Does Oklahoma Support the Comey firing?

Just got off the phone with my reps and Senator James Lankfords staff member Steve Carson said that the Senator fully supports Presidents Trumps decision,  I asked him his name so I could quote him and he reaffirmed that position. To be fair Senator Lankford did tweet a nice complimentary "You served the country well during a rough time" note last night.
Congressman Frank Lucas staff said he had no public position on the issue yet.
Senator James Inhofe staff said he would be making a statement later today and hand no statement at this time.


So one vote for full backing and others more cautious.
President Trump did have the legal authority to do this but his stated reasoning does not sound right.  The Clinton email investigation ended in Oct 2016 and the President has publicly thanked and complimented Comey on his handling of the issue.  To fire him now for that reason is highly suspicious.
Consider that he fired the following people after publicly supporting them.
Preet Bharara the US Attorney General for Southern New York who was investigating Fox News for among other things stock fraud after saying that he could keep his job a few months earlier.
Sally Yates the acting Attorney General for refusing to follow an order she felt was unlawful.  Note the the Courts blocked it so her legal expertise seems to have been correct. in that.
Coincidentally? She had warned the White House about Flynn shortly before that.
James Comey the FBI Director was fired over his handling of the email scandal even though President Trump publicly thanked and supported him for it months previously.  And fo course Comey was investigating his staff and associates for ties to Russia.

Almost every politician is corrupt and takes money for votes or otherwise abuse their powers of office instead of serving the public good.  Americans know and understand this and it is part of the reason we have so much voter apathy and low voter turnout.
However the republican party has gone too far and so blatantly that all Americans, regardless of ideology should be angered and in fear for our country.

Consider the White House was advertising Mar A Lago till protests forced them to take it down.
The membership fee was doubled from $100,000 a year to $200,000 a year after President Trump took office and he has provided members pay for access to him and foreign dignitaries.  Plus the advertising and rental to the government in his properties in New York and elsewhere, all at taxpayer expense. His son in law was set to make a billion dollar profit on a property in new York till the press made it known and the Chinese backed out. His son in laws sister hinted that if you invest $5000,000 in our real estate properties we will get you a Visa and path to US Citizenship.

President Trump refuses to reveal his taxes as he promised multiple times on the campaign which would let us see more of his financial ties to Russia and other governments.
The Chinese government suddenly approved trademarks to his daughter after the election.
He compliments the leader of Turkey for what is considered a corrupt election where of course he coincidentally happens to have a building.
The news is all over the place if you bother to look for it so I wont go on.
The thing is that he and his party are selling out Amercia.  Besides the money we have an assault on the EPA, him issuing gag orders, taking info down from the website and replacing scientist with business people, His assaults on the press whom he feels should work for him not you and me, etc.


We need a new congress, one that puts America ahead of personal gain and that consider serving in office like our military does as a service to the country not their own pocketbook.
I support the Brand New Congress and all patriots should as well.  Even if you are conservative and anti liberal they will run candidates among both parties as long as they dont take corporate donor money.  Once we have cleaned out the congress (and yes it will be hard but nothing good comes easy) than we can have an honest debate on other issues.  Corruption is an enemy to all of America and must be our priority.

The Betrayal of our Government

With the latest scandal coming out on Tuesday I have never felt more betrayed by my government.
To put this in context I served in the military and was almost killed not in combat, but by the laziness and negligence of our medical staff.  I have suffered for over 35 years, almost lost my leg, facing onerous medical bills (Turns out military service is a preexisting condition so not covered by insurance) and requiring ongoing treatment because of that negligence.
I have over the years dealt with thoughts of suicide and murder on an almost daily basis, going from hopeless depression with no good end in sight to blind fury that it happened with such casual indifference.

And yet I have NEVER felt so betrayed by my country as I do right now.
Our corrupt politicians are cheering while America burns and sinks into the swamp.

What issue do you car about the most?

