Topics ranged from healthcare reform and the economic crisis to the commuter rail lines in Texas. Congressman Burgess also proposed tax cuts as a remedy for the nation’s economic woes.

“[W]e’ve seen this before, we saw it with Kennedy, we saw it with Reagan, we saw it with Bush in 2003,” said Burgess in the interview. “You want the economy to hum, you help the people who actually make it work in the first place. And that would be… the place I would start.”

On nationwide concern with treasuries that are being sold to finance deficit spending on Capitol Hill, Burgess said, “We’re going to be selling debt on the marketplace that will compete with the private sector.”

“How are we ever going to get the private sector to recover if we’re driving interest rates up because our treasury bills now are not worth as much as they were? People don’t see them as safe as they once were,” he added.

To watch the video in its entirety, click here:

http://www.getliberty.org/content.asp?pl=108&sl=151&contentid=151

For a copy of the full-interview transcript, click here:

http://www.getliberty.org/content.asp?pl=151&sl=108&contentid=155

When the subject of health care reform came up, the Congressman spoke about his views on what the American people were concerned with in regards to the implementation of universal health care.

“If Medicare is the model for reform aren’t we obligated to get it right first before we expand it to other populations?” asked Burgess.

Burgess believes that instead of national health care that Congress ought to be focused on the affordability of private health care.

“[A]ffordability is really the central issue when we talk about health care,” said Burgess.

Burgess believes the universal health care run by the government would result in millions of Americans losing their health care that he believes they prefer.

“[P]eople are concerned because there are so many people in this country who lack insurance. But again, it’s an affordability issue really primarily. 80 percent of the people in this country who have had insurance like the insurance they have and don’t want to lose it. Again, that’s an affordability issue because they’re scared they won’t be able to get something else,” said Burgess.

Overall, Burgess thinks that excessive government spending will not bolster the economy.

“January of 2008 when President Bush was still in office and Nancy Pelosi and leader Boehner and the President got together and said we need a stimulus bill, it’s going to be $180 billion, we’re going to make things work again for the American people, I said I don’t think these things ever work. I was one of 35 members to vote against it,” Burgess said.

“[R]ealistically it was a poor idea and… time bore that out,” he added.

# # #

“Gil Kerlikowske, who would serve as the nation’s drug czar, was soft on crime and soft on drugs as Seattle Police Chief,” said Wilson in a statement.

Wilson cited Kerlikowske’s tolerance of marijuana possession, his “soft” police tactics, and his failure to discipline officer misconduct as disqualifying him from the nation’s top anti-drug law enforcement post.

“This is a man who 88 percent of the Seattle Police Officers Guild once voted no confidence in after he ordered officers to stand idly by during a 2001 Mardi Gras riot,” said Wilson in a statement.

“Dozens of people were injured, several women were sexually assaulted, and an innocent man got killed amid the violence. When the victim’s family sued, the city settled out of court for $1.75 million and was forced to acknowledge that Kerlikowske’s police strategy had presented a public safety threat,” said Wilson.

The letter specifically notes that Kerlikowske condoned the creation of an “arrest-free zone” to dispense health information to criminals. Wilson cited an “analysis by the mayor’s staff [that] showed the program made little difference in the lives of those it targets.”

Wilson also cited that the NAACP, along with the Minority Executive Directors Coalition, called for his resignation in 2007 after an incident of racial profiling that “Kerlikowske repeatedly refused to discipline officers and gave others only a slap on the wrist…”

Wilson believes that Kerlikowske’s nomination “follows a pattern by President Obama of nominating some of the most ill-suited persons for particular posts.”

“Either President Obama is deliberately attempting to lower the bar, or this is simply one the single-most botched series of appointments by a sitting president ever,” Wilson concluded.

Enclosures:
Gil Kerlikowske Fact Sheet
ALG President’s Letter to Judiciary Committee

Interview Availability: Please contact Alex Rosenwald at (703)383-0880 or at arosenwald@getliberty.org to arrange an interview with ALG President Bill Wilson.

