Iraq
“The United States did not invade Iraq to conquer it, but rather to set it free. The United States does not stand to gain territory, oil, or any other spoils of war. We all should be proud of that sacrifice.”
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“The founders of this country knew very well what would happen to us if we ended up with 535 generals in the Congress. And that is, you lose wars. You need a commander in chief. And then the Congress has every right to be involved in it. It has every right to talk about this and to condemn it if you don't agree with it. But you know what? It ends up with this. If you don't want it, don't fund it. But you cannot micromanage it from the Congress of the United States.”
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Other Foreign Policy Issues
“The forgotten frontline in the war on terror is Afghanistan, where our military effort must be reinforced.”
Destroying Islamic holy sites could be used as a deterrent against terrorists using nuclear weapons on the U.S.”
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“One of the most important things we can do with Iran is to look at the Iranian people themselves. There is a great deal of dissent inside Iran. We certainly don't immediately, you know, use the button. We immediately don't go to war. But I also tell you that we cannot back away from this situation, and we cannot be threatened in that way. If it's required, action has to be taken & a president has to do that.”
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“Well, I hope and pray that the surge works. But let me get back to a central point here, and that is why we're there and in fact, with whom we are at war. The war is not actually in Iraq. The war is with radical Islam. That's who we are at war with. And we have to understand it, Iraq is a battlefield in that war. In order for us to be successful there, we have to disengage as the police force in Iraq. But we cannot leave the country. We cannot leave because this is not a war that will end with our departure. I wish that were the case. Wouldn't that be wonderful if that's all it would take, for us to say we'll withdraw all of our troops and we'll never have another thing to worry about? But we were not attacked because we had troops in Saudi Arabia; I don't believe it. We were attacked because radical Islam wants to destroy the United States of America and any part of this world that they do not agree with.”
Climate Change/Energy
First of all, the whole issue of global warming, for every single scientist that tells you it's happening and that it's our fault -- and they'll stack up to here in this reports -- I can stack up another group of reports that say just the opposite.
I don't believe that -- well, I'll tell you this, I don't know whether or not we are responsible, we the human race, are responsible for global warming.”
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It certainly could be happening, it certainly could be a natural phenomenon. If it's the latter, of course there isn't much we can do about that. If it's the former, there is something that we can do about it, and I'm all for it, and that is of course to reduce our dependence on petroleum products. If we do that, we automatically reduce the carbon emissions that people claim are causing global warming. And I'm all for doing that, because -- I'll tell you why. It's a national security issue. It just isn't an issue of fight over the science of global warming; it's a national security issue for us to move away from the use of petroleum products when they're coming from countries that want to kill us.”
Healthcare
The two major problems are the high cost of care and the number of uninsured. Tort reform and immigration enforcement would save the system billions and drive down costs. In California alone, illegal immigrants cost the system $800 million annually and have forced 84 hospitals to close.
As for the uninsured: as many as 25% of them are illegal aliens and should be deported or encouraged to leave. For citizens and legal residents who are employed by businesses which cannot afford coverage, I favor association health plans which band small businesses together to access lower cost insurance. For those out of work, state governments should be the primary source of relief, although I would not rule out federal incentives or limited subsidies to make sure families who have fallen on hard times are not without coverage.”
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“It's a fascinating thing to think about this, that we have moved all the way to the point of simply debating what kind of federal plan we might have rather than debating what's the constitutional right of the federal government to get involved in this particular issue. That's a challenge I think we all have to accept. Now, if there's a federal role, I completely accept the idea of giving people the greater individual opportunity to use health savings accounts. Why? Because that takes individuals. They become the consumer in the marketplace dealing directly with the provider.”
Education
“Federal involvement should be limited. Educational control is best left in the hands of parents. A no-strings-attached voucher system would promote school choice, while competition for students would drive educational improvements at the institutional level. I also suggest schools return to a more traditional course of study and that the public focus shift to certain non-school factors, like parental involvement, which studies show are the most important determinants of student performance.”
Homeland Security
“It is Congress’s duty to do whatever it takes to protect and defend our borders. If we can’t stem the flow of millions of illegal aliens, how can we possibly hope to stop terrorists from infiltrating the country?”
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“We have the resources to erect a fence along the entire border—not just our frontier with Mexico, but with Canada as well.”
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“Homeland security plans which do not include enforcing our immigration laws and securing our borders are entirely inadequate. A CIS study of 94 terrorists prosecuted for their crimes in the U.S., found that nearly two thirds had committed immigration fraud. It is difficult then to justify the rigor, expense, and inconvenience of new safety measures at our airports and harbors, while leaving the door open for terrorists to slip across our southern border undetected.”
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Family
“Christianity is part of the heritage of this country and the president should play a part in pointing to this good example of what America is as opposed to the sometimes negative media images that we export around the world.”
Taxes/Fiscal Policy
Republicans, we have lost the mantle of fiscal responsibility. It is incredible to listen to people talk about the fact that we have to, you know reimpose that. Well, of course we do.”
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“There are a million programs that we operate and that we pay for with the federal government that are far beyond the bounds of the Constitution. Follow the Constitution and you'll know what is -- what's necessary. And that's the defense of the country. That's it for the federal government.”
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“A growing chorus of economists and experts argue, and I agree, that the current income tax system is complex and unfair and should be replaced by a flat tax or national sales tax. Simplifying the process would dramatically reduce the costs of compliance, make American companies more competitive, and put billions back into the economy by encouraging investment.”
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“I would move for an elimination of the tax code, to move from an income tax to a consumption tax. If we could do that, you would see an explosion of job opportunities and economic growth that would probably be unmatched in this nation's history.”
Illegal Immigration
“There's nothing compassionate about giving amnesty to millions of people who have broken into our country.”
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Conservatives need a leader that believes in enforcing our immigration laws because the first part of "illegal immigrant" is "illegal."
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“If we in fact were to begin enforcing the law against people who are hiring people who are here illegally, we would go a long way towards eliminating the problem. Because if you dry up demand, you naturally dry up supply. If we had true enforcement of our laws from an employer's standpoint, then you would find that many of the millions of people who are here would go back home. Then the ones who remain, we could begin deporting -- and, yes, I mean deporting, the word nobody wants to use, but you see if you are here illegally, that's the punishment, deportation.”
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“The crisis of illegal immigration threatens not only our economy and our security but our very identity.”
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“I want our borders to be secure and those who have violated them to be deprived of the benefits lawful citizens enjoy, lest the concept of citizenship be rendered meaningless.”
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“We need to confer citizenship only on those who are desirous of severing all ties to their country of origin, who exhibit a genuine commitment to becoming an American in every sense of the word. And to limit or forbid residency to those who will not accept citizenship.”
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“If you come to this country illegally you should never be able to become a citizen.”
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