Issue Position: Corruption and Transparency

Issue Position

Enough with the backroom deals. It's time for some sunlight.

On the campaign trail in 2008, Barack Obama promised us "the most transparent administration in history." And yet, the reality has been anything but. He promised that the negotiations over ObamaCare would be broadcast on C-SPAN, but they weren't. He promised an end to revolving door politics, where staffers become lobbyists and lobbyists become staffers. This didn't happen.

Unfortunately, the broken promises aren't limited to the West end of Pennsylvania Avenue. The House promised to post all bills online for three days before voting on them, and to publish attendance at committee hearings, but those promises haven't been kept, either.

The American people are tired of broken promises of transparency and ethical behavior. What they want--and deserve--is action.

On September 11, 2012, Ambassador Chris Stevens, Sean Smith, Tyrone Woods and Glenn Doherty were brutally murdered by Islamic terrorists at the American diplomatic mission at Benghazi, Libya. Shortly thereafter, the Administration's cover-up began. Despite the passage of over a year and multiple congressional hearings, the families of four murdered Americans are still waiting for answers. Just as the investigation into Operation "Fast and Furious" (where our government ran illegal guns to Mexican drug cartels) has produced no discernible outcome, the same part-time scheme of congressional inquiries into Benghazi have also had their chance, and have come up short. A full-time Select Committee investigation into the killings at Benghazi is long overdue.

Every week brings new revelations about the incredible scale of domestic wireless surveillance being conducted by the National Security Administration (NSA). The NSA has been exposed, time and again for monitoring Americans' communications in Orwellian fashion…all in the name of "security." We aren't buying it anymore. We need a full understanding of the scope of warrantless surveillance on law-abiding American citizens, and a return to a Constitutional surveillance scheme of warrants based on probable cause of wrongdoing.

The Obama Administration may not be the first administration to use the IRS as a political weapon to target its enemies, but it has certainly taken the practice to an entirely new level. The Administration's practice of targeting conservative organizations and journalists is a direct assault on the First Amendment guarantees of freedom of association, speech and the press. This is an attempt at blatant intimidation and must come to an end.

Sunlight is the best disinfectant, and given the condition of this government, there simply can't be too much sunlight. If I am honored to serve you in Congress, I will not vote for any bill that the American people haven't had a chance to read in full, digest and debate. Every vote I make will be posted online and I'll tell you exactly why I voted that way. Finally, I will speak up whenever any member of Congress tries to put the interests of a select few ahead of the American people at large. Americans come first.

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