Issue Position: The Constitution

Issue Position

Dr. Gosar believes that our Constitution is the greatest governing document in our our nation's history and that this sacred charter is the cornerstone of our Constitutional Republic.

Rather than protecting the vision of our Founding Fathers, President Obama has trampled on the Constitution and done everything in his power to turn our system of government into a dictatorship.

Paul took an oath when he was sworn in to office to protect our Republic and defend the Constitution. Dr. Gosar strives to uphold this promise every day and the first decision he makes when considering legislation is whether or not a bill is constitutional.

Paul is a strong supporter of the Tenth Amendment and believes that if the Constitution does not explicitly delegate powers to the federal government then those issues are reserved to the states and the American people.

Dr. Gosar supports the Article I project and has been leading the charge to restore Congress's power of the purse. Paul has fought to reclaim the lawmaking responsibility of the legislative branch and ensure our system of checks and balances established by the Constitution is maintained.

Dr. Gosar cosponsored H.R. 4371, the Article I Consolidated Appropriations Amendments Act. This commonsense legislation seeks to utilize the power of the purse to block several unconstitutional regulations and policies proposed by the Obama Administration. H.R. 4371 prevents ambush union elections, makes the American Community Survey voluntary, blocks executive amnesty policies, defunds the EPA's Waters of the U.S. rule, blocks unconstitutional mining regulations, prohibits funds for sanctuary cities, and prevents the Justice Department from entering into unconstitutional settlements with third-party groups.

Paul is an original cosponsor of the First Amendment Defense Act (FADA), legislation that seeks to protect our religious freedoms and prevent discrimination by the federal government against individuals and organizations that uphold traditional beliefs of marriage.

Paul and several of his colleagues introduced the Separation of Powers Act, legislation that blocks all of Obama's unconstitutional gun grabs and executive actions that infringe on the Second Amendment. This legislation passed the House in July of 2016.

Dr. Gosar has voted for and cosponsored multiple pieces of legislation to terminate Operation Choke Point, an unconstitutional program created by the Obama Administration to "choke out" gun dealers and other legitimate business by forcing banks to close their accounts.

Paul has continuously voted and joined other members in introducing amendments to prevent the federal government from spying on U.S. citizens and unconstitutionally collecting our private information. He is a proud member of the Fourth Amendment Caucus which was founded "to protect the privacy and security of Americans in the digital age."

When the Senate passed a provision that would allow the federal government to indefinitely detain American citizens, Rep. Gosar stood in strong opposition and voted numerous times to strip this unconstitutional provision.

Dr. Gosar has continuously utilized Congress's power of the purse to cut unnecessary spending and prohibit funding for unconstitutional programs. Paul passed an amendment through the House reversing the ATF ban on 7n6 ammunition.

Paul has been leading the charge to block Obama's takeover of the local zoning process through an unconstitutional regulation that attempts to reengineer the makeup of our neighborhoods. Essentially, the Obama Administration is forcing local communities to adhere to the administration's utopian housing mandates or risk loosing out on millions of dollars in grant money. Rep. Gosar has introduced the Local Zoning and Property Rights Protection Act and passed two amendments through the House to block this overreach.

President Obama has continuously tired to circumvent Congress and our Constitution in order to implement his lawless immigration agenda. Paul has successfully passed amendments and inserted appropriations riders to defund Sanctuary Cities and block Obama's unlawful executive amnesty policies.

Prior to an unconstitutional memo from the Administration in 2014, DACA aliens and other unlawful illegal immigrants were not allowed to enlist in the military. Dr. Gosar introduced the Military Amnesty Prevention Act in order to prevent Obama's violation of Article I, Section 8, Clause 4 of our Constitution and terminate this backdoor amnesty program.

Paul has introduced legislation and inserted funding riders to block the EPA's unconstitutional Waters of the United States (WOTUS), Clean Power Plan, and Ozone regulations. Dr. Gosar passed an amendment into public law to prohibit funding for administering an unconstitutional roadside survey, protecting our Fourth Amendment rights in the process.

Dr. Gosar will continue to defend the Constitution and to protect our Republic.

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