Candidate for
Member, Republican Party County Central Committee; County of Contra Costa; Supervisorial District 4

My Political Philosophy is generally in the tradition and community of thought and worldwide scholarship and action centered around the Religious and Structural Pluralism first articulated by Abraham Kuyper in his Stone Lectures delivered at Princeton at the turn of the Century. This tradition has been further developed and demonstrated in a U.S. context via policy work coming out of Christian thought leader organizations including but not limited to the Center for Public Justice (http://cpjustice.org), based in Annapolis, MD.

General principles for Contra Costa would include:

- Current Republican leadership is visionless and has no credibility in the County. It is an outdated, ineffectual, inward looking cult of personality trying to maintain hold on something that is pointless.

It is time to get new leadership helping the party to become once again relevant with good policy recommendations and to help news leaders address the problems Contra Costa faces

- local support for charitable choice programs already legislated and in place to secure the right of religious social service agencies to participate in the public square without having to hide their mission and tradition

- freedom of parents to educate their children without State interference

- State should not establish religion as it has in areas of education and social services, but fund all religious traditions, including secular, fairly in the public square without discrimination or favoritism

- right of workers to have open shop work environments so one union cannot dominate but ensure worker right of choice of union representation

- Catholic traditions of subsidiarity and solidarity lead us to work toward building stronger local communities and protect the poorest and powerless from injustice from the rich and strong

- Non-government agencies are best suited to provide social services in our community, not the State or County government

- Contra Costa County Supervisors should not act as the Community Action Agency. This should be a separate, elected body tasked with building up a strong and diverse social service community throughout the County.

Then County Government and its wasteful and expensive infrastructure can relieve itself of its own extravagant incompetence in this area

- Implementing such policies over the next ten years could reduce County government by 20 percent

- Role of Republican Central Committee should be to take up these and other fights (instead of being silent about OPEB or Pinole Recall) in our community. Offering good solutions will attract more voters than by acting like block heads and touting some corrupt and distant State or National party agenda no one really cares about

- Central Committee should initiate discussions with, among others, the gay and faith communities, Hispanic Chamber, Monument Community Partnership, Home Schoolers, local health advocacy organizations, and other local NGOs to discuss issues affecting their stakeholders so Republicans can learn more to better offer good policy and support for our neighbors throughout the County

- work with business organizations including Contra Costa Council to identify areas for growth and attract new capital and sustainable economic programs to the region

Vote for Bill Gram-Reefer for Republican Central Committee in District 4