An alternative to the politics of Big and Bigger

Mark Grannis

 If you're old enough to vote this year, then you're old enough to remember

• a Democratic president with a Democratic Congress;
  
• a Republican president with a Democratic Congress;
  
• a Republican president with a Republican Congress; and
  
• a Democratic president with a Republican Congress.
  

Taken together, these four periods exhaust all the ways power can be split between the two major parties in Washington.  What did all these periods have in common? Government got bigger.
That’s a problem, not because government is always bad, but because the proper functions of government do not require it to be very big. Government today is big not primarily because of waste or indolence, but because we have asked it to do too many things. And now, thanks to both Democrats and Republicans, the relentless growth of our government has brought us to financial calamity.
Our government can't pay its bills, but it won't stop borrowing or spending.  As a result, the government is currently headed for insolvency.  Our economy badly needs jobs and investment from the private sector, but instead of encouraging private enterprise our elected officials continue to concentrate power and money in Washington.  We need to change course, and we need to do it now.
The new course we should chart is not really new to people who know our history.  It's actually a return to the values that made our country great.  It's a return to individual liberty, limited government, economic freedom, and the good sense to mind our own business in military matters.  That's the Libertarian way forward, and it's a way that the two major parties both abandoned years ago. 

• I'll fight for government that protects us from violence and theft but otherwise respects our liberty.
  
• I'll demand balanced budgets and oppose new regulatory burdens. 
  
• I'll stand for civil liberties, against foreign wars, and against our counterproductive war on drugs. 
  
• I'll support Congressional reform to prevent a relapse.
  

Now for the make-or-break question:  Will you help me?
Every year, many voters go to the polls with a sense of futility—or worse, stay home from the polls with a sense of futility.  The choice always seems to be between Big Government and Bigger Government.  Smaller, less intrusive, more peaceful government never seems to be on the ballot.

Mark Grannis is the Libertarian Candidate for Congress in Maryland's 8th District.

Truth

"It is good for one to be free, and we would cherish Liberty even if she traveled alone, but she does not. Because Prosperity and Peace are both the companions of Liberty."  —Charles Goyette

Austerity

The current situation we find ourselves in with respect to the financial situation of the Federal Government is one that should be of grave concern to all Americans. This problem did not arise over night; this has been a slow and gradual step up the rungs to financial insolvency.

One example is the enormous amounts of money we have spent on the War on Poverty. We were told that this would “end poverty as we know it”, and it did, it made it worse.

The extreme failure of the War on Poverty has done nothing to pull people out of poverty, because the poverty that exists is not monetary, it is a cultural poverty. It is a poverty that no government can fix; it is one that requires individuals to be responsible for their actions. Through hard work and dedication one can pull themselves up out of their own situation by attaining success through learning from their failures and doing what is right.

The culture of dependency has nearly destroyed the soul of our country. The welfare state is wrought with fraud and failure. It has deprived generations of their dignity and few ever break out of the cycle. They have become enslaved by dependency and are trapped under the giant footprint of government.

Big Government solutions only lead to more misery, with more people identified as “poor” and it places a heavier burden on hard working taxpayers. The Keynesian Economic examples of Greece, Italy and Spain are a brief glimpse into America’s near future if we do not make drastic changes now.

The successful examples of Austerity, which have been implemented into a variety of forms in the Baltic States of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, are prime examples of responsible government solutions. These countries are on the road to recovery after slashing government spending and in Latvia’s case they eliminated nearly half of their government agencies. Latvia did borrow money from the European Union, but that was coupled with significantly reducing the size of its government.

Even if we look to the north at Canada, they have seen strong economic recovery from reducing taxes and government spending while responsibly reducing their debt and their deficit.

When coming back home and looking at America’s situation we have to honestly look at our situation and recognize that it is not sustainable. There is no longer a tax base available to sustain increases in taxes to maintain our current levels of spending. We must accept that this is the greatest threat to our National Security and that when addressing these issues there cannot be any sacred cows.

We must begin the era of Austerity in America by eliminating wasteful and fraudulent programs and agencies. We must begin the era of Economic Liberty by lower taxes and eliminating stringent regulations on businesses.  We must begin the Era of A Smaller Government Footprint.

www.boda4congress.com

Gary Johnson Endorses Muir Boda and Mark Grannis for Congress

Muir Boda for US Congress, Maryland 1st District.

