Last week, President Obama came to Ohio to talk about solving the economic problems facing Ohio and the rest of America.

Instead of laying out a strategy to get our country back on track, he spoke of a new stimulus program, although he didn’t use the word stimulus.  He wants another $50 billion in infrastructure spending, stretched over six years and funded by cuts elsewhere.  The President didn’t mention that his $50 billion infrastructure spending would not create any jobs for almost a year.  He also didn’t mention that although his new spending program would create construction and supply industry jobs, it would necessarily eliminate jobs where the cuts in spending are to take place.  With nearly 15 million people unemployed across our nation, a “wash” is not exactly good news.

The President just doesn’t seem to understand how dire a situation his policies have created.  AND he’s now arguing a step that I believe will certainly make the problem far worse!  He’s proposing the elimination of Bush tax cuts for families earning more than $250,000 a year  – in other words, a TAX INCREASE for all those folk.  He says he would use that revenue to fund a temporary tax credit for business investment.

What he hasn’t told us is that this would hike to 50 percent the marginal tax rates on businesses that account for more than half of all small business profits- yes, that’s right  — he wants to raise taxes on the same small business owners that he’s calling on to hire the unemployed.

I’ve spent the last several weeks “Meeting with Main Street” Ohio and the one thing I’ve heard over and over in shops and offices all along the way is that they aren’t hiring because they don’t have enough customers.  A temporary investment tax credit won’t solve their problem or enable them to hire more employees – but the new taxes and health care mandates might well put them out of business altogether.

A message we need to make clear to the President and Betty Sutton is that tax increases are not going to create new jobs!

Cross Posted at Tom Ganley for Congress.com

But I do have concerns over the creation and handling of the fund. First of all, we need to get the help to the residents of the Gulf now – not when some bureaucrat sitting in Washington or New York decides to approve payments. I find it especially troubling when I hear a public official say, well we will pay these legitimate claims within 90 days. The people of the Gulf who need our help don’t have 90 days. Most of these hard working Americans live week to week. Their families need to be fed and clothed, their mortgage, car, truck, and utility payments can’t wait.

There is no dispute from anyone that this oil spill is a real disaster and that BP should have to pick up the tab for everything connected with their negligence, whether it is criminal or civil. I am more than willing to let the Courts ultimately sort out which claims are legitimate and which ones are not. That is the beauty of our system. We remain a nation of laws. We don’t throw away the Constitution or the laws we follow at the first sign of a crisis.

So, let’s use our good old American ingenuity to figure out how to provide emergency funds to the people of the Gulf and sort out the whys and hows later. But let’s do it according to our Constitution and our laws. We must demand nothing less.

Cross posted at Tom Ganley.com

I believe the people are telling Washington insiders that they want representatives in Washington who will deal with federal spending in a responsible manner.

More Americans than ever before are getting involved in the political process – and that’s a good thing. They are paying attention to what is going on in Washington, and they are expressing their dissatisfaction. Federal spending is rising from about 21 percent to 25 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP). That’s a huge increase. The national debt is expected to double as a percentage of the GDP within a decade, and that is unacceptable.

In the past, most voter unhappiness was focused on taxes, but now much of the discontent is focused on out of control spending. With each new pie in the sky spending scheme by Democrats, such as the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) or the stimulus, budget and health care bills, people are demanding that the government stop spending money we don’t have!

This is exactly why we need to send business people to Congress now more than ever. As a businessman, I know how to budget efficiently, meet a payroll and most importantly stop spending money that’s not there. I need your help and your vote, so I can get to Washington, apply my business skills, and help save this sinking ship!

Cross Posted at Tom Ganley.com

When moderator Tom Brokaw responded that the Catholic Church “feels very strongly” that life begins at conception, Pelosi responded “I understand. And this is like maybe 50 years or something like that. So again, over the history of the Church this is an issue of controversy.” The Catholic Church was forced to respond to the Speaker by pointing out “The Catechism of the Catholic Church says “Human life must be respected and protected absolutely from the moment of conception.” Strike one for Nancy.

