Conservative Manifesto

Conservatives Believe:

1. The citizenry should restrict government to doing only those things that cannot be done effectively by the individual. Our government should only create those laws and take those actions imperative to “form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity”

“That government is best that governs least” Henry David Thoreau

2. Governance is best done locally. In those instances when government action is necessary, that action should be undertaken by the smallest and most localized unit of government as is practicable.

3. That “Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness” are the inalienable rights of all Americans. These rights may only be infringed to the extent that the free exercise thereof by one or more citizens will unreasonably and inequitably infringe upon the enjoyment of these rights by other persons.

4. Faith in a Supreme Being, Creator, or belief system is the province of each individual and is far too important to permit the interference or involvement of the government in the free exercise thereof.

5. Liberty without justice is anarchy. Although the role of government should be limited in a free society, that government should strive to enforce those laws that must be created in a manner that insures equal treatment before the law for every person regardless of race, gender, religion, wealth, or physical ability.

6. The primary economic roles of government are to provide for a reliable monetary system and to facilitate the development of diverse and vigorous free trade. Free trade is damaged by unfair practices, which includes unilateral control of markets (monopolies) and fraud. Government should be free to take those actions necessary to protect markets from unfair trade practices.

7. A strong national defense is vital to the security of a free people. In providing this collective defense, the government must be vigilant in avoiding the infringement of individual liberty.

“They who can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety, deserve neither liberty nor safety.” Benjamin Franklin

8. The right to individual privacy was provided by the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States through inclusion of the phrase “The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated…”. Infringement upon this right should be done only at the most dire of need, and then only when supported by clear and convincing evidence.