Pa. State Senator Enters New Hampshire Primary To Make A Point, Not A Run
HARRISBURG, Pa. (CBS) -- A Pennsylvania state senator representing the Philadelphia suburbs has put his name on the primary ballot in New Hampshire -– not to run for president, he says, but to promote his ideas.
Republican state senator Stewart Greenleaf represents parts of Bucks and Montgomery counties in the Pennsylvania Senate. He says he has no intention of running for president, but has put his name on the ballot in New Hampshire because he believes it will afford him the opportunity to speak out on pressing issues facing the country at an important time.
Chief among those issues, Greenleaf says, is addressing the national debt. For starters, he believes the US should back its currency with something of value.
"Strengthen the dollar. Immediately. Because now it has no backing. Our money is only backed by the taxpayers of the United States," he tells KYW Newsradio. "I mean, for their good faith, they're paying their taxes -- that's the only backing that we have. We're off the gold standard for decades."
Greenleaf proposes to back the dollar with the value of federal assets. Some of his other proposals include selectively increasing tariffs to help domestic industries, and protecting American intellectual property.
Reported by KYW Harrisburg bureau chief Tony Romeo
