This amnesty bill was definitely worthless. The problem is with the politicians not so much the parties. What we have are people in places of power that are used to getting their way. These folks are elitist and believe that the average American is about as smart as a box of rocks. We should vote out all incumbents, excepting those that voted correctly, on all levels. Those that did vote according to the will of the people should be warned that we are watching and they could be next if they don't represent us.
This higher and mightier than thou attitude, that far too many of these politicians have, is the real problem. The money/power attracts them to politics. Just as we should remove incentive to cross the border illegally, so should we make being a politician less attractive.
A way to do this would be to limit their terms as we have done for the presidency. No individual man should profit while in office, at any level. They should not live high on the hog while others work hard to make a living. Would it be so bad if these politicians had to eat in a chow hall, sleep in a barracks, and be transported in a school bus? It is good enough for America's service men, so it should be good enough for them.
Politicians are always talking about making sacrifices. Where are their sacrifices? Instead of personal fame, riches, and power, perhaps it should only be worth the honor to be a politician. Special interest groups are part of this problem as well, they shouldn't be allowed to buy favors from politicians or vice versa. Buying favors is tantamount to bribery and should be treated as such. Remove a large amount of the money and you remove a great deal of the corruption.
If politicians wish to be rich, make them earn it in the private sector. They can run a business and turn a profit to make their money. The founders were merchants and business men first and politicians second. Congress wasn't in session all the time, as they needed time to run their private business.
Limiting the scope of the Federal Government is needed yesterday. If people don't start taking responsibility for their own private lives, instead of expecting government to fix it all, we may end up not having a private life all together.
Once we end the era of big government, we end much of the problems that plague us from micro management on the federal level. A return of power to the state and local government is long over due. IMO, the federal government was intended to be a third party arbitrator between states not the sole authority over the states. America cannot be free with a powerful central government. Centralizing power is a path to less freedom.
When I was a child the Dems were appealing to the heart. The heart cannot rule the head. The road to hell is paved with good intention. Only through reason will we be able to do that which is right. Government should approach problems from an objective point of view rather than a subjective one alone.
Winston Churchill once said.
If you are conservative at 20 yrs. old, you have no heart. If you are liberal at 40, you have no brain. Paraphrasing of course, but you get the point.
Let's work for the greater good of our country, with reason and compassion in that order. The one thing that we all can agree on, is that America is still the best country to live in and to hand down to our offspring. We should try our hardest to keep it that way. I have no children, that is a personal choice, yet I wouldn't want any other persons children to suffer from our collective mistakes. Only by working toward a unifying goal do we become better, internal division among ourselves only serves to bring us down. We can do it, so let's not lose sight of this. All differences aside, we all love this land and want her to prosper in the future for all Americans. We may not be able to solve the world's problems, but surely we can solve America's.