# # #

In a statement, Wilson said, “This is the last straw: the House of Representatives has now voted to force those who pay their bills to also pay for those who won’t.”

The legislation passed the House 234-191.

“The American people do not support this out-and-out robbery,” he added. “And the House’s betrayal of their constituents will not soon be forgotten. Americans for Limited Government will make certain of that.”

Wilson, in a letter to Congress last week, warned that the legislation would further weaken and distort the housing market.

“The House, led by Speaker Pelosi, has done all in its power to hide it from their constituents, but it is they who will ultimately pay for these mortgage cram-downs,” Wilson said.

“It forces banks to eat the costs when the principal owed on the mortgage is reduced, and then the banks that face insolvency then turn to the government for more bailout funds,” Wilson explained.

“The taxpayers then wind up paying twice: first to bail out the borrower who can’t afford their house, and then the bank that was forced by government to make the bad loans in the first place,” Wilson added.

Wilson also warned in detail that the bankruptcy courts would become overwhelmed, “There were about 2.3 million foreclosures in 2008, and The House of Representatives thinks 368 bankruptcy judges can handle that sort of caseload.”

“This is going to be a disaster,” Wilson predicted.

Wilson believes that most Americans do not support President Obama’s plans for mortgages.

“It’s very simple: the American people do not want to reward those who made bad decisions in the first place. And the House of Representatives instead opted to pay off those who took out loans they could not afford and banks that were forced by government to make loans that could not be paid back,” Wilson concluded.

Interview Availability: Please contact Alex Rosenwald at (703)383-0880 or at arosenwald@getliberty.org to arrange an interview with ALG President Bill Wilson.

#  #  #

Wilson, in a letter to Congress last week, warned that the legislation would further weaken and distort the housing market.

In a comment on the impending vote in the U.S. House of Representatives, Wilson said, “It is downright obscene to force hardworking families who have paid their bills to now be forced to pay a part of a mortgage for someone who did not or would not pay their own way. By turning to bankruptcy judges, the politicians in Washington are hiding behind the judges’ gowns. They know this is wrong. They know the American people will not tolerate hyper-welfare of this sort. So, they have judges do the dirty work for them.”

“Members of Congress cannot hide. If they support this outright larceny, American for Limited Government intends to remind the public in their districts loudly and often of their betrayal,” Wilson added.

In his letter to Congress last week, Wilson wrote, “The change in law will also take negotiations over troubled mortgages out of the hands of lenders, reduce incentives for investors to back mortgages, and clog up bankruptcy courts. It will force banks to eat the costs of the cram-downs, who in turn will have to tap more of the taxpayer-funded TARP to recoup losses,” wrote Wilson in his letter.

Wilson also warned that the bankruptcy courts would become overwhelmed with a tremendous caseload if the legislation is enacted, “In 2008, approximately 2.3 million homes faced foreclosure, and now the Administration warns that as many as ‘6 million households [are] facing possible foreclosure.’ But, there are only 368 bankruptcy judges nationwide.”

Wilson explained, “These courts will likely be overwhelmed in short order with the housing market as weak as it is, and the introduction of bankruptcy proceedings into the mix will on further ‘toxify’ assets that cannot be valued.”

The letter, which is critical of President Obama’s overall $2.8 trillion financial plan, also criticizes his mortgage refinancing plan because “It remains unclear under the President’s $275 billion mortgage refinancing plan which homeowners will ultimately qualify for assistance, which homes will eventually be foreclosed upon, and therefore what the value of the mortgage-backed securities really are.”

Wilson believes that the problem of pricing securities will only be “compounded, in particular, by the legislation now being proposed—H.R. 1106…”

Last week, ALG launched StopBailouts.net, an online petition in response to the President’s financial plan and to urge Congress to halt what ALG President Bill Wilson termed the “greatest theft in human history.”

