It is time to put all Congressional officials on notice and this letter is an example of one for our new representative in Utah. by Gary Wood
(conservative)
Monday, November 17, 2008
Congratulations on your election to the U.S. House of Representatives. Based on the article appearing November 6th in the Salt Lake Tribune you are already moving away from your duties to represent the people, however. According to the article by Thomas Burr, "Chaffetz...said his job will be to help articulate the GOP's vision for America as the party regroups." This statement indicates there is a need to remind you of what your new position is, that of being the representative of the people living within Utah's 3rd Congressional District. There are a few things we would like you to remember.
1. Article VI of the United States Constitution states you will be "...bound by Oath or Affirmation to support this Constitution." The text of the oath you will take is carried in 5 U.S.C. 3331. Though you ran and won as a Republican your oath does not contain any words stating you will support and defend the Republican (or any other) Party.
2. We, the citizens you represent, are not freshmen citizens. We expect you to be an equal voice and not allow yourself to be classified as a freshman representative merely because there's a traditional organizational structure attempting to label you as such. You would serve us well if you join with the other new representatives of all parties to demand an end to the practice.
3. Each party has a whip, as you know. According the Congressional website this terminology comes from the British sport of fox hunting, specifically the whipper-in position. It was their job to keep the pack of dogs whipped together and focused on hunting the fox. We do not expect you to allow yourself to be whipped into partisan line but rather be driven by your oath as well as your obligation to be the representative of the people.
4. We expect you to read the bills you vote on and only vote in favor of those clearly Constitutional, no matter how much the proposed legislation may sound good or how staunchly the Republican "leadership" may attempt to sway you. By becoming a true champion of the Constitution you will earn far more respect than by following those members currently ignoring our Constitution. This is in keeping with your oath in defending the Constitution against enemies both foreign and domestic.
For too long there has been no accountability in the Federal Congress. You are entering at a time when the people are fully awake and watching more closely than at any time over the past 150 years. When you campaign again, in 2010, your success will be determined by the honor you give to your oath as well as the service you give to your constituents; those of us authorizing you to act as our agent.
The views expressed
in this article are those of Gary Wood only and
do not represent the views of Nolan Chart, LLC or its affiliates.
Gary Wood is solely responsible for the contents
of this article and is not an employee or otherwise affiliated
with Nolan Chart, LLC in his/her role as a columnist.
Gary, I don't see anything that says Jason was changing what he had said during the campaign. Based on what you have written, I don't see any changes either. (See below).
Jason has identified four core conservative values which guide his policy positions. They are:
* Fiscal Discipline * Limited Government * Accountability * Strong National Security
Jason has said every policy decision will be guided by those principles. He cannot support policy initiatives that violate those core principles.
Jason has also prioritized five key issues on which he plans to spend his political capital in Washington:
* Fiscal discipline * Energy Policy * Education * Illegal Immigration * National defense
Hi, Gary, I don't know if you ever met with or heard Jason speak personally, but at every event I was at with him, he always said: "I will represent the people of Utah to Congress, NOT represent Congress to Utah."
I also believe from my conversations with Jason that he has a real understanding of and healthy respect for the Constitution.
If you haven't figured out by now that Thomas Burr is a Democrat and his paper endorsed Jason's Democratic opponent (the one who wrote a book about how Jesus would vote today -- he'd vote Democrat! LOL), then you may not have realized that there is a tendency by this paper in particular to misunderstand and misquote Jason.
I think most Republicans, Libertarians and Constitutionalists are going to be very pleasantly surprised by Jason Chaffetz in the coming months. :-)
I thank you for your sincere responses. I have not met him personally although based on when I heard him and watched him he earned my vote twice. As a lifetime member of the VFW I still hold to my oath. This letter was a way to let him know the expectations, I hope to be able to hit the streets in 2010 to send a champion of the Constitution and Natural Law back to D.C. He sent a very heartfelt response as well.
Senator's Bennett and Hatch will be getting similar letters although they won't be posted here. This was posted at Nolan Chart in hopes others would put there representatives on notice we need defenders of liberty not partisan Positivism.
Mr. Chaffetz will face tremendous pressure as they attempt to whip him into freshman shape and make him bow to the party pressure to get "ahead" in the House. It's a very sad organizational structure developed over the past century. He'll need true resolve and support if he is to maintain his embrace of his oath. I wish him the best and only hope I can sing his praises on our radio show while working for him in 2010.
I hope you can appreciate the spirit of, and reason for, this letter.
It was a good start. The entire process he and the other 53 were subjected to represents the organizational challenge. Also, the fact the interviewer mentioned he had little influence since he was both a Republican and newbie is indicative of the attitude the traditions of the legislative branch has become. It was nice to hear him say his vote is equal and he will make it known. We are not newbie citizens nor are we minority citizens. The organizational power vacuum is a root cause of our legislative ills. I wish him luck and offer support. Thanks for the link.
