL VOTES IN THE MOST RECENT PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION. THE PANEL SHALL SERVE FOR A TERM OF OFFICE OF 4 YEARS AND REPORT JOINTLY TO THE SENATE AND HOUSE LEADERS AND PUBLICLY TO THE CITIZENRY.
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Section 6. ALL LEGISLATION SHALL BE CAREFULLY ALIGNED TO THE CONSTITUTION. ANY LEGISLATION THAT CAN BE CONSIDERED AS BORDERING ON NATIONAL SECURITY AND/OR CITIZEN LIBERTY SHALL REQUIRE THE SIGNATURE OF EVERY VOTING LEGISLATOR WITH THE FOLLOWING ASSERTION DIRECTLY ABOVE HIS/HER SIGNATURE: “I HAVE READ AND UNDERSTAND THE SPECIFIC PROVISIONS OF THIS LEGISLATION. I BELIEVE ALL PROVISIONS ARE WITHIN THE SCOPE OF THE AMERICAN CONSTITUTION, WHICH I HAVE SWORN TO PROTECT AND DEFEND.”
A MODEST PROPOSAL: A BETTER PATH FOR AMERICA
ADDITIONALLY A SPECIALLY- CREATED, 7 PERSON PANEL SHALL BE CONSULTED FOR
THEIR WRITTEN ASSESSMENT OF CONSTITUTIONALITY. THE PANEL’S REPORT SHALL
BE PUBLISHED 120 DAYS PRIOR TO A FINAL VOTE BY EITHER HOUSE OF CONGRESS.
Section 7.
TO HELP ASSURE MORE BALANCE TO CITIZENS FROM GOVERNMENT NEWS RELEASES,
ALL EXECUTIVE AND LEGISLATIVE BRANCH MEDIA ANNOUNCEMENTS AND RELEASES
(SEPARATE OR JOINT) MUST BE ACCOMPANIED BY AN APPROXIMATELY EQUAL
LENGTH STATEMENT FROM THE OPPOSITION POLITICAL PARTY. THE MEDIA TO WHOM
THE RELEASES ARE PROVIDED SHALL BE REQUESTED TO COMPLY WITH THIS
AMENDMENT PROVISION. MEDIA WHICH GAIN A RECORD AFTER 30 SUCH RELEASES
OF MORE THAN 10% NON-COMPLIANCE WITH THIS REQUEST SHALL NOT BE
PROVIDED FUTURE EXECUTIVE AND LEGISLATIVE MEDIA RELEASES.
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Section 8.
TO MAINTAIN BETTER OFFICIAL RAPPORT
WITH , AND INFLUENCE BY, THE CITIZENRY,
ALL CONGRESSIONAL LEADERSHIP
ASSIGNMENTS AND CHAIRMANSHIPS WILL
BE SUBJECT TO ROTATION OF EACH SUCH
JOBHOLDER EVERY 4 YEARS.
TO ASSURE ELECTED OFFICIAL
ACCOUNTABILITY: EVERY FEDERAL ELECTED
OFFICIAL AND EVERY CABINET LEVEL
OFFICER SHALL BE SUBJECT TO FBI
INVESTIGATION AND PUBLIC REPORTING OF
ANY CITIZEN-SUBMITTED ALLEGATION WITH
100 SIGNATURES, DOCUMENTING AN
OFFICIAL WHO : (1) FAILS TO LIVE UP TO HIS
OATH OF OFFICE , (2) IS BELIEVED TO HAVE
KNOWINGLY MISLED THE PUBLIC ON A MATTER OF IMPORTANT PUBLIC INTEREST. THE FBI WILL INVESTIGATE THE CITIZEN COMPLAINT AND PUBLICLY ISSUE A RESPONSIVE AND DETERMINATIVE REPLY WITHIN 4 MONTHS OF RECEIPT OF THE ALLEGATION.
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To summarize, we return to the Table that shows the
applicability of 2 dozen initial National Problems to the
Generalized Solutions developed as explained throughout
this article. The Table illustrates the hopeful result
that :
1. Each of the original Problems stands to benefit from 2
or more of the Generalized Solutions developed.
2. Each of the Generalized Solutions has applicability to
multiple of the realistic large National Problems
examined.
These results offer hope that the 28th
Amendment
proposal, comprised of the 7 derived General
Solutions, has the potential to be an effective tool to
solve critical Problems and ensure restoring Citizenry
influence over our National governance.
Further testing and clarifications remain. And again, if
you’re interested in adding some thoughts, please
contact: Mark Sussman at [email protected].
IN CONCLUSION
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THE END
ACTUALLY, IT’S NOT THE END - - YOUR VOICE IS IMPORTANT TO OUR NATION. CITIZEN INTEREST, DIALOG AND DATA ARE CRITICAL TO GOOD CIVIC OUTCOMES. AND THAT INCLUDES OUTCOMES WHICH SIMPLY ASSURE PROPER CONDITIONS FOR THE FREE MARKET TO WORK.