By Ron Paul
One thing is certain about the upcoming debate over tax reform — the end result will not be a win for the cause of limited government and individual liberty, unless some members of Congress change their tune. This is because too many remain obsessed with "revenue neutrality," the idea that any changes in the tax code must ensure the government will collect at least as much revenue from taxpayers as it does today. This obsession with ensuring the government not lose a penny of revenue leads politicians to insist that any tax cut be "offset" with tax increases. The hunt for tax increases to "offset" tax cuts means that tax reform packages contain tax hikes that are very harmful to the economy, harmful to liberty and would never pass Congress as a stand-alone bill. For example, this year’s tax reform package may repeal and replace the advertising tax deduction, which allows businesses to fully expense their advertising costs. This is consistent with the First Amendment as well as the treatment of every other business expense, such as wages and research and development. Under the proposal, businesses would only be able to deduct 50% of their advertising costs the year the costs are incurred. They would then have to write off the remaining costs over the next 10 years. Because of inflation and the time value of money, this change would severely reduce the deduction’s value, and thus reduce the amount of money spent on advertising. An advertising tax is a tax on speech — on valuable information being served to consumers about goods and services. The advertising tax will adversely affect businesses by limiting their ability to communicate with consumers. This will not affect large businesses, who either can afford the extra costs, are established enough that they can afford to cut back on advertising or both. The companies who will be hurt are smaller and newer businesses trying to reach consumers. Read the rest at TIME 
By Ron Paul
Americans want peace, but their government will not allow it. Not only does polling reflect this desire of American citizens, but so does the ballot box. One president after another is elected promising peace, only to disappoint like his predecessor. With each passing day, more and more Americans are coming to realize that the U.S. military empire is draining the lifeblood out of this country and our economy. It's not financially and economically possible to police the world for very long. Severe financial crisis and total bankruptcy is always the endgame for every country that tries it. We're told that America is "exceptional" in this regard. But the facts are telling us otherwise. The middle class is being devoured by the militarist agenda and Federal Reserve inflation that finances it. But there's always hope. Bad ideas can always be replaced with good ones. I'm very pleased to announce, that for the second consecutive year, The Ron Paul Institute Conference is totally sold out! Peace is Popular! Thank you, and we're all looking forward to September 9th!
Raising prices on products at times of emergency is widely considered an unethical and often illegal practice. But prices are how markets regulate scarcity. Is it possible that what some call "price gouging" is actually helpful to those caught in natural or other disasters?
By Chris Rossini
If not for the wonder of the human mind, liberty would have perished off the face of the Earth a long time ago. After all, it is the nature of government and power to constantly expand in size and scope. Power is a lust that is never satisfied. With that being case, how in the world are we still here? Why hasn't power totally obliterated human liberty yet? The answer lies in questions. When you pose a question to yourself, your mind automatically starts searching for an answer. It's brilliant!
For example, if, in the morning, you ask yourself: "What should I wear today?" your mind will immediately start picturing the clothes that you have, and the different options that are available.
Your mind doesn't start thinking about the books that you own, or what you should be eating later on. It immediately goes to your clothes. You directed your mind with a question, and it raced to get you an answer. Well, this magnificent mind that we each have is the reason why power has not conquered liberty. With every encroachment that power initiates, all it takes is individuals asking themselves: "How can this be used to the advantage of Liberty?" to keep humanity moving forward. The inherent desires for life and for self-preservation have made human beings masters of "the workaround." If mainstream media has a lock on the news, YouTube and Facebook act as a workaround. If YouTube and Facebook continue to implement policies of censorship, other workarounds will unseat them from their perch. If government says that businesses must pay at least $15/hr to workers, others who create robots, kiosks, and other forms of automation step in to provide a workaround. If government bans drugs, then drug dealers provide a workaround. Government is forever trying to squash Liberty, but it's like trying to nail Jello to a wall. There's always a workaround! But every workaround must have a starting point, and that starting point is a question. The mind has to first be directed, and questions act as a focusing tool. Every single day, government is taking away liberty. That's just the way it is. However, that only means we have to ask the following question every single day: "How can this be used to the advantage of Liberty?" The mind can't do anything else but search for an answer. It may come immediately, it may come a week from now, or it may lead to another critical question altogether. No matter what the answer is, or when the answer comes, there isn't a bureaucrat or politician on Earth that can stand in the way of it racing to and ultimately hitting your consciousness. "How can this be used to the advantage of Liberty?"