Then she commented on the Immigration controversy by saying that she wants the Catholic Church to instruct its members that immigration reform is a “manifestation of our living the gospels.” So, if I understand Speaker Pelosi, and I’m not really sure anyone does, it’s ok to oppose your church on abortion by misleading people about what its doctrine is, and then turn around and insist that they indoctrinate their members on immigration reform, because she wants reform. Strike two for Nancy.

Now Nancy has just struck out. She recently spoke to a group of entrepreneurs and told them this about the new health care law “We see it as an entrepreneurial bill – a bill that says to someone if you want to be creative or be a musician, you can leave your work, focus on your talent, skill, passion because you will have health care – you don’t have to be job locked.” Strike three for Nancy.

It’s time to send Nancy Pelosi a message. In fact, it is time to retire her. Help me in my campaign for Congress and we will take a giant step toward doing just that.

Cross Posted at Tom Ganley.com

“Tom Ganley’s story epitomizes the American dream – he is a self-made man from humble beginnings who wants to go to Washington to make a real positive difference for Ohio and the country. Tom is a man of strong convictions who doesn’t need to check the latest poll or political winds to find a position – he stands for life, a strong national defense, lower taxes and more efficiently run government. Tom is a family man who has grown a once small business and maintained its success in the face of extreme obstacles. Huck PAC and I are proud to endorse Tom Ganley for U.S. Congress. If he can stand up and help take down the Mob, he won’t back down to the liberal left leadership of Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid” Governor Huckabee said.

I am honored and humbled to have the endorsement of one of the outstanding conservatives in the Republican Party in Governor Mike Huckabee, The Governor is someone who understands exactly what the American people are saying and what they expect from their government. I am grateful that he has looked at this race and decided that I represent the values that he and Huck PAC stand for. I am proud to join the ranks of conservative Republicans such as Marco Rubio and Governor Bob McDonnell, who have previously been endorsed by Governor Huckabee.

Cross Posted at Tom Ganley.com

Unfortunately, the federal government has never learned those three basic things. This year Congress isn’t even going to trouble themselves with passing a Budget Resolution. It seems that Nancy Pelosi and the Democrats in the House don’t want the American people to know how bad our financial situation really is. It’s amazing to me that even though the House is required, by their rules, to adopt a Budget Resolution by April 15, they can just ignore it if they choose.

Congress and the Obama Administration continue to come up with spending plans and proposals that we simply have no way of paying for. With a deficit of almost $13 trillion dollars, and several programs such as social security and medicare already on shaky ground, it is time to act.

We simply must find a way to reduce the deficit and to get back to responsible spending practices. Future generations are depending on us to take action. None of us want to burden our children and grandchildren with a debt that can’t be paid. And the experts are all telling us that we are on an economic course that can’t be sustained.

It seems pretty clear to me that the only way to make irresponsible Washington politicians become responsible is to pass a law that will force them to balance the federal budget every fiscal year. That is why I will support and work to pass a Balanced Budget Amendment.

Cross Posted at Tom Ganley.com

Experts talk about a jobless recovery. To me, that’s no recovery at all. It may bode well for Wall Street and big corporations, but it sure doesn’t help the average person, who is struggling to find a job just to feed their family. Unemployment in America is a major problem and it is one that we must solve.

Although the Obama Administration prefers to focus on the good news in the latest report by the bureau of Labor and Statistics, we also have to pay close attention to the fact that the unemployment rate rose from 9.7% to 9.9%. Some experts say that is just because people who have stopped looking for work are back looking. That is misleading.

The American people never give up looking for work, and what the Obama Administration doesn’t tell you is that the statistics kept by the Labor Department don’t include the true unemployment figures. For example, there is a statistic called U-6, which is generally accepted to be the true unemployment rate, but is never referred to by any government agency.

