John Jessup for State Representative----Issues

Greenfield Reporter Video Interview(scroll to bottom)

10/10/08: Message from John

Political Courage Test- Project Vote Smart

Indiana Family Institute   Voter Guide

Responses to Indiana Equality Candidate Questionnaire

Watchdog Indiana Rating

Interview Questions from Conservative Blogger- Dominique

Responses to IndyStar Voter Guide

"if the sword of oppression, is permitted to lop off one member unopposed; reiterated strokes will soon dismember the whole body..." Alexander Hamilton

Election Reform

I will propose legislation that will require all candidates for every elected office to meet the same requirements that Independents and minor party candidates must meet to be on the ballot.

I firmly believe that bipartisan solutions are not the answer to the problems we face in Indiana. We need Non-Partisan solutions. We need simple Hoosier solutions. To that end, I will work to remove party affiliation and major party status from our election process and from our legislative process. I will work to be sure all candidates jump the same hurdles and have the same opportunities, so all Hoosiers can be involved in our process.

Property Taxes

I support Senate Resolution 1 that caps property taxes at 1% for home owners, 2% rental and agriculture property, and 3% for business. It is not a perfect bill and leaves questions in my mind about the fairness of the tiered system of caps and about how this legislation would prevent Homeowners’ properties from simply being reassessed at a higher value each time the state or county needs to raise more revenue. However, by passing the bill a second time, the proposal can be forwarded to the people to choose by ballot whether they want the legislation to become part of our Constitution. I will spend my tern educating constituents about the full contents of the bill so they can make an informed decision as to whether to support it at the next general election

Privacy & Personal Liberty

I will work to oppose the REAL ID Act of 2005. Passed by Congress without proper debate or discussion (it was tacked on to an Iraq spending bill at the last minute), the law is a serious threat to personal liberty. The law creates a de-facto national identity card by mandating that all states meet the same criteria and link all their databases together. All Indiana citizens will be forced to get a new driver’s license and show proof of citizenship. I have no problem with this, in principle, if performed at the state level and the states are not required to link their databases together. Under this law, you will not only have to show your birth certificate and Social Security card to get a license, you will have to let the BMV copy them and keep a paper copy or digital copy. Your information including a digital copy of your face, SSI card, and birth certificate will be imprinted in a 2D Barcode format on the back of your card. This can be a serious security problem with the availability of 2D readers to almost anyone willing to pay for one. Without a compliant REAL ID, a citizen will not be able to enter Federal buildings, board flights, or anything else that the Secretary of Homeland Security deems as “official purposes”. This law does nothing to protect privacy, make us more secure as a nation, or slow illegal immigration… All things it is said to be written for. It actually creates a class of licenses specifically for persons who are here illegally… What kind of sense does that make? I will do all I can to prevent Indiana from implementing this potentially dangerous, unfunded mandate.

Illegal Immigration

The last thing we need to do to solve this problem is pass more laws. We need to, as a legislature, petition the Federal Government and demand that they enforce the laws that already exist. The Federal Government cannot have things both ways. They cannot allow the illegal immigration to continue, telling us that the workers are good for our economy. And then in the next breath, tell the states that they have to crack down on the employers who are hiring the illegal aliens. We cannot allow them to consider amnesty for those who have invaded our borders while, at the same time, making criminals out of citizens who hire from that pool of workers. I believe that no action will be useful until the Federal Government secures our border and enforces the laws that it passes.

Civics Education

Without a good Civics education, the next generation will be even more ill-prepared to lead our country. The history of Indiana that our children dabble in as fourth graders and the semester of Government they get in high school is not adequate to teach our kids the importance of civic responsibility. Our children need to be taught how a bill becomes law, how the election process works, the importance of voting, and that all throughout our history as a nation, individual people did make a difference. They have to be taught that they can make a difference, or they will never even try. I will fight to improve our children’s education as a whole, and will focus specifically on improving their Civics Education. I will strive to return some of our American heroes to the classrooms from which they have been stripped.

I will propose legislation that will require our legislators to volunteer time at our local schools enhancing civics education and American/Indiana history. Volunteering at our schools is a small price to pay for the opportunity to represent the people of Indiana. With or without passage of this legislation, I promise if elected to volunteer my time to each of the schools in my district to help advance Civics and history in our classrooms.

