Goodlatte: Convenient constitutional conservative

Op-ed by Will Hammer

You may hear the term Constitutional Conservative often lately, whether it is in discussions with friends and family or listening to a campaign ad.  There are some genuine Constitutional Conservatives in office, like Rep. Justin Amash (MI), but mostly being a Constitutional Conservative has become vogue within the Republican Party, with many anti-freedom voting Congressmen waving that flag the proudest.

Listening to Rep. Goodlatte, you would think he is a Constitutional Conservative.  He says he is, but only recently and only when it’s convenient. Goodlatte is the poster boy for a phony Constitutional Conservative, having voted for big government deficit spending while Pres. Bush was in office, and continuing to vote for other liberty trampling bills under the Obama administration. Of course, he plays the Constitutional Conservative card now, because it’s a good move politically as Americans begin to tire of endless war and the demise of our liberties.

Goodlatte calls out Obama on overreaching his constitutionally limited powers, but followed along with Bush when he did the same. He voted for the Authorization for Use of Military Force in 2001, leading to the endless War on Terror.  He doesn’t bring up anything about Congress not declaring war when we went into Iraq and stayed for over a decade, but now brings up how Congress is supposed to declare and authorize war. But some things do not change with the President; Goodlatte voted for the Patriot Act and all subsequent reauthorizations, he voted for the gutted USA Freedom Act, and then fought the Massie amendment which would actually take the bill back to its original form before the hatchet job.  And the list goes on and on…

But what else do you expect from a career politician? Someone who stood on the steps of capitol hill and swore a pledge with the Contract with America to only be in office for 6 terms (currently running for his 12th term). Why do we keep electing business as usual politicians? They say the definition of insanity is to keep doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result. Well, let’s stop voting these career politicians from the two major parties and vote for some real meaningful change. This election is a great opportunity to do so, as you do not have to worry about taking votes away from the ‘lesser of two evils’, as there is only one major party candidate. If elected, I will be aloud voice for the individual and fight business as usual in Washington. You may not agree with me on everything, but you will know where I stand and that I will not change how I vote on the account of a different president. It’s time for a real change.

Will Hammer is the Libertarian Party congressional nominee in the Sixth District.