DOUG WALTERS FOR STATE REPRESENTATIVE
Constitutional Government. Life, Liberty, Property.
For Immediate Release
Contact: Doug Walters
Email: douglasrwalters@gmail.com
Telephone: (717) 467-1227
Website: http://www.walters4pa.com
SHREWSBURY, PA – Riding a wave of support from the residents of York County who are upset with the continued expansion of government that has led to record taxes, unfettered corruption and an overwhelming loss of personal liberties, Doug Walters has entered the race to become the next State Representative for Pennsylvania’s 93rd legislative district.
Walters’ campaign is centered on a restoration of the federal and state governments to their original role as protectors of the lives, liberties, and properties of Pennsylvanians. A firm Constitutionalist, Walters believes that the federal government should be strictly limited to the enumerated powers delegated to it in the United States Constitution and that, as the 10th Amendment states, “The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.” This idea of state sovereignty stems from the philosophy that the best government is the one that is closest to the people from which its authority is derived.
Walters has spent the vast majority of his life in the 93rd district and is quite familiar with the problems that many families in York County are facing today. Bringing his experience gained through a decade of activity in numerous public and private endeavors, he hopes to represent the people of the 93rd district in a way that will allow Pennsylvanians to shed unnecessary debt and regain economic traction by curbing wasteful spending, lowering taxes across the board, and returning responsibility to the people by doing away with the current “nanny state”.
A 2003 graduate of Susquehannock High School, an alumnus of the Future Leaders of York program and an active member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in York, Walters is also one of the founding members of the York County REACT, York County Campaign for Liberty and Year of Youth – Project 2012 groups. He lives in Shrewsbury with his wife Manda, daughter Afton, and sister-in-law Kaylynne.
For more information about the campaign, or to schedule an interview, please contact Doug Walters by phone at (717) 467-1227 or by email at douglasrwalters@gmail.com.
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Doug,
Other than leading the Tea Party charge in York county, through your position with the York County Campaign for Liberty, I am trying to find out what you really stand for and the level of your government experience.
In your “About Doug” section, you say you’re running on the Republican ticket but consider yourself more a Libertarian or Independent. So, why not run as an Independent or Libertarian? Do you have the backing of the county Republican leaders? Do you want their support? Importantly, does your political philospohy really reflect Libertarian ideology?
As I understand it, the Libertarian position has centered on non-government interference in all facets of a person’s life. This has included the government not interfering with school prayer, government not prohibiting abortion and the legalization of marijuna. Do you support these Libertarian ideas? Other than your strong sense that you want us to embrace the US and State Constitutions, where do you stand on defense, family and religion?
In my collaboration with other Tea Party movements, I have noted that self-identified “Libertarians” tend to more clearly embrace the fear-mongering about the New World Order, FEMA Death Camps and other conspiracies. What are your thoughts about these topics? I have noticed one face on this campaign site, one person we pushed out of our Patriot group because of his wild conspiracy claims. I see he’s posting the same such stuff on yours.
Closer to home, why are you running against Seth Grove, a sitting Republican, for this State representative position? In your value statements, you rail against government corruption and inept government representation. Are you running because (1) you think Grove is doing a poor job, (2) like other Tea Party movements, you subscribe to a “throw all the bums out” mentality, or (3) just like the idea of putting yourself out front?
As noted at the beginning of the comment, I noticed you’re also leading the Campaign for Liberty? Is that organization officially “endorsing” you and other “Liberty” candidates? Is a Liberty Candidate a Republican? If so, why not just call yourself a Repuiblican? The reason I ask is because I thought the Tea Party movements mostly rejected the Republican (or any) Party’s endorsement system.
Lastly, what other “elected” offices have you held? Do you have any representative experience in which you have been elected to serve?
Would appreciate
Thanks for your questions, Frederick.
1. “you say you’re running on the Republican ticket but consider yourself more a Libertarian or Independent. So, why not run as an Independent or Libertarian?”
That was an issue that I put a lot of thought into. I truly do lean Libertarian, and I do not support either major political party, but my final decision was based on the fact that by running as an independent or third party I would have literally no chance of winning. By running as a Republican I have already received press attention and have an opportunity to defeat the incumbent, Ron Miller, in the primary instead of waiting for the November general election. I suppose you could say it is purely strategy. The more noise I make, the better, and by running as a Republican I can make a LOT of noise.
2. Do you have the backing of the county Republican leaders? Do you want their support?
I absolutely do NOT have the backing of the county Republican leaders, and I don’t really expect or care for their support. Initially I was only going to run for a seat on the county Republican committee, but after speaking to a local Republican leader I realized that the corruption and “old buddy” system had already spread so far into local government that I would not be able to bring about much good as a committee member. Therefore, I decided to pursue the State Representative position so that I could really stretch for something and “make noise” on a much larger scale. I have received harsh criticism from a local Republican group for not being “experienced enough”, and I expect to receive more of the same as this campaign continues. The local establishment does NOT like outsiders. I hope to be a thorn in their side.
3. Importantly, does your political philospohy really reflect Libertarian ideology?
At the root of my beliefs is this core tenet: that all human beings are free, that we are agents unto ourselves, and that no government should infringe upon our rights to think and act according to our own individual beliefs unless by doing so we infringe upon the rights of another. I did not always hold that belief. I was raised a staunch Republican and ended up voting for Bush twice. In 2008 I realized that neither Obama nor McCain would be good for our country and thanks to some good friends (Kevin Jackson and Selina Sigafoose) I was awakened to the Ron Paul campaign. Since then I’ve been learning what it means to be a free man. Now I want to educate others and act on my values and principles by running for office so that there is finally an alternative to the usual establishment candidates.
