_ Taxes are too high. That's because government spending is too high. I want to reduce both.

Today our state government spends money on almost everything: education, health care, cancer research, business incentives (i.e. corporate welfare), and poverty programs. These may be worthy goals, but they are not proper functions of government.

Steps I would take:

• I would vote to repeal the business margins tax that was proposed and signed in 2006 by Republican Governor Rick Perry, and filed by Rep. Jim Keffer (Republican from Eastland).

• I would file a bill to cut the state sales tax from 6.25% to 4%.

• Those two tax reductions would reduce state revenue by about $25 billion over the next two years*. I propose cutting expenditures to match. (The current total budget is about $172 billion.) I support across-the-board cuts, and I note that most of the cuts will need to come from the two largest areas of state spending: education and health and human services.

*Estimate based on Comptroller's 2012-2013 revenue estimate.

_Our Constitutional rights are being stripped away before our eyes with approval by both Democrats and Republicans who seem to think we the people don't care.  I DO care!  I will work to nullify all acts signed into law that have taken away our freedoms, including those enacted "for our protection."

I am very serious about protecting our Constitutional rights as given in the Bill of Rights, and I believe in our rights as given by the Texas Constitution, some of which (i.e., property rights) are at the discretion of the government. 

_I am a firm believer in the Sovereignty clause of the Texas Bill of Rights, and will work to ensure that Texans are protected under the laws of the State, even when in conflict with certain Federal laws (i.e., sections 9, 12, and 19 and the NDAA).

_I believe Texas should have the exclusive rights to provide Texans with forms of energy that are produced with the natural resources of Texas for the lowest possible fees without taxes.  I believe Federal regulations that inhibit Texan research and capture of energy should be repealed.