Carol Davis, one of the founders of West Suburban Patriots, shared the following comments at their group's monthly breakfast last Saturday – clarifying what their group stands for, so those attending could decide whether they wanted to continue being involved in the organization.
There is an elephant in the room and we can't ignore it. I ask you to listen respectfully for a few minutes. I believe I have earned that respect because I’ve given up my life for 7 years to nurture and grow this group, and to try to grow the conservative movement. I want to make sure that everyone here knows what we stand for, just in case you've wandered in by accident and mistakenly think this is a meeting of the John Birch Society, Phyllis Schafly's Eagle Forum or the Republican Party. We are NOT any of those.
This is a tea party group. Let there be NO confusion – since our inception, we have stood rock solid on our core principles: fiscal responsibility, Constitutionally-limited government, and free markets. These principles have been clearly stated at our events and on our website since our inception.
On our banner here, we've shortened them to Personal Freedom, Economic Freedom and a Debt-Free Future, but those abbreviated words still carry the full measure and meaning of our core principles. Everyone on our leadership team believes in and supports these core principles. Our leadership team would vote to dissolve this organization before we would ever consider wavering on these principles.
Let me elaborate on these principles for a moment.
- Fiscal Responsibility: Honors and respects the freedom of the individual to spend the money that is the fruit of their own labor. Runaway deficit spending by our government compels us to take action because the increasing national debt is a grave threat to our national sovereignty and the personal and economic liberty of future generations. Overspending propels over-taxation, which turns free people into servants of the state.
- Constitutionally Limited Government: We regard the Constitution of the United States to be the supreme law of the land, as written and amended by “We the People” – not necessarily as adjudicated and abridged by those in black robes. We believe that it is possible to know the original intent of the government our founders set forth, and stand in support of that intent. Like the founders, we support states' rights for those powers not expressly stated in the Constitution. As the government is of the people, by the people and for the people, we support the personal liberty of the individual, within the rule of law.
- Free Markets: A free market is the economic consequence of personal liberty. The founders believed that personal and economic freedom were indivisible. Our government's interference distorts the free market and inhibits the pursuit of individual and economic liberty. Therefore, we support a return to the free market principles on which this nation was founded and we oppose government intervention into the operations of private business. The collusion of government and business that now exists in our nation is corporatism and crony-capitalism — it is NOT true free-market capitalism.
The majority of us want public servants who have shown by words and actions that they support our core principles. Some of us have worked very hard the past several years on campaigns for those types of candidates, with mixed success. Beginning last September, we polled our group every month about the Republican Presidential candidates. Every single month, Ted Cruz came out on top in our polling, and in every other tea party poll that we found. But, Cruz did not prevail in the Primaries.
Many of us Cruz supporters were disgusted by the tactics that were employed to defeat him. It appears that we have once again ended up with a candidate who was rejected by over 60% of Primary voters. This is not the first time this has happened, and we know it won't be the last.
But, to many of us the presumed nominee this time is so flawed that we have a real dilemma: do we completely abandon our morals and principles to pick the "lesser of two evils"? Or do we explore other options, even considering a third party? It is up to each of us to decide what to do in November. (I personally will have to see a come-to-Jesus, struck-by-lightening change in Trump before I can consider him, and I’m not necessarily talking religion, simply some solid morals and principles).
So, where does that leave us? West Suburban Patriots will continue with a laser focus to help good candidates who support our principles. We have no time or energy for people who do not support and believe in our principles. We have no patience for anyone who attempts to browbeat or "guilt" us into supporting flawed candidates. If that has become your agenda, there is no room for that here.
We have important work to do on our local and state level, including an even stronger push for a Convention of States. We must castrate and neutralize the Federal government, so that the states can continue to take back their rightful power; so Presidential elections become less consequential; while propelling the states and the Congress to do their job asserting their Constitutionally-mandated authority over the Executive Branch.
Take heart — there is great progress being made in the states. In the last several years, due to the efforts of good grassroots activists like us all across the country, we have swept over 1,000 seats away from the Left. In 30 states there are now majority-right leaning legislatures and governors. In these states, they are pushing back against the heavy hand of the Feds and they are succeeding. This is because many of us have walked precincts, made phone calls, donated money — we’ve done much more than sit at our computers and be Facebook jockeys as some people do.
We know exactly what has brought us to this point in history. The Marxist/Progressives have been eating away at our foundations for 100 years. The two-party system has assisted our downfall by doing what George Washington warned us it would do — divided the people and weakened the nation.
The Democrat Party forced out all of their patriots and blue-dog democrats and it has become the Communist Party USA. The Republican party has abandoned it's principles and platform and made people so angry that some people have lost their ability to focus on their core values. The Republican Party has become exactly what the Left has been portraying them as for decades: the party of old, rich, white men. The Republican brand has now become so tainted that I personally believe there is no resurrecting it, but that is a discussion for another time.
You may have feedback on what I've said. We don’t have time for a discussion now. Our time here is too valuable. We only have 12 of these meetings each year in which to be informed and educated about the issues that matter. It’s obvious that we have a lot of work to do on information and education.
I will post this statement as a blog on our website and our Facebook page. Everyone is encouraged to comment there. Thank you for your respectful attention. Now let's get on with our work.
