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City Council Questionnaire | Political Survey:
Below are the results of a political survey I answered recently. It was addressed to all the candidates in the March 3rd election.
- Please tell us your name and the district you are running for.
Phil Jennerjahn. I'm running for Mayor of Los Angeles.
- What are the 3 most pressing issues facing your district or city?
Please prioritize them. What if anything do you plan to do
about them if you are elected? What specific promises will you make to
the voters in order to be elected? What will be your primary focus if
elected to office?
- Illegal Immigration. Illegal immigration has become an overwhelming financial burden to taxpayers here in Los Angeles. I intend to end
this by launching a crackdown on illegal immigration. Raids, arrests and
deportations. Our country, state, and city are sending the wrong message on illegal immigration...that it will be tolerated.
If I am elected, it will be very clear that it will NOT be tolerated any longer.
I understand why people come here without permission and I have sympathy for their plight, but it is not the mission of our government to feed, clothe, house, educate, and employ every person in the world who wants
to come here. We just can't afford to do it.
- Budgetary issues. The City of Los Angeles spends over 7 BILLION dollars in their annual budget....much of it needlessly because of waste, fraud, and abuse. I intend to control the problem by reducing staff. I intend to shrink the size of our City government by firing people and eliminating departments. Our City hasn't laid anyone off for financial reasons since 1983!! This is unfair to taxpayers here. The government does not have an
unlimited right to expand when the private sector is collapsing.
- Responsiveness. Many groups are angry at the current Mayor for always leaving town for trips and refusing to meet with voters face to face. I will cure this by having an open door policy where I meet with up to 50
people per week and they all get to have a few minutes to talk in the
Mayors office.
- Gang violence is a major problem in many areas. Many gangs, such as
Mara Salvatrucha (MS-13), reach out from the inner city into what are
generally thought to be safe neighborhoods. What can you do to create safer communities and reduce the risk of gang violence?
My crackdown on illegal immigration will send many of
these criminals back to their home countries. 90%
of the Most Wanted people on the LAPD watch list are
illegal immigrants.
- Terrorist attacks and disasters, natural or otherwise,
can strike at any time. Is your district properly equipped, trained
and prepared to handle these extraordinary emergency situations? If
not, what should the city do to prepare for them? Should the state and/or
federal government be responsible for responding and/or picking up the cost of any of them?
No, Los Angeles is not fully prepared. The most pressing danger, aside from earthquakes, is social unrest. We had riots here in 1992 and that could easily happen again. The police admitted being outnumbered during that unrest and many of them left the City.
If elected, I intend to order the Chief of Police to issue many, many CCW (carry concealed weapon) permits to law-abiding citizens.
This is a necessity in a City like L.A. where officers sometimes cannot respond in times of social unrest.
- What can be done to create new business and encourage existing
business to expand and attract more companies with their tax base and
employees?
The City needs to stop being so "anti-business" and stop over-regulating businesses. They are driving business owners away. I would like to relax the regulations and offer a more pro-business atmosphere here in L.A.
- Do you support efforts to limit "big box" store expansion within
your city?
No...big box stores create jobs and serve the community.
- Do you support or oppose a living wage ordinance as has been proposed in the City of Los Angeles? Why or why not?
Oppose. It is one more example of the government using force to coerce behavior by its citizens. If companies don't pay well enough, employees will walk away to better jobs. This will force them to raise their pay rates to compete. The invisible hand of the free market at work.
- Should your district reduce the cost of services by contracting out or privatizing government services such as street sweeping and garbage collection and professional services such as engineering and information
technology services? Why or why not?
ABSOLUTELY!! One of my strongest political beliefs is that the free market works better and faster than the government. Just because the city does something doesn't mean that they are the best at doing it. I would like to see ALL City services subcontracted out to private companies. That would reduce the salary and benefits cost that are so heavy right now.
- Should taxes be raised, lowered or remain the same? What about fees?
LOWERED. Lower taxes leaves more money in the average persons pocket...allowing them to spend it on things they want...driving business profits forward and creating a growing and productive economy that helps all by the power of its success.
Fees are just another hidden tax. Same answer.
- Did you support or oppose the eminent domain in the June 2008 election? Why or why not? How should your district use eminent domain to improve the city? Do you agree with the United States Supreme Court's Kelo decision? Why or why not?
I am not fond of eminent domain.. it is more force being used against citizens by the government. I vehemently disagree with the abusive way it is tending to be used lately. The Kelo case was pure theft, where a business developers interests came before the property owners interest.
A tragic violation of our freedoms and rights. I agree with Congressman Ron Paul, who said "Kelo serves as a stark reminder that we cannot rely on judges to protect our freedoms. "
- Who is your political role model or the politician you most admire?
Why?
My political hero is Arizona Senator Barry Goldwater. He wrote a book called "Conscience of a Conservative" that launched a movement that
eventually put Ronald Reagan in the White House. The following quote from Barry Goldwater explains a lot of things about me, politically speaking.
"I have little interest in streamlining government or in making it more efficient, for I mean to reduce its size. I do not undertake to promote welfare, for I propose to extend freedom. My aim is not to pass laws, but to repeal them. It is not to inaugurate new programs, but to cancel old ones that do violence to the Constitution or that have failed their purpose, or that impose on the people an unwarranted financial burden. I will not attempt to discover whether legislation is ``needed'' before I have first determined whether it is constitutionally permissible. And if I should later be attacked for neglecting my constituents 'interests', I shall reply that I was informed that their main interest is liberty and that in that cause I am doing the very best I can."
-- Barry Goldwater
- Should the city pass resolutions on political issues such as Iraq or same-sex marriage?
No.. the city should stay out of national policy debates.
But politicians are politicians, and they always feel the
need to say something about everything.
- Would you vote for displaying our National Motto "in God we trust" in the city council chambers if it was legal to do so?
Good enough for our currency.
Good enough for our founding fathers.
Good enough for me.
My answer is "yes".
www.electionforum.org/
www.judgevoterguide.com/
www.lavoterguide.com/
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