Your Stimulus Package

[Pastor Matt]

Let's just say that you are currently the president of the United States, what areas would you focus on, and what wold you do to try and stimulate the economy.

It seems we have some very opinionated members on this topic, so I wanted to see what your solution is.

[Anon]

I would lower taxes on small business....lowering costs on business will give more money in order to hire more workers.

Reduce some of the "green" regulations on businesses and gasoline.

Put a cap on frivolous medical lawsuits, to lower insurance costs, as well as tighten up medicaid spending and loosen requirements on hospitals to treat the uninsured (life and death situations only, especially for illegals. And that includes delivering babies...illegals would have babies at home anyway..why not here...they do it so their children will be a US citizen.)

Reduce welfare and unemployment benefits by using a time limit...like one year max or something.

Reverse requirements that encourage companies to give loans to people with bad credit.

Throw out stupid testing and research paid for with taxpayer money.

Throw out any other porkbarrel spending.

Reducing pork should even out the money being lost on lowering taxes. Limiting welfare and unemployment encourages people to get jobs, and the lowering of taxes allows for more jobs to be made.

I'm sure there's more, but that's where I'd start. Obviously I won't be elected anytime soon.

[trc123]

Please define "pork barrel spending."

[Anon]

Please define "pork barrel spending."

Well I'd have to look at what is currently being spent but anything unnecessary to our country...right now we need to cut anything possible. Studying cow burps and other such meaningless experiments is wasting our money.

There have been many other things come up in the past month but I am sorry I cannot remember them at this point...

[HappyChristian]

Ditto what Suzy said. Plus - I'd not only call for a freeze on raises for government employees, I'd stress how they (congress especially), along with the rest of America, must tighten their belts and get along with less...and push a cut in pay. Massive for some of them.

Do away with such "departments" as the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Education Association.

Do all I could to abolish the IRS.

Eliminate all previous executive orders.

Order the military to win these wars and be done with it.

Encourage Israel to be a sovereign nation.

Definitely not pay $100 per pound of meat for parties at the White House, during a "recession" to boot!

And pray hard for mercy!!!

[Anon]

Oh yeah...bringing back the death penalty would save millions of dollars serving prisoners meals and medical care....

[John81]

Suzy and LuAnne nailed it pretty well. Drastically cut wasteful government programs and spending while lowering taxing and overburdensome regulations. Along with this I'd deport illegals already here and secure our borders and restore the immigration policies in place prior to the mid-1960s.

[HappyChristian]

Yeah - the death pentalty reinstituted and illegal aliens deported would save a wad!! Along with that, make being here illegally a felony again!

[trc123]

Well I'd have to look at what is currently being spent but anything unnecessary to our country...right now we need to cut anything possible. Studying cow burps and other such meaningless experiments is wasting our money.

There have been many other things come up in the past month but I am sorry I cannot remember them at this point...

Okay, I understand what you are saying and agree.

But I also know that some people call investing in upgrading infrastructure (roads, bridges, transmission lines, etc.) and modernizing schools and government buildings is pork and I wouldn't necessarily agree with that. These are all things that we as a collaborative society via our government should be doing and these do create jobs for fellow Americans.

[trc123]

Oh yeah...bringing back the death penalty would save millions of dollars serving prisoners meals and medical care....

It would if the death penalty was done in an efficient manner; but it is actually much more costly than imprisonment the way the USA has structured how it should be carried out. It takes a minimum of 14 years, with millions of dollars in mandatory appeals and legal fees the way we do it now.

[HappyChristian]

But I also know that some people call investing in upgrading infrastructure (roads' date=' bridges, transmission lines, etc.) and modernizing schools and government buildings is pork and I wouldn't necessarily agree with that. These are all things that we as a collaborative society via our government should be doing and these do create jobs for fellow Americans.[/quote']

Modernizing schools isn't (at least constitutionally!) a federal responsibility. Putting it back into the hands of the locals would be the best solution to that. The POTUS should keep hands off state and local governance matters.

[trc123]

Alot of money flows from the feds to the state and local governments for education related items. I don't see an issue with the money flowing back to our local school boards to modernize schools and such as they (local school boards) deem necessary.

[1Timothy115]

:2cents

Mr Obama, build up that wall.

1. Build the wall between U.S. and Mexico.
2. Train border guards.
3. Designate certain airports, sea ports, and highways as U.S. Ports of entry.
4. Begin hardening those designated ports of entry.
5. Train increased numbers of foreign import inspectors (food/explosives/other consumables), security teams, threat response, and border response teams.
6. Require all international flights, shipping, and highway imports to enter through these ports.
7. Fill the positions for the entry port personnel from the states with ports.
8. Provide the materials for hardening/upgrading/personnel protection, etc. from other interior states.
9. Upgrade these airports, sea ports, and border crossings with "green" capability to the highest extent possible.
10. Begin an infrastructure upgrade for "Green" transportation between interior U.S. distribution and manufacturing locations (electric train) increased use of waterways for commercial (electric boat).
11. Begin hydro-electric production on our nation?s rivers (there is extensive capacity).
12. Train additional wildlife teams of environmentalists (to do more than complain), field personnel technicians, and engineers to provide systems of bypass for ?endangered species? of fresh water fish, animals, etc.
13. There are most likely a few spin-off service related job opportunities surrounding my off the cuff thoughts.

I think this might put a few people back to work and give this nation the security it deserves.

[Anon]

ITim the border guarding would help us save money (medical and welfare costs) but the "green" stuff costs more money than it saves.

[HappyChristian]

I know a lot of money flows that way...and it's unconstitutional! The feds should take hands off completely of education. Each state should be responsible for itself (as it used to be...you know, back when real learning took place in every school). When the federal government sends money to the states, the states are beholden to the feds. Money talks loudly, and that's one of the reasons that the majority of schools are in such a mess!