Questionnaire responses from Orrin Hatch
1. In general, what are the two major issues facing the United States and your specific House district today, and how would you address them?
Since the national and state economies are doing so well, the two major issues facing us now are winning the war on Terror and curbing illegal immigration. This war is unlike any we have ever faced, and we must engage the enemy on our terms, not theirs. That means fighting them abroad, challenging those regimes who support them, blocking their financing, and doing everything we can to secure our homeland from attack. For a short summary on immigration, see question 8.
2. Would you over the next two years in office ever vote for a tax increase? Yes. No. Explain.
No. I believe families decide best how to use their money, not the government. A tax increase would sabotage the healthy economic growth of late and also the remarkable increase in tax revenue we've seen in the last two years. The federal government will collect about $500 billion more this year that it did in 2004 — a 30 percent revenue increase in just two years. This revenue growth is virtually unprecedented in our history, and it should be attributed to the recent tax cuts we've pushed through Congress.
3. Before the United States invaded Iraq, did you favor or oppose the U.S. taking new military action in the country?
Favor. In deciding whether to use military force in Iraq, I agreed with the administration's determination that: first, this was a regime in violation of international law, including the cease-fire terms of the first Gulf War; second, the regime had long-standing ties to international terrorism; third, the regime had refused to account for the whereabouts of its claimed large quantities of weapons of mass destruction. None of these facts has been refuted.
4. In your opinion, what should the U.S. do now in the Iraqi war? (Please be specific: Should we withdraw immediately, set a timeline for withdrawal, stay the course as President Bush advocates?)
It's never easy to send our sons and daughters into harm's way, but sometimes we are called to sacrifice for the greater good of our nation. I support the president's efforts to complete our mission, which is to ensure that the Iraqi people have developed a secure constitutional government. If our nation sets an artificial deadline for the removal of our forces, as some have suggested, all our adversaries need to do is husband their resources until that date and then emerge, possibly destroying all of the accomplishments to date.
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