Issue Position: The Economy

Issue Position

Robust growth & productivity are the foundations of the peerless U.S. economy over the past century. Productivity gains are the means by which our citizens maintain a standard of living unmatched anywhere in the world. Unfortunately, we are currently in the midst of the worst recovery from a recession in the modern era, yet continued, robust prosperity is within our grasp. Here are the four economic growth principles I have been guided by and will measure any legislation by:

*Reductions in tax rates and simplification of the tax code. Government's role in the economy should be focused on providing for a solid structural framework along with a fair and predictable system of regulations. The tax code has become riddled with "cronyist" deductions for favored industries and because of this, the costs of compliance have multiplied. This has created a system where access to "power brokers" is valued more than creating economic value for the American people. Across the board rate reductions along with a reduction in the number of definable income categories accompanied by a streamlining of the tax code will reduce the government's role in economy and allow the citizen to prosper. In addition, both the corporate and capital gains tax rates must be reduced, and loopholes eliminated, in order to spur innovation, investment and future productivity. Taxing investments in America's production engine dis-incentivizes entrepreneurialism and discourages economic growth.

*Prioritize education. As the world moves towards a knowledge-based economy, America cannot be left behind. Our current educational model is failing our children as we fall farther behind our global competitors in performance. According to a recent Wall Street Journal editorial, 2,000 of the nation's 20,000 public schools produce 50% of our dropouts and nearly 50% of our African-American youth attend one of these schools. This is tragic and inexcusable but there are a number of steps we can take to make the U.S. a world leader in education and innovation. I fully support the implementation of tools such as parent-choice initiatives, charter schools, merit based pay systems for educators, "parent triggers" and year round schooling. In addition, we must reward good teachers, the bedrock of our educational system, and allow them to work in a system not stifled by bureaucracy and archaic work rules. These tools all have the potential to turn our system into a world leader in achievement. Although I believe a number of these changes must originate at the local level, I will engage with local leaders and support legislation that helps us to reach our goals. Continued failure is not an option and is simply a surrender to those among us that are vested in the status quo.

*Immigration reform. Our current immigration system is broken. Immigration policy needs to remain focused on respect for the law not on the nationality of the immigrant. Our current policy is broken and I will work to make improvements through the following tools. First, securing the borders must be a national priority. The constant threat of terrorism and narco-trafficking through both our southern and northern border should have prioritized secure borders decades ago, but unfortunately it has not. Token measures and platitudes have inflicted untold damage to what should have been a long term plan using America's incredible technological capacity to seek effective solutions to the problem. Secondly, I believe we must move towards a re-evaluation of the current chain migration and diversity visa based system. This system is grossly inadequate for attracting the world's best and brightest to the U.S. and severely limits our future capacity for economic growth. Thirdly, we must continue our efforts to aggressively enforce immigration laws in the Homeland while at the same time streamlining the process for those immigrants wishing to relocate here. Economic analysis has shown that, across generations, immigrants add wealth to our nation through the importation of human capital and ideas. A growing population is also necessary to purchase the financial assets of our seniors and increase our tax base, but anyone looking to make the U.S. their home must respect the process and follow the established legal procedure.

*Encourage foreign investment. Free and fair global trade policies and the corresponding movement of capital around the globe has led to incredible improvements in the global standard of living. The growing economies of the world are moving towards capitalism and economic liberalization as the U.S. moves slowly towards one of stagnation and regulation. We need to work with our world economic partners to reduce protectionist tariffs and increase foreign capital investments in the U.S. economy. Foreign capital flows into the U.S. helps every American by keeping interest rates low and assisting growing companies in financing future growth opportunities, creating well paying jobs for hard working Americans.

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