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Congress Freezes Its Own Pay

Last week Congress did something fiscally responsible.  It’s not very often I can say that.  Granted, it was small in the grand scheme of things, but I was glad to be an original cosponsor, along with Congressman Harry Mitchell of Arizona, of a bill to block the automatic pay raise that Congress otherwise receives every year. Every Member of Congress gets this raise unless it is expressly voted down.  For the second year in a row Congress has voted to freeze its own pay, which, in a time of skyrocketing deficits and high unemployment, is the very least Congress can do.

The country is in a serious recession, bordering on depression.  Unemployment is grossly underreported, and not likely to get better anytime soon.  American citizens and businesses are overtaxed, yet tax revenues still fall far short of our government’s voracious appetite for spending.  This is no time to raise taxes.  And since congressional salaries come from tax revenue, allowing ourselves a raise would fly in the face of economic reality.

Of course, Congress ignores economic reality all the time.  But if Congress can freeze salaries as a first step towards fiscal sanity, it can freeze- if not drastically cut- a vast array of federal expenditures.

At the very least, Congress could freeze current spending levels, instead of constantly increasing them.  We could stop increasing the debt ceiling every few months, as has become our habit.  We could freeze regulations that add to the burden on our struggling small businesses.  We could freeze intrusive bailouts that upset the balance of the market and cost us billions – billions we could instead use to eliminate the oppressive income tax!  We could freeze the money supply and stave off the tsunami of inflation the Fed has been generating for years.

Furthermore, we could address the mismanagement and waste in foreign affairs which adds immensely to our budget.  Like entitlements, militarism is expensive. We need to reject sanctions as a precursor to military action, and embrace free trade as the most effective method for spreading liberty.  After all, as the great economist Frederic Bastiat said - when goods don’t cross borders, armies will.   It is time to bring our troops home, instead of instigating expensive new wars when we’re already hopelessly mired in several conflicts already.  We need to rethink the whole idea of pre-emptive war- not only because it’s wrong and counterproductive, but because we literally cannot afford it!

We could do much to restore fiscal sanity to this country simply by stopping the madness and bringing our troops home – from Iraq, Afghanistan, Korea, Japan, Germany, and so many other places.  This costly global empire does not serve the interests of the American people and we should end it peacefully and voluntarily now, lest it end in chaos later.

Though it may be wishful thinking on my part, I’m encouraged by the small step taken by Congress last week.  Fiscal sanity can begin with a small step, and I want to encourage Congress to move in this direction.

Posted by Ron Paul (05-03-2010, 12:52 PM) filed under Monetary Policy

Sherry Peel Jackson, one of the stars of  the Freedom to Fascism movie, directed by Aaron Russo, has recently mailed a letter to her congressman regarding the mistreatment she is receiving in jail. In it, she talks about the serious health issues she is experiencing, and the fact that nobody at the jail seems to care. Here is the letter:

Dear Congressman Johnson

I am Sherry Peel Jackson, your former CPA.  I am writing you because I am concerned about my health and my life.  Prior to becoming a political prisoner I was the picture of health.  In late June, 2009 I started experiencing a rapid heart beat on an irregular basis.

Since this had happened infrequently in the past I did not think much of it.  However, in Mid July it started happening on a regular basis and I became concerned.  I went to the medical staff twice in Mid July only to be given a one-minute EKG test and powerful meds without proper diagnosis.  I did not take them because I had not been seen by a specialist.  One week later, on July 21 at 12:45am I left the dorm in flip flops to go tell the officers that I was having a heart attack.  The officers on duty called the ambulance and the ambulance checked my heart on their portable EKG machine.  It was beating at 150 beats per minute.  They took me to Leesberg (spelling) hospital where I remained until Friday, July 24th at 11:30pm.  During the hospital stay it was determined that my heart was healthy but my thyroid was producing too much hormone, thus speeding up my heart.

This is called hyperthyroidism or Graves disease.  I was given two medications by the hospital - Methimazole, which is an anti-thyroid agent used to reduce the amount of thyroid hormone produced by the body and Metoprolol, which is a beta blocker used to slow the heart.

The hospital doctor told me that in four weeks (approximately August 21) the prison medical unit was to do blood tests to determine how the thyroid medication was affecting my body.

The blood test was taken in late August and I was told that I would be placed on the appointment schedule to come over and review the results.  I was never called.  I went over in early September and inquired of Dr. DeLeon as to how to get blood test results.  He told me to put in a request to staff, so I did that on September 15th.  It simply asked to see the results of the tests.

Sometime after September 23rd I received a response in writing, from Ms. Marich, that stated that I could either make a sick call (come over early in the morning wait in line and fill out forms) or come to Open House to see the results.  Open house is held only on Thursdays from 3:00pm to 3:30pm.  I went to Open House Thursday September 30th and was told by Ms. Marich that she could not find the results! I watched her look through and around several piles of folders in her office but at no time did she look on a computer for them.  She told me to check back later.  On Wednesday October 28th I passed out around 4pm and was taken to medical and cleared.

On Friday October 30th my lips started turning black as if I had been a lifelong smoker.  By Sunday November 1st my lips were fully black.

My boss, the Chaplain, called medical and a male nurse was sent over from the medium security mens prison on this complex (there are two maximum security, one medium security and one low security mens prisons on this complex with the womens camp).  He took my blood pressure and oxygen and said there was nothing else he could do.  He told me to go to sick call Monday morning, which I did.

I showed Mr. Coucho my lips and told him that something was wrong with my blood, I could tell. (I am leaving out gross details here).

He said I would be put on the schedule.  However, the very next day, Tuesday morning, November 3rd, I found blood in my stool and rushed over to medical because I am smart enough to know that this is a major problem.  I was chewed out for coming over to medical without a staff member telling me to come.  I told Charlie, the female nurse and Mr. Coucho the PA that I was in the hospital in July, never got the blood work results and something was terribly wrong.

I am 46 years old and I know my body!  I finally convinced them that I was not playing and was not stupid, so they reated me with a packet for a stool sample test.  Mr. Coucho looked on the computer for the blood test results from August and found them there!

The blood test showed a problem with the thyroid way back then!

He said I would be put on the schedule for new blood work later that week because these results were too old.  He had a short conversation with Dr. DeLeon in Spanish and then said the thyroid count was off.

This was November 3rd.  I administered the stool tests and returned them to Nurse Charlie on Friday November 6th.

Today is November 26th, Thanksgiving.  I have not received the results of the stool test.  I have not been given any new blood test.

My neck is swelling up like a blow fish and I am having trouble talking.  I have been feeling very ill for the last two weeks.

Congressman, I don want them to kill me in here.  As you well know, I am being punished for exposing government fraud.  However, millions of people don file tax returns and I was just used as an example by the DOJ for their new program called the Tax Defiers Initiative.

I also wrote the warden today.  Things can go on this way as I languish in here for someones political gain.  God doesn like ugly and He is the ultimate judge and vindicator.

The Candidates for the District 10 Special Election had a debate at St. Marys College.