This weekend national leaders of the FairTax movement met in Chicago to discuss a plan of action that will unite our grassroots efforts and provide a unified front against the tax code and its supporters. For whatever the myriad reasons that brought together leaders from across the nation the experiment ended as a brilliant success. There is a small contingent of dedicated individuals that are putting together a national strategy that will serve to help focus our efforts toward a successful conclusion. You have probably read on this website before about the dire need for volunteer support and the crucial link that citizen involvement will play in the eventual passage of the FairTax. The meeting in Chicago only cemented my belief in the necessary requirement of the input of the American people, read you, for the FairTax to celebrate victory. Much of the timing of our efforts surround the reality of current events. We are afforded what can only be described as what our founders would call the “blessings of Providence”. The selection of Paul Ryan from Wisconsin by Presidential candidate Mitt Romney only proves that the focus of the next two years and the campaign is tax reform. Such reform is the item of the day in a way that this country has not seen since 1986. This means that whoever will win the Presidency will be almost required to tackle some semblance of tax reform in the newly elected 113th Congress. Which leaves you with a choice. Since the topic of tax reform will be discussed and acted upon in the next two years, will you allow Congress to pass a bill of its own making or do you want to have a say?
Congress will act with your input or without it, what it does is actually up to you. We start now. Many wish to wait for crowds and numbers to make our case, some are perfectly willing to grow our numbers one precinct at a time and let the slow attrition of time and effort make a difference. This model violates the laws of political physics. Utilizing this new timeframe does not allow for such a patient approach. We must take an aggressive approach. Not a mean or spiteful one, but one of action, of will, and eventually success. The truth is that we cannot win a political battle against entrenched interests carving out one congressional district at a time. The TEA Party was able to burst onto the scene inside of two years and credibly claim responsibility for one of the most volatile political elections in our history. They were capable of doing this because they were, correctly, identified as a national movement. This created the energy, motivation, and hunger for action that was necessary to make the change. Barack Obama’s 2008 campaign operated in much the same way, although it is far easier to characterize a national campaign as a national movement, he did, and reaped a significant benefit in terms of energy and motivation. It was not a methodical approach at the district or county level until after the initial reaction. The way we operate currently makes it difficult for people to believe we are anything resembling a national movement but in name only. Our focus and activity is locally based and homegrown. Our grassroots is strong but its reach is short. This would not be viewed as a negative except for the opposition we face. Our opposition is national and well funded, it is difficult to pose a threat to a Congressman who spends most of his time in Washington when our voices are traveling over such a long distance.
But this is where we make our change. Not only are we far more committed to interstate cooperation we have a national focus. This website has long been of the thought that our efforts can be best put into the conversion of those on the House Ways and Means Committee. The tab on the top of the page would suggest so. I have not been alone in this belief either, it should be said. However, the redoubled effort is focused, laser-like, on these 37 members instead of the 218 needed for passage on the floor. This will allow our not-insignificant grassroots to flex its muscles a little bit and put the pressure on a smaller crowd of elected people. It cannot be done without your help. Let me repeat for effect, this drive, this cause, this idea, is doomed to failure if starved of your considerable talents and skills. One of the chief reasons I believe in the FairTax is because it is truly the best and most effective bill to return power to the American public since the Revolutionary War. In order to effect this change of ownership however we have to reclaim it. Government growth is at the heart of many American’s frustrations with Washington and we need to realize what gives it the power to grow unheeded. The tax code. Its ability to reach into your paycheck, your wallet, your pocketbook, your portfolio, your safe, your bank account, and even your will after death is directly tied to its unimpeded expansion. If you want it to stop, if you want to stop it, support the FairTax. Not in name, not in signature, not on an email sign up list, but in effort, action, and dedication.
So consider this a call. A call for talented, dedicated, strong willed patriots to stand not for ourselves but for the rights of Americans since 1913 through today and for the foreseeable future. To stand not for a new cause or an invention of time but for principles espoused so long ago in a document we call the Constitution. For a national movement to show its strength we need a nation full of people moving. For a national movement to have a voice we need a nation full of people speaking. For a national movement to have heart we need a nation full of people believing, with every breath that they know better than a government cloistered away behind unfeeling bureaucracy. Notice the difference between what we seek and what we need versus the IRS and what they desire. We need your opinions, they want your cash, we need your voice, they want your silence, we need your action, they want your obedience. You are given a choice in November to be sure, but if you want a say in how your government is actually run then your action is needed now, more than ever. We can change Presidents in November, we can even change the majority party in the Senate, we could also change none of it. But if you want to change America, in a way that reflects your views, wants, and priorities, then support the FairTax! Because folks…it’s now or never.
