If You Want to Be Governor

I suspect the candidates for governor are scurrying to refine their message for the upcoming election. It is one thing to throw your hat in the ring, and quite another to have a consistent message that resonates with the electorate. All it takes is one terrorist attack or a crash in the markets to capture the attention of the fickle voter.

To that end, I thought I would craft a series of campaign platforms that should resonate with the voters and more importantly, move Iowa closer to being that “shining city on a hill.” Keep in mind that while this is posted on the IFPC Blog, in no way do I speak for everyone at IFPC. If you want to know what various IFPC members think, email them or look for their comments below.

The Big Picture

It’s About the Family, Stupid!

Iowa needs to position itself as being the best place to raise a family. That’s the reason many of us are still here. We were looking for a clean, wholesome place to raise our young. Any campaign would do well to focus everything back to this foundational institution. The family is our economic base, our agriculture base, the center of our educational experiences and crucial to our health care. Clearly, the center of our culture is the family unit.

Economic Policy

Step one: Stop the bleeding

The easy answer is to stop reckless spending or at least spend within your means. I’m assuming all the candidates will address the out-of-control spending. But no economic plan will be effective unless it addresses the breakdown of the family. The Institute for American Values (http://www.americanvalues.org/) found the breakdown of the family is costing Iowa taxpayers $359 million. The social costs are getting out of hand. Like filling up a hole ridden bucket, it doesn’t really matter how much water you put in until you fix the leaks. Typical politicians choose to ignore the problem because they believe they can’t do anything about it. Fortunately for Oklahoma, former Gov. Keating was no typical politician. He realized early on the negative effect the breakdown of the family was having on his state. He instituted a statewide program that provided skills to interested couples. He was able to leverage some of the state’s TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) monies to provide the premiere program in the country. While this is not a quick fix, it will help balance the budget in the long run.

I would also propose giving some incentive to couples tying the knot to get marital education. Several states like Florida have raised their marriage licensing fees substantially and then offered a discount to couples that get at least four hours worth of pre-marital counseling. Couples that have marital skills are much more likely to have life-long, happy marriages.