“Let me now take a more comprehensive view, and warn you in the most solemn manner against the baneful effects of the Spirit of Party…” – George Washington
In George Washington’s farewell address at the close of his second term, he said, “However [political parties] may now and then answer popular ends, they are likely in the course of time and things, to become potent engines, by which cunning, ambitious and unprincipled men will be enabled to subvert the power of the people and to usurp for themselves the reins of government, destroying afterwards the very engines which have lifted them to unjust dominion.”
I believe these are the times we live in, and Utah has not escaped George Washington’s prophetic warning.
For example, it’s scary to think the Utah GOP has the audacity, in one of the most conservative districts in the nation, to force upon us a life-long bureaucrat pledged to do the party’s bidding above all else. If they can do this here, they know they can do it anywhere.
Why is it that, as we continue to elect Republican candidates, we continue to see a decline away from the values the voters of Utah intended? This is largely due to the types of candidates the Utah GOP are pushing, funding and manipulating through the system. Candidates like Celeste Maloy from Washington, D.C., for example, whose residency and eligibility was in question at the time she declared. Yet with — and only because of — the approval of the Utah GOP, she excused herself from following the state’s requirements for running.
This shift in the integrity and role of the party, specifically in declaring their own self-appointed exemption from state law, leaves many conservatives like me realizing just how deep the corruption lies and how far from Utah principles both parties lean away from. While Utah should be leading the nation in core traditional moral values and entrepreneurial innovation, we instead have representatives that think they are above the law and are more occupied with the mediocracy and bureaucratic inefficiencies of Washington.
This watered-down conservative movement leaves states like ours vulnerable to radical policies that threaten the family and move our economy toward more radical socialistic ideas. Our families and communities simply cannot sustain the corruption and moral decline our political system is experiencing. Nor can Utah’s economy expect to continue to prosper when our Republican and Democrat representatives follow corrupt mechanisms of control over free market values. We need to act consistent with Utah business values and stop letting Washington infiltrate our great state by unabashedly funding candidates whose residency and eligibility is in question. With the unprincipled, united, amoral direction the parties are imposing upon Utahns, honorable candidates are only left with one choice: running as an independent. Independence! What a concept! I’ve heard that somewhere before.
I’m Perry Myers, and I’m a real Republican who has seen corruption firsthand, running as an independent for Congress. I am hoping Utah voters will be brave enough to look behind the smokescreen of party charades and vote true to the political values they believe in. Principles should hold more merit than the party letter next to the candidate’s name on a ballot.
My plea to my fellow Utahns is to simply do your research, the RNC is hopeful you won’t. The Utah GOP selected a bureaucrat who years ago worked for our water district and public lands — I invite you to ask southern Utah landowners how they feel about those government entities. I also invite you to go to my website and learn about me, my family and my position on policies.
These are troubling times with exceptionally uncommon problems. We need exceptional candidates who will, as Washington said, “guard against the impostures of pretended patriotism,” which, as Washington further iterates, “... is particularly alarming to the truly enlightened and independent patriot.”
Do you want another self-appointed bureaucrat insider, or a principled father, business owner and entrepreneur? You and I share a common interest of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. It will require uncommon leaders to preserve these sacred inalienable interests.
Spread the word, be brave and always remember what Albert Einstein said: “Great Spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds. The mediocre mind is incapable of understanding the man who refuses to bow blindly to conventional prejudices and chooses instead to express his opinions courageously and honestly.”
Utah deserves more courage and honesty.
Perry Myers
Perry Myers is a husband and a father of 10 children. He is a business owner and serial entrepreneur owning such businesses as Halo Ammunition, Alumni Creamery and Fort Harmony Farm to name a few. He is a candidate for Utah’s 2nd Congressional District.