Latta weighs in on Republican ‘Pledge to America’
Written by Kristen Criswell | | krapin@toledofreepress.comThe Republican Party revealed on Sept. 24 its “Pledge to America,” a plan outlining what the party would do if it had control of Congress.
The pledge takes stances on health care, federal spending and national security and calls for a reduction in the size of government.
“A lot of people had said through the course of the year, ‘What do the Republicans stand for?’ Here it is. This is what we believe in, because this is also what the American people believe in,” said Congressman Bob Latta (R, Bowling Green).
The Pledge to America was derived from citizens’ responses during the Republican Party’s Americans Speaking Out campaign. The campaign utilized nationwide meetings as well as a website for Americans to give feedback about issues that face the country.
“I could have written this with my eyes closed. Everything that’s in here is what I’ve been hearing since I’ve been in Congress,” Latta said.
The No. 1 focus of the pledge is creating jobs and ending economic uncertainty, Latta said.
Bob Latta
“Getting the economy moving and creating jobs doesn’t happen unless you get the federal government to quit doing what it’s doing. We can’t have this ‘stimulus of the week,’” he said. “We can’t afford that stuff.”
The federal government needs to “quit killing the entrepreneur,” and needs to set the private industry loose to create jobs, Latta said.
“I went and talked to plant managers and plant owners and people in the factory floors; when I’m talking to these folks who are trying to keep these companies afloat, what I find is the same thread. ‘We can’t afford the health care legislation, we can’t afford cap and trade if that would pass, we can’t afford more regulations, we can’t afford all the debt and the deficit,’” he said. “When you start looking at all these things that’s why these companies aren’t hiring. What we have to do is say, ‘What is keeping these companies from hiring?’ and eliminate that.”
The pledge promises to cut back on red tape and eliminate job-killing mandates. The Pledge also promises businesses a 20 percent reduction in their taxes.
Many parts of the Republican’s pledge need to be happening right now, Latta said. The Bush tax cuts need to be extended or made permanent, and the death tax needs to be addressed.
“[If the Bush tax cuts aren’t renewed] you’ll have a huge massive tax increase … More money will flow to Washington. What is the result of more money going to Washington? We’re not paying down the debt we’re spending,” he said. “One of the other scenarios is we’re taking money out of businesses and the businesses that are out there are going to say we can’t create more jobs.”
In addition, out of control spending within the budget and the issue of passing a budget need to be addressed, Latta said.
Latta said the pledge provides the public with a good foundation to allow people to look at to explore the fundamental differences between the two parties.
President Barack Obama criticized the pledge in his weekly radio and Internet address Sept. 26.
“It is grounded in the same worn-out philosophy: cut taxes for millionaires and billionaires, cut the rules for Wall Street and the special interests and cut the middle class loose to fend for itself,” Obama said. “That’s not a prescription for a better future. It’s an echo of a disastrous decade we can’t afford to relive.”
“Republicans want to return to the same failed economic policies that hurt millions of Americans and threatened our economy,” said Nadeam Elshami, a spokesman for House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
To read the full text of “Pledge to America,” visit http://pledge.gop.gov.
Tags: Barack Obama, Bob Latta, Pledge to America
