For those who may not be familar with me, I'm a relatively moderate and pragmatic libertarian. All I've heard from Romney backers both here, in person, and even from the punditry recently is how electable Romney is. As if the only point of the election is to make sure the President has a R and not a D next to his name.
Like a lot of folks, I'm sick of voting for the lesser of two evils. I want someone who actually deserves my vote and at least somewhat reflects my views and values. I'm not looking for a perfect candidate, but I'm no longer willing to back someone for being marginally less objectionable than the other guy.
So tell me what makes Romney such a good candidate? What programs and measures is he going to introduce to get this country back on track? What can I expect from a Romney Presidency that would make me want to see him inthe Oval office?
Experience
- Got a JD and MBA from Harvard Business/Law School
- Served as CEO at Bain & Co. and brought the company back from the brink to be one of the most successful consulting businesses in the world.
- Demonstrated entreprenuerism by spinning out and forming Bain Capital. Arguably the most successful private equity firm in the world with $66 billion in assets under management.
- Gained executive political experience by becoming a Republican governor in one of the most liberal states in the union and worked with a legislature that was 85% Democrat.
- While governor, by working with an opposition legislature, his administration turned a $3 billion deficit into at $700 million surplus by fixing tax loopholes and cutting spending.
- Utilized his executive business and political experience to turnaround the Winter Olympics from the brink of failure to a stunning success.
Taxes
Eliminate taxes for taxpayers with AGI below $200,000 on interest, dividends, and capital gains
Eliminate the death tax
Pursue a conservative overhaul of the tax system over the long term that includes lower, flatter rates on a broader base
Reduce corporate income tax rate to 25 percent
Pursue transition from “worldwide” to “territorial” system for corporate taxation
Regulation
Repeal Obamacare
Repeal Dodd-Frank and replace with streamlined, modern regulatory framework
Amend Sarbanes-Oxley to relieve mid-size companies from onerous requirements
Initiate review and elimination of all Obama-era regulations that unduly burden the economy
Impose a regulatory cap of zero dollars on all federal agencies
Require congressional approval of all new “major” regulations
Reform legal liability system to prevent spurious litigation
Ensure that environmental laws properly account for cost in regulatory process
Provide multi-year lead times before companies must come into compliance with onerous new environmental regulations
Energy
Implement fast-track procedures for companies with established safety records to conduct pre-approved activities in pre-approved areas
Ensure that environmental laws properly account for cost in regulatory process
Expand NRC capabilities for approval of additional nuclear reactor designs
Streamline NRC processes to ensure that licensing decisions for reactors on or adjacent to approved sites, using approved designs, are complete within two year
Conduct comprehensive survey of America’s energy reserves
Open America’s energy reserves for development
Expand opportunities for U.S. resource developers to forge partnerships with neighboring countries
Support construction of pipelines to bring Canadian oil to the United States
Prevent overregulation of shale gas development and extraction
Concentrate alternative energy funding on basic research
Utilize long-term, apolitical funding mechanisms like ARPA-E for basic research
Fiscal Policy
Immediately cut non-security discretionary spending by 5 percent
Reform and restructure Medicaid as block grant to states
Align wages and benefits of government workers with market rates
Reduce federal workforce by 10 percent via attrition
Undertake fundamental restructuring of government programs and services
Cap federal spending at 20 percent of GDP
Pursue a Balanced Budget Amendment
Unions
Amend NLRA to guarantee the secret ballot in every union certification election
Amend NLRA to guarantee that all pre-election campaigns last at least one month
Support states in pursuing Right-to-Work laws
Prohibit the use for political purposes of funds automatically deducted from worker paychecks