Spending

I believe the answers to our taxation problems (i.e. property taxes) lie not in the taxes themselves, but in the programs and mandates they fund. Our state government needs to do what we individual citizens are forced to do from time to time… CUT BACK! I am sure that most of you are like me- When I run out of money, I quit spending! Sure, it would be great if I could go to my employer every week and say… “Hey, I know you are not getting any more out of me than you did last week, but my paycheck just wasn’t enough… Give me more!” It would be great if we could perform less and raise our own pay rate to meet our own spending goals. The problem is, we individuals live in the real world. Its time our elected officials joined us. Let’s cut some spending before we give them any additional tax revenue. Let’s demand our money’s worth from what we already give. I will not only apply that thinking to any new taxes, I will work to see where we can cut spending to lower the taxes we pay now.

I support the FairTax and will lead our legislature in advocating its passage in the U.S. Congress. The Fair Tax proposal will bring jobs home, tax those hiding in the underground economy, give us all more upward mobility and give us a far more transparent tax system. Most importantly, since the tax would be collected at the state level by the same entities that currently collect our state sales taxes, the Federal Government would no longer be able to threaten the states with withholding federal funding for non-compliance. The roles would be reversed and the states would have the power to threaten withholding funds from a federal government that has become increasingly liberal with spending our money... and with demanding more. This would be a crucial step towards returning a necessary check and balance between the federal government and the individual states.

"If a nation expects to be ignorant -and free- in a state of civilization, it expects what never was and never will be..." Thomas Jefferson

"[A] rigid economy of the public contributions and absolute interdiction of all useless expenses will go far towards keeping the government honest and unoppressive. "

              Thomas Jefferson

"It is a singular advantage of taxes on articles of consumption that they contain in their own nature a security against excess. They prescribe their own limit, which cannot be exceeded without defeating the end purposed — that is, an extension of the revenue."