“Now, the Obama Administration wants the American taxpayer to once again take responsibility for the irresponsible by committing more than $2 trillion to keeping delinquent borrowers in homes they can’t afford and bailing out banks that were forced by government to make the bad loans in the first place,” Wilson added.

Several economists, financial analysts, and policy makers have noted that “easy money” from the Federal Reserve, coupled with excessive lending and a record expansion of credit, fueled the housing bubble.

Wilson believes that there is increasing frustration on the part of taxpayers and homeowners “who play by the rules and bear no responsibility for the errant government policies that fostered the financial meltdown.”

Wilson is urging angered citizens to take action in addition to signing the petition by contacting their Representatives and Senators.

“Congress can help put a stop to all of this nonsense, but members will only do so if their constituents keep up the pressure,” said Wilson.

“Ultimately, Congress needs to decide if it stands with the American people, or insists upon robbing them to pay off delinquent borrowers and irresponsible lenders,” Wilson concluded.

Interview Availability: Please contact Alex Rosenwald at (703)383-0880 or at arosenwald@getliberty.org to arrange an interview with ALG President Bill Wilson.

#  #  #

“Enough is enough,” said Wilson in a statement. “Congress has completely abdicated the power of the purse to keep afloat a financial system that doesn’t work for the American taxpayer or the American people.”

“We are hopelessly descending into bankruptcy, and Congress does not appear to have the political will to stop it,” Wilson added.

Three days ago, ALG launched StopBailouts.net, an online petition in response to President Barack Obama’s $2.8 trillion financial plan to urge Congress to halt what ALG President Bill Wilson termed the “greatest theft in human history.”

According to the letter, Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner’s financial plan is unconstitutional, which includes up over $2 trillion to be committed by the Treasury and Federal Reserve without a vote.

Wilson urged Congress to follow the law, “on behalf of our hundreds of thousands of members nationwide hereby call upon you to fulfill your mandated duty as enunciated under Article 1, Section 9, Clause 7 of the U.S. Constitution: ‘No money shall be drawn from the treasury, but in consequence of appropriations made by law…’”

The letter also called upon Congress to reject H.R. 1106, the mortgage-bankruptcy cram-down legislation that “give bankruptcy judges the arbitrary authority to reduce mortgage principals, lower rates, and otherwise modify the terms of loans.”

Wilson believes, according to the letter, that the bill would add “more uncertainty as to which mortgages may ultimately be modified.”

Wilson believes that the government interventions have prevent mortgage-backed securities from finding their market value, “which is perpetuating the crisis needlessly.”

According to the letter, “The reason the securities cannot be valued is because it is continually unclear, based on shifting government plans, which ones will be worthless at the end of the day.”

Wilson believes that Congress is the only body that has the power to “stop the bailouts once and for all.”

“We are urging Congressmen and women, and Senators, to take back the power of the purse before it is too late. The nation is going bankrupt—we’re $11 trillion in debt with a $1.2 trillion budget deficit this year, and we’re begging the Chinese to lend us more money that even they might not have,” Wilson added.

“And if Congress does not stop it, no one will,” Wilson concluded.

Interview Availability: Please contact Alex Rosenwald at (703)383-0880 or at arosenwald@getliberty.org to arrange an interview with ALG President Bill Wilson.

“This a victory for taxpayers who do not wish to be forced to fund union politics,” he added.

The decision determined that a state government may prohibit its counties, cities, and towns from subsidizing union political activities via its government payroll systems.

“This is a great win. The First Amendment does not require government to devote taxpayer resources to facilitating the speech of its workers, their preferred political organizations, or anyone else,” said Wilson.

“This sets the table for states across the nation to set up similar prohibitions,” Wilson added.

Americans for Limited Government on June 6th had filed an amicus curiae brief in the case.

Ysursa v. Pocatello Education Assocation was heard this fall by the nation’s highest court, which granted certiorari to the state of Idaho’s appeal on March 31st. The case had involved an Idaho law banning the state’s counties, cities, and towns from allowing union payroll deductions to be used for the subsidization of political activities.

