Interview with Douglas Birk, KRWC 1380AM -To be aired at a later time.

1) For some of our listeners who may not be as familiar with your candidacy, can you tell us a little bit about yourself professionally and politically?


1.   I like to describe myself as a fiscally conservative, tree hugging plow jockey. In other words, I am a farmer, and a businessman who knows that you have to pay your bills, and that it is not possible to borrow and spend your way to prosperity. Additionally, I know that the land is our physical source of life, the source of the food we eat, the water we drink and the air that we breathe. It is my conviction that as a nation we are destroying the resources needed to sustain us, and that if we want our nation to endure and to prosper, we need to become stewards of our economic, natural, and human resources. A couple of things that I am not. I am not a lawyer. We have more than enough lawyers in Washington. I am also not a bought and paid for politician.




2) You are the endorsed Independent Party candidate for U.S. Senate.  What made you decide to seek the Independent Party endorsement and why should voters vote for you as the Independent Party U.S. Senate candidate in the upcoming primary on September 9th.


2. I chose to seek the Independence Party endorsement because our two ruling parties have totally failed our nation. The Democrats and Republicans are more interested in using a politics of polarization to fight over whose turn it is to rule, instead of trying to lead our nation to a better future. The Independence party provides a vehicle for candidates who are willing to challenge people to change, and not just talk about change. I am asking people to vote for me because I am offering people real solutions to the major challenges facing our nation. For example, our current tax and health care policy favors the foreign producer and hurts the American producer and his employees. I have a plan that favors the American worker and his employer, while forcing the foreign producer to pay into our healthcare and social security systems when they sell their goods in our country. We also have the worlds most expensive, most wasteful, most complicated, and most inequitable healthcare system. I have a plan that makes the healthcare system affordable and fair. After reading my website www.prairiefireusa.com and listening to my proposals I hope that individuals see the wisdom of my solutions, and vote for me.



3) It's no secret that if you look at American politics, we have not resolved any significant domestic issues of any consequence in nearly two decades. We seem to have reached an impasse in which the moneyed interests protecting the status quo dominate the process - yet Senate campaigns now involve millions of dollars, so how can you compete against the major party candidates and get your message out.


3.    First, here are a couple of facts about moneyed interests in our country. Over the last ten years, the health care lobby spent 2.8 billion dollars and the financial lobby spent 2.9 billion dollars lobbying Congress. That amounts to 10 million dollars per congressmen, so is it any wonder that we are now experiencing the crisis in both health care and banking? As Will Rodgers said “we have the best politicians that money can buy”. How can I compete, against these moneyed interests? I believe the people of Minnesota are looking for a candidate who is not bought and paid for, and would take a great deal of satisfaction in denying our multi-million dollar candidates the election. My message is getting out through news articles and interviews such as this. In a week the state fair begins, and I will be talking to people there daily. In the mean time, all we are getting from our million dollar candidates is negative advertising which all of us are getting sick of. With each negative ad, more people realize that the real struggle in this election is not between the Democrats and the Republicans, the real struggle is between “we the people” and the ruling parties who have failed this nation!




4) Let's talk about some of the important issues in this campaign. First off, is Iraq. You have suggested that we need to have a referendum in Iraq to determine if the Iraq people want us there—what happens if we hold such a referendum and the answer is NO. What should our policy be towards Iraq in the next 6 years?


4.    If the people of Iraq vote for us to leave, we should be gone in six months. To do otherwise would make a mockery of the claim that we are trying to establish a democracy in their country. If the people of Iraq vote to continue our presence in their country, I would like to limit that continuation to four years, so that by the next presidential election we would be disengaged from Iraq. Additionally, I will not vote to fund the Iraq War unless Congress also votes to raise the taxes to fund the war. If we as a nation are not willing to pay the dollar cost of the war, we have no right to ask the men and women of our armed forces to pay the “blood” costs.



5) One issue cited on your website is the looming federal budget deficit. We have been spending at record high levels, taxing at record low levels, and weakening the dollar. So do we stop this cycle?

5.    There is only one way to solve the federal budget deficit. We must both reduce spending and increase taxes. Our current “buy now, pay later economy” is coming to an end. We must end the politics of “me first, and me too”. For example: even though we live in a major agricultural state I do not support crop subsidies or subsidies for corn ethanol.
      

       We must concentrate our spending on policies that benefit all Americans and not just the special interests. To continue to add to our deficit will only lead to a more severe collapse of our economy. The current problems of high energy and food prices have their roots in the ever increasing budget deficit which has destroyed the value of our dollar. If we do not as a nation address the ballooning deficit, it will destroy our economy and our country as surely as the World Trade Center was destroyed on 9/11. But unlike the attack of 9/11, the threat the budget deficit exposes our nation too, is there for all to see, all who choose not to be blind.



6) Heath care is an important issue for many voters. This is another issue we seem to discuss every two years and then no action. What should we do in this area?


