I have been focused the last couple months on preparing for the upcoming Primaries. Meetings, interviews, and events with Republican candidates do take a lot of time and preparation. In my county, which is the only remaining Republican urban county in America, there is a wide dynamic range of views among the Republican candidates. Another 6 weeks and we’ll know most of the ones that will carry the Republican brand into the November midterm elections, with a few of them decided in the Primary runoffs where a majority did not materialize in the Primary voting results.

Such is the heritage we have here in America, the peaceful transition of power between individuals. In Texas we still elect our judges from the Justice of the Peace district level all the way to the Texas Supreme Court. The justice system is dependent on the voting populace for its members. People are trusted to make the right decisions regarding who will judge the law, create and modify the law, and execute the law in Texas. It is not necessarily that way in other states, which is why there is such a tsunami of authoritarianism in some states – the people have given away their rights to regulate their leaders through the ballot box by changes to the laws that put judges in place by appointment from a small group of people. I wonder if most are even aware of how much freedom they have lost in this change?

Benjamin Franklin’s statement that those who desire safety over freedom deserve neither speaks to this very issue. The “safety” of being constantly entertained through sports, comedy, a plethora of church programs and Hollywood media while neglecting to understand the political environment that is and has shifted around them enables the results of Franklin's warning. It is manifest in people having little understanding of how to affect their society other than voting, which has now been compromised in many states. Once freedom is lost, the price becomes far more costly to regain it. History bears this out for those who have the discipline to observe it.

But I am not pessimistic. I have met some wonderful candidates these past couple months, people that do understand what it takes to preserve the freedom that was won for us at great cost by a previous generation. Judge candidates that understand the importance of the rule of law, of the serious degradation of society by legislating from the bench. I have met Legislators that understand the importance of relationships, but the greater importance of having character and principles that do not waiver or are susceptible to compromise when creating or modifying law that protects the innocent and the vulnerable while upholding the right of the state to use the sword against evil. I have met Executive department candidates that understand the temptation to favor one group over another when executing their duties to enforce the laws of the state. They understand that this results in a serious breakdown of the concept of rule by law. For some that are running for an executive office, their past actions show that they have not succumbed to this temptation and have adjudicated their assigned responsibilities with integrity and humility.

These next few weeks will go quickly for many of these candidates. For those of us that will be entering the booth to decide which ones will appear on the November ballot, and the few of us that will conduct elections, this time will seem extended as the daily barrage of campaign email pours into our mailboxes. It is an important time, a time to be diligent and watchful, taking captive every thought and asking for wisdom from our Creator.