20100406 Tim Bridgewater US Senate candidate

This was a townhall meeting held in the Orem City Hall. There were over 30 people there and Tim provided some good insights in to his candidacy.

4/6/2010 12:01:48 PM Introductions Tim Bridgewater Thanks for coming out today. We had 40 last year and about 150 this year in our caucus. I went to Carbon county. I spoke to 23 delegates there. Then went to Washington, Grand and other counties.
4/6/2010 12:03:20 PM Answer Huge percentage turnout at our caucuses
4/6/2010 12:03:26 PM Introductions Tim Bridgewater I am hoping to outwork my competition. I’ll give you about 5 minutes of background and then will do a question /answer. I was born and raised in Salt Lake. This is my natural voice. It is a voice that I want heard for the state of utah back in DC. My mom married a new man after my dad left.
I went and played football at Snow College. I served from 87-88 with Reagan and worked in Treasury. I went to Latin America to collect unpaid debt. I had a 200,000,000 dollar portfolio. I spoke Spanish and knew finance so I loved it.
I have been in all sorts of industries since then. My partner is over Provo Canyon schools. I do financial advisory and helped to build companies and created jobs. I helped build a factory here and hired the first 100 employees here in Utah. I am an entrepreneur.
I have been involved in national campaigns for Bush and McCain/Palin. I don’t like to sit on the sidelines. I was county party chair before Marian. My wife is a professor at BYU as a Biologist. My daughter is going to school at the UofU. I can bring both of the schools together.
I have been on the board of education in Utah when I was asked to by the Governor. I started John Hancock charter school and am a big proponent of it. I helped to get vouchers passed. We took on NCLB also in 2005. I was the point person to help negotiate the mandates. We didn’t win that battle. Senator Dayton helped in that effort, made some headway, but I believe that the federal government should not be involved in it.
4/6/2010 12:11:51 PM Question What happened with NCLB?
4/6/2010 12:12:02 PM Answer Tim Bridgewater We get 200 million in title 1 funding but our state budget is 3.5 billion. So they wanted us to jump through hoops that they wanted. We had our own system called Upass. The legislature did not ever walk away from the money. We were able to get some more flexibility over time.
4/6/2010 12:13:36 PM Question Aside from the Constitution what other writings have you read that influence your thinking?
4/6/2010 12:14:09 PM Answer Tim Bridgewater The Nations by Ayn Rand. It has a lot of issues that it brings up. I am reading Scott Bradley’s book and he is a very good guy. I am a business man and focus on economic issues. Studied that and I think if you compare Kaynesian and classical it is a totally different thought.
4/6/2010 12:15:15 PM Question With regards to economics, there have been many tax proposals. What are your thoughts on the 16th and what can we do?
4/6/2010 12:15:39 PM Answer Tim Bridgewater We are not competitive enough. We need to get our house in order. I don’t know that we can abolish the 16th but I believe that we need to change it. We need to make our economy more efficient. I am a big proponent of the Fair Tax based on consumption. We already pay it in hidden costs right now. That would replace tax and medicare. We are already over burdened.
4/6/2010 12:17:38 PM Question You are really saavy economically. I worked in DC and one concern is that we need order but what about the poor.
4/6/2010 12:18:22 PM Answer Tim Bridgewater My mom worked her way off welfare as a mom with two boys. The problem with the bailing out and saving the poor is that the welfare system drives people to the ground. We need more self-reliance messages. We need a sound economy that creates jobs. We need to be able to accept all the workers and whenever the government grows they choke the industry. The government will always get in the way of enterprise. I am a big champion of this freedom.
4/6/2010 12:20:15 PM Question What about free trade agreements?
4/6/2010 12:20:29 PM Answer Tim Bridgewater I don’t like any barriers. We need to get the markets more open. We have a huge market and need to work for our best interests first and foremost. The Great Salt Lake is great for brine shrimp. Our government tried to throw up barriers to protect New Orleans, but then that hurt us because we couldn’t ship our feed out of country.
We need to hammer at the Koreans and AFTA.
4/6/2010 12:22:09 PM Question Comment on welfare is that we look at it like education so that it be moved closer to the people versus up in DC. Churches and communities are so much more effective.
Entitlement mentality is a recognized problem, but we don’t see the match with present the Federal Pension plans and power that is in DC. This appears to be a form of entitlement such that Congress seems to feel entitled. We would fire almost everyone, but we will also normally re-elect like crazy.
4/6/2010 12:24:28 PM Answer Tim Bridgewater I am hoping you are working on a term-limit program for Bennett. There is also an interesting law about Congress having to respect their own laws. You look at Robert Byrd and he has a group of people in West Virginia that will keep on propping up his hand.
