An email from my Congressman: Michael McCaul

March 27, 2009

Dear Friends,

The President has said that digging our way out of this economic crisis won’t be easy and will take time.  While we can agree on the scope of this challenge and the effort it will take to recover, the Republican budget plan will move Americans toward prosperity without spending record amounts of taxpayer dollars and without increasing the tax burden on families and businesses.

Today, our $11 trillion deficit places a burden of $36,000 on every American.  Under the President’s budget, in ten years, our per-person debt will climb above $50,000.  We cannot spend, borrow and tax our way to prosperity.  We cannot pass a budget that will dig a deeper financial hole and impede our country’s long-term progress.  Our plan will balance re-instituting the basic principles of limited government and personal responsibility, with meeting our most critical needs.

U.S. Chamber of Commerce Spirit of Enterprise Award

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce presented me with the prestigious Spirit of Enterprise Award for my continued support of pro-growth legislation during the last session of Congress. I am proud to have received this award for the fourth consecutive year because businesses are the economic engine of this great nation and I am committed to creating a positive pro-growth environment.  Especially during a recession our priority should be to help businesses succeed by ensuring reasonable tax burdens and responsible regulations that won’t stifle job creation.  I am proud to represent small business across District 10.

Omnibus Lands Bill

On Wednesday, the House passed the Omnibus Public Land Management Act.  This bill contains more than 170 separate natural resources bills—more than 100 of which had not been considered in the House—that create new, federally sheltered wilderness areas, wild and scenic rivers, and heritage areas.  The bill also included land exchanges, ocean exploration, local water projects, landscape restoration, and underwater research, among a variety of other programs.  The 1,248-page bill was estimated to cost over $10 billion and prohibited natural resource exploration development on millions of acres of land acres.  The legislation passed the Senate on March 19, 2009, and will now be sent to the President for his signature

I wish you and your family a happy and safe weekend.

FLAME Act

On Thursday, the House passed H.R. 1404, the Federal Land Assistance, Management and Enhancement Act.  The bill establishes a Federal Land Assistance, Management, and Enhancement (FLAME) Fund within the U.S. Treasury.  The FLAME Fund would be used to pay for emergency catastrophic wildfire suppression.  This would be separate from amounts annually appropriated to the Departments of Agriculture and Interior for wildfire suppression.  The bill also directs the Secretaries of Agriculture and Interior to develop a cohesive wildland fire management strategy within one year.  H.R. 1404 establishes a grant program within the Departments of Agriculture and Interior to help communities carry out wildfire education programs, firefighter training, and equipment acquisition. I joined 412 of my colleagues to vote yes and pass this important legislation.

In the News

FOX News- Congressman McCaul Discusses Border Security

http://www.house.gov/list/press/tx10_mccaul/morenews/3_27_09.html

Passport Day in the USA!

Are you planning a trip this summer?  Due to the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative, all international travel will require a valid passport starting June 1, 2009.  To help citizens be prepared for this change, Passport Acceptance Facilities will be open across the United States on Saturday, March 28, 2009 for Passport Day in the USA.  Please locate your most convenient acceptance facility and review the procedures and rules for applying for a passport.

Free Taxpayer Seminar!

Congressman McCaul will be hosting Taxpayer Seminars on April 7, 2009. Representatives from the IRS will be available to answer your tax questions in Tomball at Lone Star College–Tomball and Community Library from 6:30-7:30 and Pflugerville at the Pflugerville Public Library from 7:30-8:30.  There will be presentations on the IRS resources available to you and an opportunity for you to get your general tax questions answered.  Please contact my Austin district office at (512) 473-2357 for more information and to suggest topics for the Taxpayer Seminars.

NEW WEBSITE!

Please look for our new and improved congressional website which will launch in the first few days of April. The address will remain the same:  www.house.gov/mccaul.   We hope this will serve as a more effective communications tool, allowing you greater options to learn what’s happening in Washington and voice your opinion.

With best regards,

Michael T. McCaul

Member of Congress

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Sarah Palin: Can it get any better than this, John McCain made the right choice, will you?

I have waited to write about Sarah Palin until I studied the subject a little bit, I don’t want to get caught with my fly open, like a few others have lately! The garbage that has been written about this powerful woman has blown my mind!

The reason for this Blog; is to allow myself and others to vent about a certain subject, however, I will never write any trash, nor will I even acknowledge these writers as writers! Lies do not represent creativity, they only show things about the author, the bad things! Hmm, I wonder why no one ever challenges what I write? I know that it is being read, maybe every one reading agrees, I doubt it, but maybe? If not, please remember that I welcome anyone to comment and disagree, or agree, whatever works for you, and if you want to write your own posts to disagree, I welcome you, just contact me, just challenge the topic in a comment and tell me you want to write about that, I welcome opposing opinions, that is why the site is called OpinionHead and not, JustMyOpinionOnlyEver, I want to hear, uhh, read, other points of view, maybe all of us can learn something?

I watch many different news shows and read many other opinions here on the web, I have heard so many views, that have either been proven right or wrong, that it really frustrates me when I see or hear something that is just off the wall stupid! Why do the same people say the same stupid stuff all the time? IT IS THEIR JOB! That’s why, so, if you rely solely on what some news idiot says, you are missing the boat! What I try to do, is listen to the source, if they say it themselves, then, maybe I believe it, unless I see or hear them say something different, I never believe the he-said/ she-said crap! So, my advice to you, is to stop listening to your buddy, and research what someone actually says or does, don’t just listen to the sound bites, study it yourself, you will understand why I say this, if you actually do it!

