Gene Goodman for Congress

How much did taxpayers pay to get the health care bill passed?

2010-03-31T17:15:00.000-07:00

Troy, Mich. - In a little-noticed news story, our Upper Peninsula's congressman, Bart Stupak, and his 10 fellow pro-life Democrats in Congress last week requested a total of $4.7 billion in pork barrel earmarks, following their last minute switch to support President Obama's health care takeover. Stupak alone requested $578 million in earmarks.

Backroom deals in Washington by career politicians are wrong, no matter who is doing them and who is benefiting.

Let's be clear - this was a quid pro quo deal, plain and simple. It was clear - the bill was going down unless these Members of Congress were given the money they wanted. The bill only passed by 3 votes and would have not passed but for this legislative pay off.

The Stupak scandal is just the latest in a long and disturbing series of such deal making. The Cornhusker Kickback, The Louisiana Purchase. Extra money for hospitals in Tennessee and Connecticut. Nationalizing the student loan industry (with the exception of only one bank in North Dakota).

All were tactics used to secure passage of President Obama's health care legislation. And all contribute to the stench of corruption emanating from Washington.

That's why the Stupak 11's earmark request is so unfortunate and that's one reason why Americans are up in arms over the health care bill and politics in DC in general.

But there's another reason, too. The health care reform signed into law last week is simply bad policy.

We're already starting to see the effects. Last week, AT&T announced that it would incur a $1 billion as a direct result of the legislation. And there's more.

Caterpillar, AK Steel, Valero Energy and other Fortune 500 firms have all announced tens of millions of dollars in new charges as a result of the "reforms." That will impact bottom lines, that will impact employers' ability to provide insurance to their employees, and that will result in lost jobs for an untold number of Americans. But I'm not speaking from talking points as just another politician. I'm seeing these things first hand because I'm a factory owner in Troy.

My company makes auto parts, and I proudly provide health insurance for my employees. Companies like mine are already struggling in this weak economy.

But these latest reforms - if you want to call them that - are going to make the business environment even worse, and that means the job market will follow right along with it.

For companies, the pain comes in the form of per-employee penalties -- and many companies will respond by just letting employees go.

The cost hits American taxpayers directly, too. It will come in the form of higher taxes, mandates and penalties, all to pay for the estimated $2.5 trillion in new entitlement spending. And that's just the beginning.

This all isn't to say that our health care system doesn't need reform. It most certainly does. Costs are far too high, and access needs to be expanded to all Americans including those with pre existing conditions.

But there's a right way to achieve these goals, and there's a wrong way.

We just saw the wrong way lead to unprecedented deal making in DC to the tune of trillions of taxpayer dollars, and it's left a bitter taste in Americans' mouths.

When people voted for Democrats from Barack Obama to our local Congressman Gary Peters, I believe they saw in them answers to their problems. They didn't like the direction their government was headed. They didn't like the Wall Street bailouts. They didn't like the out of control spending that Republicans were responsible for.

But President Obama, Congressman Gary Peters and his Democratic colleagues did not bring the change to Washington that those Americans wanted to see. The corruption remains. So too does the partisanship, the spending, the backroom deals, the bailouts, the joblessness and the high taxes.

I decided to run for Congress because I see that if we want true change in Washington, we don't just need to change the party of the people we send there WE NEED TO CHANGE THE PEOPLE WE SEND TO CONGRESS. If we send another career politician who just happens to be a member of a different political party, we won't get the real change hoped for- that is the lesson of the last election.

We need to change the mentality of Congress, and we only do that by sending people to Congress who have spent their lives outside of the system of political deal making that has so infected our body politic in this nation.

I am running for Congress on the pledge of never requesting a pork barrel earmark, and I will only accept half of my congressional pay, contributing the rest to paying down the national debt.

The goal of our founding fathers was to have a "citizen legislature" - made up of folks who have spent most of their time in the real world, meeting a payroll, creating jobs and figuring out how to deal with this challenging economy in a responsible manner. But we only get there by making the right kind of change at the ballot box.

Stand With Israel

2010-03-30T12:00:00.000-07:00

Like many Americans, I was disappointed and dismayed last week when President Barack Obama undercut one of our country's strongest allies in the Middle East - and indeed in the world - when his administration took a hard, critical line against Israel for its decision to construct apartments in East Jerusalem.

Vice President Joe Biden reportedly told Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu: "What you're doing here undermines the security of our troops who are fighting in Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan ... That endangers us and it endangers regional peace." For starters, that's flat out slanderous and untrue and demonstrates a profound lack of understanding on the part of the Vice President on the important issue of America's foreign policy in the middle east as well as the threat of Islamic fundamentalism.

