Senator David Perdue might tell some that public speaking is not one of his strong points. Over 4,000 people at the Americans for Prosperity Defending the American Dream Summit in Columbus, Ohio would have to disagree. Senator Perdue was one of the keynote speakers at the Summit along with many of the Republican Presidential candidates.

Senator Perdue was introduced as the “Outsider.” He told the story of meeting an elderly woman on the campaign trail who recognized him. She asked if he had ever held office in Washington. He told her, “No mam.” She quickly responded, “Well, you’ve got my vote.”

The audience was glued to the outsider businessman who shared his passionate calling to focus on the financial crisis that America faces. Perdue gave some history about how we got where we are.

He agreed that the current administration has multiplied the crisis in a few short years, but he pointed out that our problem did not start with Obama. Perdue noted that historically, one political party has held a super-majority in congress 3 times in the last 100 years.

The first time was with Roosevelt who gave us the New Deal. The second was Lyndon Johnson who gave us the Great Society and War on Poverty. The third was Obama who gave us Dodd-Frank and Obamacare. He summed up history in a few words,

“Now look, I’m just a business guy but I can put at the feet of those three super majorities, the majority of the responsibility for this financial catastrophe that we have right now today. And the irony is that we let the Democrats get away with the ultimate lie they are perpetrating that they still champion the working men and women of America. Now I have to tell you, I’m incensed by that.”

He sees another crisis in three forms. The first form is a Constitutional crisis where the executive branch is running the country without congress by way of unconstitutional executive orders. The second form is a global security crisis. Russia and China are growing in power. When we withdrew from Iraq in 2011, it left a vacuum that was filled by ISIS. The third form is a pending nuclear Iran.

Summarizing he noted that our Army is the smallest it has been since WWII, the Navy the smallest it has been since WWI, and the Air Force is the smallest it has ever been. “The problem is that in order to have a strong military, you have to have a strong economy.”

He made a common sense observation that makes one wonder how we got ourselves into this situation. We have an agreement with Taiwan that we will defend them if they are ever attacked by China.

We borrow billions from China so if China attacks Taiwan, we would have to borrow money from China in order to defend Taiwan against China. No, this isn’t Alice in Wonderland, but it sure sounds like it sometimes.

He said that the solution is to get the economy going again. He offered three specific actions to take.

First, we have to change the way we fund our federal government. Perdue supports the Fair Tax. The Fair Tax does away completely with the IRS, income tax, corporate tax, tax withholding, tax on investments, and tax on inheritance. It replaces it with a consumption tax.

Mike Huckabee is the only Presidential candidate that I have heard who promotes the fair tax. Other candidates talk about a simplified flat tax that can be filled out on a postcard.

My problem with the flat tax approach is that it still requires filing income tax every year and it still leaves the IRS intact. In addition, it leaves open the opportunity for minor “tweaking” here and there that will eventually lead us right back to where we are. I like the Fair Tax approach. You should learn more about the economic impact it could have on our nation.

Perdue acknowledged that it will take some time to talk through the Fair Tax but there is one thing that can be done now regarding tax policy. That is to eliminate the repatriation tax and bring our corporate tax rates to a globally competitive level.

The repatriation tax is a policy that has foolishness for a foundation. Eliminating it would be the single, easiest, fastest, step to take toward revitalizing our economy – and it doesn’t require a dime of taxpayer money to make it happen.

The second thing is to establish term limits. The founding fathers never envisioned career politicians. I think that maybe some term limits on career bureaucrats would not hurt either.

The third thing is to tap our energy sources to become more energy independent. We are handcuffing ourselves. We can safely produce energy that will help our economy.

Near the end of the speech, Senator Perdue quoted Philippian 4:6-7, “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” (NASB)

David Perdue’s confidence is not based on mere political strategy. The attendees saw the burning conviction that drew him from the comfort of private life to serve the people of Georgia and the people of this nation.

I appreciate you taking the time to read my thoughts. Please forward these to your friends and share on Facebook. Also, let me hear from you. I always enjoy hearing back from you and I try to respond when you take the time to write me.

by