The Founding Fathers wrestled with term limits. Most of them self-limited. George Washington chose to. George Will says, ‘Term limits are a terrible idea whose time has come.’ I believe that this is a broken system. It is not working to the best interest of the country. We are 14 trillion in debt that includes entitlements. I support term limits but I don’t know if we can get it passed. I think people can server well and then get out.
For entitlements we have 1.4 trillion that we will add to the debt this year. I believe that America is stepping up and I believe 12 new Senators will come forward.
Health care and medicare will be wrestled with between the State and the Federal government. This system will be bankrupt in 2022-2025.
4/6/2010 12:29:24 PM Question I am concerned about illegal immigration. I am against amnesty. Once there was a workers program. Bennett has campaigned on that, but I don’t believe it. People who come and stay.
4/6/2010 12:30:13 PM Answer Tim Bridgewater We have an open border policy. 5 years / 500 dollars and you might be accepted legally, otherwise, you ought to come in illegally. Three things:
1 – secure the borders: imaging, bases near border
2 – take away the incentives like health care, welfare and education (14th amendment)
3 – enforce our books that are on the laws that we have on the books
Maybe farmers have to bond once we reset the numbers. I hope to go back and fight for a system that does not punish those who want to follow the law.
4/6/2010 12:33:20 PM Question As a woman I am concerned about integrity. That is my one word. There is so much emotion and you seem more logical. You will be privileged with information that we won’t have when you go back there. How can you show and tell us about your integrity.
4/6/2010 12:34:36 PM Answer Tim Bridgewater You can look at my business career. For 22 years I have been involved in 2 lawsuits. I was sued once just out of college. I was sued later when my partner went bad. I think that is the best way to judge.
4/6/2010 12:35:24 PM Question I have noticed with Hatch and Bennett, when I have asked questions. I usually get a response within a couple of weeks from Bennett and nothing from Hatch. How will you respond?
4/6/2010 12:35:58 PM Answer Tim Bridgewater I will respond better than Bennett. I think that states have lost so much power. I am comfortable with town hall meetings. I will be back here every quarter. My kids are at High School at Timp View. My wife will still be teaching at BYU.
I am the only candidate that has been around the state twice before the caucus. I enjoy getting around to the people.
4/6/2010 12:37:20 PM Question I am impressed with your business background and cogent expression. I believe that your principal opponent is Mike Lee. I instinctively thought that he would be mine but you are not a lawyer and you have put your roots and career out of this state. I look at his photo and it is Washington. I fear with Mike Lee that he grew up there.
4/6/2010 12:39:17 PM Answer Tim Bridgewater I have to sell myself. Mike has to sell himself. You do not get 2700 page bills out of business men. You have to get results. That is my experience. There are 64 lawyers in the Senate today. This country needs small business men to be back there.
Washington just doesn’t get it. My son came up with a good line, ‘We have a group of highly educated people that don’t understand cash flow and don’t understand revenue and expenses.’
We have gone from the largest creditor nation to the largest debtor nation. We need to turn this over. It is hard to get it back but I believe that the problems we face need real solutions. We have to free the private sector up. We have enormous wealth in this state because the federal government and groups are keeping it away from us.
4/6/2010 12:42:24 PM Question Where is your funding coming from?
4/6/2010 12:42:56 PM Answer Tim Bridgewater I put in some money myself. Family and friends. Sometimes I get 20.00 or 2400.00. I have 250,000.00 in the bank right now. A friend in Ohio, Texas and others.
4/6/2010 12:43:33 PM Question There is a book that says there will be secret combinations that we need to be awakened to. Have you been able to see where they may be?
4/6/2010 12:44:03 PM Answer Tim Bridgewater Freedom requires transparency and open markets. When things happen behind closed doors it’s a problem. The banks do a lot of things that are closed. I believe that we need more transparency. I will vote to defund the UN. I believe they have an anti-family and anti-America agenda.
4/6/2010 12:45:08 PM Question Sunday’s Deseret News was commenting that Hatch has probably lost connection. I mean Bennett. If we lose the clout we won’t get the money and it will go to other states.
4/6/2010 12:45:59 PM Answer Tim Bridgewater Senator Bennett has attacked me on earmarks. He has also attacked me on NCLB. The problem with the earmarking is that it is a corrupting system. You slip payments and projects in to bills that have nothing to do with the budget. If you are a company or city that wants a garage, then I am not your candidate. We have to reform this dramatically.
There is a role for appropriations that is broad to grant to state.
