Thoughts on US Policy
One thing about Faustian bargains, where we consciously choose to turn from the moral beliefs and values that define us, in favor of something we desire in the short term, is that they always end in tragedy. Just as Faust sold his soul for worldly pleasures, selling the moral basis of our lives to achieve short term goals, even noble ones, inevitably results in long term consequences far more dire then we ever imagined and leaves us broken and filled with regret.
As a Republican of 40 years, it is not only painful and deeply troubling to witness how dramatically divisions have cut into the fabric of our country, but how fellow moderate, pragmatic Republicans have caved in to the ideological hard-right. Given what has become an all too common tendency among so many of us to stridently lurch to support or denigrate Trump, perhaps it would be worthwhile to take a step back and ask ourselves: “What does it mean to be a Republican?” What are the core values we stand for, and let those values guide our judgments, words and votes on the policies and people leading us.
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When combating injustice, the tragedy of lost opportunities and the senseless loss of life, both here and abroad, for the sake of those we choose to defend as well as our own humanity, it is essential to remember to live out a “thirst for righteousness” on multiple fronts. While exposing and confronting the perpetrators of injustice with their selfishness and shortsightedness is a noble cause, it is equally if not more important to bring to light and labor together on constructive solutions to some of the seemingly intractable problems that beset us. And beyond that, sometimes it is good and right, even for warriors, to sheath their sword, lay it down for at least a little bit, and take up the good work of lending a helping hand and a broad smile to those that are struggling and hurting.
President Trump, during his inaugural speech, reiterated with great confidence the underlying themes of his campaign: “Make America Great Again” and “America First!” While these apparently made for an appealing campaign pitch and many voters seem to believe this is how America ought to be governed, they immediately struck me as some of the most troubling and dangerous things a now sitting President could say, let alone say so stridently. “Make America Great Again” and “America First” are troubling and dangerous foundations for policy because they are backward looking, selfish, counter-productive, and demonstrate a withdrawal from the moral, economic and military leadership role America has in the world.
As we mourn the loss of so many innocent people in Orlando, as well as those who lost their lives at a fireworks celebration in Nice, France, at an airport in Istanbul, a cafe in Bangladesh, and so many others taken by terrorist attacks over the last few years, let us continue to be mindful not only of the need for more effective gun controls and mental health care, but how perniciously the war on terror is seeping into our country. While hatred of gays and the LGTB community seemed to have played some role in the Orlando attack, and that should not be forgotten, we need to be increasingly mindful of the fact that we are also in the middle of a religious and cultural war with radical Islam, and one that we are not winning. Daily we hear media coverage of terrorism committed by ISIS, our military strikes against them and their loss of territory, along with rhetoric from presidential candidates on who can be toughest against ISIS, but we almost never hear even so much as a vague plan on how to stem the growth of radical Islam and win the peace.
If America and Americans want to contain the influence of Iran, improve the health of our economy, and retard growth in global warming, we have at hand a silver bullet that can simultaneously accomplish all three: reduce fuel consumption, particularly gasoline. With a few minor adjustments to our driving habits, we can put more pressure on the Iranian government than another aircraft carrier battle group, we can reduce our burgeoning trade deficit and the upward pressure it exerts on interest rates, and we can turn the corner on reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
While most Americans struggle with high gas prices at the pump, and worry about what it will cost to heat their homes this winter, America seems to be going nowhere fast in addressing its energy problems. Unfortunately, a number of political leaders are advocating increasing refining capacity, giving out billions in home heating subsidies and creating a mileage tax. While these solutions may seem helpful, they’re headed in the wrong direction because they focus on maintaining consumption or constraining transportation. A paradigm shift which focuses on significantly incentifying the conservation of energy is essential to addressing America’s energy, economic and environmental challenges. Incrementally increasing energy supplies, while generally helpful, will be consumed by our growing economy and will not reduce America’s massive oil import needs. If Washington, as well as the states, would raise taxes on energy, particularly gasoline, and offset that with a decrease in individual and corporate income taxes, Americans would be no worse off in terms of total taxes, but we would all have a strong incentive to further reduce energy consumption. Our tradition in America of taxing income in effect restrains growth. What we really need to restrain is the consumption of energy which significantly contributes to pollution, global warming, and our nation’s growing trade deficit. Clearly, if ever there were an example of an appropriate use of tax policy to promote national goals, increasing taxes on energy consumption would be it.
While our leaders in Washington seem to believe there’s little they can do to reduce America’s dependence on foreign oil in the short term, there are in fact a number of things they can do, but it will require some creativity and a healthy dose of political courage.
While our leaders in Washington seem to believe there’s little they can do to reduce America’s dependence on foreign oil in the short term, there are in fact a number of things they can do, but it will require some creativity and a healthy dose of political courage. For example, if the President Bush and Congress would raise taxes on gasoline, and offset that tax increase with a decrease in income taxes, American’s would be no worse off in terms of their total tax bills, but we would have some pretty strong incentive to reduce our consumption of fuel. If those taxes were scheduled to gradually increase every year, perhaps by 5% per year, while also reducing income taxes by an equivalent amount, Americans and American businesses would have the incentive and a vision for their need to reduce fuel and energy consumption. Our leaders in Washington suggest that technology and increasing domestic supplies of energy are the key to energy independence. However, real reductions in America’s energy dependency, as well, as reducing pollution and global warming, are tied to reducing our consumption of energy, particularly fuel for cars and trucks.