Donald K. Allen for President

Top of the Week

September 22, 2008

All of the presidential candidates were asked by "E-thepeople" of www.thevoterguide.org to answer a set of ten questions regarding our country and the world. Here they are, with my answers:

1. In light of escalating home foreclosures, a credit crunch and a possible recession, what role, if any, should the federal government play in strengthening the nation’s economy?

Answer: The Federal Reserve System was formed to help preserve bank solvency by creating a central bank. Development of the system was definitely influenced by wealthy bankers J. P. Morgan and John D. Rockefeller, Jr. Intended to prevent bank panics, we see today that it cannot and does not. The “elastic currency” created by the system allows it to print money with no backing by precious metals, making it virtually worthless and more subject to inflation when “extra” money is printed to bail out banks and financial institutions, as is being done right now.

Our government can strengthen the nation’s economy by first signing The Fair Tax Bill into law, which will create an enormous boom to our overall economy. Revoke Most avored Nation status with China and withdraw from the North American Free Trade Agreement. Begin dissolution of the Federal Reserve System in favor of a gold/silver-backed currency, and in the meantime stop printing money. Drill for oil everywhere in America it has been discovered and offshore as well to stop the “greatest transfer of wealth in the world’s history.” Also explore all avenues of energy production, from wind and solar to atomic energy and even tidal/wave energy. Phase out corn-based ethanol production and buy ethanol from South America at a tremendous savings. The prices of many foods will go down. Stop or draw down to zero in three years all government subsidies to production of any commodities or goods.

None of these things will solve our economic problems by themselves, but together we should experience a 180-degree turnaround. CAPITALISM WORKS WHEN WE LET IT, AND NOT INTERFERE.

2. How do you see the role America plays in the middle east changing during the next two years? How do you see it changing in the future?

Answer: I see a gradual draw-down in American forces in Iraq, as has been requested by the Iraqi government, and due to mutual agreement by the Iraqi and U.S. military forces as security control shifts more to their side. I do not see a maintenance of U.S. forces in the country other than embassy security. I would seek a reduction and elimination of U.S. forces throughout the Middle East, as far as Afghanistan, as we become more reliant on our own sources of oil to the point that we are buying no foreign oil in the (hopefully) near future. China and India will take what we do not. The Islamic countries in the area have the financial resources to fund U.N. intervention if needed for future conflicts and enough of their own Islamic forces to produce military action if diplomacy fails. Nonintervention will be the key word in my administration, but this does NOT equate to isolationism.

3. What are your strategies to address the dual challenges of rising costs and decreasing access to quality healthcare?

Answer: Health care in the U.S.A. offers the finest in medicine and surgery anywhere, at a cost. Today a portion of our society lives without medical insurance, and essentially uses hospital emergency facilities for primary care, and often cannot pay for it. Costs are partially driven by a highly litigious society that forces doctors to perform tests and procedures that otherwise might only be minimally indicated, simply to protect against the possibility of malpractice suits. Insurance costs are therefore high to pay for all this, and to pay for the many frivolous lawsuits that are brought all over this country as a means of “hitting the jackpot” from unexpected results. No doctor bats 1,000.

Establishing a “loser pays” rule in our court system would eliminate frivolous lawsuits, yet still allow litigation where obvious and well-documented cases arise. Today lawsuits are brought for even ridiculous reasons because insurance companies have a tendency to settle nearly every lawsuit as a more economical means to end it, and injury lawyers know this; it is nearly a given that they will win something. Along with this should come true tort reform to eliminate extravagant settlements and awards, which you and I end up paying through increased insurance premiums.

Long-term reduction of hospital workloads will be realized by first-aid education beginning in middle schools and advancing through something similar to the military’s “self-aid and buddy care” in high school. Knowing the basics of minor injury care through major medical first-aid will not only save lives, but allow people to provide their own minor care when needed, instead of running to the emergency room with every small cut or sprain. This will reduce overall medical costs by reducing cases that could have been handled at home. It will also free up medical staff to focus on more serious health problems and relieve hospital workloads.

I do believe that our government should work to help private insurance providers develop a cooperative that would provide low-cost health insurance for catastrophic events, such as broken bones, cancer, and other serious illnesses that require long-term care for control. With The Fair Tax, also, medical facilities will have more of their income retained to ease the losses they face, and private citizens will have more disposable income to pay for insurance premiums. I do not believe in government-provided health care.