4. As I understand it, the Libertarian position has centered on non-government interference in all facets of a person’s life. This has included the government not interfering with school prayer, government not prohibiting abortion and the legalization of marijuna. Do you support these Libertarian ideas? Other than your strong sense that you want us to embrace the US and State Constitutions, where do you stand on defense, family and religion?
You are correct. I truly believe in government non-interference. Government derives its power from the people, and the people have delegated power to government so that their rights to life, liberty and property could be protected. That is the proper role of government. I believe that our federal and state constitutions, in their original form, were inspired documents and that although they have been changed over time (see 16th Amendment, etc.) they should still be defended. I do support the people’s freedom to make good AND bad decisions, and face the positive or negative consequences. Regarding your specific examples…I believe that students and teachers should be free to pray if they want to. Life should be protected. If people want to do drugs, let them. I disagree with drug use on moral grounds but I cannot use government to force others to agree with my sense of morality.
5. In my collaboration with other Tea Party movements, I have noted that self-identified “Libertarians” tend to more clearly embrace the fear-mongering about the New World Order, FEMA Death Camps and other conspiracies. What are your thoughts about these topics?
I see the value in questioning everything, especially things that our government tells us are true. I believe that groups do exist that seek power and wealth at the expense of others. I think that we are foolish if we do not carefully inspect these ideas as they are shared with us. That said, I do not put much stock in the NWO, FEMA Death Camps, or 9-11 Truther movements. Thorough study of those issues has led me to believe that these movements are intended to do nothing more than sensationalize non-stories and create a sense of fear and panic amongst their followers. The people who lead these movements are often just as guilty of manipulating others as are the people they claim to be exposing. I hold firm to the Christian idea that “ye shall know them by their fruits”. I am not sure which person you are referring to, but I have heard that there are people in our groups who are trying to push these sensational ideas and that they become very angry when opposing facts are presented. Those do not sound like good “fruits”.
6. Closer to home, why are you running against Seth Grove, a sitting Republican, for this State representative position?
I am running against Ron Miller. He has been in office for six terms. I am running against him because he has done literally nothing to stop our rapid descent into debt and corruption. He has not upheld his oath to defend and protect our constitutions.
7. Are you running because (1) you think Grove (Miller) is doing a poor job, (2) like other Tea Party movements, you subscribe to a “throw all the bums out” mentality, or (3) just like the idea of putting yourself out front?
I am running for a number of reasons. Like I said above, Mr. Miller has done little to nothing to try to stop our state’s deterioration. He needs to be called out on that fact. I have checked his voting record and more often than not he is just another Republican pushing the party’s goals. I do believe that “all the bums” should be thrown out. Why should we spend our days suffering under the rule of these corrupt life-long politicians when we could be prospering in a free society with limited government? I believe strongly in what I preach, and running for office was the only thing left for me to do. Some may say that I am inexperienced, or that I should finish school, or that I should run for something smaller first. To them, I say “WHY???” Why would I do that? I don’t even know if I will have a school to go to two years from now. I have a five year old daughter. I love her very much. I want her to grow up and be able to make her own decisions. I have a sixteen year old sister-in-law who lives with my wife and I, and I want the same for her. Standing idly by while the state and nation decay isn’t going to benefit my family. I hope that other people see what I do and give it a shot as well. We need new people in government.
8. As noted at the beginning of the comment, I noticed you’re also leading the Campaign for Liberty? Is that organization officially “endorsing” you and other “Liberty” candidates?
No. The Campaign for Liberty, due to its tax status, cannot endorse candidates. I am working with several members of the local group but I’m certainly not working exclusively with them…anyone can help.
9. Is a Liberty Candidate a Republican? If so, why not just call yourself a Repuiblican? The reason I ask is because I thought the Tea Party movements mostly rejected the Republican (or any) Party’s endorsement system.
In my mind, a “liberty candidate” can come from any party or no party at all. Do they support and defend the Constitution? Do they believe that all humans should be free to own and defend their lives, liberties and properties? Do they believe that people should be free to succeed or fail on their own merits and not be propped up by the “nanny state”? If so, then I would consider them a “liberty candidate”. I agree that the recent movements have rejected the party system, and rightfully so. Unfortunately, the majority of Americans have not fully caught on yet. One still has to run as a Republican or Democrat to get elected except in rare circumstances. Where I live, I believe that an independent or third party candidate would be ignored and publicly shamed by the current establishment. By running as a Republican, they have no choice but to hear me out. They can tell me not to run, try to smear me, whatever, but my name will be on the primary ballot and there is nothing they can do about it.
That said, I do hope that some day people will be able to run for office without an R or D after their name.
10. Lastly, what other “elected” offices have you held? Do you have any representative experience in which you have been elected to serve?
I have no government experience. I am sure that people will try to use that against me, but I would argue that we don’t really want people in office who intend to stay there for a long time. My lack of experience shows that I have not spent the last decade or two lying to the people, so I see it is a good thing.
I would contend that I do have life experience. I have been working since I was 16. I am a husband and father. I am an active volunteer in my community. I attend religious services. I have accomplished a great deal for a 25 year old and I am proud of that. All of my life experience aside, though, I always look at the character of Jefferson Smith in “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington” as an inspiration. Our representatives should not necessarily be the multimillionaires, or the well-connected entrepreneurs, or the political science majors. They should be the people who will defend our freedom to the best of their abilities, and the Constitutional requirements for holding elected office reflect that. To be a State Representative you only need to be 21 years old and be a resident of your state and district for a few years. That’s it! There are thousands of people who could run for office, but don’t. Like I said, I hope people see what I’m doing and realize that they should run for office.