A New Work Week for Congress

We need to change the way The House and Senate work, literally.  The current congressional work week was developed back when politicians had to travel to Washington D.C. on horseback.  The congressional work schedule must be updated to reflect current realities. 

 

The following proposal will limit the influence of lobbyist, increase transparency and put an end to the end of session legislative antics that Rhode Islanders know all to well.  I propose the following:

 

Congress will not meet in July or December.

 

Congress will meet in Washington one week per month.

 

Representatives will stay at home the other three weeks.  This will force them to spend less time with lobbyists and more with the people they represent.

 

One major issue will be addressed per month. 

 

The additional time can be used to deal with emergency issues. 

 

We can put an end to business as usual by changing the way government conducts its business.   

Public Service vs. Self-Service

Small businesses are closing all the time.  Some local writers refer to these closures as “signs that the old Rhode Island is slipping away.”  I beg to differ.  The old Rhode Island is not slipping away; it is being strangled to death by self-serving politicians. 

 

Our political elites do not care about Rhode Island.  Some of them even exercise contempt for democracy.  Former (it feels good to say that) Democratic State Senator Stephen Alves’s efforts to overturn primary results in West Warwick is a recent example.  Alves, like the Narcissus of Greek mythology, only cares about himself.  I submit his legislative record as evidence of that fact.   

 

My opponent, Patrick Kennedy, was referred to as the “boy congressman” when he was elected in 1994.  He is all grown up now, but Rhode Island tax payers have raised him at considerable cost.  Mr. Kennedy has offered few solutions and often is part of the problem. 

 

Our state, once a cornerstone of American industry, now has the second highest unemployment rate in the country.  We have one of the worst business climates.  Our pension system is under-funded, and young people are fleeing the state for greener pastures. 

 

Congress is a mess and Mr. Kennedy represents a reactionary majority.  They had opportunities to prevent the current economic crisis but failed to do so.  As your representative I will be proactive in heeding economic warning signs. 

 

Rhode Island’s system is broken.  The only way to achieve real change is by changing our representation.  Patrick Kennedy is not a bad person, but he has been a bad representative.  He needs to be removed from office. 

 

The General Assembly needs to be changed as well.  Your representative or senator may be a good person, but elections should not be popularity contests.  Ask yourself one question before you vote:  is the person you are voting for working to empower you, or is that person working to empower the government?    

 

Rhode Island is slipping away but together we can pull it back. 

Hope for New Orleans

About a year ago I had the opportunity to tour parts of New Orleans that were still recovering from the devastation of Hurricane Katrina.  My prayers are with the people of New Orleans and my friends at Desire Street Ministries.  Desire Street Ministries, which is run by former University of Florida football great, Danny Wuerffel, is truly doing God’s work on behalf of those hit hardest by Katrina.  My thoughts are with them in this time of crisis.       

On McCain’s Choice

Congratulations to Sen. McCain on a strategic masterstroke in selecting Gov. Sarah Palin as his running mate. Sen. Obama likes to talk about change, but working Americans know that change is an action.  McCain’s record shows that he is change in action. His selection of Palin puts yet another crack in the much talked about glass ceiling.  And she is a great American! 

 

When Democrats offer change it invariably arrives inside the Trojan horse of big government.  McCain and the G.O.P. are offering change that will protect individual liberty. 

Vote on the Issues

This may sound strange coming from a Republican, but cheers for Ted Kennedy.  I am well aware, as the son of a cancer survivor, of the courage required to battle such an illness.  My heart is with my opponent, Patrick Kennedy, and his father on this issue.  Sometimes we have to be human beings instead of Republicans and Democrats.  Everyone deserves to be healthy.

 

In November you will be casting ballots in support of candidates who will be custodians of Rhode Island’s and America’s economic health.  This should be more than a popularity contest.  Patrick Kennedy has represented Rhode Island’s first district since 1994 and it is time for change.  Mr. Kennedy continues to support policies that consolidate government power at the expense of individual liberty. 

 

My opponent voted to send congress on a five week vacation without addressing the energy crisis.  Our wallets are suffering as a result.  Congress must lift its ban on offshore drilling.  Countries like Brazil have become completely energy self-sufficient while our elected officials work to obstruct energy development.

 

Mr. Kennedy believes that the government should decide where Rhode Island kids go to school, and determine the type of health care coverage they should receive.  He is wrong.  These choices should be made by individuals. 

 

It is okay to root for the Kennedy’s personally but vote against them because of their policies.  Patrick Kennedy’s ideas are wrong for Rhode Island. 

Pelosi, Congress drop the ball on energy…again!

Allow me this moment to applaud Rep. Mike Pence (R-IN) and his Republican colleagues in the House of Representatives for exercising political courage on behalf of the American people.  Last week’s Republican floor revolt was an appropriate response to the Democratic majority’s unacceptable failure to address our nation’s energy concerns. 
 