Everyone has their own priorities and most of us only have the time, money and energy to fight for a few, especially after taking care of our own lives and perhaps families.
So what are your top issues? Health Care, Environment, the economy, jobs, wages, national security, civil rights, First Amendment, Gun Control? References The US Constitution
In Alphabetical order the main ones I hear people talking about....

Civil Rights

Our Founding Fathers felt this was a vital issue and put in place a lot of specific protections. Freedom of religion, speech and the press. Right now our pres is under attack and open and public derision by the government, threats have been made to them and to our right to Free Speech. Below are excerpts from the Bill of Rights.

• Article the third... Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
• Article the fourth... A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.
• Article the sixth... The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.
• Article the seventh... No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the Militia, when in actual service in time of War or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offence to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.
• Article the tenth... Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.
• Article the eleventh... The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people.
• Amendment XIV, Section 1 All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws.
• And you might want to read the Declaration of Independence.

Climate Change

The overwhelming majority of scientists agree and frankly if your old enough or just look at records you can see for yourself that the world is warming. Melting icecaps and rising sea levels will have the largest impact on coastal regions but higher temperatures supply more energy for severe storms and we have seen more suffering and destruction from those already. The Republican party has proposed to remove the EPA on Dec 2018 and President Trump has proposed to cut funding, rolled back regulations and taken down information from the EPA website as well as issuing them gag orders. He even tried to prohibit them from talking to Congress. The main justification for allowing this to continue is that it will be bad for large business and the economy as it hurts Automotive, Oil, Gas and Coal industries. You can abide by that oversimplification and choose the Environment and your kids or those industries.  However we can strive for renewable energy and simply change the nature of those industries and jobs. Transforming and innovating could make us world leaders in new technology which would boost the economy while still allowing those industries to sell to other countries.  This group has some good ideas and an actual plan on the subject.

Another item is the Paris Accords, we already are ahead of the game here so backing out just hands over the credit and leadership position to other countries.

Economy

The GDP and overall productivity of America has gone up year over year (generally in terms of actual dollars) and this chart shows actual numbers in dollars, percentage and major events.

As you can see major tax cuts, recessions and banking or S&L failures led to drops. Deregulation led to gains though caused later losses such as the banking bailout due to excessive bad loans and investments. It is my position that we need to regulate Banks and other industries to keep them from defrauding their customers and needing another big bailout. Wage increases have been shown to increase consumer spending.  Infrastructure spending will increase growth, though I think it would only be short term so I oppose that if it also increases the debt. Trickle Down Economics has proved to be a failure and I oppose that.

Education

Section 8 of the Constitution address this in part "To promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts, by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the exclusive Right to their respective Writings and Discoveries;" so apparently they thought Science and the Liberal Arts were important to a great country. 

The Department of Education was founded in 1979 by Jimmy Carter so getting rid of it is a predictable Republican goal. Personally I think the concept is good but the execution was poor and more authority should be left to the States and local communities. A good education is important to individual liberties and the pursuit of happiness and makes for more productive workers which benefits the overall economy.  How we achieve this is a good debate. Progressives want free college tuition, and Republicans want more private and charter schools, deregulate education so schools are not held to any standards or accountability.  Recently they even talked about restricting the GI bill for veterans.  You do not have to side with either extreme, for example I feel that the Department of Education should be a watchdog and reporting agency so we can see how well the schools are actually doing and make informed choices.

Government Reform

Our Founding Fathers were very concerned about this issue.  A Free Press and states being able to convene for constitutional amendments were considered vital to keeping government honest and working for the people.  I feel this is also a part of why they wanted a well regulated militia.

• Section 9 "No Title of Nobility shall be granted by the United States: And no Person holding any Office of Profit or Trust under them, shall, without the Consent of the Congress, accept of any present, Emolument, Office, or Title, of any kind whatever, from any King, Prince, or foreign State."
• Article II, Section 1 "The President shall, at stated Times, receive for his Services, a Compensation, which shall neither be encreased nor diminished during the Period for which he shall have been elected, and he shall not receive within that Period any other Emolument from the United States, or any of them."
• Article II, Section 4 "The President, Vice President and all civil Officers of the United States, shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for, and Conviction of, Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors."

