Steve Forbes' Agenda for GOP Congress Includes Keystone Pipeline Bill

Now that Republicans have taken control of the Senate, Forbes Media Chairman Steve Forbes offers a multi-pronged platform for the GOP Congress to enact come January.

• The Keystone XL Pipeline. "Such a bill would pass overwhelmingly, perhaps with enough support to override an Obama veto," Forbes writes in his publication.
• Anti-trolling patent bill. This bill, which would ban the "abusive and hugely expansive anti-high-tech practice," was passed by the House but stymied by Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev.
• Two immigration reforms. "Remove or substantially increase the absurdly low annual cap on H1B visas" and let foreign students receiving advanced degrees here in science, technology, engineering and have green cards with their diplomas.
• Repeal the medical device tax. "This levy on revenue is very destructive for this critical field and is driving companies offshore," he argues.
• Repeal Obamacare's employer and individual mandates. Forbes contends that both are stymieing economic growth.
• Allow nationwide shopping for health insurance. Currently, the Constitution's interstate commerce clause does not apply to health insurance.
• Arms for Ukraine. Not doing so might allow Russia to attempt to destroy NATO by making moves against the Baltic states.
• Tax reform. "There is no way to quickly pass major tax reform. But Republicans should prepare legislation for business tax reform that would sharply lower the corporate tax rate," Forbes notes.

"Almost all of these bills could be passed in early 2015. At the least, they would constructively set the stage for the 2016 presidential election, which will be one of the most important in our history."

If the medical device tax is indeed repealed, that could mean substantial gains for stocks in that sector, including Boston Scientific, Medtronic, Johnson & Johnson and St. Jude Medical, writes MarketWatch columnist Michael Brush.

As for Johnson & Johnson, Morningstar analyst Damien Conover offers words of praise.

"Johnson & Johnson stands alone as a leader across the major healthcare industries," he writes on Morningstar. "The company maintains a diverse revenue base, a robust research pipeline, and exceptional cash flow generation that together create a wide economic moat."

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