Congressman James Comer Holds Town Hall in Fulton

Congressman James Comer held his 40th town hall meeting Tuesday afternoon at The Meadows Hotel in Downtown Fulton.

He began the meeting by giving an update on the activity in Congress last week, which he termed as "very productive". 

Community Bank Reform was passed, which fixes many of the problems from the Dodd-Frank era. This will make it much easier for community banks to do business without many of the cumbersome regulations that has held them back for a long time. He indicated that consumers and businesses will soon see a major change for the better with banking services.

The National Defense Authorization Act was passed, which helps to adequately fund the military. He explained that this is something extremely important, considering the military has been underfunded for a long time.

Bills that will be coming up soon for a vote will be on immigration and the farm bill. Comer explained that he supports the Goodlatte Immigration Bill because it secures the border, funds the border wall, makes sure that there is not spending on sanctuary cities, sends illegal aliens back to their home countries, and helps make finding legal workers easier. He went on to say that he doubts there are enough votes for this bill to pass. He said that the Farm Bill will most likely pass by September 30th. This bill basically has two parts, one for agriculture and one for food. The Agriculture part has no government subsidies other than for crop insurance. The Food part will require able bodied persons to work in order to receive SNAP benefits. It also allocates funds for job training, to help those that need work, to better qualify.

He believes that the North Korean situation will end well, and is pleased that President Trump has taken a strong stand with that situation. He also is happy with the position that the President has taken on trade with China. Comer said that for years China has held a competitive advantage, and has not adhered to the in force trade rules. The result has been a tremendous loss of manufacturing for the country. He believes that with President Trump's level playing field, it could result in a major increase in manufacturing coming back to the United States, and many of these jobs could come to rural areas such as Western Kentucky.

Congressman Comer addressed the issue of school safety. He said that Congress has passed legislation for grants to school systems to be used for resource officers, metal detectors, or other similar safety measures, which will be left up to each individual school district. In addition, a new safety threat phone app is being tested in certain school districts that hopefully will help cut down on the school shootings, and other emergencies. While on this subject, he stressed that he has always been, and will always be, a strong supporter of the 2nd Amendment.

He discussed infrastructure and said that it is a priority for him, especially the roads in this district, including the I-69 bridge connecting Henderson and Evansville. Also, another priority is to get better cell service and high speed broadband service into the rural areas.

Comer stated that he feels that the United States should cut all foreign aid, except to the county of Israel. He feels the funds that are spent on foreign aid, much of which is given to countries that do not even like the United States, could be much better spent here at home. 

When asked to rate President Trump's performance, he feels extremely positive, pointing out that the morale of the military is much better, workers are doing better, the cutting back of regulations have helped industries, along with the tax cuts which should also help, all resulting in a strong economy.

On the subject of tax cuts, he pointed out that even before the current tax reform, 81% of those in the 1st Congressional District take the standard deduction. Now with the new tax law, that deduction will double, which basically means most everyone will see a tax cut. He added that as much as he likes lower taxes, spending cuts must also be a priority.

Congressman Comer said he believes that there needs to be two changes to the constitution. First, he believes that term limits need to exist. He indicates that this would be a way to help return the power to the people, away from Washington. His second change would be to have campaign finance reform. He feels this, too, is needed to return power to the people and away from the wealthy special interests. He said that the average tenure for a member of the House of Representatives is eight years. This is due to the more frequent elections, as well as the difficulty of the position. However in the Senate, he added, members tend to stay significantly longer, and in some cases, "forever".

It was pointed out that one of every two school children in Fulton County lives in poverty, even with their parents working. Comer explained that sometimes it is better for a person to get a certificate for a service job, rather than to go to school and get a degree. He said this is a new way of thinking, but it should be looked at, as in some cases, getting a degree can make one incur heavy debt, and then not be of much use, once it is obtained. He also again pointed out that if the deal with China is successful, it should return many manufacturing jobs to rural areas, which would also help with problems like this.

He touched on Social Security reform and wanted to make sure that when this subject is talked about, that senior citizens don't get alarmed. He said that whatever is done, it will not harm those that are currently receiving benefits. His idea is that most likely, those age 45 and up will not have any changes, and also he feels that the income cap upon which Social Security taxes are calculated will have to be significantly raised, if not phased out totally. The result of these two things, he feels, will get Social Security back on solid ground.

Congressman Comer closed the town hall speaking of his goal, which is to revitalize rural America, so that children don't have to leave their hometowns to get good jobs and have a good life. He also pointed out that in his town hall meetings, people don't mention the Russia investigation, but rather, they are concerned about the economy, education, want to see infrastructure improve, and see opportunities for their children and grandchildren.