That law was overturned by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals on October 5th, 2007 in a decision stating that the state could not constitutionally under the First Amendment prohibit its political subdivisions from making union payroll deductions because the state did not fund and directly administer those payroll systems.

It was a decision that Wilson had written in his daily column set up a “patently absurd—not to mention unobtainable—standard.”

According to ALG’s amicus curiae brief, drawn up by attorney Kevin Hall, the Ninth Circuit had erred in its “use of the First Amendment as a wedge between a state government and its political subdivisions [because it] has no basis in [the Supreme] Court’s jurisprudence.”

The Supreme Court agreed, stating in its opinion, “The First Amendment prohibits government from ‘abridging the freedom of speech’; it does not confer an affirmative right to use government payroll mechanisms for the purpose of obtaining funds for expression. Idaho’s law does not restrict political speech, but rather declines to promote that speech by allowing public employee checkoffs for political activities.

Also, ALG had argued that “The supremacy of state government control over the property of political subdivisions holds especially true in states like Idaho that structure their government according to ‘Dillon’s Rule.’ This model of government reserves lawmaking primacy to the state legislature and prohibits local governments from exercising any power not expressly or impliedly granted to them by the state constitution or state statute…”

The Supreme Court agreed again, “[Our] decision is reasonable in light of the State’s interest in avoiding the appearance that carrying out the public’s business is tainted by partisan political activity. That interest extends to government at the local as well as state level, and nothing in the First Amendment prevents a State from determining that its political subdivisions may not provide payroll deductions for political activities.”

According to Wilson, the decision is a big win both for taxpayers and the First Amendment.

“The Ninth Circuit had tried to read into the First Amendment a right for political subdivisions to decide on their own whether or not to follow state law that explicitly banned them from using payroll deductions for political purposes,” said Wilson.

“The Supreme Court’s ruling has corrected this mistake, and has protected taxpayers from having their money stolen by Big Labor,” Wilson concluded.

— 30 —

“Throughout 2008, and now into 2009, Congress, the Treasury, and the Federal Reserve have otherwise committed, appropriated, borrowed, and printed some $10 trillion for the largest financial bailout ever,” said Wilson.

By Wilson’s count the bailout is “astronomical on an order not yet seen: $2 trillion in FDIC assurances, $1.75 trillion in Federal Reserve commercial paper purchases, $900 billion in term auction facility lending, $600 billion to insure money market funds, $600 billion to cover Fannie and Freddie’s worthless mortgage-backed securities, $550 billion for discount Federal Reserve loans, $500 billion to insure FDIC deposits, $300 billion for FHA mortgage relief, $250 billion for Citigroup debt, $225 billion for securities loan facility lending, $200 billion for Fannie and Freddie’s debt, $112 billion for A.I.G., $700 billion for the TARP, and finally, $787 billion for ‘stimulus.’”

“And that’s not even counting interest,” Wilson noted.

“Now, the Obama Administration wants the American taxpayer to once again take responsibility for the irresponsible by committing more than $2 trillion to keeping delinquent borrowers in homes they can’t afford and bailing out banks that were forced by government to make the bad loans in the first place,” Wilson added.

Several economists, financial analysts, and policy makers have noted that “easy money” from the Federal Reserve, coupled with excessive lending and a record expansion of credit, fueled the housing bubble.

Wilson believes that there is increasing frustration on the part of taxpayers and homeowners “who play by the rules and bear no responsibility for the errant government policies that fostered the financial meltdown.”

Wilson is urging angered citizens to take action in addition to signing the petition by contacting their Congressmen and Senators.

“Congress can put a stop to all of this nonsense, but they will only do so if their constituents keep up the pressure on members,” said Wilson.

“The ‘stimulus’ debate may be over, but the battle over the bailout will continue,” Wilson promised.