Those who attack U.S. troops abroad are not doing so because of Israel's decision to build housing-- their motivation is terror and their enemy is the United States and all the freedoms it stands for. They are Islamic radicals who have a religious belief that everyone should live by their religious dictates or not live at all.

Terrorism is not created by an announcement of a new housing development. It is a fundamental philosophy which opposes the very existence of our nation and specific to Hamas- the governing authority of the Palestinian people- here is what their Charter says regarding Israel and the Jewish people:

The Prophet, Allah bless him and grant him salvation, has said:

"The Day of Judgement will not come about until Muslims fight the Jews (killing the Jews), when the Jew will hide behind stones and trees. The stones and trees will say O Muslims, O Abdulla, there is a Jew behind me, come and kill him".

Mr. Vice President, this belief system, indoctrinated in Palestinian children from a very young age, is what endangers freedom loving people the world over.

More troubling then the profound lack of understanding of this volatile region of the world, is how quickly the White House would turn its back on a critical ally -- and in such a public manner. Friends can have quarrels, they can disagree, but to air those grievances in public - to apply such public political pressure on an ally - is fundamentally wrong.

By creating substantial daylight between the U.S. and Israel the Administration only empowers our enemies as we broadcast to the world we will not stand with the only democracy in the middle east.

Sunday's Oakland Press hit the nail on the head on the U.S.-Israeli relationship, why this view is so troubling, and how the president should view Palestine:

"Rarely does one side deserve more credit than another in a dispute, but clearly Israel has tried over the past two decades to establish peaceful relations with all of its Arab neighbors. We haven’t seen much, if any movement from the Palestinians, particularly the radical elements that refuse to acknowledge Israel’s right to exist. Their only consistency seems to be to send young, adamant followers on suicide bombing missions. That does not promote peace.

President Obama needs to accept the fact the radical Palestinians will never agree to any kind of reasonable settlement unless they are forced to. Instead of pressuring Israel, the president needs to pressure the Palestinians and try to get those who truly do want peace to clamp down on their violent brethren."

In Congress, I will stand firmly by our ally, Israel. I will speak in clear terms of the threat Islamic fundamentalists pose to our nation and the reasons why. We can never defeat our enemy and protect our people if we do not understand the nature of the threat.

A Congressional Tongue Depressor Getting Jammed Down Our Throats

2010-03-15T16:04:00.000-07:00

You know what I hate the most about going to the doctor when I'm sick? The tongue depressor. Even though I trust my doctor, I just don't like the feeling of having a stick jammed down my throat.

Watching the news today, that's exactly what I feel the politicians in Washington are doing with health care policy.

They're asking us to open wide and swallow their government takeover of health care, and the people of Oakland County, like people all across America, are rejecting their plan.

Now they're coming back with their form of the tongue depressor to try and shove their failed policy down our throats. They call it reconciliation; I call it just plain and simple the wrong thing to do.

We all agree: health care in America needs serious reform. The costs have gotten out of control, and it's hurting plenty of families and businesses. I know this first-hand. I provide my employees with good health care plans, and it costs me more and more to do it every year.

I am the only candidate running for this Congressional seat, from either party, who has provided health care for their employees, for many years, during the most challenging time for auto suppliers like my company.

I have run our company without debt, which has allowed us to not only stay in business, but also to provide health care to our employees.

Had our company done what the federal government is doing - spent itself into a hole and piled up mountains of debt - we would have been out of the business, and those employees would be out of a job and without health care.

Sure, health care costs have increased, but everyone needs and deserves health care. What we do not need is a federal government takeover of health care. What we do need is more "citizen legislators" who have real world experience to deal with the health care challenge.

As an auto supplier who has survived during the roughest time in our industry's history, I have never abandoned the belief that employers should provide health insurance to employees if they can. And I know what needs to be done to provide health care to Americans.

I want to roll up my sleeves and work with Republicans and Democrats alike to address those issues which we need answers to: portability, pre-existing conditions and affordability.

But I also know that a government takeover isn't going to fix the problem - it's going to make it worse. A plan that puts the government in control of health care will lower the quality of medicine and require massive new taxes to be placed on our backs.

This, as much as anything else I've seen, makes me know we can and must do better. As your citizen legislator, I won't use complicated rules and processes to push through legislation you don't like - I'll represent you. I'll go to Washington and put forward a sensible health care reform plan that lowers costs and increases access to high-quality care.

That's what Oakland County families have demanded, and it's exactly what I'll deliver as your next Congressman.

Oakland County's Newest Republican, and My Favorite Democrat

2010-03-03T19:50:00.000-08:00

What I would do differently as your Congressman.

