Senator-elect Thom Tillis sat down for an interview
with the Associated Press. Here are some
of the Q & A’s :
Q: Where do you think your policy
interests will lie? Do you have a first bill you expect to file?
A: I think most of my
focus will be very similar to our focus when we first came into the legislature
— get the regulatory environment back to a level where the cost of doing
business and the uncertainty is reduced, because I believe that will create an improvement
in the economy that then makes tax reform and a number of the other things that
we want to do more likely to be achieved.
Q: An issue in the
fall campaign was whether you believed ground troops would be needed in the
Middle East as the end-game strategy to combat the Islamic State. Have you
thought about that anymore?
A: What we've said is
that there's a difference between having American presence advising those on
the front lines that do not have to be Americans. I think that the Middle East
partners have to play a role in protecting their security but I do think that
American expertise is important. And you see when we create a vacuum like we
did in Iraq, that's how we got to the point where we're having to have this
discussion.
Q: Given the president's
executive action on immigration in November, do you feel more or less confident
there will be a comprehensive immigration overhaul?
A: We need to not
overcomplicate the issue. We need to first and foremost have a credible
strategy for sealing the border. What the president has done has actually made
that task even more challenging because by saying that he can grant amnesty —
at least temporary amnesty to some 3 to 5 (million) already here illegally
present. He's sending a signal to those who have not yet come here that maybe
if you get here you'll be afforded the same treatment. So I think it's going to
create more pressure, make the situation on the border more dangerous.
Q: What are the
chances that we will see significant changes to the president's health care
overhaul during the next congressional session?
A: When you talk about
repeal, you also have to think about things that we believe we can do because
they make sense and they don't break the budget. But even that sort of bill
would be vetoed by the president. I would vote for that kind of bill. Whether
or not that will come up I think remains to be seen. I think what you'll see
fairly quickly are legislative actions to repeal the medical device tax, which
is part of the Affordable Care Act, you will see the delay or repeal of certain
mandates ... because they are having negative consequences on small businesses,
so you can start to systematically repeal some of the most onerous provisions
of the ACA before you've got support to replace it entirely.
North Carolina’s new senator will make a
good, establishment republican. Is it
time for the states to call for a constitutional convention? I do believe so.
Source:
No comments:
Post a Comment