The editorial put out by the Ravalli Republic newspaper states, “Several candidates have filed to run in the upcoming election to represent their precinct or state legislative districts as Democrats. The problem is, these candidates are not Democrats. In fact, they’re very conservative.” This article goes on to state that these candidates will be expected to follow the platform and represent their constituents. Notice, there is no talk of representing the Constitution.
The party doesn’t determine the candidates, quite the opposite is true. The candidates determine the party. When I was chairman of the Republican Central Committee I had zero ability to determine who the candidates were. Anyone can sign up for any political party as a candidate. The party has no control over this. In fact, the Republican Central Committee has taken the position for years that they don’t endorse candidates in the primaries. If an unconstitutional candidate wins in the primary, the party supports them regardless of the candidate’s views. This is standard party policy.
Only the candidates who get into office in any political party write the platform. Legislators and commissioners rarely vote according to the Constitution or their party platform. There is really no accountability. According to the Montana Conservatives, who grade legislator’s voting records, our five Republican legislators in Ravalli County were graded as “Liberal” 92%-54% of the time. That doesn’t seem “Conservative,” does it? The main reason I resigned as chairman is because the Republican Party has been overwhelmingly overtaken by anti-constitutional candidates and I won’t support that. Check out their voting records. Maybe the problem is that we have two parties who talk different, but act the same? They will try to destroy anybody who disrupts their fake left-right game.
Even though the Republican legislators in Ravalli County went against the Constitution and/or the Republican Party Platform, the newspaper never made a big deal out of it. The newspaper never called for them to do the honorable thing and resign and then become Democrats. Why the big deal now? It is obvious that neither of the main parties or the media truly understand the point of our republican form of government. It has nothing to do with party. It is to, “support, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States, and the Constitution of the state of Montana.”
Left, right, liberal, conservative, Republican, Democrat, this is all just name calling. These words have lost all meaning. Constitutional is the only principle that matters. If you are fighting for our unalienable rights, then you are what America needs.
Daniel Cox
Hamilton