The New Arizona Senator
In Arizona this latest election is particularly important,
due to the open Senate seat the voters will be filling for the new term.
What does Arizona need from our new Senator and our
Representatives? A summary of situations
in Arizona will reveal what is needed.
As of March 2012, Arizona has:
·
high foreclosure rate per capita
·
high dropout rate from public schools
·
drug smuggling problem
·
lack of excess water
·
many illegal immigrants
·
significant debt on governmental levels
·
abundant labor force and housing
·
open space and cheap land
·
high unemployment
·
Some valuable mineral resources
·
national parks and recreational areas
·
huge Indian reservations
·
a long border with Mexico
·
military bases and aerospace industries
A new Senator should have an intimate knowledge of these
issues and others. A senator should also
be cognizant of international issues also, particularly since Arizona shares a
long international border with Mexico. A good Senator will work for their home
state and for the greater good of the union of states called the United States
of America. Notice that I did not
say that our new Senator should be responsible to donors, contributors, PACs,
campaign workers or churches. We don't
need any Senators that are bought and paid for by some special interest. We don't need any Senators who cater to
lobbyists desires rather than representing the needs of the constituents.
The first thing that should be on a Senator's mind is the
revision of the General Mining Act of 1872. Arizona has been heavily exploited by mining
interests and has little to show for that exploitation. Temporary jobs are now gone and the
decimation of the landscape remains in the form of pits and dumps and poisonous
runoff. This 1872 law was enacted to
facilitate the mineral resources of a developing nation, but is now used by
foreign mining interests to exploit the mineral resources of Arizona for profit
and jobs in foreign nations. Responsible
representatives of Arizona on all levels should call for revision of the old
1872 law before any more huge mines are permitted, in order to obtain state and
federal revenue and ease the tax burden
on citizens. Arizona is running out of
resources and what remains must be protected against exploitation as a national
security concern. Any new Senator or
Representatives must recognize that stripping all of our nonrenewable mineral
reserves and allowing them to be taken out of the country is poor long term
planning. As world supplies dwindle, the
price will go up to repurchase those reserves.
A Senator must have a commitment to fiscal responsibility. Even the Federal Reserve has stated that the
future will be unsustainable if spending and borrowing is not limited. It is obvious that sometime the deficit
problems will be similar to Greece, where the income of the nation will sustain
the nation but not the nation and the payments being demanded by
creditors. Wars have been fought over
less.
I wonder if a legal challenge about taxpayers being forced
to pay for debts incurred beyond the elected officials' term of office would be
in order. Why should a politician be
allowed to run up debt, without regard to the ability to pay it back or without
regard for the people who are paying for it?
What was achieved by the borrowing and is it worth the interest and
payments for a long period? Sovereign long term borrowing should be strictly
prohibited in all constitutions unless voted upon by the taxpayers. A debt limit is supposed to protect taxpayers.
No more off budget non-declared
wars. The taxpayers need protection from
this debt load. Senators and
Representatives should be ready for this gigantic hassle.
As for Arizona, Tourism, Recreation and Retirement
Communities are important sources of renewable income along with the military
bases and aerospace industries. Arizona
Senators and Representatives should be ready to support that which benefits the
state. The earmark controversy should
end with a ban but for now I would expect our Senators and Representatives to
obtain earmarks for our state. It's
foolish not to.
Arizona has a high foreclosure rate and the economy was
damaged by the boom and bust. An Arizona
Senator should be well versed in the facts concerning the recession, the
bailouts and their results, current litigation concerning the housing bust, the
enabling legislation that precipitated the crisis, the unregulated trading in
oil futures and other issues. We cannot
afford to send an unread individual to Washington to represent us. We cannot afford to send an individual to
Washington to represent us who will depend on lobbyists to brief them on
pending legislation. If a candidate
doesn't want to read the legislation they are voting on, they shouldn't run. This decadence must be corrected.
I think lobbying and fundraising should be banned from
Washington while in session in an effort
to curb dereliction of duty and corruption.
