Donald Trump is no conservative, but whether he wins or loses the conservatives could soon be more powerful than ever. In 2008, Barack Obama’s resounding victory and the Democratic sweep of Congress gave the Democratic Party full control of the federal government, but after massively increasing the budget deficit and the national debt, the American people responded by electing a Republican majority in the House of Representatives two years later. Republican leadership remains deeply unpopular with the conservative base, but congressional Republicans were able to effectively oust Speaker John Boehner in 2015 and Ted Cruz finished second in the Republican presidential primary. While Trump is by no means a conservative, and was in fact a liberal Democrat less than ten years ago, his meteoric rise over the last year is fueled by an American electorate that is deeply concerned about the future of this country.
With the Obama Administration registering anemic economic growth, trade deals that sell out our workers, an exploding national debt, entitlements run amok and a surge in national security threats from China, North Korea, Russia, Iran and the rapidly growing menace of Radical Islam, Americans are searching for answers. Luckily, people are waking up to the fact that the country we love is hurdling towards fiscal insolvency, cultural decline, and economic doom. The status quo is unsustainable, and only a return to the principles of liberty, Constitutional rule of law, and a rejection of the plans of the globalist elites can save this country from going the way of the Roman Empire.
Donald Trump’s stain on the Republican Party will soon be forgotten and a revamped GOP that champions the principles of liberty must replace the long-tarnished Republican brand that has suffered as a result of party leadership working with Democrats to raise the national debt, drag the country into unnecessary wars, and fuel the border crisis by failing to address the issue of illegal immigration at the behest of the donor class that effectively controls both parties. The Washington establishment is a two-winged bird of prey, and the American people are being used to satisfy the greed of the elites.
By nominating Hillary Clinton and actively working to shut down Bernie Sanders’ populist insurgency, the Democratic Party has signaled to the American people that the interests of the rich and powerful come before you and your family, but the con game on the average American voter has been exposed and it will permanently hurt Democrats. To win, the leadership of the Republican Party must deny themselves. We should immediately move to place term limits on members of Congress, and call a Constitutional Convention if and when members of Congress refuse to swallow their pride and counter their own ambitions.
The Constitution was designed to prevent the rise of the corrupt establishment we see today. If Washington does not cede to the will of the people, whose righteous indignation has shaken the establishment to its core, the states should convene and amend the Constitution to put power back in the hands of the people. We should begin by placing term limits on Congress, ending birthright citizenship which fuels illegal immigration, placing term limits on Supreme Court Justices, and restricting the regulatory powers of the federal government that has created a bureaucratic monstrosity that is strangling the small businesses that are the engine of the American economy and the source of millions of jobs in this country.
We cannot trust the word of politicians whose greed and ambitions lead them to betray the people they claim to represent. The people do not realize the power they have over those who recklessly lie, cheat and steal from the American worker. It is time to wake up and take our country back from the traitors.
Davy Bennett is a junior majoring in political science. His column runs biweekly.
