Party, Politics and Pragmatism or Principle - Where do you stand?

The year 2008 was a turning point for me. My eyes were opened and I saw the light so to speak. I voted for George Bush twice, and both times he won. However, the longer that he was in office, the more I began to see that voting for the lesser of two evils was no longer good enough. A supposedly Conservative President that had a supposedly Conservative Congress for nearly eight years, did little to nothing to return our country to the Constitutional Republic that it is supposed to be.

Massive Government spending, lip service on abortion, deceit in selling a war to the American people, a Patriot Act (ie. supposedly Patriotic) that opens the door to untold government intrusion into the lives of American Citizens, and the list could go on. All of this was done under the watch of a "Conservative" government.

As the 2008 elections neared, I had already made up my mind that I would no longer be a political party lemming and vote for the lesser of two evils. I saw in one Republican candidate the character to go against the grain. This candidate actually mentioned the Constitution when he gave answers to questions. This candidate vocally opposed the North American Union, and was vocally in favor of the USA retaining its sovereignty as a nation. This candidate had in each session of Congress presented a bill that would not only have made Abortion illegal, it also would have taken the issue out of the Supreme Court's jurisdiction. This candidate actually believed that there is no Constitutional authority for the US Dept of Education and a thousand other departments that politicians have created over the years. This candidate believed that the Federal Reserve is a dangerous entity that should be outlawed and a Gold standard re-established. This candidate was an actual LIMITED GOVERNMENT CONSERVATIVE, who believed that the Constitution is the law of the land and no politician, including the President, should be allowed to go around the law of the land. This candidate was called Dr. No by many, because he always votes NO when Congress wants to spend more money unconstitutionally. This candidate was Ron Paul of Texas.

I already knew that the Constitution Party was around and that their candidate would be a true Conservative, and I had determined that if a true Conservative was NOT selected by the Republican Party that my vote would go with their candidate. Ron Paul was called a kook by the talking radio heads and many people followed their lead instead of thinking for themselves. Ron Paul was shut out of one debate by FOX News and was ignored in many of the other debates. Yet, he remained until the end.

Conservative fundamentalists went with Mike Hukabee, who now has a show on FOX, thinking that he was conservative, yet he was willing to pander to the CFR like most of the other politicians. Personally, I believe that Hukabee was in it to keep good Conservative people from voting for Ron Paul. Alas, the Republican Party ended up with John McCain. McCain no doubt was a great soldier and served this country valiantly, however as a politician he has been anything but conservative. He is so liberal that John Kerry approached him and offered him the Vice-Pres. position in 2004. In order to bolster his non-existent conservative credentials, McCain chose a soccer mom Governor from Alaska, Sarah Palin as his Vice-President.

At this announcement and after hearing her speak, many conservatives, like James Dobson, who were riding the fence swooned and decided to support McCain. Many stated plainly that their vote was for Palin and not McCain. However, if Sarah Palin was a true conservative, how could she join the McCain campaign? The answer is simple. Party loyalty and pragmatic politics.

The question that I must ask is this. When do Conservatives begin to once again stand on the principles of their beliefs? Is constitutional conservatism really worth standing for or is it optional?

The majority will say, "Well, if you vote for a third party candidate you're just throwing your vote away." That is exactly the thinking that has led us to the mess that we are in. Too many Democrats and too many Republicans cannot get past their political party to actually cast a vote that comes from their conscience. VOTING YOUR CONSCIENCE IS NEVER A WASTED VOTE! IT IS THE ONLY VOTE WORTH CASTING.

I decided at the beginning of 2008 before the candidates were chosen that I would vote my conscience. I was not going to be pressured by the threat of a Hillary Clinton or a Barack Obama in office, to vote for a Republican Candidate that I had no confidence in. This was especially true in light of the fact that there were great CONSTITUTIONAL Candidates to vote for.

Ron Paul was not chosen by the Republican Party so my decision was simple. Chuck Baldwin of the Constitution Party was still in the mix and his beliefs about our country matched mine so he received my vote. No, he didn't win, and didn't really have much of a chance at all, but when I lay my head on my pillow at night, my conscience is clear because I voted based on the principles that I believe in -- not Party, not Politics, not Pragmatism.

John Quincy Adams said, "Always vote for principle, though you may vote alone, and you may cherish the sweetest reflection that your vote is never lost."

Let us all put PRINCIPLE above petty party political pragmatism.

Peter Scheer, Jr.