I gave the following address - to an audience of about 15 or 20 people - following a debate between Democrat Mark Pocan and Republican Chad Lee at the DeForest Area Public Library on October 16th, 2012, at the candidates' forum for the race for the U.S. House from Wisconsin's 2nd District (some of this material has been recycled from my previous criticisms of Pocan and Lee, and from a recent press release):
As
an independent write-in candidate who did not garner enough signatures to get
on the ballot, this forum is the first of four events from which I have not
been excluded.
The
average American can afford neither the time nor the education necessary to
know his legal rights and understand the political system well enough in order
to defend himself in court, nor to run a successful campaign for elected
office. As such, my candidacy has focused on the restoration of civil
liberties, the augmentation of the rights of the accused, and the information
of citizens and jurors of jury nullification.
My
campaign has also focused on restoring competitivity to government. That is not
to say that I support “running the government like a business” – especially not
in the sense that government should protect or bestow privilege upon businesses
(of any size) – but rather, I support
removing barriers to entry into the electoral system which are keeping
third-party and independent candidates and opinions out of the picture, and
which are helping to erect a false and combative dichotomy between the two
mainstream political parties.
Being
that I oppose big money in politics, my campaign neither solicits nor accepts
monetary donations. I believe that it is not primarily Big Bird nor the Koch
brothers who pose the greatest threat to government devoid of influence by special
interests, but rather the military-financial complex, and an opportunistic
inclination towards bribing the citizens with their own money, supported by an
overly loose and unconstitutional interpretation of the General Welfare Clause.
I believe that no two people have exactly the same set of values, and that therefore
there is no such thing as constitutional federal spending, being that such
spending would not benefit all - or nearly all – citizens, as I feel the
founders intended.
As
a candidate, I have supported Mark Pocan’s views on social ethics while
supporting Chad Lee’s views on the Constitution, most notably the 10th
Amendment. However, I would criticize Mr. Pocan’s views on the 2nd
Amendment, and vice laws on alcohol and tobacco, while criticizing Mr. Lee’s
views on immigration and abortion.
I’m running for Congress because I support free-market and
strict-constructionist policies which I feel not one of my opponents – even the
Republican – either fully nor sufficiently supports. But I’m also running
because I support social-justice ethics which I feel not one of my opponents –
even the Democrat – sufficiently supports.
If elected to the 113th Congress from Wisconsin’s
2nd district, I would be an outspoken voice supporting dual
federalism, American national sovereignty, a non-interventionist foreign
policy, the restoration of the civil liberties contained in the Bill of Rights,
the freedom of choice, freedom from public-sector discrimination, amnesty for
all non-violent undocumented immigrants, a non-interventionist monetary policy,
sound currency, and real fiscal restraint.
I would be an ardent critic of the current federal monetary,
budgetary, taxation, and wage policies; the political influence of all types of
lobbies from Wall Street to Israel; and the overly loose, predominantly-held
interpretation of the General Welfare Clause which excuses unconstitutional
federal spending on military and economic aid to foreign governments; the
development of national infrastructure; and loans, favors, and privileges for
large labor unions and large businesses alike.
I will vocally oppose the subversion of American national
sovereignty and interest to the concerns of the pro-Israel lobby and the United
Nations, oppose all attempts to continue to fund arms races between the State
of Israel and its neighbors, and call attention to any suspected institutional
moves to deliberately exclude or suppress the articulation and communication of
anti-Zionist religious, cultural, political, and military policy positions.
I believe that America needs to reaffirm its commitment to
protect Israel; not the State of
Israel, nor the land of Israel, but
primarily the people of Israel,
especially when it comes to protecting the rights of religious minorities – be
they Christian, Jewish, or Muslim – against encroachments by the State.
I would also criticize the overly loose interpretation of
the Necessary and Proper Clause; the Just Compensation Clause; Presidential
Reorganizational Authority of the executive branch; and all laws that
unreasonably strengthen the power of the executive, especially to use emergency
domestic security and financial powers, and to provide for
continuity-of-government measures which erode civil liberties.
If I am elected, I will support the freedom of and from
association; voluntary exchange and compliance; and a system of contract law
which is the basis of – rather than limited by – all legitimate governance. My
voting record will reflect the people’s desire to limit and decentralize
government, require it to compete in all sectors of the social economy, and
embrace free-market principles, and
restore our republic and our individual rights in a manner that adheres to the
letter of Constitutional law.
I believe that
the need for economic efficiency and social justice calls upon all members and
sectors of society - as a tentative coalition of individuals, businesses,
cooperatives, and communities - to promote the consent of the governed, and
freer choice and alternatives in elections; to bring about an egalitarian
funding system for governments
through boycott and social convention; and to reject predatory lending, the
manipulation of currency values and interest rates, and speculation without full possession of assets; in
order to guard against – and compensate for - the excessive and undue influence
of unnatural monopolies and oligarchies of all varieties; be they
representatives of government, labor, or capital.
Please vote for
me, Joe Kopsick – K-O-P-S-I-C-K – by writing-in my name on the ballot for the
U.S. House on November 6th. Thank you.
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