Warning: Very Long Post Ahead
As mentioned in my previous post, I spent Friday at the Faith and Freedom Coalition Conference in Washington, DC. I went at the invitation of my father, who was going mostly to support Mitt Romney. I was going because it promised an interesting lineup of GOP hopefuls, and I wanted to hear what they have to say for myself.
While my father is a well-known Romney supporter, as is the majority of my extended family, I am not completely convinced he is the candidate that best represents me.
If you want to understand my politics, read on. If you don't care at all about me and my politics, you'll want to skip this post. Because this post is nothing but me and my beliefs.
I was at one point in time very conservative. I worked on Capitol Hill for an extremely conservative congressman. I worked full-time on a Presidential campaign for one of the most morally conservative candidates ever seen. I did at one time work for the NRA and for Beretta. So it is safe to say that in the past, I have been known as an extreme conservative.
However, I have also worked for a homeless shelter for teens with HIV. I listen to NPR, and avoid Fox News. (Why would I want to listen to conservatives talk about conservatives? I prefer to listen to what democrats have to say about republicans, and what republicans have to say about democrats. Republicans talking about Republicans is boring.) I am in the process of joining the Peace Corps. My politics are absolutely not in line with either Republicans or Democrats when it comes to international policy. (Never have been either.)
I am mostly morally conservative. I am somewhat fiscally conservative. I am definitely not big business or big government. I am absolutely a fan of a flat tax. I am an even bigger fan of a strong military. I think affirmative action and most civil rights legislation is a joke.
The one thing about me that is hardest for most people to understand is my feelings on minimal legislation. I do not believe in regulating or legislating every little thing. Particularly when it comes to civil rights. I do not believe in “creating” a right by writing legislation for it. If there is such a thing, I'm not just a die hard Constitutionalist, I'm also a die hard fan of the Declaration of Independence. Particularly the following language-
We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.
For me right there is enough reason to not need laws to create rights or equality. In the document our country was founded on we were all made equal with certain rights, and among those rights are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. There are many more rights, but they do not have to be spelled out. The only right you do not have is the right to hurt the lives and liberties of others around you.
My politics are not straightforward or easily understood. I frequently find myself learning and growing in my own beliefs. But from what I have learned in the past about the Tea Party, I find that they like the idea of passing legislation to define things the way they want them to be. (Gay marriage, abortion, and most other civil liberty issues.) I'm not saying I am or am not in favor of gay marriage or abortion. I'm just saying I don't want to see laws governing it. I believe such matters should be settled in the courts. I am a much bigger fan of court rulings than I am of politically charged moral legislation.
I also do not believe at all that what is right for me will also always be right for you. In this respect I am a huge fan of strong municipal governments, and a considerably smaller federal government. If you don't like your municipality, you can elect someone else, or move to where you do like the laws. If people really did pick and choose where to live because they liked their local governments, we would have a very different political world. Also, I honestly believe people would be happier overall.
So there you have it. My politics in a very confusing nutshell.
I have turned off the comments on this post intentionally.