Wilson predicted that eventually the bailout would be defeated.

“The people intuitively know when they are being robbed. There is genuine anger out there on the part of taxpayers and homeowners who do not want any part in paying for somebody else’s poor decisions,” Wilson concluded.

Interview Availability: Please contact Alex Rosenwald at (703)383-0880 or at arosenwald@getliberty.org to arrange an interview with ALG President Bill Wilson.

# # #

“There are serious questions concerning the interpretation of House Ethics Rules raised by Representative Solis’ activities,” said Wilson in a statement.

According to the letter to the House Ethics Committee, Congresswoman Hilda Solis served as Treasurer of the 501(c)(4) organization, Americans Rights at Work (ARG), while the organization was actively engaged in lobbying members of Congress, most recently to vote in favor of the Employee Free Choice Act.

The letter also notes that Representative Solis failed to properly disclose this information on financial disclosure forms from 2004 to 2007 to the Clerk of the House of Representatives as she is required to do.

The letter states, “Filing a false disclosure report is a very serious matter and can result in criminal penalties pursuant to 18 U.S.C. Sec. 1001. Filing a false report also deprives the public of information that would enable inspection of whether a Member’s official actions are conflicted with their private activities.”

While Wilson believes his interpretation of House Ethics rules is correct, he is seeking guidance of the committee because, according to the letter, “If our reading of House Rules and Ethical Standards are incorrect, it is our intent to begin working with a number of Members of the House in a manner similar to that of Representative Solis.”

In his statement, Wilson said, “This is a simple matter of how the Ethics Committee interprets its own rules. If it’s okay for Representative Solis to behave in this manner, then it’s okay for all Representatives to do likewise and serve as active board members for 501(c)(4) organizations.”

“But, if we are correct in our interpretation, and Representative Solis indeed violated House Ethics Rules, then the committee is duty-bound to follow up,” Wilson added.

Wilson warned the committee that there would be consequences if it knowingly failed to act upon an ethics violation.

“I trust the House Ethics Committee will set aside partisan politics and take its duties as seriously as it pretends to when members of the opposing party appear to have commited violations,” Wilson concluded.

Enclosures:
FEC Form 9 filed by American Rights at Work
IRS Form 990 filed by American Rights at Work
Form A filed by Rep. Hilda Solis
Letter from Rep. Hilda Solis to House Clerk’s Office

Interview Availability: Please contact Alex Rosenwald at (703)383-0880 or at arosenwald@getliberty.org to arrange an interview with ALG President Bill Wilson.

#   #   #

“There is no way for Congress to justify the complete and utter waste of tax dollars on paying off key political constituencies: state governments, public employee unions, transportation and construction unions, the environmental lobby, the education lobby, and of course, delivering hundreds of billions of pork all across the nation,” said Wilson.

The bill totals $789 billion, or $1.1 trillion after interest. It includes roughly $97 billion in new spending programs, and $92 billion of expansions of existing federal programs.

It also includes $53.6 billion for states to balance their budgets, $45 billion of which boosts education spending, $50 billion in green energy subsidies and tax credits, $55 billion for transportation projects, make groups like ACORN eligible for up to $2 billion in neighborhood stabilization funds, extends food stamps and unemployment benefits, builds federal buildings, provides more for public housing, constructs climate change supercomputers, erects trade barriers overseas, creates refundable tax credits, and provisions for high-speed Internet service.

The final vote was 246 in favor and 183 against.

“This outright theft of the American people will only divert precious, critical capital away from the private sector by dramatically and permanently increasing government spending, thereby increasing the financial burden government poses to the economy and to future generations,” Wilson said.

Wilson predicts that the bill will saddle every American family with approximately $10 thousand of debt, and cited a CBO report that shows the GDP shrinking over the long term as a result of the legislation.

The current national debt nears $10.7 trillion, and the CBO-projected deficit without this legislation this year is $1.2 trillion. Both figures will have to be adjusted in light of legislation’s passage.

