My thoughts on issues to be addressed by the new administration

Representative Gabrielle Giffords
Dear Mrs. Giffords,
Once again I am writing to you since writing to either of our Arizona State Senators is a lost cause. First I want to congratulate you on winning re-election. I believe you have made a great start on your political career. Who knows how far you will go. I wish you the best.
The purpose of this letter is to trigger thinking on your part of things of importance for the next administration to accomplish. You may only have a minor roll to play but on the other hand, you are there, and you are no longer a freshman. You have proven yourself. I would hope you would be bold and assert your thinking into the deliberation process rather than just vote as the leadership demands.
1- Call on the President to immediately release Border Patrol Officers Campion and Ramos from prison. They should be invited to the White House together with their families and be given a public apology for wrongful imprisonment. They were putting their lives at risk apprehending a proven drug smuggler. The morale and effectiveness of other agents would immediately improve and their effectiveness increase with the knowledge that they could pursue their purpose without fear of prosecution.
2- Suggest to the President to remove all political appointments from the agencies that were put there to dictate that the agencies follow the political agenda. With this accomplished then they will be free to discharge their responsibilities per their charter.
3- Suggest that the missile defense systems currently being installed in Poland be quietly dismantled removing this threat to Russia. I am sure he could receive some concession from them such as speeding up the destruction of nuclear weapons or improved accountability of them, anything to make the world a safer place. This has been totally wrong from the start. It is akin to Russia once again placing missiles in Cuba. We wouldn’t allow that. Why would we think that Russia would just acquiesce?
4- Encourage the President to stop all offensive operations in Iraq and accelerate the drawdown of military personnel from that place. The current President is doing all he can to keep this from happening. President Obama contacting the Iraqi Government could keep them from signing the agreement.
5- Request that he demand the Chinese allow their currency to float which would immediately have the effect of removing their built in advantage by 40%. This could begin the return of less labor intensive industries to America. In addition request that he follow thru on his campaign pledge to eliminate the incentives to moving manufacturing off shore. Take action against countries like S. Korea who severely restrict imports of American goods while they are allowed free access to American markets.
6- Bailout- You voted against it, but then after changes, you voted for it. This was done in a panic mentality. Now we find that A.I.G. is asking for additional funds up to nearly $150 billion. We are also informed that some banks are using the windfall to purchase other banks, give bonuses and sponsor expensive outings as a reward for great service. I have also read that since the government now has ownership that we the taxpayers will be paying legal expenses to defend the ones who created this mess to begin with. Once you return you and others must address these problems and make necessary corrections.
7- The cause of the stupidity was the bundling together of home mortgages into salable packages. I don’t know how, but if possible this should be outlawed. When a family purchases a home most need a mortgage. They get that through a local bank. The way it used to be is that bank held the mortgage until such time as it was paid off. It was then redeemed and kept as a keepsake or burned in a party. A mortgage should not be considered an object to sell. It should just be between the family and their bank.
8- Review all of President Bush’s signing statements which allowed him to sign a bill and then ignore it.
9- I care about the environment, wildlife, etc. Return the Forest Service back to protecting the forests not exploiting them for profit. These must be preserved for future generations to enjoy.
10- I realize we must have American auto makers but I am reluctant to give them billions when the leadership of those companies refused to develop fuel efficient vehicles in this country. They know how. The vehicles sold in Europe are fuel efficient and a number of years ago they did have electric cars on the road. A management decision killed them in favor of gas guzzlers. Removing health care costs as part of a universal health care system like the rest of the civilized nations do would greatly reduce their costs and eliminate this unfair cost disadvantage.
There are so many opportunities to repair the damage of the past eight years. I wish you and your compatriots well. Enjoy yourself and revel in your accomplishments.

Jack B. Walters
3961 N. Hillwood Circle
Tucson, AZ 85750
(520) 722-2958
November 12, 2008
jackbwalters@yahoo.com