Federal Distrust Impacts Local Ballot Initiatives…

The City of Colorado Springs is laying off Fire Fighters and other essential services, and the City is asking for people to support a property tax increase to pay for maintaining these services. It will most likely fail, not because people don’t think our Fire Fighters, police and other services are valuable, they will be sending a message that taxes are out of control. Not just at the local level but the federal level.

The federal government is wastefully spending trillions of dollars of our hard earned income, and people are done. Add an additional $200 a year to a property tax bill and the reaction is predictable. It is predictable because tax payers lump all taxes into one bucket. And why not? They have to pay for every level of government, and every federal program, even if it doesn’t impact them. The entire system is upside down.

We should be paying for local services and state services since we receive the most benefit from them. And I agree there is always inefficiency in government, but would we be more willing to support local causes if we didn’t have to pay through our nose for federal programs? The federal government is out of control, and until we reduce their scope and cost, we will never convince taxpayers to pay more when they have a choice to vote additional taxes down. If we had a choice to vote on every tax at the federal level do you think we would be funding ACORN, the UN, and so many other agencies and programs that flush our money down a toilet?

I am formally submitting my campaign papers to run for Governor of Colorado on Wednesday and this issue goes right to the heart of my campaign. We are suffering at the local and state level because people are angry at the inefficiency, fraud and abuse at the federal level. We need our essential services; we don’t need to be using our tax dollars to bailout multinational corporations like GM.

I have a special place in my heart for fire fighters since I have a few in the family. I also believe our police are critical to our orderly community. My wife is a nurse and there is no greater profession that supports the needs of our local citizens. What I don’t have a place in my heart for are corrupt politicians at any level. The perception and reality is; our politicians no longer represent our interest, they represent special interests. Those days are coming to an end if I have my way, and the support of independent minded citizens.

I have been asked why I am “obsessed” with the Tenth Amendment and this is why. We are spending so many Colorado tax dollars on pet programs in other states unconstitutionally, while locally our fire fighters are going door to door to beg for support for a local ballot initiative. We need to stop sending our Colorado dollars to Washington D.C., by utilizing the constitution that clearly defines the roles and responsibilities of government.

We will continue to beg for our own money if we don’t once and for all say; no more federal money for unconstitutional projects, bridges to nowhere, studies of freckled turtles, and corrupt organizations like ACORN. We must stand together now.

And if there was ever a group that I would want to be standing with it is our Fire Fighters and Police Officers.