I know that unless you like to pay extra, to pay for those that pay none, you will understand! If you like for someone else to make sure you do everything right, because they won’t let you do it yourself, you will understand! However, if you are an independant thinker and not a zombie that wants the government to send you a check every month so you can run out and buy your crack, or whatever, then you should get it! Anyway, back to the topic!

If you have never heard of her, Sarah Palin, you must be from the moon! Although only on the big scene for a few days, has been around for quite some time, actually much longer than Barack Obama, and in more responsible positions than Obama or Joe Biden! You know, actually running something besides their mouths? Having to make real decisions that are like, right now, and not debated for months? Decisions that are not just naming holidays, and figuring out how to spend taxpayers money on pork projects, but actual budgets? Sarah Palin has also actually been in command of troops! Maybe just the National Guard, but that trumps either Obama or Biden, they have never been in command of anything!  Sarah Palin is proof that you don’t have to be a lawyer, to be successful and move up in politics! Don’t you remember that dream as a kid?

I am so happy about John McCain’s choice, that it gives him credibility for his judgement, something that has been proven over and over! John McCain has been right on all of the same issues that Barack and Biden both have been proven wrong about, like the surge or not drilling for oil, we know that we have it so lets get it!

To me it is simple, if I want the USA to be a better country, then I choose McCain/Palin, if you want to make the government bigger, expand welfare, cut the defense and surrender, while hoping somebody invents some magic beans that turn into energy that will power a car or city, among many other things, that may do me some good, but not the country, then choose that other guy!

I hope that everyone listens to what Sarah Palin has to say tonight, if you do, I think you’ll get it!

Have you heard  P-Diddy? The whole there is no crime, crack or even black people in Alaska thing comes off a little bit creepy, is he that stupid?  Should he be called P-Dummy? What, does he think this election is “only” about black people?  It is about ALL PEOPLE! This election is about America! Come on dude, Alaska is the largest state in the USA, you know, looking at the map, top left, just the other side of Canada, and just this side of Russia?  The only state surrounded by foreign countries and not other states? A place where a substance called oil can be found, you know, they make pretty much everything from it? A substance that without it our country, (United States, if you don’t know) and the world as it is, would not be in this century? Hey, they make CD’s out of it even, come on dude, put down the pipe! The world would have to go back to using wax to make records! Wait a minute, even wax comes from crude! Alaska also has natural gas, something you also find when drilling for oil?

Anyone else out there, if you really want change, vote for McCain/Palin, they are going to shake things up in Washington!

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What is up with Health Care? Where is the Crisis? Why all the hype? Health Insurance is Cheap!

This is 2008, and where is the best health care available? Here in the U.S.A.!

Have you ever lived in Europe? Have you ever actually paid for “Government” enforced health care? I have! I lived in Germany, as a civilian for about 5 years, and they took 10% of my pay to cover the cost of the “health insurance”, if you make $600 a month, that doesn’t sound bad, but, I made about 4K a month! That equates to what, 400 a month, that was just for me! My now late, ex wife, another example of the health care, also paid about the same, that is about 800 a month! Yes, my daughter, then a baby, was covered “free” under either one of us, what a bargain. At that time I was under 30 years old! Full heath insurance here in America would have been less than $200 a month, for all three of us! Wow, national health care is a great thing! Yeah right!

Here in the U.S.A. we have it made! If you have a “real” job, with benefits, you get it FREE! If you have a job, but not with a big company, still making a living, in the best country in the world, depending on your age, health insurance is still like $200 for an individual or less, that is cheap! My daughter, now almost 25, and still a student, in Germany, pays 15% of her part time paycheck! Her boyfriend, practically husband, is a banker, and also pays 15%, together, that is enough to cover at least twice if not 4 times what it would cost here, and that is if you are older, and unhealthy!

Here in America, the U.S.A., if you have no job, and no income, MEDICAID, is available! So, what is the problem? If you are like me, and served in the military, honorably, you have the VA to lean on! Thank God for that! I wrecked my back and can’t work, but, it is getting better, so I will soon. Anyway, what is the complaint? Are people too stupid? Maybe too lazy? Or, do they just want the government to do it for them? I don’t know, you tell me! Read more

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Politics: East vs West, Communism vs Capitalism, or people vs people?

Tell me, do you know, or have you ever had a chance to meet, someone from a country, which is your home country’s enemy? I have, I lived in what was called West Germany, before, during and after the end of the “Cold War” and I must say, that the people I knew, were not only nice people! They were better than nice! I was in the U.S. Army, in Germany, in a Pershing Missile unit, before, during and after P2. Anyone that was around then would know what that means. No, I had nothing to do with the nukes, I was in communications, a “telephone” man.During this time, we were all afraid of the “Russians”, but why? History, I guess. Maybe the over-all fear, and beliefs of the time. Quite probably it was was the actual track record? What is my point? Every group of people on this planet, have done certain things, most of which, seen as wrong by others. I use the old Russia vs America (USA) as an example, because I have personal experience with that, maybe others have more “current” stories to tell. When you look at the past, it will tell you about the future, if, and I repeat if, the world hasn’t changed, and I mean drastically! Yes, the old Soviet Union is gone, but, Russia still exists, why is that important? Again, history, as during the Clinton presidency, when we were pacified by the “Muslim Extremists” and they built up to the point where they attacked us in New York on September eleventh, Russia has pacified us, the USA, to where we don’t watch them as much. Again, what is my point? Keep reading! Does anybody really remember Vietnam, or Korea? Maybe WWII? Trust me history repeats itself! While we are fighting these extremists, who happen to be using Russian and Chinese weapons, among others, we are pacified, while they build up! Have you seen the reports of Russian Military over-flies of restricted areas? Ok, one doesn’t have to be a mathematician to add 2 plus 2! If you understand what “Communism” is all about! Read more

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