Posted by
King Vinyl on Monday, July 21, 2008 6:43:25 PM
Chris Knowlton gave me this no holds barred interview!!!
So I asked him question on these five major topics of intense political discussion. They are education, the economy, immigration, National , And finally World issues. But really shouldn't every politician be running to the microphone to assert their position on either side?
Well don't hold your breath, find out!!!
Mr. Knowlton is a man who is running for congress in the Missouri 5th District House Primary race. This is the second segment of 5 questions these address the topic of the Economy.
Economy
Bootheel Buzz:
1) Is it fair to say that a direct link can be made between the high cost of fuel and the weakening dollar in the overall US economy?
Chris Knowlton:
In some ways. Trade in general led by Oil has placed this drain on American wealth, with Trillions of dollars leaving our pockets for countries that have no love or allegiance to our way of life. China, Saudi Arabia and others have different goals than our nation does and with the accumulation of wealth, which we provide to them, Dictators do what they generally do. They manipulate things to their favor.
Bootheel Buzz:
2) Do support legislation to end all earmark spending?
Chris Knowlton:
Yes. While earmarks would be a very powerful tool for the minority who may not be able to have their appropriations considered while not in power. I feel that it is a breech of trust. The legislators are to play within the system and not go around it. This sends a bad message to the country, that they are above the law and are willing to skirt their own policy’s to get what they want, which is usually expressed with money from the general fund or tax policy’s that exempt their favorite benefactors. So, I would do my best to end earmarks.
Bootheel Buzz:
3) Would you support Fair Tax style legislation, that taxes you based on what you spend?
Chris Knowlton:
Yes. My plan is slightly different than the book lays out. I would tax citizens 5% and non-citizens 10% (and imports) from their checking accounts. Citizens would buy back American debt with 4of the 5% with the remainder going to the Federal budget. Companies would also send 1% to the Feds while splitting the 4% equally with their employees. Our non-citizen 10% would go directly to a fund for the states. Those funds would be equally divided by the number of Representatives and Senators for each state. That caucus would present a spending plan to their respective state legislature for agreement prior to disbursement.
This plan would eliminate all federal taxes, the IRS and reduce the size of the Federal Government so that it might live within its means. It would also place the debt of this nation in the hands of interested parties, its citizens.
Bootheel Buzz:
4) In the 80’s we had “Where’s the Beef” when it came to a good hamburger. When it comes to climate change can we at least ask. What happened to the next ice age, nuclear destruction, acid rain, the ozone layer and now, “where is this globe a warming”?
Chris Knowlton:
You are correct. There are some productive things that have come out of the Manmade Global Warming issue. It has shown how poorly our schools have done in critical thinking and history. It has exposed those who would control everything in our lives to be tyrants in "De-sky’s" and it has shown how emotional issues can glaze the eyes of normally intelligent people. I trust that the Europeans and Canadians that signed on to Kyoto and have failed to meet their 2007 Carbon levels may be learning their lesson. Restriction policy’s truly hurt real people and Carbon only helps plants.
Bootheel Buzz:
5) The Democrats often point to the futures market as the main cause of record high crude oil prices. Is this an oil price bubble and would these prices increase or decrease with an increase US oil exploration?
Chris Knowlton:
This is a supply vs demand question. The Southeast Asians and the Pacific Rim countries are growing rapidly with our exported cash. They like to use the U.S. as a model of what they can offer their population. They want better food, a nice place to stay and better stuff. And then they want freedom of movement, which is where cars and fuel to move them come in. We have it they want it and with this newfound prosperity they will not be denied. Oil is a big part of their success as it has been with our success. It currently drives this economy. If we kept some of our money here and some of our oil jobs here we would be in better shape in many areas. Drill here, drill now and pay less.
Bootheel Buzz:
6) Is there any chance we can conserve our way to energy independence without huge new advances in technology?
Chris Knowlton:
No. Those who believe that conservation alone are hopeless and have little understanding of markets. Being a good steward of what we have been blessed with could be emphasized more. One must put something in to get something out. If there is nothing to put in there will be no resulting output. This may be what some want. I assure you that I will fight this to the bitter end. And with my 60 year plan will have totally green power production a reality. But we are not there yet.
This concludes the economic portion of our interview catch the next part Immigration as we ask Chris all the hard questions any congressman will have to answer as a member of the US House of Representatives.