4. How do you propose to keep Americans safe both at home and abroad?

Answer: National security begins with border security. Our first step is to complete the southern border fence with all due haste. Improve technological surveillance to include infrared-sensing unmanned drones and motion sensors, as well as increased security personnel numbers. Our economy and health care will also be improved by expelling illegal immigrants and creating a secure identification for those that wish to be employed in this country in a guest worker program. Expelling illegal immigrants serving sentences in our prison system (a significant percentage) after the fence is completed will also help our economy.

Removing forces from the Middle East (but maintaining anti-terrorist efforts in Afghanistan against al-Qaeda and the Taliban) will reduce Islamic hatred and terrorist threats there, but we also need to address the overall underlying reason for that hatred, and that is the U.S.A.’s unconditional financial and military support of Israel, in spite of the many aggressions committed by that state. Privatizing Foreign Aid will take that portion of our support away from Congress and the influence of the America Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC). We will always support Israel’s right to survive as a nation, however, including military support if necessary, but will seek to reduce the sources of hatred that affect our relations with the Islamic World.

I would grow our military forces to increase the Army by two or three divisions and stand up a fifth division in the Marine Corps to assist in the war against terror. In addition, I would begin a significant downsizing or our military forces stationed in foreign countries, especially Japan, Korea, Germany, and Asia. These forces can be used on our borders, and those countries and areas can provide the financial support for their own militaries to replace our protective presence.

I will always ensure that our military is the finest in the world, best equipped with the most advanced technology, and able to respond to aggression from any quarter.

5. Americans are concerned about rising energy prices, dependence on foreign energy and the potential damage of fossil fuels. How would you prioritize those concerns and what, if any, are your strategies to address them?

Answer: Our reliance on foreign oil imports is based on prior demands for this energy source and agreements that were made with oil-producing countries to help their economies and satisfy our needs. Today I have no doubt that we can produce and satisfy our own country’s oil needs from domestic sources, and the industrial development of China, India, and other countries will take up the foreign oil consumption relinquished by us. We now have the cleanest technology regarding drilling and refining oil, as well as regarding coal as a source of energy. The world must now be concerned with the ever-growing pollution from China, India, and other third-world countries that are now surpassing the overall atmospheric pollution once attributed to the U.S.A. They are exempt from the Kyoto Accord, but should not be. Our “clean” air is blown to Europe, and China’s “dirty” air is blown to the United States of America.

On a priority basis, I would open our Strategic Oil Reserve to help gas prices now. We must abandon corn-based ethanol production, as stated above, and develop wind, solar, atomic, hydrogen fuel cell, algae oil, and other potential energy sources as they appear over the horizon. I would move forward on all fronts and endeavors, because the sooner we do, the sooner we will realize energy independence. We have addressed and are significantly decreasing the negative effects of fossil fuels. Developing countries, i.e. China and India, do not have the Environmental Protection Agency.

6. Is America's educational system working? If not, what should the federal government do to improve it?

Answer: Our education system is horribly inadequate to produce succeeding generations of literate, capable, productive citizens to ensure America’s future as the greatest country in the world. Some have blamed the U.S. Department of Education for the “dumbing down” of our students, and perhaps there is some basis for this. A voucher system is being promoted as a solution, but I believe that we need to remove nearly all government involvement in American education and let the teachers and parents determine the future course of educational programming.

Obtaining a college education is the key to the future for nearly all Americans. I am proposing an “Opportunity Scholarship” for every American who wishes to further their education, regardless of age. It is a simple plan, which involves the individual citizen working and saving to come up with the first school term’s tuition. On successful completion of that term, the tuition will be repaid to allow the student to continue, one term at a time until graduation. On graduation the final term’s tuition will be repaid by the government, and the college education will have cost the student nothing. There is no other program our government can invest in that will bring about greater prosperity to this country and for its future.

7. Some economists say a growing national debt and massive looming financial commitments to Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security are leading us toward a fiscal crisis. Do you agree there is a crisis and, if so, what will you do to assure greater fiscal responsibility?

Answer: I agree we are facing a real crisis in providing funding for Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. If these were private corporations, they would immediately be labeled “Ponzi schemes” and be ordered to cease and desist, as well as be prosecuted. The solution will be complex, but I do believe we need to permit those entering the workforce now to choose from secure, alternative retirement systems and withdraw from Social Security. It was not originally intended to be a mandatory, but a voluntary program.

