The Speech I Want to Hear / Give

Good Afternoon, it's a pleasure to be here with you today in sunny Tampa and I thank you for the kind invitation.

Normally, a political person will open one of these speeches with a line like "My Fellow Americans..." Well, that's the normal approach and I am far from normal. "Normal" politicians, doing business the "normal" way haven't even been able to maintain a "normal" balance. So today, I ask you to join me in casting off the normal way of doing business and embark on the journey that will save this country (or at least make it a whole lot more entertaining and interesting).

Now, I am not talking about some Tea Party departure from normal. The only thing those people do differently than the tired old Democrats and Republicans is yell louder. They aren't part of the solution, they are an addition to the problem. I am talking about a bold new course. Not independent, not red, not blue, not libertarian, not anything. Today, we stand up and say that 95% of the country is more like us and the 5% of the country represented by our government time has run out. The clock is ticking on the people in Washington because a government by the people and for the people is about to be taken over by the people.

We can no longer sit idly by and pretend that America is the greatest country on Earth and that our brand of capitalism and democracy is the cure-all by which the world will be saved. If we had all of the answers, we wouldn't be subject to Russia and China being the lien holders on 70% of our debt. So, if we want to be great again bold action is required. Normal needs to end.

A great society is not one where people die merely because they are poor. A great society is not one in which the divide between the haves and have nots continues to grow. It is not one where tax burdens on companies are so high that the largest and wealthiest corporations leave the country in order to save money. It is not one where stockholder returns trump the good of the people. It is not a society that works more hours and takes less vacation than any other industrialized country in the world.

When I was a kid growing up in Polk County, Florida the radio station there had a loveable syndicated redneck that would be on the radio each morning railing against some injustice in society. Well today I am channeling Earl Pitts, Great American Redneck and telling you to Wake Up America!

Solutions don't get you elected in this country but it's time to say it like it is and make the solutions, not rhetoric, the order of business.

Our platform is simple and sound and provides meaningful and lasting solutions for the country that our generations to come will thank us for. Here are some highlights:

- The Department of Defense and the Department of Homeland Security will be combined into a single department focused on protecting THIS country and this country alone. We will protect ourselves and ourselves alone and leave other countries to do the same. We will no longer project democracy on those who cannot grasp it. We will no longer pick a fight to protect the stream of oil coming into this country. If you live in a country and allow a bad guy to take over, fix the problem yourself. We are going to focus on working on ours.

- On the topic of oil, we will take the money saved by no longer running crusades of democracy and focus them on developing alternative energy sources. 43 years ago we sent men to the moon with the computing power of a modern digital watch. We haven't solved this energy issue because quite frankly, rich people can't get richer when it's solved. No more! We will commit to developing new technology that is renewable and clean by the end of the next decade. It can be done, it will be done, it MUST be done.

- The remaining resources saved by pulling back the military and consolidating security will be put toward an ongoing plan to fix and upgrade America's rapidly decaying infrastructure. Our talented military minds will be put to use inside the US designing new bridges, roadways, mechanical and electrical and communication systems to benefit all of the citizens of this country...not just the military and certainly not the citizens of other countries. We will protect our borders as fiercely as we have protected those of other countries. We will always welcome immigration...legally. We will use the National Guard to embark on an ambitious round up of illegal residents of this country and send them back to the country from which they came. When they can get here legally we will welcome them back.

- Income and payroll taxes will be replaced by a national sales tax that based on revenue needs will be no lower than 15% and no higher than 17.5%. For those who say this unjustly punishes the poor, I respectfully disagree. This tax is the fairest of all taxes. If you do not wish to pay tax, don't buy anything unnecessary. Estate taxes, capital gains taxes, etc. will all be abolished. The IRS will shift it's focus to enforcing the paying of the sales tax by companies instead of that by individuals. Social Security will be phased out giving Americans the choice of where to spend, invest or save their own money. Churches will no longer be given tax exemptions.

- Congress will enact term limits We will push to amend the Constitution to allow for a 4 year term for Representatives and keep the Senate term at 6. Representatives will be limited to 2 terms while Senators will be limited to 3. Upon leaving office, one may run for the other House after a 10 year period but may not serve in the same house again. This change allows for Representatives to do some real work without being so focused on immediately needing to be re-elected. Yet it removes the specter of career politicians.

- The United States will operate on balanced budget.

- Marriage will no longer be legally recognized. Two consenting adults may enter into a legal, civil union with all of the rights now known to be part of marriage. Churches may continue to marry people, or choose not to if the marriage violates their beliefs, in addition to the legal union, with no additional rights to the citizens.

- We will downsize Medicare and Medicaid and emphasize working opportunities. All federal aid will have a time limit for individuals to collect to motivate them to work. We will fix the broken and tangled mess that comprises our healthcare system, not by nationalizing it, but by holding insurers and healthcare providers to standards. However, at the end of the day healthcare is the responsibility of each individual citizen.

There was a time where being an American meant something and we will get back to that time. It will take hard work, it will take sacrifice and it will take many of you looking in the mirror and realizing you are not as entitled as you think you are. If you don't have a job, there will be many left behind when the illegal residents are sent home. If you think this work is beneath you, then you are part of the problem not part of the solution.

I am here to tell you that America and democracy are hard. It's not a spectator sport. You must take action. You must not sit idly by and think things will be okay. Do not believe what you see on TV. The guy with the clean record, isn't the guy you want to run this country. The only qualification for the job should be the solutions they offer and whether or not you think they can get them done. I think I can. I have fornicated, I have been drunk too many times to count, I curse too much and I don't believe in religion... I am one of you. I am the majority.

I am an American, I have real solutions and I am running for President.