Alexander Hamilton



Copyright 2008

Paid for and authorized by: Jessup for 53 Committee...Angela Jessup, Treasurer



Greenfield Reporter Video Interview(scroll to bottom) 10/10/08: Message from John Political Courage Test- Project Vote Smart Indiana Family Institute Voter Guide Responses to Indiana Equality Candidate Questionnaire Watchdog Indiana Rating Interview Questions from Conservative Blogger- Dominique Responses to IndyStar Voter Guide "if the sword of oppression, is permitted to lop off one member unopposed; reiterated strokes will soon dismember the whole body..." Alexander Hamilton	Election Reform I will propose legislation that will require all candidates for every elected office to meet the same requirements that Independents and minor party candidates must meet to be on the ballot. I firmly believe that bipartisan solutions are not the answer to the problems we face in Indiana. We need Non-Partisan solutions. We need simple Hoosier solutions. To that end, I will work to remove party affiliation and major party status from our election process and from our legislative process. I will work to be sure all candidates jump the same hurdles and have the same opportunities, so all Hoosiers can be involved in our process. Property Taxes I support Senate Resolution 1 that caps property taxes at 1% for home owners, 2% rental and agriculture property, and 3% for business. It is not a perfect bill and leaves questions in my mind about the fairness of the tiered system of caps and about how this legislation would prevent Homeowners’ properties from simply being reassessed at a higher value each time the state or county needs to raise more revenue. However, by passing the bill a second time, the proposal can be forwarded to the people to choose by ballot whether they want the legislation to become part of our Constitution. I will spend my tern educating constituents about the full contents of the bill so they can make an informed decision as to whether to support it at the next general election Privacy & Personal Liberty I will work to oppose the REAL ID Act of 2005. Passed by Congress without proper debate or discussion (it was tacked on to an Iraq spending bill at the last minute), the law is a serious threat to personal liberty. The law creates a de-facto national identity card by mandating that all states meet the same criteria and link all their databases together. All Indiana citizens will be forced to get a new driver’s license and show proof of citizenship. I have no problem with this, in principle, if performed at the state level and the states are not required to link their databases together. Under this law, you will not only have to show your birth certificate and Social Security card to get a license, you will have to let the BMV copy them and keep a paper copy or digital copy. Your information including a digital copy of your face, SSI card, and birth certificate will be imprinted in a 2D Barcode format on the back of your card. This can be a serious security problem with the availability of 2D readers to almost anyone willing to pay for one. Without a compliant REAL ID, a citizen will not be able to enter Federal buildings, board flights, or anything else that the Secretary of Homeland Security deems as “official purposes”. This law does nothing to protect privacy, make us more secure as a nation, or slow illegal immigration… All things it is said to be written for. It actually creates a class of licenses specifically for persons who are here illegally… What kind of sense does that make? I will do all I can to prevent Indiana from implementing this potentially dangerous, unfunded mandate. Illegal Immigration The last thing we need to do to solve this problem is pass more laws. We need to, as a legislature, petition the Federal Government and demand that they enforce the laws that already exist. The Federal Government cannot have things both ways. They cannot allow the illegal immigration to continue, telling us that the workers are good for our economy. And then in the next breath, tell the states that they have to crack down on the employers who are hiring the illegal aliens. We cannot allow them to consider amnesty for those who have invaded our borders while, at the same time, making criminals out of citizens who hire from that pool of workers. I believe that no action will be useful until the Federal Government secures our border and enforces the laws that it passes.	Civics Education Without a good Civics education, the next generation will be even more ill-prepared to lead our country. The history of Indiana that our children dabble in as fourth graders and the semester of Government they get in high school is not adequate to teach our kids the importance of civic responsibility. Our children need to be taught how a bill becomes law, how the election process works, the importance of voting, and that all throughout our history as a nation, individual people did make a difference. They have to be taught that they can make a difference, or they will never even try. I will fight to improve our children’s education as a whole, and will focus specifically on improving their Civics Education. I will strive to return some of our American heroes to the classrooms from which they have been stripped. I will propose legislation that will require our legislators to volunteer time at our local schools enhancing civics education and American/Indiana history. Volunteering at our schools is a small price to pay for the opportunity to represent the people of Indiana. With or without passage of this legislation, I promise if elected to volunteer my time to each of the schools in my district to help advance Civics and history in our classrooms. Spending I believe the answers to our taxation problems (i.e. property taxes) lie not in the taxes themselves, but in the programs and mandates they fund. Our state government needs to do what we individual citizens are forced to do from time to time… CUT BACK! I am sure that most of you are like me- When I run out of money, I quit spending! Sure, it would be great if I could go to my employer every week and say… “Hey, I know you are not getting any more out of me than you did last week, but my paycheck just wasn’t enough… Give me more!” It would be great if we could perform less and raise our own pay rate to meet our own spending goals. The problem is, we individuals live in the real world. Its time our elected officials joined us. Let’s cut some spending before we give them any additional tax revenue. Let’s demand our money’s worth from what we already give. I will not only apply that thinking to any new taxes, I will work to see where we can cut spending to lower the taxes we pay now. I support the FairTax and will lead our legislature in advocating its passage in the U.S. Congress. The Fair Tax proposal will bring jobs home, tax those hiding in the underground economy, give us all more upward mobility and give us a far more transparent tax system. Most importantly, since the tax would be collected at the state level by the same entities that currently collect our state sales taxes, the Federal Government would no longer be able to threaten the states with withholding federal funding for non-compliance. The roles would be reversed and the states would have the power to threaten withholding funds from a federal government that has become increasingly liberal with spending *our* money... and with demanding more. This would be a crucial step towards returning a necessary check and balance between the federal government and the individual states.	"If a nation expects to be ignorant -and free- in a state of civilization, it expects what never was and never will be..." Thomas Jefferson "[A] rigid economy of the public contributions and absolute interdiction of all useless expenses will go far towards keeping the government honest and unoppressive. " Thomas Jefferson "It is a singular advantage of taxes on articles of consumption that they contain in their own nature a security against excess. They prescribe their own limit, which cannot be exceeded without defeating the end purposed — that is, an extension of the revenue." Alexander Hamilton



Copyright 2008 Paid for and authorized by: Jessup for 53 Committee...Angela Jessup, Treasurer