Republican Party of Skamania County, Washington
Skamania County is nestled in the Southwest portion of Washington State and falls within Washington State's 17th Legislative District. The county was founded in 1854 and derives its name from the Cascades Chinook word sk'mániak, meaning "swift waters".
The Skamania County Republican Party has a long history standing on strong constitutional principles and values. Our platform consists of enduring principles and prudent thought, not passing conveniences with little thought for the future. Our platform rests on proven truths as it looks ahead, in order to deal with present and future challenges. We offer our fellow Skamania county residents our assurance that our ideals are those that will unify our county, state and country.
The SCRP is propelled by a set of strong core values and a passion for protecting, preserving, and defending liberty as outlined by the Constitution. These principles, derived directly from the wisdom of America’s Founders, serve as constant reminders to us as we seek to advance the cause of liberty.
We believe that principled leadership must stand upon foundation and core values that transcend time and societal pressures. We affirm the truths of the Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution that tie us to principled governance. We understand the principles of smaller government, lower taxes, personal responsibility, the right to keep and bear arms and the sanctity of human life.
We understand the difficulty in advancing these ideas in the arena of a decidedly left-leaning media culture. We believe ‘these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights, that among which are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness.” We believe that to secure these God-given rights, government are instituted among men and women, deriving their powers from the consent of the governed.
The SCRP is made of and welcomes men and women and of all creeds and colors. We are thankful for the beauty of where we live and the neighbors we are blessed with. We believe that the United States of America is an exceptional nation that in its creation broke the historical norm. We are grateful for being self-governing and free citizens and understand the debt we owe for those who paved the way before us. SCRP understands the duty to pass on the blessing of liberty to our children and grandchildren.
What We Stand For
MISSION STATEMENT
We believe that the Republican Party exists to protect the inalienable rights given by Almighty God and put forth by the founders in the Declaration of Independence. Therefore, we support legislation and governance that is pro-life, pro-liberty, and pro-pursuit of happiness. We believe that an originalist view of the rights and responsibilities contained in the US Constitution has guarded these inalienable rights.
EDUCATION
We believe the primary authority and responsibility for educating children resides with the parents, not the federal government, its agencies or programs. Public education should be funded and managed locally. Therefore, local control in education and school choice for parents includes but is not limited to: Public, Private, Charter and Home Education.
CRIME
We believe law and justice must apply to everyone equally. We support strict constitutional interpretation by the courts, State sovereignty, and the presumption of innocence until proven guilty. We also support law enforcement and County Sheriff's autonomy from State or Federal control.
CITIZENS RIGHTS
The first Ten Amendments to the United States Constitution are a foundation for protecting our God given rights and provide proper restraint to civil government overreach. We proclaim the sanctity of human life and support its protection from conception to natural death.
SECOND AMENDMENT: THE RIGHT TO KEEP AND BEAR ARMS
We believe the right to keep and bear arms in the defense and preservation of life, liberty, and property is endowed by our Creator. This right shall not be infringed upon by any actions coming from the federal, state, or local branch of government via laws, executive orders or regulations.
STATE’S RIGHTS
We support the Constitution of the United States. The 10th amendment as written must be adhered to. It is the duty of the President, members of Congress, the U.S. Supreme Court, and administrative branch appointees to act in accordance with the Constitution and within the scope of their Oath of Office.
ENVIRONMENT
God, our Creator, has commissioned humans to be good stewards of the earth. We believe that a balance can and must be reached between earning a livelihood and the need to protect the environment. We call for responsible policies that respect balance between property rights, stable jobs and sound environmental practices. We support prohibiting foreign influence over environmental policies and support local management.
ECONOMY AND NATURAL RESOURCES
We support a complete audit of the United States Federal Reserve system.
We encourage and promote multiple uses of forest and natural resources to stabilize and build our rural community economy providing needed jobs and opportunities. This is the original intent of the Organic Administration Act of 1897 and later by Gifford Pinchot, first chief the US Forest Service. A wealth of resources, creative ingenuity, and entrepreneurial prospects are present and should be encouraged for business development.
HEALTH CARE
We believe health care encompasses the whole person. All health care decisions shall be made at the individual and family level. We urge protecting this God given inalienable right for all persons both born and unborn. This responsibility provides United States Citizens the freedom to make their own health care decisions in accordance with their core beliefs and individual convictions in their pursuit of life, liberty and happiness for themselves and their dependent family members. These personal health care choices shall be protected without threat of any mandates emanating from any local, state or federal governmental agencies. We oppose any legislation, mandate or law that forces citizens to purchase healthcare insurance or penalize them for not acquiring health insurance.
TRANSPORTATION
We support existing special use transportation taxes to be used for what they were intended. We urge transportation agency performance reviews and audits for road construction and maintenance.
NATIONAL SECURITY
We support the strict adherence to the constitutional guidelines for declaring war, securing our borders and strengthening our military. We reject any international control of U.S. Armed Forces and the trying of U.S. troops for war crimes by foreign entities. We support enforcing the current immigration laws and ending birthright citizenship for those born to non-U.S. citizens. We believe that our national borders should be secured against entry by undocumented aliens.
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT AS DEFINED BY UNITED NATIONS AGENDA 2030
We recognize the destructive and insidious nature of UN Agenda 2030. We reject it and expose to the public and public policy members the dangerous intent of the plan, resolving that no local government or citizens are legally bound by UN Agenda 2030, the World Economic Forum, the World Health Organization, or any other international entity. We hold to the National Sovereignty of these United States and reject foreign interference.
SOCIAL SECURITY
We support private accounts under Social Security.
PRIVATE PROPERTY
Private Property rights are fundamental to our personal freedoms. The U.S. Constitution requires government to secure those rights. We call for fair market value compensation to private landowners for any form of taking of private lands. We oppose any taking of any private land being converted to any non-government (third party) ownership. Counties should have their taxable land base preserved by receiving a parcel of equal value for all acreage purchased by a public, federal or state agency. In lieu of property replacement, counties should be guaranteed under a Congressional Act, a permanent subsidy to be adjusted periodically for increased valuations and inflation. Neither foreign governments nor foreign entities, directly or indirectly, should own private property within the United States of America.
PUBLIC LANDS OWNERSHIP
In adherence to the U.S. Constitution, we believe that federal ownership of public lands should be transferred to state and local ownership. Federal ownership has severely affected the ability of local communities to sustain an economy that allows them to provide basic education and government services. Further, the federal government should be prohibited from acquiring any additional lands.
GORGE SCENIC ACT
We oppose the unconstitutional Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area Act. It has far reaching detrimental effects on private property ownership and management. However, since we are currently bound, we support the need for local involvement in the Gorge Commission which gives our county the only voice we have in the management of the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic Area Act.
MARRIAGE
We define marriage as a union between an adult biological man and an adult biological woman.
TAXES
We support abolishing the IRS. We propose replacing the federal income tax with a flat, fair, or sales tax. We oppose the death tax. We believe all special, county, state or taxing district taxes should be used only for the purposes for which they were passed. We propose that all new State taxes levied be approved by 2/3 vote of the state legislature and all new local taxes be approved by 2/3 vote of the people.