6.    The sky rocketing cost of health care is causing a financial crisis for families, businesses and our entire economy. It is time for us to join the rest of the industrialized world with a national health insurance policy. Universal coverage and cost control are the keys to effective healthcare reform. By paying for universal health insurance with a national sales tax, American workers and their employers would be freed from this cost, making them much more competitive in the global economy. At the same time, this would force foreign producers to pay into our healthcare system every time they sell their products in our country. Additionally, state and local governments, as well as schools, would now be free of the high cost of providing healthcare for their employees. This money could now be spent on transportation, education and the environment.


7) Now immigration is an issue we heard quite a bit about early in the presidential campaign cycle, but now the issue seems to be fairly quiet as there are no real material differences between the two major party candidates on this issue. Where do you stand on the issue of immigration?

7.     To begin with, I do not blame the immigrants for this problem, but instead, I will blame the businesses and industries that use immigrant labor to drive the cost of labor below what is a just living wage, a wage that would allow a person to support a family in this country. Additionally, by paying such low wages these businesses cause additional costs for state and local government. Mass deportation of illegal aliens is not the answer. The only people that need deporting are the members of our ruling parties in Washington. I propose that all the illegal immigrants be registered as guest workers. I also propose that the employers of these guest workers be responsible for their health insurance costs and pay a 10% tax on their wages to cover the cost associated with integrating these guest workers into our country. Additionally, 10% of the guest workers wages should be withheld in the form of a bond. This bond would be used to assure their compliance with our laws and regulations, and would be returned to them after a certain probationary period. Failure to follow our laws would result in the loss of the bond, and the deportation of the guest worker.


8) The energy debate, and rising gas prices, is now starting to dominate the nation’s political discourse. What should the United States do with its energy policy?


8.    The economic and environmental benefits of achieving a clean and sustainable energy supply would be tremendous. Developing the technologies that make us energy independent would save us hundreds of billions of dollars a year in energy imports. Therefore we must subsidize the development of truly renewable energy technologies. Additionally, the development of a sustainable energy industry would support decades of economic growth. We must commit our nation to achieving energy independence by the year 2020. For the near term, the most cost effective solution is to promote energy conservation. The energy bill that was passed by congress and signed by the president last January was a sham that did nothing to address our current energy crisis. We must mandate higher fuel economy standards now, not ten years from now.



9) You mention reforming social security on your website. Can you elaborate?


9.   The current social security program has two main problems. First, it is a government sponsored pyramid scheme that will fail in its current form.  This is because the current social security trust fund is not funded and you can’t trust it. Second, social security taxes place an undo burden on American workers and their employers by giving foreign producers who are free of the cost of social security a tremendous cost advantage. In order to correct this problem we must do two things. We must fund social security with a national consumption tax. By paying for social security this way we make the American worker and his employer much more competitive in the global marketplace, because they no longer have to pass along the cost of social security in their products. Also, by paying for social security with a sales tax we force the foreign producer to pay into our social security system when they sell their goods in our country.
Also, we must change how we determine social security benefits. My plan would reduce benefits for people who have an income of more than 50,000 dollars a year.



10) Finally, let’s talk a little bit about transportation - what should the nation do about its transportation infrastructure?

10.   Yes, we need to make sure that our roads and bridges are safe, and we need to be willing to pay the gas taxes and license fees to fund their repair and maintenance. However, the biggest threat to our transportation system and our nation is our transportation systems total dependence on petroleum. So, again, it is absolutely essential that we develop a sustainable energy industry.


11) Of course, often in politics it's not the answers that are important, but the questions. If you had a chance to ask Norm Coleman and Al Franken one question during this campaign season what would it be and why?


11.   At the rate that both Norm Coleman and Al Franken are raising and spending money, they will each surpass 15 million dollars in money spent on ugly yard signs and negative TV ads that no one wants to see or listen too. More importantly, to actively solicit campaign contributions is a form of corruption that allows the moneyed interests to destroy our democracy. So my question is, how can Norm Coleman and Al Franken justify spending 15 million dollars each to try to buy this election, and what are they willing to do to promote democracy instead of promoting the politics of money, greed and corruption?

12) If someone want to learn more about your campaign, make a contribution, or get involved - what is the best way to get in touch, and where should they go?


My web address is: www.PrairieFireUSA.com

A mailing address for contributions and an email address for comments or questions can be found there. Again my web address is www.PrairieFireUSA.com . There is one more thing. The primary is Tuesday, September 9th, and there are 7 candidates including myself running for the nomination. Additionally, two of us share the same last name. So, if you wish to vote for me, please make sure you vote for Stephen Williams.

Also, I want to encourage everyone to vote in the Independence Party primary even if you choose not to vote for me there are six other candidates to choose from. The only way to end the domination of our ruling parties who have failed this nation is to vote for independent candidates who are free of the control of the special interests.  Remember, it’s we the people not we the ruling parties.