I happened to read one of my fundraising letters from the 2010 campaign today, and was surprised how little has changed in 4 years. In part:

I have often said that leadership is everyone’s job, and it is time that I took my own advice.

My campaign is built on confidence that a few basic ideas are widely shared:

• Government exists to  provide a framework of laws that apply equally to us all, and protect our rights and property.
• We all want to live as proud, free, responsible, taxpaying citizens.
• Government cannot and should not fix EVERY problem.
• Bigger government means bigger taxes.
• Laws that are too complex and too numerous make criminals of us all.
• We all want a “level playing field”, and understand that that is impossible when government picks the winners and losers.
• Nothing in life is without cost.  If someone provides for us, that same someone chooses for us.  There is no “free lunch”.

I have always been passionate about freedom.  Our founders wrote our constitution to ensure that our God-given rights and freedoms would not be taken from us by overweening government.  It is time to defend those ideas and re-awaken people to the dangers of the pursuit of the “free lunch”.

This is why I am running. ….

The issues in 2014 are the same as 2010. The candidates come and go. The issues stay the same.

These were the same issues that animated our founders, and drove them to start a seemingly hopeless revolution against the world’s most powerful military power in 1776.

Our founders gave us the Rule of Law, limited, enumerated powers, and charged us with “keeping” the Republic.

They won. It took a while, and a lot of sacrifice, but they won.

Keep the faith.