Elections matter – big time. Those who We The People elect to represent us in Washington, Augusta and at town hall set the rules by which we live and businesses operate. Our public officials should use this power and responsibility to help us live more prosperous and secure lives.

This past week, more than usual, I felt the broad influence that elected officials have over our lives. On one occasion, I pulled into my regular service station for an oil change and tire rotation. I looked for the cheerful young worker who serviced the car before. The manager told me that his weekly hours were cut to under 30 so that he would be categorized as a “part-time” employee in preparation for the new federal health care law, called Obamacare.

Starting on Jan.1, businesses with 50 or more full-time employees must provide health insurance to their workers or pay a minimum $2,000 penalty per year for each employee above the first 30. The penalty will be enforced and collected by the increasingly-distrusted Internal Revenue Service. A growing number of struggling small businesses hesitate to hire that 50th worker, or hold weekly hours to less than 30, so as to avoid the expensive Obamacare requirements.

In this case, the new Affordable Care Act enacted by the U.S. Congress is hurting hard-working Mainers trying to get ahead like the young service station employee. A better solution to make health insurance more available and affordable, and not to kill jobs, is to inject free market competition into the health insurance industry. In 2011, the Maine Legislature passed a new law doing just that. Already, new products are being created and monthly health insurance bills are dropping as Maine families and small businesses choose the best plans to fit their needs. State legislators embraced a common-sense free-market solution instead of relying on more unhealthy and expensive government dependency.

The most important Constitutional responsibility that We The People bestow upon our elected officials is keeping American families safe in a dangerous world. An effective strategy to help protect our homeland is for Washington to allow the full development of an estimated 200 years of oil and natural gas deposits within our borders. Doing so would drive down the cost of heating oil, gasoline, kerosene, jet fuel, and natural gas. This would boost family budgets, help companies grow, and create more badly needed American jobs. A strong domestic economy is the engine that generates the tax revenues needed to fund our national defense.

Tragically, a week ago, another brave young Maine soldier was killed in Afghanistan. Highly decorated 26-year-old U.S. Army Sgt. Corey E. Garver of Topsham died when an explosive device detonated near his patrol. America is eternally grateful to those courageous men and women who always step forward to ensure our freedom and way of life. Fewer young patriots and heroes would be placed in harm’s way throughout unstable parts of the world if America were energy independent.

The decisions made by elected officials also impact the lives of our senior citizens. My elderly parents worked long hours during their dedicated teaching, coaching, and nursing careers. Like millions of other seniors, they depend on what they were able to save to help them live independently today.

Career politicians in Washington have so overspent and borrowed that our nation’s public debt is $17 trillion and rising. This fiscal black cloud is inhibiting economic growth. Businesses hesitate to invest in their operations and hire more workers. Trying to jumpstart the economy, the federal government has pushed down interest rates to historic lows. In doing so, senior citizens earn almost nothing on their savings. As their hard-earned nest eggs erode, many elderly Americans face the unthinkable indignity of government dependency to get by.

The United States has been a beacon of inspiring excellence for 238 years. Generations of immigrants, like my Franco-American ancestors, have been drawn to this light of liberty and the free pursuit of happiness. We The People entrust our elected officials with the sacred responsibility to enable us to live better lives. Let’s encourage and hold them accountable for advancing a strong economy and national defense based on fairly regulated free markets, energy independence and fiscal discipline. That would be good for Maine.

 I wish everyone a special Independence Day celebration. While enjoying time with family and friends, let’s be thankful for the wisdom of our founders to set the cornerstones for the freest, most prosperous, and most compassionate nation ever to inhabit this good earth. Let’s be grateful for the sacrifices made by generations of selfless men and women who so proudly wore our nation’s uniform and kept us free. Let’s hold Sgt. Corey E. Garver of Topsham and his family in our thoughts and prayers during this most difficult time.