US Congress Candidate Arterburn Impresses Bowie County Patriots
Tony Arterburn, candidate for US House District 4, spoke to the Bowie County Patriots last night at Smokey Joe’s restaurant in Nash.
This was the second time Arterburn met with the Patriots. Arterburn, a combat veteran and successful businessman from Rockwall, TX, gave a brief statement, and then took questions from the audience. One of the longer discussions involved securing the borders. Arterburn noted that since 9/11, the US government has enacted many measures that curtail Americans’ freedoms, but that we still operate under the same border policies that were in place September 10, 2001.
He said, “We’ve got to radically change our approach to border security. Not only are we letting in illegal ‘workers’ that our economy can’t support, we’re letting in people from countries that hate us. But they can’t hurt us if we don’t let them in. That’s not hate, and it’s not racism. We’ve got to stop looking at what’s politically correct and do what’s logically correct.”
When asked about the first three bills he’d work on after he’s sworn in, Arterburn replied, “First, I’d restructure the Veterans Administration. I’ve seen the deplorable conditions at VA hospitals, and the way veterans – especially those with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder – are pushed in endless bureaucratic circles. We owe these veterans the best treatment we can provide.”
“Second, I’d cut off foreign aid to every country that burns our flag. We send billions of dollars every year to countries where they hate us, and frankly, it’s never made sense. That money comes out of our pockets.”
“Third, as we’ve discussed, it’s time to actually secure the border. We’ve got the manpower and resources to do this. I’d rather we stop guarding the border of South Korea and start guarding the border of South Texas.”
He continued, “I’ve got a long list of things I want to do. The one that will require the most support from other Congressmen is abolishing the 16th Amendment. The federal government has had their hands in our pockets for 100 years, and that’s long enough. I want to abolish the IRS, and replace the entire system with the Fair Tax.”
Arterburn, a former paratrooper, was part of the very first Army company to set foot in Afghanistan after 9/11. He plans to bring attention to the length of the war in an unusual way: “On March 4th, primary election day, I’m going to parachute in near one of the smaller towns in the 4th district, and then walk 12 miles to the polling place – one mile for each year we’ve been at war.”
Arterburn is the youngest of the candidates, and has sworn to forego both the “Cadillac health plan” and the lifetime-salary pension plan Congressmen have given themselves. “I’ve already taken steps to have my businesses and investments managed while I’m in office. My sole focus is going to be serving the 4th Congressional district. I’m going to stay until the job is done, and then come home.”
Bowie County Patriots Chairman David Wood