First Principles :: Nan Hayworth for Congress in NY-19

NAN ON THE ISSUES

The fundamental principle that guides my campaign is a passionate belief in American exceptionalism. We live in the greatest nation in the history of the world, and our greatness is rooted in our freedoms: to live according to the dictates of our conscience within a civil society; to achieve according to our ability and motivation within a free market rich with opportunity; and to keep and invest what we earn. These freedoms have always been the dream and the promise of America, and they have made this country the beacon and bulwark of liberty throughout the world.

The greatest single blessing in all my life, other than to have a loving family, is to have been born an American; and throughout my life, even when the politics of my youthful peers veered left, I never lost the conviction that what our Founders and Framers wrought was, and is, miraculous--both precious and extraordinarily robust--; was, and is, the most humane and empowering system of government ever devised.

I will do my utmost to preserve that system against all threats, and today there are many, but they represent an unprecedented opportunity: now is the time to reignite that passion for the promise of America, as it was designed in our Constitution, that President Ronald Reagan inspired. He brilliantly articulated the purest and most enduring American values, values that transcend the troubles of a given time and provide clear guidance as to how to overcome them. He was, and he remains, an inspiration to me.

I am proud to be a lifelong Republican. We are the Party that was founded in opposition to slavery, that was founded to elevate the value of the individual citizen above all else. To me, the essence of what defines the Republican versus the Democratic outlook is the locus of responsibility. Republican philosophy places it on the individual; Democratic philosophy defers it to the government. The further the locus of responsibility is from the citizen, the less responsibly citizens will be inclined to behave, and the less well society will do as a whole. An individual-centered philosophy is far more salutary, progressive, and empowering than statism.

For the sake of our District and of our nation, I am committed to being a Representative who will work to control the size and scope of the federal government in accordance with the Constitution: one who will work to bring power back to our citizens.