2010-02-11T07:27:00.000-08:00

Have you gotten one of Gary Peters’ slick taxpayer-funded political mailers recently? Gary’s already raised more than $1.5 of campaign money, a lot of it from Washington special interest groups that lobby to keep the spending spigot on.

Why can’t Congressman Peters spend his own campaign money to send out his political mailers instead of sticking taxpayers with the bill?

It’s this kind of wasteful spending that permeates Washington. The hundreds of thousands of dollars that Gary Peters is spending on these mailers is a substantial amount of money and contributes to the $12 trillion national debt.

Every wasteful government expenditure adds up and wasteful spending like taxpayer-funded political mailers creates an entitlement mindset among members of Congress that influences their decisions on bigger spending bills.

I’m running to change the status quo in Washington. I have taken a Pledge that if you send me to Washington I will never spend a cent of taxpayer money to send out a political-style campaign mailer.

If I want to send direct mail to voters, I will do it on my dime, not yours.

I’ve also made a commitment that I will only take half the congressional salary and turn the other half back to the government to help retire the national debt.

My motto is:

I will take half the pay, but work twice as hard to eliminate the wasteful spending.

The only way to stop the deficit spending in Washington is to defeat big spenders like Congressman Peters.

I hope you will join my campaign for fiscal responsibility and common sense.

Common Sense from the Factory Floor - What makes me a different kind of candidate.

2010-02-09T18:44:00.000-08:00

In another installment of "Common Sense from the Factory Floor," Gene Goodman talks about what distinguishes him from other candidates in the 9th District.

Peters Can’t Fool Oakland County Taxpayers Again!

2010-02-05T06:50:00.000-08:00

Gary Peters is trying to pull a fast one on Oakland County voters. Peters knows he’s vulnerable because he’s been one of the biggest liberal spenders in Congress. Voters are rejecting the crazy deficit spending in Washington. That’s why he voted today against raising the debt limit to more than $14 trillion.

Peters thinks he’ll get credit for being a fiscal moderate, but the problem for Gary is that he voted for the spending bills that forced the government to increase the debt limit in the first place.

Peters voted for the $787 billion no jobs stimulus bill and he voted for other Nancy Pelosi budget bills that will triple the national debt over the next 10 years.

The truth is Gary Peters is a Nancy Pelosi Democrat, not an Independent voice for Oakland County taxpayers. Just look at his voting record. He’s been with Pelosi 96 percent of the time.

The No-Jobs Stimulus Bill

2010-02-04T06:42:00.000-08:00

We are coming up on the one year anniversary of Congressman Gary Peters' vote for the $787 billion so-called economic stimulus bill. Since this bill was passed into law, the number of unemployed people in Michigan has increased from 583,000 to 700,000.

This bill has done nothing to stimulate our economy. It's just been a budget-buster that is adding to our national debt. According to the White House Budget office's own numbers, the deficit this year will be a record $1.6 trillion. This is money that is being heaped on top of our already $12 trillion national debt.

We can't continue this level of crazy Washington spending and expect to continue being the world's superpower.

Congressman Gary Peters told Oakland County voters in 2008 that he would be a fiscally moderate Democrat. He's been a liberal big spender in his first year in office, voting with Nancy Pelosi 96 percent of the time.

It's time to cut up his credit card.

Rocky signed my no pork barrel earmark pledge. Thank you, Rocky!

2010-01-22T07:38:00.001-08:00

VIDEO: "Common Sense from the Factory Floor"

2010-01-19T20:22:00.000-08:00

Here's a new feature on my blog and campaign Web site: "Common Sense from the Factory Floor." This is a weekly YouTube video where I talk about the issues that are important to Oakland County voters.

This week, I talk about the common sense values I use in my business and that I'll bring to Washington:

I'm not a slick politician. I'll just talk to you straight.

As my dad used to say, "if you can't reach into your pockets and grab the money to pay for something, then don't buy it." This is the philosophy I will take to Washington in my fight against the big spenders.

Thanks for watching.

- Gene

Scott Brown's Win Spells Peters' Defeat

2010-01-19T20:16:00.000-08:00

Scott Brown's amazing upset win in the Senate race to fill Ted Kennedy's seat is bad news for Gary Peters.

U.S. Senator-elect Brown won this election because the Democrat in the race took the Harry Reid/Nancy Pelosi position on health care and big government spending.

Americans are rejecting the Democrats' $1 trillion government takeover of our health care system, their pork-barrel spending and the mountains of debt they have piled on our children's backs.

Gary Peters has voted with Nancy Pelosi's spending agenda 96% of the time. We're going to beat him this November just like Scott Brown defeated the Pelosi-Reid candidate in Massachusetts.

