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Saturday, July 30, 2011

To the President and all members of Congress

To the President and all members of Congress,

I am thoroughly disgusted with almost all of you—all except those who have stood up for principles rather than political grandstanding. You were hired to do a job, and you are absolutely failing. My disappointment will be reflected on my upcoming ballots for many years to come.

Meanwhile, we are in a quagmire, and it appears you need some direction. Let me offer some. I do not pretend to understand all the ins and outs of our national budget, but there are certain things that I see that you have put up for debate that I find unbelievable. Let me clarify a few things for you.

1. You don’t send soldiers to war, then even consider not paying them! They don’t get enough pay as it is! They are constantly under strain, facing death, the deaths of comrades, separation from family—you know the list (I hope). To let them get wind of the idea that their government might even give voice to the thought of deserting them in this way is the most demoralizing act you could commit toward them. Shame on you for even thinking it!

2. 2. Social Security is not yours to play with! That money was put in your trust by millions of hard-working Americans. We earned it and believed you when you said you would hold it and invest it and return it to us when we got old and needed it back. We let you use it in good faith. But you have repeatedly raided the till and now are claiming there isn’t enough money in it. Whose fault is that? We are still required to pay in, and now you’re telling us we may not be able to get our money out. That, my friends, is akin to the Enron debacle. Why would we make an investment that we know is going to fail? If you want to change the rules for future contributions, that’s fine; but you made a contract with every person who fed into that fund, and you have no right to change the rules for that money that has already been paid in.

3. 3. Welfare is a blight on this country. It was intended as a stop-gap to help people temporarily when they hit hard times. If you really want to “save” some money, make the people who are multigenerational welfare recipients go to work. What you have taught them is that they can rely on the government (i.e., taxpayers) to pay for everything—that they are entitled to sit on their couches, watching TV, while the rest of America goes out and works to support them. You’re not doing them any favors. Yes, there will be weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth for a while, but soon they will learn the self-respect that comes with making one’s own way in the world, and they will take pride in their accomplishments. That’s the way it’s supposed to be.

4. 4. Stop any and all programs that support the existence of illegal aliens in this country. I won’t call them “undocumented immigrants.” They are here illegally and draining the resources of those who follow the rules. They do not deserve to be here under those circumstances. If they want to leave, go through the correct procedures and return, that’s fine. That’s the only way that is acceptable.

5. 5. Understand the word “budget”—you know, that one you told us to tighten. That set of rules that dictates how we are to live within our means, refrain from buying things we can’t afford, and be otherwise fiscally responsible. We are required to learn to make do with the money we have, and nobody bails us out if we can’t. We can’t print more money—that’s illegal for us. We can’t force our employers to pay us more to get us out of holes, but that’s what you’re trying to do to us—again. As a matter of fact, you’ve done it to us over and over. Just where is the line drawn? You are acting like feudal lords—you want more, so you put it on the backs of the serfs to provide it, and we’re supposed to happily go to the fields and work ourselves to death for your gain, all the while losing hope that we’ll ever be able to achieve our own dreams. That’s not freedom, my friends, and we who are still in sight of what freedom is will not sit back and accept that. Learn to live within your means!

6. 6. Finally, remember who you are. You were elected by the people to serve us. You are required to represent our interests, not your political ambitions. I personally believe that the Founding Fathers never intended for there to be career politicians. I am convinced that the corruption that we see rampant in our government and its agents is just one more manifestation of entitlement. You think that once you’re in government, you’re set for life. As long as you play the game and keep getting yourself reelected, you’ve got a huge income (by the standard of most taxpayers, let alone the world) and the best benefits and retirement packages on the planet. Many of you, therefore, will do anything—moral or not—to keep your positions. I plan to do all I can to put an end to government entitlement programs. Your behavior in past weeks has proven to me more than ever that your interests are not those of the people you are supposed to represent. Most of you are coming off as selfish, childish, and undeserving of our trust, let alone our tax dollars to fund your posh lifestyles. Let’s try this: any elected official with a net worth of $2 million or more gets no paycheck, benefits or perks for a year. Can you get by better than Grandma, who lives on Social Security and Medicare?

We have no choice at the eleventh hour but to leave this mess in your hands. But believe me, we won’t make this mistake again. Americans are proud people. Most of us understand what has made this country great, and we won’t let anyone destroy it. Your irresponsibility in the past few months has awakened a sleeping giant. The patriotism that has seen this people through wars, attacks, depressions, and any and all other challenges to our freedoms has brought “we, the people” to our feet. This is our country. We want it back. And we have the means to take it. It’s called “the vote.”

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