Keeping the Republic
The nice thing about the 21st Century is that if I want a book I don’t have to run to a bookstore anymore and look for it. I picked up, or in this case, downloaded a copy of Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels’ book, “Keeping the Republic; Saving America by Trusting Americans”. After finishing the book in one evening, I think I have a man-crush on the Governor, in a totally hetro kind of way.
As Daniels mentioned in interviews it isn’t a self-serving biography, but more about public service. And what’s ironic in the book is the Governor argues that the best way to serve the public is to get out of its way and whatever the government does do, it should enhance the ability of the public to create wealth and economic prosperity.
The Governor regales some tales from his tenure as governor, the leasing of the Toll Road, the Democratic walkout, the education reform debate, the controversy surrounding the Old Soldiers and Sailors home, etc. He also acknowledges mistakes made with modernizing FFSA and the BMV.
What’s most intriguing though is that if you know the Governor, nothing in the book will really surprise you. As I slid from page to page on my iPad, I could literally hear Mitch Daniels’ voice as I read the words. Some of the events I was actually there for and got a chuckle going down memory lane.
The Governor offers quite a few ideas on fixing the national economy, halting job crushing regulations, replacing the income tax with a national sales tax, replacing government benefits for the poor with a cash payment in the form of an NIT (Negative Income Tax) and acknowledging that this country cannot continue down this path. He also makes a point that I have been arguing my adult life, it’s hypocritical to show disdain for business and the wealth creating class when those are the very people you will need to fund the programs you want government to pay for.
Now to make you feel better, the book for me was not a total love fest. I disagreed with the Governor somewhat on his assessment on the War on Terror and I think he fails to acknowledge that his administration had to get a taste of a “legislative learning curve” when they first came into office in 2005. But overall, it’s a pretty good read.
Overall though, I think Daniels makes the point that it is not too late to save the country from the new “red menace” i.e. the national debt. And it doesn’t have to be all that difficult once we have made the decision to stop spending ourselves into oblivion. I highly recommend going out and buying a copy, or like in my case downloading it on your kindle or iPad.
