Freedom First
My friends, history is clear; Lower tax rates mean greater freedom, and whenever
we lower tax rates, our entire nation is better off. – Ronald Reagan
That government is best which governs least. – Henry David Thoreau
tl;dr: Government growth diminishes freedom and, therefore, prosperity
Three values are central to the purpose of the YCGOP – freedom, prosperity and unity.
First among those is freedom and the second, prosperity, is closely linked.
We fully support the SCGOP Party Platform, which states (in part):
Our Fundamental Principles
* The Right to Life * Religious Liberty * Private Property * Personal Responsibility *
Traditional Values * Limited, Constitutional Government * State Sovereignty * Low
Taxes * Personal Right to Keep and Bear Arms * Strong National Defense & Secure
Borders
Now, I might be inclined to add freedom of speech and association as well as medical
freedom, but all things considered, that statement of principles is pretty darn good! It’s
even got “Limited, Constitutional Government!” and “Low Taxes!” And while those
are excellent principles, our state government keeps growing (along with every other
level of government ever!).
It is a constant struggle between the entrenched interests (that want growth) and the
electorate (that wants freedom).
Which means that year in, year out, decade after decade it is freedom that has been
limited, not government. As an aside, for the first time in our lifetimes we are seeing a
genuine, honest-to-goodness effort at limiting the government. And that’s at the federal
level. This effort has illustrated two things:
Freedom First
1. How much fraud, waste and abuse there is at the federal level (i.e., A LOT!!), and
2. Exactly how hard the entrenched interests will fight to keep their flow of tax
money alive!
While we all wish the new administration the best of luck (they’re going to need it), the
question at hand for us is, what about South Carolina? While turning off the federal
cash spigots is bound to have some positive impact here in SC (and all the states), we
would be foolish to believe that there aren’t similar issues when it comes to our state
and local governments (spoiler alert: there are!).
And when it comes to prosperity, well, it is very closely linked to freedom. So, as the
government grows, it not only limits freedom but also the ability of the private sector to
advance.
When you boil it all down, we here in the YCGOP are here to amplify the voices of
freedom and prosperity against the moneyed interests that want to use the growth of
government for their own purposes.
Scott Anderson
YCGOP Chairman