The difference between a “conservative” and a “constitutionalist”

Jaynee Germond is running for Congress in Oregon’s 4th District, and has this interesting distinction on her campaign website:

I belong to the Constitution Party of Oregon. Although, some may consider me Conservative, I am actually a Constitutionalist. This means that even though I have personal beliefs about some issues, the Constitution is specific about how and by whom those issues should be handled. One of those issues is abortion. I am personally pro-life and would love to see it all banned. However, it and all healthcare, is not an issue with which the Constitution empowers Congress. These are powers that are remanded to the states. In that vein, Roe vs. Wade needs to be repealed and the power to legislate abortion left to the states. Marriage gay and otherwise is the same situation.

When it comes to my political stand on these types of issues, some may call me liberal because I don’t call for an outright federal ban of either practice. The logical question to ask here is, “Can you separate your personal views from your duties as a Congressman?” Yes, I can.

Jaynee notes that “when I take the oath of office next January, I will swear ‘that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States…’” and adds:

An oath is not to be taken lightly and I stand by that. Though a Christian, I am not running as a Christian, but as an American. A Christian’s guidebook is the Bible; an American’s guidebook is the Constitution.

This entry was posted by TPW News Items on Tuesday, August 19th, 2008 at 12:21 pm and is filed under News, Campaign 2008, Constitution Party, Federal Races. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.

4 Responses to “The difference between a “conservative” and a “constitutionalist””

  1. Michael Says:
    August 19th, 2008 at 1:53 pm

    Jaynee has it wrong. A Constitutionalist is a conservative who really means it.

  2. Jaynee Germond Says:
    August 19th, 2008 at 2:41 pm

    Michael, I love it! Thank-you for summing up my statement in 1 concise sentence.

  3. CT Johnson Says:
    August 19th, 2008 at 8:28 pm

    I really like Michael’s statement. How true that is. Constitutionalist are straight up limited Constitutional type conservatives. Everything is about upholding the highest law of the land to the Nth degree.

  4. Justin Grover Says:
    August 20th, 2008 at 10:07 am

    Jaynee is a first class lady who would make an excellent Congressperson. :)

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