Muir Boda’s family history goes back hundreds of years on the Eastern Shore. For the past 18 years he has been an Asset Protection Manager for Walmart. He has served as the Vice-Chair for the Maryland Libertarian Party and has run for Salisbury City Council twice.

Governor Johnson states, “Muir Boda’s consistent stand for Civil Liberties, less government regulation, and minimum taxes will create a safer America where all can prosper.”

Muir Boda, “Only the Johnson/Gray ticket stands for a federal government that is small enough to fit inside the US Constitution.”

www.boda4congress.com
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Mark Grannis for US Congress, Maryland 8th District.

Mark is a small business owner as well as a lawyer. He serves as managing partner of a 30-lawyer firm that has quintupled in size since its founding. His is also the author of the book, “Less We Can: The Case for Less Government, More Liberty, More Prosperity, and More Security” available at https://www.createspace.com/3610240.

Governor Johnson states, “For several years, Mark Grannis has been sharing how good things in life expand only when government shrinks. His detailed knowledge of how Washington works, from the federal budget to our constitutional liberties, will make him a true Libertarian asset in the House of Representatives.”

Mark Grannis, “Governor Johnson and Judge Gray are at the forefront of a new generation of Libertarian candidates: candidates who not only understand the importance of our liberties, but who also have the background and experience necessary to govern effectively.”

www.grannisforcongress.org

MDLP Executive Board Member Arvin Vohra Elected to LNC

Arvin Vohra, a member of the Maryland Libertarian Party's Executive Committee, was elected to the Libertarian National Committee at this weekends Libertarian National Coventions.

Breaking News: Gary Johnson Nominated as the Libertarian Party's Presidential Candidate

Las Vegas, Nevada: C-SPAN is reporting that Governor Gary Johnson has been officially nominated as the Libertarian Party's Presidential Candidate. Judge Jim Gray a former Superior Court Judge in the State of California has been nominated as his Vice-Presidential Candidate.

The Johnson-Gray ticket for the Libertarian Party is the most qualified and experienced ticket the Libertarian Party has ever put forth.

Live Free!

Corruption

The more corrupt the state, the more it legislates.  

Tacitus

Madison on Making Laws

“It will be of little avail to the people that the laws are made by men of their own choice if the laws be so voluminous that they cannot be read, or so incoherent that they cannot be understood.”

U.S. President James Madison

Muir Boda Announces His Run for Congress in the First District

Muir Boda

A long shot, yes. However, our purpose for standing up and running for congress is quite simple: The message of Individual Liberty and Freedom and restoring our Nation’s Honor must be a viable choice for voters. We offer that.

We don’t anticipate raising hundreds of thousands of dollars and having entrenched political machines robo-calling and printing out wasteful mailers to voters which represent half truths and empty promises (if we send one out it will be a targeted, concise message). We actually believe that is part of the problem with modern politics in America.


Many people are still looking to Washington and the two major political parties to solve all of our problems, actually problems they have created. They have nearly bankrupt our national wealth by devaluing our currency, spending astronomical amounts of money on wars, nation building and a myriad of wasteful programs through a budget process that is broken. All of this set up on on a tax and regulatory system that is oppressive and has destroyed job creation in our country by forcing businesses overseas.

We can continue to elect people from the two major parties who disregard our Constitution by creating laws and giving our government powers not authorized by the Constitution. We can continue trusting the the same group of people to fix our issues of debt and oppression that created the problems. We can continue electing people who have allowed money and special interest to control their decisions and attack good people all for political expediency.

We can continue down this path and our country will continue in the direction that it is currently on which will lead to an economic collapse that will make the great depression look like a drop in the bucket.
Or we can truly change direction and elect people who respect the Constitution and believe that decentralizing the power of Washington is of utmost importance. Individual Liberty and Personal Freedom must be a priority. Eliminating oppressive tax codes, laws and regulation to bring back an economic boom unlike any this country has seen.

We stand at a pivotal moment in our Nation’s history and the choice of electing the Establishment candidates seems like a safe choice. However, the Establishment politicians have brought us to this moment. I can assure you, we are not the Establishment candidate and our goal is to dismantle the monstrosity that the Establishment has created.

www.boda4congress.com

Authority: Muir Boda for Congress, Deborah Anderson Treasurer.