good ideas

I'm tired of hearing the Robert Gibbs, the Obama team, and my liberal friends claiming we're criticizing Obama's budget but that we don't have any cogent policy solutions of our own. Newt has always been a font of ideas, almost too much so. So I'm starting this thread to ask, if you were President, what policy and budget priorities would YOU be sending to Congress.

Brave fellow and glutton for punishment that I am, I'll go first. It's by no means complete (no housing policy for example), but it's a start.

My message to Congress is in four parts. First, stabilize the economic ecosystem and stop the fear that's spreading now to all sectors of the economy as they assess the impact of the recession combined with radical reforms like health care reform and energy policy.

1. Table the cap-and-trade debate until economic growth returns for at least two straight quarters.
2. Table major health care reform til 2010, but help the uninsured and our emergency rooms through Medicaid and S-Chip, and continue discussion of Community Health Centers as a small-scale solution targeting medical services to the uninsured.

Second, we need to have tax policy that attracts investors back to the markets and allows for capital formation that will drive business creation, expansion, and jobs in the private sector -- and keeps some money in the pockets of individuals so they can spend, save, or pay down debt.

1. Permanent indexing or elimination of alternative minimum tax
2. Leave Bush tax cuts in place til 2012
3. Cut or eliminate the death tax
4. 5-year tax holiday for long-term cap gains
5. 5% reduction for short-term cap gains

Third, the federal bureaucracy needs to manage the budget responsibily. In business, millions of managers are challenged every year to reduce expenses while maintaining output. In bad times, those reductions are steeper, and pay is frozen or cut. Time for government to do the same. Items 6-7 are already in the Obama budget.

1. The President should defer his salary for two years, be an example to those greedy CEOs.
2. Implement a 2-year freeze on Congressional compensation (including staff)
3. 5% across the board reduction in administrative and operating expenses for all federal departments and incent managers to acheive these reduction through bonuses
4. Freeze all discretionary spending, except for unemployment compensation
5. 50% cut to travel and entertainment budgets in the legislative and federal branches
6. Account for supplemental spending estimates (wars in Iraq, Afghanistan) in the budget
7. Means-testing for agriculture subsidies

Fourth, we need an energy policy that protects the environment and improves our security by expanding the role of non-fossil fuels in our energy mix, while keeping costs low.

1. Increase the tax write-off for installation of solar panels from 30 to 65% for residences and businesses
2. Fund and accelerate licensing to build 10 new nuclear power plants in 3-5 years to power the electric grid and hybrid cars
3. Provide new incentives for domestic natural gas production and use it as a transitional energy source 

Anytime you hear someone say that the way to fix the “foreclosure crisis” is to “modify loans,” what you are really hearing is a desire for the government to destroy the concept of contracts.

People, for good or bad, made voluntary decisions to sign mortgage contracts which they, for whatever reason, cannot afford.  If such a contract was obtained by fraud, there is already a mechanism in place to address this; it's called suing the crap out of them.

If, however, people voluntarily jumped in over their head, then they do not deserve the drastic action being contemplated by people like Rep. Conyers.

Why do I say drastic?  Because the entire concept of contracts will be potentially voided by a move like this.