Due to Hurricane Harvey, we are unable to broadcast the Liberty Report today. In lieu of the program, this is a speech that Dr. Paul gave earlier this year at The Ron Paul Institute/Mises Institute joint conference in Lake Jackson, TX.
By Liberty Report Staff
Unfortunately, the Trump Administration is planning on rolling back former President Obama's ban on militarizing local and state police forces. Local police are not meant to be warriors. They're not meant to look or act like an army. President Trump is planning on moving very far away from the U.S. Constitution that he swore to uphold. Fortunately, Senator Rand Paul is speaking out against this planned action:
Press Play to hear Ron Paul deliver his Weekly Update:
By Ron Paul
The Senate Intelligence Committee recently passed its Intelligence Authorization Act for 2018 that contains a chilling attack on the First Amendment. Section 623 of the act expresses the “sense of Congress” that WikiLeaks resembles a “non-state hostile intelligence service often abetted by state actors and should be treated as such.” This language is designed to delegitimize WikiLeaks, encourage the federal government to spy on individuals working with WikiLeaks, and block access to WikiLeaks’ website. This provision could even justify sending US forces abroad to arrest WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange or other WikiLeaks personnel. WikiLeaks critics claim that the organization’s leaks harm US national security. However, these critics are unable to provide a single specific example of WikiLeaks’ actions harming the American people. WikiLeaks does harm the reputations of government agencies and politicians, however. For example, earlier this year WikiLeaks released information on the CIA’s hacking program. The leaks did not reveal any details on operations against foreign targets, but they did let the American people know how easy it is for the government to hack into their electronic devices. For the last year, most of the news surrounding WikiLeaks has centered on its leak of emails showing how prominent Democrats worked to undermine Senator Bernie Sanders’ presidential campaign. In order to deflect attention from these revelations, Democrats, aided by their allies in the media and even some Republicans, promulgated a conspiracy theory blaming the leaks on Russian hackers working to defeat Hillary Clinton. Even though there is no evidence the Russians were behind the leaks, many in both parties are still peddling the “Putin did it” narrative. This aids an effort by the deep state and its allies in Congress and the media to delegitimize last year’s election, advance a new Cold War with Russia, and criminalize WikiLeaks.
If the government is successful in shutting down WikiLeaks by labeling it a “hostile intelligence service,” it will use this tactic to silence other organizations and websites as well. The goal will be to create a climate of fear to ensure no one dares publish the revelations of a future Edward Snowden or Chelsea Manning.
Some have suggested that criticizing police brutality, the surveillance state, the Federal Reserve, or even federal spending aids “hostile foreign powers” by weakening the people’s “trust in government.” This line of reasoning could be used to silence, in the name of “national security,” websites critical of the welfare-warfare state. By labeling WikiLeaks a “hostile intelligence service” and thus legitimizing government action against the organization, the Senate Intelligence Authorization Act threatens the ability of whistleblowers to inform the public about government misdeeds. It also sets a precedent that could be used to limit other types of free speech. President Trump should make it clear he will veto any bill giving government new powers to silence organizations like WikiLeaks. If President Trump supports the war on WikiLeaks, after candidate Trump proclaimed his love for WikiLeaks, it will be further proof that he has outsourced his presidency to the deep state. WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, along with notable whistleblowers, foreign policy experts, and leading champions of peace and liberty, will be addressing this important issue at my Institute for Peace and Prosperity’s conference on Saturday, September 9 at the Dulles Airport Marriott Hotel in Dulles, Virginia outside of Washington, D.C. You can get more information about the conference and purchase tickets at the Ron Paul Institute. 
Julian Assange will be joining Ron Paul Conference 2017 via Skype!
Get your tickets to this historic event here!
Ron Paul would like to thank everyone for the warm wishes extended to him over the last several days. On today's show, he discusses Hurricane Harvey.
By Liberty Report Staff Why does the war party seem to have such a grip on President Trump? He said his inclination was to get out from the pointless war in Afghanistan, yet he announced a troop increase and a limitless commitment. Ron Paul Institute Director Daniel McAdams joins his old Ron Paul congressional colleague, Mises Institute President Jeff Deist, to tackle the tough issues of foreign policy and Washington in the Trump Administration. Any bright spots?  |
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