To me the biggest thing we can do to reform the government is get money out of politics. WolfPac is working on this, though they are opposed by Common Cause and of course politicians.

Health Care

The right to life is in the declaration of Independence and Health Care is probably the most talked about thing in politics.  President Trump even said Australia's system is better than our system. So apparently he favors universal health care or Medicare for all, which would be the only way to live up to the promises he made during the campaign.  The idea here is to take the insurance companies out of the equation and go with a single payer system.  So we see the same doctors but instead of fighting with insurance to pay we use government systems.  This would raise taxes, though that would be offset by no longer paying insurance premiums.  However some oppose it because they think insurance companies are better than the government and feel health care should be an individual thing you earn by having a good job, not a right.

Job Growth

I think everyone wants to see strong job growth, the trouble is people cant agree on how to make it happen. Republicans say that giving larger tax breaks to the wealthy and corporations will work. Progressives are for raising the minimum wage and improving education. Democrats want more infrastructure spending.  I lean towards the Progressive side.  History shows raising the minimum wage promotes consumer spending and businesses sell more stuff. History also shows the tax breaks just lead to more stock buy back, dividends and executive pay raises not new jobs. Infrastructure spending does create new jobs but there short  term. What we really need are new jobs and new industries.  Automation is decreasing jobs in many industries and it will only get worse over time. Eventually all the mining and manufacturing jobs will just be machine operators and a lot less of them.  Senator Sanders is the only politician I have ever heard even talking about that issue but if you work in those fields you have seen it happen and increasing.  We need to invest in new industries or else all of America will suffer.

National Security

We need a strong military.  However most of our spending is not on people but expensive systems and even more expensive maintenance programs. We outspend more than any other country by a significant amount.  Do we really need to spend so much? Cut $200 billion from the budget and we still outspend China by $226 billion, almost double what they spend!  Russia comes in at a 'mere' $44.6 billion.  Imagine how wonderful things would be if we spent that money on America! We could invest in Clean Energy  to insure our energy independence and not worry about the Middle East, Medicare for all, and invest in new infrastructure and technology.  We would be safer, more popular with tourist income (new jobs), live better lives (Cheaper energy and health care, better infrastructure) and who knows what kinds of benefits we would see with new technology.  Remember no other country can take over America, especially if we keep our own guns and a strong navy and Air Force to defend our shores and foreign interests.  NATO was founded in part because of our desire to prevent another world war and if one did happen it would happen in other countries not ours. Our Military industries already sell to foreign countries so they wont suffer unduly and they are positioned for moving into many of the higher tech industries.

Pollution

No one really wants polluted air and water so why is this even an issue?

The answer of course is that some business think it would hurt their bottom line.  It certainly does cost more to not pollute, though many companies are actually for reducing pollution and improving fuel economy.

Taxes

Republicans want to cut taxes for the wealthy and corporations, Democrats want them to pay more.
If you feel that wealthy people should pay lower taxes than middle class fine.  If you feel that corporations should be taxed less ok as well.  Just be clear on the results and expectations and dont fall for the lies.  Trickle Down Economics have been proven to fail so lowering these taxes will not improve job growth.

More Corruption?

New Immigration scam.So this seems bad on a corruption and ethics angle, using the White House for personal profit, even the implication that because of the relationship they have they can assure Visas are granted.  Also how many jobs does anyone really think a $500k investment in real estate will create?

Resistance Speech

So Cenk Uygur gave a really good speech that was published to Youtube on May 2nd.  I just finished it.  If you care about America and if you think we have a problem with our current state of government you should listen to it.
He runs The Young Turks which is an online news group that I really appreciate.  I dont like or agree with everything they say but I do most of it and most of all I appreciate their honesty.

The thing that angers me the most about this period of American history is not the war on the middle class and the poor, the attack on the climate, the poisoning of our water, the attacks on Free Speech and censorship, or the seeming joy and careless disregard politicians seem to have for killing millions of Americans by taking away Health Care; no the thing that angers me the most is the lying, hypocrisy and corruption of those who are supposed to work for us.

