By Douglas V. Gibbs
As a political animal I pay close attention to politicians, both local and national, and from both parties. I am naturally suspicious. Last election, when Mary Bono Mack was my Representative, I took exception to the fact that she considered herself a "progressive republican." I supported Clay Thibodeau in the primaries, but the Congresswoman won out, and wound up getting re-elected.
Now, with redistricting, an old familiar voice has become my Representative. Ken Calvert, like me, is a product of Corona. He's been in Congress for twenty years, has endured his share of scandals, and I have hardly ever considered him anything more than a moderate republican that would vote to raise taxes nearly as fast as he would to lower them.
He's a party guy. An "establishment republican," one may say.
Calvert's interest has been to keep his congressional life going, to win re-election so that he can stay a part of the process, to be on committees, and to keep his "status" as a Congressman.
I was not thrilled when I found out Murrieta became a part of his district, and so I once again supported Clay Thibodeau in the primary. However, both Clay, and Eva Johnson (another candidate I was willing to throw my support behind) failed to pull off the needed votes, and the two final candidates are Ken Calvert, and Democrat Michael Williamson.
Because of the change of district lines, Murrieta, Wildomar and Menifee are now in Calvert's district. Tonight, Congressman Calvert decided to hold a "meet-and-greet" to get to know folks who are involved in his new district zone. I was invited, and attended with mixed anticipation. There was a couple dozen of us in attendance.
Ken Calvert talked about the issues he felt affects his district, as well as broader issues such as national security, and the national deficit. Then, he fielded questions, which ranged from voting laws and E-Verify to Obamacare. He went into the strategies the GOP has planned if we win the Senate, and if we don't. He discussed Iran, and claimed that Tehran is our greatest foreign policy danger at this moment. He spent a fair amount of time on China, indicating that the problem is not the people of China, but the communist government. Local issues, like regarding the wineries fighting foreign insects, also worked their way into the conversation.
One of the questions was regarding executive orders, and Calvert not only explained how Obama's executive orders outnumber any president past, as well as that Romney could rescind all of them with the stroke of a pen, but he also explained how the legislative nature of Obama's executive orders are unconstitutional.
As a constitutionalist, my ears perked up.
I asked what the GOP's strategy is if the republicans don't win the Senate back regarding the repeal of Obamacare.
Congressman Calvert said that the House would work to defund Obamacare, citing that they have the constitutional authority of the purse strings.
The discussion then went into how the democrats have had no budget for over three years, and how dangerous that is.
Calvert's use of the Constitution in his discussion with us filled me with a little hope. Okay, perhaps he's not the great conservative constitutionalist I would like him to be, but the Congressman was willing to use the Constitution, and accurately at that, to explain his positions, and that meant a lot to me.
I was pleasantly delighted.
I still don't think he's much of a conservative, but he's definitely less "establishment" in these later years than he has been before, and for that, I am grateful.
-- Political Pistachio Conservative News and Commentary
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