releases: http://tipton.house.gov/press-release/column-solutions-nation%E2%80%99s-challenges-2016
Data license: MIT · Data source: dwillis/congress-press
This data as json
| url | title | date | year | month | party | chamber | state | member_name | bioguide_id | domain | scraper | source | date_source | text | has_text | collected_at | updated_at |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| http://tipton.house.gov/press-release/column-solutions-nation%E2%80%99s-challenges-2016 | Column: Solutions to the nations challenges in 2016 | 2015-12-21 | 2015 | 2015-12 | Republican | House | CO | Scott Tipton | T000470 | tipton.house.gov | legacy | By Congressman Scott Tipton As we enter President Obamas final year in office, our nation faces many complex challenges with tangible impacts on every Americans ability to live a prosperous and peaceful life. America is less secure and free than we were seven years ago. Thats the result of an indecisive foreign policy that did little as ISIS gained power in the Middle East, a suffocating economic policy that forced countless small businesses to close their doors and discouraged entrepreneurship with endless regulations, and a massive expansion of government that drove up the cost of healthcare and restricted access to care for many Americans, especially those living in rural communities. Looking into 2016 and beyond, I believe we can switch course, strengthen our national security and make the American Dream possible once more for this and future generations. In the House of Representatives we are making headway on solutions that reverse and unravel the Presidents big-government policies, and return power and prosperity to the hardworking American people. America is suffering the lowest labor participation rate since Jimmy Carter was president; nearly 95 million Americans have given up on finding fulltime employment. The reported unemployment rates are artificially low and dont take these tens of millions of people into consideration. This stark reality is apparent in communities throughout the 3rd Congressional District where the Presidents hollow economic promises have left rural Coloradans with their hands full and pockets empty. Jumpstarting growth on Main Street begins with getting government out of the way of job creation. Overregulation has precipitated the closure of community banks and led to the decline of small business, costing millions of good paying jobs. For the first time in American history, more small businesses are closing than starting up. Im not saying get rid of all regulation, there is sensible regulation that keeps people safe and ensures a free and fair marketplace. However, what we are seeing now is regulation for its own sake that serves to increase federal control over our communities and concentrate power in the hands of Washington bureaucrats. There needs to be accountability in the regulatory process. Regulations with significant economic impacts are put on the books by bureaucrats who take it upon themselves to interpret the intent of legislation passed by Congress. They get it wrong much of the time, which is why I have been working to insert Congress into the regulatory oversight process so we can stop this rule-making industry and make the bureaucracy accountable to the American people (H.R. 427). This would stop many ill-conceived, duplicative and economically destructive regulations in their tracks. The Presidents failed healthcare law has also had a severe economic impact, without the benefit of increasing healthcare affordability and accessibility for Americans. A recent New York Times article discredited the Administrations foundational premise under Obamacare that overall healthcare costs would go down with the consolidation of care providers and services. The reality is that in areas like Grand Junction, which the Administration sought to universally emulate, private insurance rates are amongst the highest in the nation due to a lack of competition in the market among care providers and insurers, enabling them to charge whatever they wish without the risk of losing business to alternative providers in the community. As a result of this policy, healthcare costs have gone up across the board, premiums have sky-rocketed and the availability of care has decreased. This has put the cost of healthcare out of reach for many families, who then suffer a tax penalty to make matters worse. Small businesses have been forced to lay off employees or close their doors altogether because of unaffordable mandates under the law. Americans regardless of income or pre-existing conditions should be able to receive the healthcare they need, make decisions with their doctors to determine what that care looks like, and access it at a price they can afford. The existing law fails on all counts, which is why the House has taken many votes to dismantle, defund and outright repeal it. I suggest an alternative market-based policy approach that empowers patients and doctors, enacts tort reform, allows for greater flexibility, portability and cost savings through competition, while continuing to provide coverage for people with pre-existing conditions. I am a cosponsor of such legislation in the House (H.R. 2300), and firmly believe it is a replacement solution we can all get behind to fix our nations broken healthcare system and give all Americans access to affordable, quality healthcare. By passing a solution like this, we can lower the costs of care, improve access to it and strengthen our economy. Strengthening our national security is as important as reviving economic security at home. First and foremost, America must have a plan to defeat ISIS, the biggest threat currently facing global stability. Such a course has yet to be charted by the Commander in Chief. To remedy this, Congress passed into law, as part of the 2016 National Defense Authorization Act, a provision requiring the President to present a plan to defeat ISIS. Once we are able to see his plan, Congress can debate and discuss its merits, and then take action where appropriate or necessary to move it forward, or go back to the drawing board. We must also take action to fix vulnerabilities within our domestic national security such as the Visa Waiver Program that could allow terrorists to enter into the U.S. under relaxed screening procedures reserved for travelers from allied nations. Additionally, it is sensible to pause the admission of refugees from Syria and Iraq until we are capable of stringently verifying the identities of those coming over; that capacity does not currently exist. To be clear, those who are calling for our country to ban refugees who practice the Muslim faith couldnt be more wrong and have no place in the discussion. I will remind them that we are a nation founded on the principle of religious liberty for all, and that is sacred. The House has passed legislation to address both of these pressing national security issues, and I am hopeful that the Senate will take similar action early in the new year (H.R. 158 and H.R. 4038). All of these solutions are commonsense and based on the exact ideas discussed on Main Street and in town hall meetings and across the 3rd District. As we go into 2016, I am focused on continuing to work to advance these policies to get our country back on the right track and to hold Washington accountable to Coloradans. | 1 | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z | 2026-03-30T12:14:52Z |