We cannot let these three programs fail, but we have to be realistic in the ability to rescue them. The only real solution is to force our government to repay that which was borrowed from the Social Security fund, with interest, but there is not enough money in the Treasury to do that. Congress has spent the money and we are living on a credit card named, “Bank of China.” This Ponzi scheme will collapse and the support of our retired citizens who paid into the system will have to be provided for, but not by printing more money. We can borrow against future taxes, which is what our government has been doing, or find a way to enrich our Treasury other than increasing taxes. But before we can do that, we have to pay down our National Debt. By producing our own oil and not buying from other countries, our Treasury will receive enormous royalties, which should be solely dedicated to rescuing these three programs and gradually paying down the National Debt. Don't let Congress touch it!

8. Do you believe the federal government has a role in protecting the environment? If so, what are your policy priorities?

Answer: Our government does have a role in protecting the environment to the extent of legislating laws to prevent pollution and preserve our air, water, soil, National Parks and pristine areas for posterity. National security and economic survivability, however, should also be considerations in environmental concerns, while duly exploring the results and benefits of any decisions. The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) is an example. It is desolate, inhospitable, remote, and a relatively small area. Drilling for oil there would not imperil the ecosystem and have miniscule effects on flora and fauna, but the benefit to our economy and national security would be significant.

Our Environmental Protection Agency is one of the foremost organizations of its kind in the world today, and little occurs in our country without its oversight. I would continue its efforts throughout its spectrum of activity.

9. How do you propose to reform our immigration policy in Washington?

Answer: Our immigration policy is already law. We are simply not following it. The only way most foreigners are allowed to enter the U.S.A. is through a visa program, and there are two categories of U.S. visas: immigrant and nonimmigrant. The first is for people who intend to move here permanently, and the other is for those who want to come here temporarily, for tourism, medical treatment, business, temporary work or study. The immigration policy needs no reform; it needs enforcement. Amnesty is not an option, nor is “fast-tracking” illegals who are already here. They need to return to their countries of origin and follow the normal visa procedures for entry.

10. Do you believe abortion should be limited? If so, to what degree?

Answer: I’m always amazed at the discussions about “when does life begin?” It’s as if some people believe life springs from death, or from non-living “tissue.” Both the mother’s egg and the father’s sperm are alive, and their union is equally alive. Life doesn’t begin at conception, it continues.

In 1970 Norma L. McCorvey discovered she was pregnant and decided she didn’t want to be. She discussed her predicament with two young, ambitious Texas attorneys, Linda Coffee and Sarah Weddington, who were seeking a way to challenge Texas’ anti-abortion law. Using the justification of rape, McCorvey became the pawn in one of the most divisive decisions ever handed down by our Supreme Court. Denying her “right” to have an abortion was first considered a violation of the Ninth Amendment, regarding rights retained by the people. It was later determined that the law denied McCorvey’s right to due process of law, the Fourteenth Amendment.

Much of the documentation presented to the Supreme Court in Roe vs. Wade was falsified in that the statistics were greatly exaggerated to make their case more compelling. The numbers of deaths due to botched abortions was multiplied, as was the number of teen abortions. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), it wasn’t 5,000 or 10,000, it wasn’t even 1,000 - it was 39. The Supreme Court was deceived, and truly should never have consented to hear the case. In doing so, the Court was not interpreting the Constitution, but was legislating new law. The American media, and subsequently the American public, also believed the information that was being presented, and this created enormous support for the Supreme Court’s decision.

Abortion to prevent birth after rape or incest, or to preserve the life of the mother is the rationale that allowed abortions to legally be performed. Today, however, those three factors amount to less than five percent of the abortions performed in this country. The overwhelming majority of all abortions, ninety-five percent, are done as a means of birth control. Only 1% are performed because of rape or incest, 1% because of fetal abnormalities, and 3% due to the mother’s health problems. The states would decide to what degree abortion should be limited.

I believe that Roe vs. Wade should be overturned, and the laws governing abortion be returned to the states’ discretionary legislation. It’s time we took the Supreme Court back to the Constitutional constraints it originally held in interpreting the Constitution, not writing new law. I would appoint Supreme Court justices that are open to this repeal, and are for strict Constitutional interpretation.