Candidate for
Supervisor; County of Orange; Supervisorial District 5

The purpose of government---stated simply and succinctly---is to promote and provide for the health, safety, and security of the citizenry. Accordingly, government must insure that each and every citizen---irrespective of race, religion, national origin, gender, age, health, or wealth---is afforded equal protection under the law.

In order to fulfill its objective, federal agencies---such as the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)---have been created to assure that toxic or potentially harmful substances are banned from the foods we eat and the medicines we take.

Also, federal and state legislation---such as the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and the California Coastal Act---has been enacted to protect our precious natural resources, and to assure that our beaches and coastal areas are free from pollution and that public access is not inhibited.

Additionally, governmental bodies---such as the Department of Homeland Security---have been established, as the need arises, to secure our borders and to protect our citizens from both foreign and domestic enemies.

And anti-trust and consumer protection laws have been passed to protect the consumer from price-gouging, collusion, deceptive advertising, and other unfair business practices.

Finally, the civil and criminal justice system exists to provide a certain degree of vindication to those who have been wronged, to punish those who have violated the law, and to serve as a deterrent to those who might be inclined to commit unlawful acts were it not for the fear of appropriate punishment.

Having stated the obvious, I still subscribe to the philosophy of Thomas Jefferson, i.e., "that government which governs least governs best". In other words, only those laws and acts necessary to fulfill the overall purpose of government, as outlined above, are necessary. And, since ours is a representative government, if we feel that certain laws are unjust or that others are needed, we must prevail upon our elected representatives to either change or delete them, or to enact new laws. And lastly, if our elected representatives are unresponsive or otherwise unaccountable, it is our duty to replace them as well!