Bring government back to the people!

 

"With the internet and technology we have today, we could have our congressional people meet in Montana. Democracy could be reborn, it could be the change this country needs." 

 

Bob has a vision of connecting each state's elected representatives up in central locations where regional representatives from across the state, as well as the state's U.S. Representatives and the U.S. Senators all meet regularly for workshop sessions. Essentially he wants to bring Democracy back to the people. He hopes to revolutionize Democracy into the 21st Century. Bob believes in being a good steward of the land, and also a good steward of technological resources.

"I’m no Ben Franklin, but I have some inventions and maybe we need to reinvent our government for better people participation instead of special interests."    

Bob believes we can use technology to breathe life into our downtowns, revitalize our main streets and bring back some "personalness" to our government. "Together we could strengthen our state government and send the goodness of Montana to the nation."

"Maybe we’re 20 years ahead of our time in trying to write a new chapter in our history, but if we work together we can make it happen!"

 

National Concerns

• It's time to rebuild our main streets. "Let's make it happen".

• Why are we rebuilding Iraq when our own bridges are failing?

 

War in Iraq

"Over 4,000 troops have been killed in Iraq since March 2003. In the 1970's President Nixon Ended a war. Bush needs to end this one and bring our troops home. If Bush won't do it, we need to elect someone that will."

President Bush made a big deal of landing a plane on an aircraft carrier and telling us "Mission Accomplished".  Now the Bush administration is doing everything it can to back-pedal and revise their statement, despite banners and photographs to the contrary. What, if anything, has been accomplished five years later? 

 

Health Care

• More Physician's Assistants are needed.
• Set some standards, and price limits on what doctors can charge.
• The price differences between over the counter and prescription
medications in our country as opposed to prices in other countries is
unacceptable. The pharmaceutical industry has the FDA convinced that
we're idiots. Pharmaceutical companies and their greedy agendas
must be stopped!
• We need a Healthy Montana Insurance program similar to those that
other Montana insurance companies started years ago, such as Montana
Unified School Trust (MUST), Richland Mutual Insurance and other
Montana insurance programs that give back dividends if you don't have
a claim.

Immigration

• Stricter immigration laws and tighter security at our borders.
• We should co-op with Mexico on immigrants to get their records.
• Bob Candee admits, "For selfish reasons, I agreed with president Bush
on the immigration guest worker policy and have hired immigrants to
work on my farm."

Farming and Agriculture

In Ranching, “Having problems makes you think of solutions, not look
away from them like this year”, Bob says," The reason I’m running is
because I took on some “corruption baloney” in D.C. some years ago.
It looks like it’s time to do it again. “I’m the only farmer-rancher
running for office. My reason for supporting agricultural issues is
that other people with cows don’t have the time.”

 

Country of Origin Labeling

Conrad Burns voted against Country of Origin labeling in 2005. After it passed, the USDA postponed it until 2008, that is illegal. Somebody needs to go after
them and file suit! “R-CALF is an example of a good idea that came
from Montana.” -Leo McDonald. Experts estimate from 30-50 cents more
per pound will be paid for U.S. beef after mandatory labeling law is in enacted.
Montana has 1,451,000 stock cows on its farms with 600 lb calves. That
equals 870,600,000 sold at .30/lb. That is more than $250 million more
dollars that Montana main streets could have with labeling.

The USDA - Enough is Enough

"I’m sick and tired of propaganda against labeling our beef,”  Bob says,
and “I’m suspicious of what I read about the USDA helping us.
I am tired of the deception of a USDA label on imported beef. It is
deception to the customer. Our beef is labeled in every other country.
The consumer needs to know where their beef came from. We need to have a vote on the check off and the Farm Bill. I see some real opportunities in our state for Montana beef labeling. "

The U.S. has the lowest amount of wheat acres since 1972.Unfortunately,
the USDA lowered the loan price to $2.47 a bushel and cut the research
funds. Years ago Taylor Brown of the northern AG network presented Bob’s notes on “profits from farms, not pay outs” to Secretary of Agriculture Clayton Yeutter. “Wow, did we ever get his attention Bob”. -Taylor Brown

When Democrats are in, the USDA seems to work for us.
Bob believes we shouldn’t have to profit off of someone else’s
disaster. In 1996 he sold wheat for $6.16 a bushel. He says, “2005 had
the lowest barley production sine 1936 and the same price as in 1919
(Omaha Standard). Farmers need a bonus year, as everyone does once in a
while.”

