Jim DeMint & the Plan Save Our Republic from Insolvency

Jim DeMint & the Plan Save Our Republic from Insolvency

The other evening I had an opportunity to speak with one of my heroes, United States Senator Jim DeMint, a true American statesman.  DeMint is a rare bird in Washington, DC—a man of character, courage, and principle.  His first principle is to follow the words of the United States Constitution as they were written.  Obviously, that’s not always easy to do, but it is what members of Congress (and those in both the Executive Branch and Judicial branch) take an oath to do.  It’s not easy, but neither is it as hard as liberal politicians and judges pretend it is.  After all, the Constitution is a written document of principles intended to limit the power of government and to ensure that power is shared by the three branches.  Its philosophy is built upon a clear and accurate understanding of human nature—men and women are imperfect human beings who, if given the opportunity, will seek power over other human beings through the aegis of government as they have done from the beginning of time.  Senator Jim DeMint understands and is committed to the same understanding as our Founding Fathers.  He states his case for a commitment to the founding principles found in the Declaration of Independence and the US Constitution in his excellent book, Saving Freedom.  It is a book that every American should read.

While lesser men come to Washington and get swallowed up in the heady power of being a Senator or Congressman, Jim DeMint has not lost his way.  He can be counted on to take principled stands that frequently rankle the leadership of the Republican Party.  Thanks in no small part to Jim DeMint, Marco Rubio is the US Senator from Florida, not RINO Charlie Crist; Rand Paul is the US Senator from Kentucky, not career politician, Trey Grayson; and Mike Lee is the US Senator from Utah, not Bob Bennett.  It takes a huge amount of courage to buck the leadership of the Republican Party.  Jim DeMint did it and won.

Now, Jim DeMint is in the forefront of the battle to block raising the debt ceiling unless permanent action is taken to make sure this never happens again.  And this time, the leadership of both the House and the Senate is four square behind Senator DeMint.  He spoke of his plan the other evening at the reception I attended and here is what he and fellow conservatives have proposed…

          A Balanced Budget and Spending Limit Amendment to the US Constitution
This amendment is the unconditional terms for Barak Obama and the liberals in Congress to receive an OK for raising the debt limit.  Senator DeMint believes it is a hard sell, but has a good chance of passage.

All 41 Republican members of the United States Senate have signed on to support this Amendment, and Republicans in the House of Representatives are fully behind it.  Moreover, according to Freshman Senator Mike Lee on today’s FOX & Friends television show, numerous Democrat Senators and Congressmen are getting on board.

Why do Jim DeMint and the Republicans support this bill so strongly and why do they think it could possibly get two-thirds support in both the House of Representatives and the Senate?  First and foremost, they know that a band aid fix will not solve the problem of spending.  As DeMint put it in his talk, spending is an addiction, like drugs or alcohol.  Unless there is a Constitutional Amendment in place, Congress will always spend more than it takes in.  It is their way of getting re-elected (as Alexis de Tocqueville predicted). 

Why does he think it can pass the Senate and House?  The Senator said that there is a greater likelihood of persuading two-thirds of all Congressmen and Senators to limit spending capacity in the future, than it is to persuade 51% of them to cut spending immediately.  In other words, rather then face the wrath of the American people and possibly go down to defeat in 2012, they would rather make this a challenge for future members of Congress than vote for spending cuts now.  Kicking the can down the road rather than making hard decisions seems to be the favorite pastime of Members of Congress 

There’s something else working in DeMint’s favor.  A very recent poll shows that 65 percent of the American people support a Balance Budget amendment.   Only 27 percent oppose it and 8 percent are undecided.  This overwhelming support by the American people is hard for any politician to go against, especially with the 2012 election looming.

Not surprisingly, 81 percent of Republicans support the amendment and 68 percent of independents support it.  Surprisingly, even a plurality of Democrats back the Amendment by a 45 percent to 44 percent margin.  This poll shows how attractive a balanced budget is politically.

If the Amendment fails due to a lack of Democrat support, liberal Democrat candidates will pay a high price in the elections of 2012.  It is a powerful cudgel that will knock aside those candidates who refuse to follow the will of the American people.  Remember, getting re-elected is the most important goal of all members of Congress.

Will it pass?  I don’t know.  And frankly, Jim DeMint doesn’t know either.  But I do know that he and other new, principled Republican leaders are prepared to wage all out war to pass this Constitutional Amendment and send it to the states for ratification.  It will not only balance the budget permanently, but also limit federal government spending to 18% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), the historic level over the past 40 years.  In stark contrast, federal government spending today is nearly 25% of the GDP, an unsustainable amount that has brought our nation to the verge of a Greek style bankruptcy.

Write, e-mail, or call your Congressman and Senator today and insist that they bring some fiscal sanity to Washington by supporting the Balanced Budget and Spending Limit Amendment.  This can be the first and critical step in returning our nation to financial solvency and Constitutional government.