The Bureau of Labor and Statistics admits that “U-6: Includes the unemployed, marginally attached workers, and part-time workers. This calculation is considered the real unemployment rate because it includes the general population’s idea of unemployment.”

The actual number of unemployed in America is estimated to be over 17% of our population presently employed. That is a staggering figure and these are the people that most need our help.

Cross posted at Tom Ganley.com

You see, the issue in Greece is simple.  The government in Greece has set policies over the years that have nurtured and led to an entitlement based society; a society where the people expect their government to give them a “handout” rather than a “hand up.”  As evidenced today in Greece, this type of governing works well enough until the government runs out of money and runs out of others willing to support them.  When the people have become totally dependent on a government that can no longer support them, chaos ensues.

This story sounds strikingly similar to what is happening in our own country.  President Obama and Nancy Pelosi are leading our nation down the same treacherous road and Betty Sutton is following in their footsteps and voting for this dangerous liberal agenda every time she has the chance.

Honestly, this highlights the fundamental differences between our Republican Party and the Democrat Party.  Obama, Pelosi and Sutton believe that the Federal Government knows better how to use our money than do we.  They believe that a bigger federal government can “take care” of it’s people.  They support tax payer funded bailouts for companies that can’t make it on their own.

What’s most disturbing to me, is that Greece is a perfect example of the crisis that will result if the Obama Administration is left unchecked to pursue these radical policies, yet Nancy Pelosi and Betty Sutton seem more determined today than ever to follow without questions.

Let the Greece Trap be our lesson!  We must stop this ever growing, ever spending, ever taxing federal government  … or our children and grandchildren will have to deal with the consequences.  That’s not something I’m willing to let happen.  Join our Ganley team today and help me lead this fight!

cross posted at Tom Ganley.com

Now the Administration can’t seem to make up their mind.  The President says he will explore it.  The Vice President says oh no, that’s not what he meant.  Well, before they get any further along with another bad idea, they might want to consider what the American people want.  A recent poll shows that 73% of the respondents oppose a Value added tax, including 65% of Democrats, 83% of Republicans and 71% of Independents.

Why is opposition so widespread?  One reason is that it would be in addition to the income tax, and all the other taxes we already pay.  Another reason is that it would hit hardest the group that can least afford it.  Most middle class Americans spend much more of their disposable income on consumer goods than the wealthy.  So they would pay more of their income on a VAT.  Poll after poll indicates that we feel overtaxed – we don’t want another tax of any kind.  Those same polls also show that we believe government spending is the problem.

I have read estimates saying that a 5% VAT would generate $250 billion in annual revenues.  So, if we want to get rid of the estimated $1 trillion annual deficit that our government expects through 2020, we would need a VAT of 20%.  Do the math.  Add all the taxes that you are paying now to this.

If Democrats have their way, we will all soon be saying “we work for the government!!”

Cross posted at Tom Ganley.com

Most people will look at a bill dealing with Wall Street and major financial corporations and say so what – it doesn’t affect me. But it does. First of all, it is an ill-conceived bill, badly drafted, with no transparency. Once again the Democrats seem determined to push through legislation without any input from Republicans. They also are determined to avoid any debate, let alone give the American people the chance to read the legislation.

The Democrats are now pushing as part of their massive financial reform bill the creation of a Consumer Financial Protection Agency. On its face it might sound like a good idea. Until you study the bill and realize that what they really are doing is growing the size of government once again by duplicating existing regulatory agencies. One of the agencies Democrats want to create is an “Office of Financial Research.” They propose giving them half a billion dollars a year to gather information on individual financial transactions so government bureaucrats can suggest policy changes.

I don’t know of too many Ohioans who want another group of bureaucrats snooping through their bank accounts and brokerage accounts for information. At a time when our country is trying to deal with a huge economic crisis the last thing we need is a bad financial reform bill that could raise the cost of capital, slow economic growth even further and drive wealth out of the country.

Tom Ganley
Cross Posted on Tom Ganley.com