Bob visited with former Secretary of Agriculture, Mike Johanns about
raising the loan price, energy acres, and his Homestead Act. The only
thing that can compete with foreign labor (China) is agricultural
products.

Bush Administration, “Sugar is too high-priced” and Iraq said our wheat
is too high-priced (Australian Wheat Board). Where was Conrad Burns
and our Wheat Board people on the Oil for Food Program?
 

Washington, D.C.

Many good people are running in this election, which shows the
discontentment with D.C. Bob is noted to voice his opinion on this
issue: “This government baloney is not something so new. I took on D.C.
during the Reagan era, hired a young gal just out of law school, who
worked for a world famous law firm and beat their pants off!”

“Senator John Melcher was my friend and he did more for Montana than
anyone ever knew. When I took on D.C. he told me that I was right but
that nobody had ever beat them before.

Bob Candee believes it’s time to clean up D.C. It needs a revival
instead of being “sold to the highest bidder.”

 

Bob's Solution:

Everyone in the Federal Government should have their financial books
open to the public. Also, all commodities, Wall Street stocks, bonds
and the people trading them should all be published and open to the
public. Insider trading would be stopped.

        
Oil and Energy in Montana

After touring a huge wheat ethanol plant and feedlot facility in Canada
last fall, Bob realized that in Montana, ethanol plants, feed lots and
packing plants are badly needed. This would help with rising costs associated with transportation issues. Energy acres should be promoted to bring young people back. “You shouldn’t have to wish for an oil well to be able to afford to farm.”

Bob stresses the following points:

• We need to develop renewable energy.
• Why are there no ethanol plants in Montana?
• We are behind in developing wind farms, since wind is such a plentiful resource in Montana.
• We need to promote Governor Schweitzer's ideas on developing coal to oil
• Tax breaks for oil companies? If you think you're getting ripped
off at the pump, try dealing with them on your land.
• Montana should have a special session on oil tax and remove the
Republican-sponsored 18-month oil tax holidays and direct those to our
schools.
• Why should Burlington Northern railroad have oil rights on every other section and we pay the taxes? Those sections have gone back to the people when they pulled the railroads out. 1/3 of your taxes should be on minerals.
• Richland County has one of the richest oilfields in the U.S. (and probably
the world), but only $52 a barrel is paid here.
• Break up the monopoly of the oil companies. Tax windfall profits to
promote renewable bio fuels. In 1929 there were 3 to 4 ethanol plants
in Richland County. At that time it was called "White Lightning"
• Montana-Dakota Utilities profits are up 55%.
• Million dollar bonuses are paid to oil company CEO's that we are paying
for. The difference between CEO's and employee's wages is unacceptable.
• Some oil agreements are border-line unlawful, almost criminal. But
they seem to have eminent domain. Similar to the ruthless Anaconda
copper days, land owners have no rights. They consider us just peons.
(Out of concern for neighbors, Bob had them restake an oil-well site
three times.) Those of us who give back, wouldn't think of imposing on
someone with no rent, no share given back.
• We should join with neighbors when dealing with oil companies and
Montana should set some standards on rental and damages and the State
and Federal lands should stick with us.($30 per rod damages and $2
annual rental).
• There is an oil glut in Richland County. More pipelines would be
installed if they would pay annual rentals as some of them do.
• Burlington Resources sold to Conoco-Philips, it needs to be looked at.
Good guys are running for office, but are not familiar with the oil patch and their dealings. (Bob is called the "worst guy to deal with" by the oil companies because he doesn't let them push him around.
• Montana should get the severance tax back instead of us paying
their share of the taxes.
• Selling Federal land for rural schools is like selling the farm to
support an addiction - it needs to be stopped!


Other Issues
  
• We should reintroduce the Civil Defense observation system of years ago.
• Fight Illegal Drugs by creating a widely publicized Hot-Line and
rewarding informants.
• Have a branch of the Military that will accept first time violators
and give them the discipline they to get them on the right track.
• Death taxes shouldn't be shifted to us.
• Social Security - More 401k's are needed and should be more
accessible to workers.
• What horrible things on the news today. Does corruption in
government lead kids to defy laws? Even if the answer is "no",
politicians need to set a better example.
• We need to more closely examine the effects that violent movies and
video games might have on our children and take the appropriate steps
to instill higher standards in our kids.

 

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