Just Say “No” to Another “Stimulus”

WASHINGTON, October 9, 2009–On the heels of a failed $700 billion “stimulus” package, Congress is mulling over yet another round of “stimulus” spending.

Two years later, in the midst of a long-shot bid against Rep. Mark Souder (R-Ind.) in a deeply conservative northeast Indiana district, the 27-year-old attorney could find himself swept into Congress if a sizable Democratic wave hits on Tuesday.
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Once again, I find myself in the middle of a he said/he said political fight, this time between Congressional hopefuls Senator Bill Posey and Frank Zilaitis. This morning I asked a simple question regarding the candidates’ stances on the free market and business regulation.

As part of his answer, Zilaitis mentioned a statement Posey made regarding the insurance industry at a dinner meeting many months ago: “The state has been regulating the insurance industry since Christ was born”. Posey adamantly and repeatedly denied making the statement and said he wasn’t going to play Zilaitis’ “game”.

Fact is, there is no game. I am the one that relayed Posey’s statement on that subject to Frank Zilaitis because I was in the audience at the event where Senator Posey said it. In fact, I was so upset by some of what Senator Posey said at that dinner meeting, I took the time to write a Letter to the Editor at Florida Today. The letter ran on June 20th of this year. I just paid the $2.95 archive fee so I could post what they ran here (it was edited for length):

Private companies are just doing business

The night before GOP state Sen. Bill Posey announced his run for retiring Republican Congressman Dave Weldon’s seat I attended a function at which he was the speaker.

The topic was insurance and he was detailing the myriad ways in which the state was forcing the insurance industry to do things it doesn’t want to.

Toward the end of his presentation, he said the free market wasn’t “ready, willing and able” to tackle the issues, so the state must do it.

When the time came for questions, I asked how long the state has been regulating the insurance industry.

He said, “Since Christ was born.” I asked how, then, could the free market have failed, when the market for insurance in the state has never been free?

I don’t think he ever answered the question directly. Instead he began comparing the insurance industry to the mob, going so far as to call them “murderers” for not paying claims in life or death situations.

The inability of an elected official — especially a Republican — to differentiate between criminals that wield guns and initiate force against others, and businessmen that offer services in the market through the principle of voluntary exchange, is frightening.

No private insurance company can force you to do anything.

Matthew D. Nye
West Melbourne

While my letter is still hearsay, I was there along with 20 or so others at the Holiday Inn Express in Cocoa, and Posey did say it; I wouldn’t have taken the time to write a letter to the editor if he hadn’t. I’m not a candidate, I’m not running for office and I’m not helping with Zilaitis’ campaign; I have no reason to make something like that up.

While I respect Senator Posey’s position on less government, I was appalled by what I perceived as an anti-business mentality and his bragging about how the state has throttled the insurance industry, so I took him to task on some of his statements about the “failure” of the free market both that night and later that week when I wrote that letter.

Which way is the wind blowing?
While we’re on the subject of apparent flip-flops, I think it is important to note that Senator Posey also changed his tune on the FairTax between the grand (re)opening of the Melbourne Area Association of Realtors facility on Sarno and his appearance on Bill Mick’s show today.

At the MAAR event, he was adamantly opposed to the FairTax and mocked me for bringing it up, saying it was bad for real estate. On the Bill Mick Live show a few weeks later he was supportive given certain conditions. Today he was just plain supportive.

I didn’t have time today to ask him what changed his mind since I asked the question at the MAAR event. I spoke with a staffer a week or so after the show that told me the reason for the about face was that he had done more research. I suspect he had to, as Bill makes no secret of his support for the FairTax, so kudos to Bill Mick for having such an impact.

In closing, I can respect a man that says he doesn’t know something. I can respect a man that changes his mind because he didn’t have all the facts. I have a hard time respecting someone that denies saying something in a crowd of 20+ people, when I was in the crowd and heard it first hand.

MUKILTEO – A local woman says her daughter was nearly strangled to death by a sunroof and now she wants to alert other parents to the potential danger.

The accident happened this week while 5-year-old Aungelina Aarskog was resting in her mom’s BMW. The sunroof window slammed shut on her neck while her head was sticking out.
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