No New Earmarks Pledge

2010-01-18T10:08:00.000-08:00

I pledge to the voters of Michigan’s 9th Congressional District that I will not request or accept a pork-barrel earmark in Congress.

I have asked my 2 opponents to do the same and, so far, they have not.

Signed and Pledged by:

_____________________________________
Gene Goodman

_____________________________________

Paul Welday

_____________________________________

A. Rocky Raczkowski

The Oakland Press Covers Gene Goodman's Campaign for Congress

2010-01-08T12:29:00.000-08:00

The Oakland Press covered Gene Goodman's campaign for Congress after his meeting with the paper's editorial board:

“I don’t want my kid to live in a county I can’t recognize,” said Goodman, 40, who criticizes Peters for his congressional voting record.

Goodman, owner of Versatube, an automotive supplier, says he’s a pro-life fiscal conservative and a better candidate than the other Republicans, Andrew Raczkowski or Paul Welday.

“These two guys can’t win against him (Peters),” Goodman said. Welday is a former lobbyist and Raczkowski a former state lawmaker. Peters is finishing his first two-year term in Congress this year after defeating a 16-year incumbent Republican in 2008. The 9th District congressional seat is entirely within Oakland County borders. It includes the communities of Pontiac, Lake Angelus, Keego Harbor, Sylvan Lake, Orchard Lake, Farmington, Farmington Hills, Franklin, Bingham Farms, Beverly Hills, Birmingham, Berkley, Royal Oak, Clawson, Troy, Bloomfield Hills, Rochester, Rochester Hills, Auburn Hills, West Bloomfield Township, Oakland Township, most of Waterford Township and part of Orion Township.

Congressional candidates state their case: Cap and trade energy tax would only add to problem

2009-12-27T12:24:00.000-08:00

by Gene Goodman

As the president of a family-owned auto supplier in Troy, I am concerned about the national cap and trade energy tax that President Obama and Democrats in Washington are pushing. The cap and trade bill that passed the House of Representatives earlier this year would be the final nail in the coffin for small manufacturers like my business that are struggling to keep afloat in these difficult economic times. This legislation would drive up energy costs for small businesses and result in consumers paying significantly more for gasoline and utilities. Independent estimates peg the cost of the cap and trade energy tax at more than $1,800 for the typical American family.

In Oakland County, we would bear a much higher burden because our economy is still heavily linked to manufacturing. Like many small businessmen in our community, I was disappointed that Congressman Gary Peters supported Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s national energy tax. I believe we must become more energy independent and less reliant on fossil fuels, but it makes no sense to impose draconian regulatory burdens on employers in Michigan and across the nation, while giving countries like China, India and Mexico a free pass to continue polluting at their will. The cap and trade energy tax won’t reduce global warming. It will simply lead to more of our factories and jobs being outsourced to China and other developing nations where energy and labor will be cheaper. Unfortunately, President Obama and Democrats in the Senate are committed to pushing the House-passed bill forward in the coming months as well as committing the U.S. to unrealistic emission reductions as part of the Copenhagen Summit on climate change.

As someone who works on the front lines of the auto industry every day to provide jobs, I know how hard working families are having it in Michigan today. The auto industry has taken so many hits in recent years and our families and towns in Oakland County are paying the price as jobs continue to be lost and home values continue to fall. Congressman Peters talks a good game about standing up for manufacturing. He rubs elbows with the powerful Labor Bosses in Washington and pays lip service to fighting for the little guy, but his votes in Congress are threatening what’s left of our industrial base in Michigan and the 35 families who depend on the jobs my factory provides.

In addition to the cap and trade energy tax, Congressman Peters has recently voted for a $1 trillion government takeover of our health care system. He voted for an $800 billion economic stimulus bill that has created no jobs in Michigan. In fact, our unemployment rate has increased from around 9 percent when the bill was passed in February to more than 15 percent today. The wasteful spending and rapid growth in government that Congressman Peters is voting for will lead to future tax increases that will further erode the ability of small businesses to create and sustain good-paying jobs.

I believe that Michigan manufacturers and small businessmen need an advocate in Washington. That’s why I have decided to run for Congress next November in Michigan’s 9th District. Michigan currently does not have a congressman or senator who has a background in the automotive industry or manufacturing. It’s about time we had someone in Washington who understands what it takes to create jobs in the lifeblood industry of our state.

Gene Goodman is the president of Versatube Corp., an automotive supply business in Troy that employs 35 workers. For information on his campaign, visit www.genegoodman.com.

Originally published on TheOaklandPress.com on December 27, 2009