If we can return to a government that the Founders in their wisdom envisioned for us we can return to a government that will allow our economy to thrive again and our people to live in liberty.

The United States established itself as a trustworthy new nation in its first two decades after the Revolutionary War by paying its debts even when many in the country believed it had no obligation to do so. Alexander Hamilton the founder of this newspaper insisted on it.

I love what the Valley does. I love company building. I love startups. I love technology companies. I love new technology. I love this process of invention. Being able to participate in that as a founder and a product creator or as an investor or a board member I just find that hugely satisfying.

Science has explained nothing the more we know the more fantastic the world becomes and the profounder the surrounding darkness.

Another important historical factor is the fact that this already very simple religion was further simplified and purified by the early philosophers of ancient China. Our first great philosopher was a founder of naturalism and our second great philosopher was an agnostic.

The Founders believed liberty came directly from God. With their knowledge of Scripture they knew each child was made in the image of God. That is why everyone had dignity value and worth.

Our flag honors those who have fought to protect it and is a reminder of the sacrifice of our nation's founders and heroes. As the ultimate icon of America's storied history the Stars and Stripes represents the very best of this nation.

If Obamacare is allowed to stand - and Congress is allowed to make the purchase of government-endorsed health insurance compulsory - there will be no meaningful limit on Washington's reach into the lives of the American people. That is certainly not what the Founders intended.

As founder and co-chair of the upper Mississippi River Congressional task force I have long sought to preserve the river's health and historical multiple uses including as a natural waterway and a home to wildlife for the benefit of future generations of Americans.

The founders of a new colony whatever Utopia of human virtue and happiness they might originally project have invariably recognized it among their earliest practical necessities to allot a portion of the virgin soil as a cemetery and another portion as the site of a prison.