Illegal immigration has slowed because there are few jobs
but is still an issue due to the lawlessness of illegal immigration and the
related drug smuggling. Thus, an ideal Senator will sponsor legislation to
revise immigration policies, a process that should be led by border state
Representatives and Senators.
It appears that the federal government has not sent grants to
Arizona hospitals and other institutions that are serving resident illegal
immigrants at state and charity expense.
Money from Washington to help out those institutions would be a benefit
to Arizona. Our new Senator should work
for those goals.
Considering the state of the real estate and related
industries in Arizona, the retention of federal land as open space and national
parks for recreation and ranching brings in tourists and college students,
which benefits the local economies. More
land on the market will only erode land value further, due to the housing glut
caused by overbuilding and foreclosures.
It is suggested that empty housing and commercial units be heavily
taxed, like Israel is now doing in an attempt to lower rents. If there is any tax break taken for
foreclosures by the lien holders , it should be cancelled. A tax on foreclosing and on holding the unit empty
should be instituted instead, which will discourage foreclosures. Understanding complex tax issues is necessary
for a Senator or Representative. They
must be able to vote for a bill that displeases a big donor, because the good
of the country is more important than any donor. Even a donor will ultimately know this.
Arizona's water problems are not going away. As the drought continues, water supplies are
dwindling. The declaration of drought on
the Colorado River complex will cut supplies to Tucson and other areas, which
will impact economic development and devalue land. It is obvious that heavy water users in industry
are not feasible in Arizona, with a falling supply and rising rates. Arizona needs renewable businesses in aerospace,
astronomy, medical research, defense, assembly lines, the educational
institutions, and other businesses that do not require much water to operate. There has been some talk of an international
distribution center to be located near Tucson, related to the new Guaymas,
Mexico deep water port. It is important
that our Senators and Representatives understand the business need to cooperate
with Mexico. Water resources are
critical in the border states and a dialogue with Mexico is needed. International trade is a huge business and
Arizona is a part of that. Arizona's
border with Mexico is an economic advantage for our state and more could be
made out of it.
Smuggling is rampant where ever a government attempts to
control the free flow of goods, illegal or not.
Many Latin American countries, including Mexico under President
Calderon, want to decriminalize drugs in order to stop the crime wave, rather
like the ending of Prohibition of alcohol in the USA ended an organized crime
wave. The emissary to a recent meeting
where this was discussed was Vice President Biden. This issue is not going away. The lucrative nature of this smuggling has
caused vicious turf battles but the participants are able to halt the violence
for a visit by the Pope, which shows
power. This phenomena will not
vanish and practical ideas to cope with the situation are needed.
The responsibility inherent in the Senate and the House to
cooperate and produce compromise in order to solve fiscal problems cannot be
ignored. The foolishness of signing a
pledge to never raise taxes crushes a valuable tool to control social damage
from the private sector, such as the subprime scam. None of the perpetrators should have had a
tax break on any of the failed
investments or foreclosures brought on by the housing bust. There are
proposals to rewrite the tax code and our Senators and Representatives must be
knowledgeable in that area.
Another area of expertise needed by Senators and
Representatives is that of the
bureaucratic focus of organizations, which will determine policy
wherever possible. A thorough investigation
of the mortgage lenders FANNIE and FREDDIE and a comparison of their stated
goals and their actual goals must be made and steps taken to change the
business culture that led to a nonproductive focus. They wrote policy to make money on creating
mortgage securities rather than on financing affordable housing for the population
qualified to take out a loan. The
question of mortgage derivatives, the involvement of Fannie and Freddie and the financial adventurism that
has led to questionable investments must be understood.
In conclusion, any candidate for office must be able to
understand that long term planning is crucial to our survival as a nation. Dedication to short term planning is foolish,
like forgetting to gas up before you hit the interstate. A lobbyist is not AAA for a politician out of
gas.
The voters need politicians who will read the documents, research the
material and make choices on the basis of long term planning with prorated
short term goals that benefit the people represented.
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