As an alternative, Wilson recommends a massive reduction of the federal budget, a plan to pay off the national debt, permanent tax relief for businesses and individuals, the privatization of the mortgage industry, the abolition of the dual mandate at the Federal Reserve, and the elimination of public financing of consumer, business, student, and homeowner debt.

“Congress has decided not to even address the root causes of the current economic calamity: easy money from the Fed coupled by the massive expansion of credit and mortgage lending by the GSE’s Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac,” Wilson said.

“Instead of retiring the unsustainable expansion of debt that led to the financial crisis, Congress is only adding to it,” Wilson concluded.

# # #

Interview Availability: Please contact Alex Rosenwald at (703)383-0880 or at arosenwald@getliberty.org to arrange an interview with ALG President Bill Wilson.

Wilson pointed to a $30 million provision for wetland restoration to protect the salt marsh harvest mouse in San Francisco as “a symbol of the complete and utter waste of tax dollars contained in a bill which proponents claim will ‘save’ the economy.”

“Instead of ‘saving’ the economy, Congress, led by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, is concerned with saving mice,” Wilson added. “The American people now know they’ve been lied to. There was supposed to be no pork in this bill. This could be a tipping point that causes the people to demand that this bill be pulled back and redrawn.”

Wilson believes the spending in the bill comes at the wrong time with the private sector shrinking, jobs being lost, and government spending exploding.

“This trillion dollar spending bill Congress will vote on in the next few days will only divert precious, critical capital away from the private sector by dramatically and permanently increasing government spending, thereby increasing the financial burden government poses to the economy and to future generations,” Wilson said.

According to Senator Tom Coburn (R-OK), the Senate version of the bill “will add $10,800 of debt to every American family…” when he cited a CBO report that predicts the legislation will cause our GDP to shrink over the long term.

The current national debt nears $10.7 trillion, and the CBO-projected deficit without this legislation this year is $1.2 trillion.

“Leaders of Congress are exploiting the economic crisis to pay off key political constituencies: state governments, public employee unions, transportation and construction unions, the environmental lobby, the education lobby, and of course, delivers hundreds of billions of pork all across the nation,” Wilson said.

Congressional Democrats met over the past two days and arrived at the conference report, with the bill now totaling $789 billion, or $1.1 trillion after interest. It includes roughly $97 billion in new spending programs, and $92 billion of expansions of existing federal programs.

It also includes $53.6 billion for states to balance their budgets, $45 billion of which boosts education spending, $50 billion in green energy subsidies and tax credits, $55 billion for transportation projects, make groups like ACORN eligible for up to $2 billion in neighborhood stabilization funds, extends food stamps and unemployment benefits, builds federal buildings, provides more for public housing, constructs climate change supercomputers, erects trade barriers overseas, creates refundable tax credits, and provisions for high-speed Internet service.

Wilson noted that even though the House passed a motion on Tuesday allowing 48 hours for the conference report to be viewed publicly before being voted, that the House could vote on the bill as early as today.

“Never before has such a large spending bill been produced so quickly and put on the fast track so rapidly,” said Wilson. “In their rush to claim they ‘did something,’ members of Congress and the President have missed a key opportunity to do the right thing.”

Wilson recommends a massive reduction of the federal budget, a plan to pay off the national debt, permanent tax relief for businesses and individuals, the privatization of the mortgage industry, the abolition of the dual mandate at the Federal Reserve, and the elimination of public financing of consumer, business, student, and homeowner debt.

“Congress has decided not to even address the root causes of the current economic calamity: easy money from the Fed coupled by the massive expansion of credit and lending,” Wilson said.

“Instead it is boosting debt, setting an unsustainable baseline for future budgets, and of course, saving mice,” Wilson concluded.

# # #

Interview Availability: Please contact Alex Rosenwald at (703)383-0880 or at arosenwald@getliberty.org to arrange an interview with ALG President Bill Wilson.