Presidential candidate Cox visits Atlantic

[ via the Atlantic News-Telegraph ]

John Cox, candidate for president in 2008, visited Atlantic on Thursday. He is holding a copy of his book "Politic$,Inc." Photo by Jennifer Nichols

Illinois native John Cox has started his campaigning early visiting Cass County on Thursday. Cox is a Republican candidate for running for president in 2008. Cox visited with some Cass County officials at residents at the Family Table as well as visiting the Atlantic News Telegraph in the afternoon. He had visited 98 of Iowa's 99 counties prior to his stop in Cass County.

Cox said immigration was the topic that many people asked him about during this campaigning. He said he considered himself a "Reagan Republican," and as one, he made decisions based on principal. And using that theory on immigration, he believes people need to be "obeying the law." He added that he disagreed with a guest worker program, saying, "I don't want guest workers making money and sending it home. I want Americans making money, and it staying here." He also wondered what a guest worker program says to the "6 million trying to come in (the country) legally."

Taxes and spending were another topic Cox heard on his travels.

"The deficit we have is not pretty, and the tax system we have is not pretty," Cox said.

He would instead favor a National Sales tax, which would help the nation get away from things like tax corruption and the April 15 tax stress.

He also talked about how we need "statesmen, not career politicians" in government, and talks about being a progressive conservation in his book, "Politic$, Inc."

""Enter the Progressive Conservative-someone who wants progress, yet in a conservative sense, by using private markets and private actions instead of looking to government exclusively or almost exclusively," Cox wrote in an excerpt from his book, which is posted on his web site, www.cox2008.com. "For many years, the Democrats and liberals have adopted the progressive label as their own to signify that they are the ones interested in progress. This is bunk. Conservatives are just as interested in progress; we just want the private sector to lead the way, not government. Is this just another form of compassionate conservatism? Not at all. Compassion is an emotion; certainly a beneficial one that moves people to acts of good works. But Progressive Conservatism is more than a feeling of wanting to help people; it is a rational approach to actually helping people. It is more than a goodhearted motive, but a way to actually improve the lives of real people by proven means. Progressive Conservatism is determined to preserve those means against an onslaught of well intentioned, but flawed, experimentation."