Senator Bennett says that we need to support ATK. I believe that these monies can get money but they need to do this through the light of day and be debated so that will increase the openness. Entitlements are huge, yes, but you need to be careful in the little things in order to work on the big things.
4/6/2010 12:49:35 PM Question I listened to you before the caucus and have talked to Mike Lee and Senator Bennett. You don’t have much time during debates to talk. I am leaning towards what you are saying and I have heard you take calls. I like what you are saying here. CSPAN showed how slick and smooth they are on the floor. Can you say something that we haven’t heard from you before?
How can you break through the good-old-boy network?
4/6/2010 12:51:12 PM Answer Tim Bridgewater People that meet with me feel that I am having a conversation with them. I believe that is conveyed on TV and in person. As we talk about making sacrifices I believe that we need to do this right. I am comfortable with sitting down with grease monkeys and billionaires. I am trying to get people and businesses from A to B and B to C.
I believe that we will have a new coalition of freshman senators to work with who aren’t going to be lawyers.
Senator Nelson had to return his Nebraska kickback because his constituents boo’ed him. I have coached little leagure football.
4/6/2010 12:54:13 PM Question The comment on illegal immigration the problem is financial. If you are on a Fair Tax then they would pay their way in cosumption. How about the health care?
4/6/2010 12:54:53 PM Answer Tim Bridgewater “I have signed a pledge to repeal it. 32 states have signed Health Care nullification. 16 of them are joining to fight in the courts. If the courts don’t throw it out we can still.
Attempt to defund.
Repeal based on the fact that Obama can Veto, that is okay it will then be solely on him.
We need to have
Tort reform
Health Savings accounts
more competition across state lines
move Medicare to the states
4/6/2010 12:57:14 PM Question We get good people that we send to Washington, during party compromise they lose strength of positions. How can you stand when those in leadership are opposed to what you want to do?
4/6/2010 12:57:57 PM Answer Tim Bridgewater There are effective conservatives and Senator Bennett is not. Demint, Coburn and Kyl are effective. You can not be nice guy all the time. You have to adhere to the principles.
We are about small businesses here in Utah
We are religious here
We are a traditional values state
We are the best managed state
We are in to self-reliance
America needs to come in our direction today to be strong.
4/6/2010 12:59:54 PM Question This will help to decide between you and Mike Lee. It is so easy to say these things here in Utah. Are you going to have the courage to stand if the combination is in your own party?
4/6/2010 1:00:54 PM Answer Tim Bridgewater I am 49 years old. The experience that I have at the state and federal government level. I am comfortable with who I am and won’t change much from where I am.
4/6/2010 1:01:44 PM Question Fiat currencies have traditionally collapsed about 75 years. This nation could face a collapse of its currency. Have you contemplated the fix?
4/6/2010 1:02:28 PM Answer Tim Bridgewater I worked with countries that ruined their currencies. Argentina and other republics with unions and welfare states. We have to move back to a free market. Money is a big deal. I agree that we should audit the Fed. I am not on the End the Fed bandwagon. Numbers matter to me since I am a finance guy.
These issues are the most important right now.
4/6/2010 1:04:23 PM Question I have heard about economic issue and Congress, but what about defense on the wars.
4/6/2010 1:04:50 PM Answer Tim Bridgewater I think we have to win the war. They want to kill us and take away our lives. If the Taliban gets in to Pakistan with nuclear we are in serious trouble. I don’t have the intelligence yet and I will try and get the most information and make wise decisions. The war is serious and real.
I believe that we should lend support to the Iranian people to overthrow the current regime. We have to be strong and we face an enemy that is unique in the history of this country. I believe that we have won the war in Iraq and should draw down.
4/6/2010 1:07:24 PM Question Israel?
4/6/2010 1:07:31 PM Answer Tim Bridgewater The Palistinian state is something that Palestine and Israel have to work out.
4/6/2010 1:08:06 PM Close Tim Bridgewater I talked to you about announcing my candidacy from the trailer park. Symbolically it tells you about who I am. I have been a beneficiary of the American dream. The symbolism is that our trailer was 12ft wide. We had a tip-out. We wanted a double-wide. We can come from anywhere in this country and the opportunities are extraordinary. That is what is great. American has been very good to us. We are the first generation who don’t believe that our children will have it better than we did. This is a change. Reagan helped us to turn things around again. I would hate for the next generation to say that we couldn’t stop spending.
I want them to look back and say, Thank you. This needs to be the land of opportunity and we need to turn around like we did in 1980. I hope you vote for Tim Bridewater for Senate.