Op-Ed: Who Is Chip Roy?

We are a free people. That freedom requires constant defense and a constant renewing of the promise to hold our elected officials accountable. We must make Congress work for us…

My family settled in Texas in 1851, and our roots run deep here. My great-great-grandfather was a Texas ranger. My grandmother was a single mom in west Texas who raised my polio-stricken father after her husband died of cancer. She worked hard, asked for no handouts, and became the first woman elected county clerk in her small town. My parents met and got married here, and recently celebrated their 50^th anniversary in Austin.

I met my Aggie bride in Texas. My children were born here and my wife and I are raising them in the hill country. And when the good Lord calls me home, I hope to spend my final moments here.

Texans are truly unique. We cherish our identity and cherish the beliefs and ideas that have made Texas exceptional. Strong families. Hard work. Limited government. Free markets that create opportunity and prosperity. A society that respects and upholds the rule of law. And the belief that we are created in the image of a loving God who views every life as sacred.

That’s why 1,000 people move to Texas every day. They want to be a part of the greatest state in the country. We are leading the nation as a beacon of economic prosperity and liberty, but our shared Texas values must be defended if we want to preserve them for the next generation.

My opponent has attempted to brand himself as a moderate. He is not.

On the issues, which he proudly displays on his website, he advocates for socialized government-run healthcare that would cost nearly $32 trillion. He wants to impose a new, massive carbon tax on Texas families. He believes the only reason anyone would use or own a weapon with a high-capacity magazine is that “he or she is seeking to commit mass murder and violence.”  He supports radical gun control efforts to restrict the ability of law-abiding Texans to exercise their God-given right to protect themselves and their families. He is an advocate for increasing taxpayer funding to Planned Parenthood. And he believes in giving Washington control over your child’s education instead of empowering parents and local school districts.

These are beliefs vastly out of step with the majority of Texans, and most Americans. One would expect to hear this from someone in Hollywood or Brooklyn, not here in the Hill country.

This great state is the beating heart of liberty—not just here in America, but arguably in the entire world. For the sake of our children and our grandchildren, we must see that it remains such.

I’m running not because I merely share these values with my fellow Texans, but because I will fight for them. I have done so throughout my entire career. I know that every vote cast is a vote that either expands liberty or diminishes it. Every vote cast, no matter how big or small, either puts more power in the hands of Texans or takes it away and puts it in the hand of unelected Washington bureaucrats.

We are a free people. That freedom requires constant defense and a constant renewing of the promise to hold our elected officials accountable. We must make Congress work for us. That requires sending people to Washington willing to stand up for life, liberty, and the fundamental belief that self-government is best left in the hands of a diminished federal government, so that a big and healthy civil society—where families, community, neighbors, churches, synagogues, charities—can flourish in its stead.

Texans believe in these things because we’ve seen it work first hand. We’re the 10^th largest economy in the world. We are blessed with abundant energy and natural resources. We’re the leader in job creation and opportunity. And we cling happily to our faith and our hard fought and hard-won constitutional rights.

This is Texas. This is who we are. We take pride declaring to those who would infringe on our freedom to “Come and take it.”

The radical, progressive left has made it clear that they intend to do just that.

Like our forefathers before us, let’s answer the call. Let’s hold the line. And let’s keep Texas the shining light of liberty that has made it the greatest state in the greatest nation that the world has ever seen.

Chip Roy is the Republican nominee for the 21^st District of Texas.