News of Delaware County Guest Editorial by Craig: "Clear Lines Between Political Foes"

Op-Ed

News of Delaware County Guest Editorial by Craig: "Clear lines between political foes"

By Craig Williams

Craig Williams is the endorsed Republican candidate for Congress in the 7th District of Pennsylvania.

The political tides of our nation ebb and flow like the tides of the ocean. Joe Sestak was swept into office on a Democratic tide in 2006, a result of voter concern about the handling of the Iraq War and dissatisfaction with the performance of the President. As that tide has begun to ebb, it is obvious that the views of my opponent are out of sync with the voters of the 7th District. This is evidenced by his liberal votes in Congress and out of touch policy positions.

That is why I left my job as federal prosecutor to run for Congress. I believe we, the residents of the 7th District, have lost our voice in Washington , DC . During his two years in office, my opponent failed to live up to his promise to be a bipartisan reformer. Since he and the Democrats took control of Congress two years ago, the Dow has dropped 4,000 points and gas shot up to $4 per gallon before its recent drop. Yes, change is needed and I am the change.

My opponent voted with Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco) 97 percent of the time. The website opensecrets.com reports that he has taken more money from liberal special interest groups than any other member of Congress. And my opponent has failed to be a good steward of our tax dollars, voting for $18 billion in Congressional earmarks while spending nearly $640,000 on self-promotional mailings and literature at taxpayer expense. In contrast, I support franking reform and vow to oppose earmarks in Congress.

I have taken a pledge to oppose any new taxes, a reflection of my belief that American families deserve to keep more of their hard-earned money. In contrast, my opponent voted for the largest federal budget in the history of our nation. That bill also included the single greatest tax increase in the history of our nation - more than $2,700 per taxpayer in our district and over $5,400 for a two income family. Under that legislation, married couples will see the marriage tax penalty return, families will see their per child tax deduction reduced and low and middle income families will see their income tax rates increase.

On the economy, my opponent was a strong and fervent supporter of the $700 billion bailout. While the economy desperately needs an infusion of liquidity, there was nothing in the bill to directly address the cozy relationship that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have with members of Congress. The special relationship that Fannie and Freddie have as government-supported enterprises should be either heavily regulated or ended.

Rather than $700 billion in securities and other paper assets, I believe that the American people should receive an actual physical return on our investment -- improved highways and bridges, water and sewer infrastructure, and an investment in energy production here in the United States to reduce our reliance on the Middle East for our energy needs. In the process, we can create hundreds of thousands of jobs and provide a tremendous boost to businesses in a wide range of industries.

If elected I will bring sanity to our energy policy by fighting - and I mean fighting, not waving my hands in some lukewarm way -- for drilling for oil in ANWR and off our coasts. It is more sensible -- and environmentally responsible - to have

U.S. companies drilling off our coasts than the Cuban and Chinese companies that are drilling off our coast today.

I also support domestic recovery of natural gas, utilizing clean-burning coal technologies, and increasing the use of nuclear power all while increasing conservation, improving energy efficiency, and funding continued renewable energy research. We currently send $700 billion overseas each year to foreign nations for oil. Imagine the millions of American jobs we could create if we kept that money here at home by using domestic sources of oil and other energy sources. In contrast, my opponent voted more than 15 times this year alone to block consideration of a variety of energy reform bills. That is not the leadership our nation needs.

Our differences could not be more clear. I oppose the so-called Fairness Doctrine, which would effectively muzzle talk radio. My opponent supports it. I support a worker's right to a secret ballot to vote on whether or not they want to unionize. My opponent opposes it. I support the rights of individuals to make their own health care decisions, free of government interference. My opponent supports universal health care, which would place critical health care decisions in the hands of federal bureaucrats.

If elected, I will fight to bring security to our borders. I will oppose any federal money for ACORN unless it is to launch an investigation of the organization. I will fight to bring value back to our homes and 401Ks. And I will not let the same crowd that ran Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae run our health care system.

On November 4th local residents can vote for someone who reflects their views and beliefs or they can vote for my opponent, who reflects the views of the far left of his own party. The choice is clear and I hope I can count on your support.

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