I know that for years now most of America has surrendered and given up, that it seems like every election is only about choosing the lesser evil. That no matter what we do the corruption will continue and there is nothing we can do about it short of another revolution and overthrowing our leaders.  Luckily so far it has not come to that, though increasing activity indicates to me its not that far off.

.But the anger out here is growing and some people have stepped up to show us another way.
There are tons of groups out there fighting for change.  Some of them are wolves in sheep clothing and others outright false idols.  But if you look carefully you will find there are some good ones out there. Pick one you can stand behind, Left, Right, or Center I don't care.  We need people to fight for America because our leaders wont.

On my pages I list resources to help you find out information about your representatives.
I will be adding a section to this site for causes of various types that I think merit support.  If you see any you like help them.  If you know any I missed let me know and as long as my research bears out they are honest and not for the status quo or Hate Crimes or the violent overthrow of our government I will add them.  Even if I disagree with them.


America is supposed to be a government for and by the people, lets make that true again.

Governor Vetoes requirement to reveal taxes

Governor Chris Christie vetoed a bill to require Presidential candidates in New jersey to show thier taxes. https://www.usnews.com/news/us/articles/2017-05-01/new-jerseys-christie-vetoes-bill-seeking-trumps-tax-returns

There are plenty of other states considering this so we probably will get this requirement.
I understand the argument that it is a privacy issue, however I disagree with it.
No one is forced to run as President or for any government office.
We deserve to know how they will personally benefit from their actions in government.
We deserve to know if they lie about donating to Charity and Churches to win votes.
We deserve to know who has paid them off.
We deserve politicians who work for the voters rather than themselves, it is called Public Service.  Getting elected should not be a way to become wealthier at the expense of the taxpayer.

So Called Tax Reform is next

Now that the House has passed the buck to the Senate they will likely take up Tax Reform.
Some of President Trumps napkin plan I agree with,

• Getting rid of almost all deductions  and doubling the standard deduction to make up for that. We should not need tax experts, accounts or lawyers to fill out individual tax forms.
• Going form 7 to 3 tax brackets, Its not like 7 is that much more complicated.  Trying to find all your deductions was the harder part of the tax form.But ok this is fine.
• I am also ok with lowering the top bracket from 39% to 35%

However some parts I do not agree with.

• Lowering S corporations to 15%, this is really a way for individuals who invest in real estate and hedge funds to declare the income in a different way and avoid regular income tax.  it is not designed to help large or small business. Now I do not believe in punishing the wealthy.  However why is it republicans want the lower income tax brackets to pay one way and the most wealthy people to pay a different way? Because A) Many of them are multimillionaires and the B) They want the bribes from the wealthiest Americans (and foreigners).
• Getting rid of the Estate tax.  Mixed feelings here, if they were paying normal income tax I would be fine with getting rid of it but the Estate tax was put in place to prevent us from getting a rich Aristocracy or Noble class where wealth is simply inherited and builds so that only the few win, not the majority. As long as the very Wealthy are paying less in taxes than the average American I think we should keep this in place.  Pundits claim this will help small farmers but that is not really true. The Estate Tax comes with a $2 million tax credit so you have to have an estate over  $5 million would pay anything.
• Getting rid of the Alternative Minimum tax.  this is in place so that those who find enough loopholes to avoid paying income tax still have to pay at least something.
• The Tax holiday,  We have tried this before and it does not grow the economy.  Instead of hiring more workers companies use the savings to buy back stock (so Wall Street will win big) and pay higher executive bonuses and stock dividends.  I have no real problem with that except that it will be paid for by the taxpayer.

Overall this is just more Trickle Down and Voodoo Economics which we have seen before and will increase the national debt by giving more tax breaks to the wealthiest Americans and take away rather than create new jobs.

Links
Tax plan explained
A more detailed version of the Trump plan on Trumps website Note that in this one he lowers the upper bracket from the 35% proposed in the first briefing to 25$