America faces an energy crisis that threatens our economy, standard of living and national security.  Real leaders act in times of crisis.  Nancy Pelosi, Patrick Kennedy and the Democratic majority failed America on Friday.  They should be replaced. 
 
Congress created this energy crisis, common sense can solve it.  Congress must authorize more drilling.  At the same time we need to pursue all alternative energy options including wind projects such as Cape Wind. We need to create solar panels, build nuclear power plants and use more natural gas.  Every energy option must be placed on the table.  Energy prices will drop when the supply increases.      
 
The people of Rhode Island need representatives who are patriots first and party members second.  Those who feel well served by the Democratic majority’s failure to address the energy crisis should vote to send our current representatives back to Washington.  Those being harmed by the burden of unprecedented and unnecessarily high fuel costs should vote for new representation in November.

Donations

The campaign is up on Slatecard.com, a great new website for those of us who run with the elephants.

My Page can be accessed here:

http://slatecard.com/candidates/732

Please give generously. It’ll take ideas to beat Kennedy but, as much as I hate it that money is the mother’s milk of politics, It’ll take cash, as well.

Media Fun

It’s been a bit of a whirlwind since last Monday. We announced and had some good press in the Providence Journal. The story can be seen at:

http://www.projo.com/news/politics/content/scott_congress_06-11-08_H1AFH73_v26.37313a2.html

We also got some time on WPRO with Dan Yorke on both Tuesday and Wednesday. Dan and I slugged it out a bit but the end result was a bit of money pledged and some supportive emails.

We got more in the Journal after the Thursday night convention win and a few articles in the local papers. We’ll have links to all of those as the regular web site gets up and running next week.

I’ve been on the phone almost constantly since Monday’s release went out. All press is good press.

On Sunday, I was on ABC 6 with Jim Hummel. Loved the discussion but we’re going to have to talk to someone about that camera angle!

http://www.abc6.com/results?keywords=nazarian+scott&searchType=gen&submit=Search

Keep an eye out and let us know what you see. It was a great start and we’ve had some great feedback.

JPS

I’m A Bad Blogger

I’ve been a bad blogger. I get on the road and I end up not blogging and then the people who check it and care about what I am doing in November write me nasty notes. Well I’m back and focused and will try to get some thoughts up here on a regular basis. I guess I envy the politicians who have people who do this kind of thing for them but, I suppose, if I did – I’d no longer be me. I’ve always prided myself on the fact that “what you see is what you get”.

Starting on Monday, I’ll let folks in on what I’ve been thinking about for the election season and where we stand as of right now. If you’re reading this, thanks for sticking with my old posts and checking in but tell your friends who haven’t been here that I’m back and that election season is beginning.

I’ll leave folks with the thought that a friend always cites from a T-shirt: “more people have read my T-shirt than your blog”. That’s what happens when you forget to blog every day – or month ;-).

JPS

More Hits… I Just Need More Hits…

Thanks to Andrew Morse and Ian Donnis, who have written about my new presence here in the blogosphere, I’ve had quite a few “hits”. I’ve also come to realize why they call them hits. I’ve become addicted to the little graph that tracks them and I want… No… I need… more and more every day. The problem that I am struggling with is the question of how to do that. How do I keep you all entertained and informed and interested enough that you choose to come back every day? I’ll burn out if I try to write something profound with every post.

I’ve made the commitment to myself that I will put SOMETHING up each night before I leave the office. I’ve also decided that it won’t all be about politics. All work and no play will make Jon a dull boy and, since I’m contributing to www.politicalderby.com as well, that could all add up to a heap of dull. Blogging is supposed to be fun… right?

My first solution will be to veer off the path and cover the “life” part of “Politics and Life in Rhode Island” once in a while.  The other thing that I promise you is that you will get to follow my learning process here. What that means is that, occasionally, I’ll talk about sports and restaurants and tasty beverages and cigars and sometimes I’ll let you in on the frustrations and victories that befall me in my blogging education. Today I’m on the latter.

Much to my surprise, my meerkat picture appeared when I responded to my first comment. Apparently it doesn’t display with my posts, just with my comments. Frustrating still, but a victory none-the less. In the liabilities column, I tried to link to a Youtube video on Veterans Day and couldn’t get it right. I wanted the video embedded. All I could get was the link, despite the fact that Youtube hands the code to you.  Though I’m a bit technologically challenged, we’ll get this down eventually.

In the meantime I’ve given you my meerkat picture in full size so that you know what you’re looking at when I comment. From now on, in order to see the cute little critters, you’ll have to comment. Remember that I’m the politician who believes that the process is about you, the voters. I’m here to listen to your comments and to learn. Let me know what you think. Let me know how you feel. Let me know how to embed a Youtube video in my blog.

Most of all, keep that graph going up and keep those hits coming. I gotta have ’em. More and more every day.

 JPS