Three Main PrinciplesToday, July 15th 2004, the Vermont Secretary of State certified 512 signatures recommending my name, Ben Mitchell, be included on the Republican Primary ballot, for the United States Senate. I am not now, nor have I ever been a member of the Republican Party, but the unprovoked invasion and colonization of Iraq has led me to feel that each of us in conscience is obliged to stand against this building fascist movement within our federal government. We have become the very thing that I believe our great nation was intended to oppose, an imperial super power of religious intolerance which suppresses the freedom of its people to further project the gain of a narrow elite. In an effort to stand against this trend, I would like to affirm three primary principals which I hope will define my candidacy. 1. Peace now. No more invasions of sovereign countries – no matter how profitable it may be for wealthy contributors. Anyone who calls herself or himself a moral person and supports this spiraling policy of war is ignorant in the true meaning of the word. 2. Separation of Church and State. I call on the Republican voters from the State of Vermont to recognize that not one of us is free to live by our own beliefs until and unless each of us is free to do the same. This is a fundamental liberty for which so many have given their lives; we must affirm it once again, and demand that government stay out of religion.3. Lastly, we need to curtail the influence of large corporations in our electoral system. Just as we do not allow individuals who are not naturalized citizens to vote, we should not allow the financial power of multinational corporations to speak with such a strong voice, for they demonstrate no loyalty to the people for whom they presume to speak. Corporations’ financial “speech” is free under our first amendment, and they have repaid this freedom by squeezing us for every last penny, crushing small business, and sending our jobs to the third world. We must stand up. If corporations want to be granted the freedoms of our constitution, they should behave as decent citizens. If they break the law or knowingly cause harm to people, they must be held accountable, just as we must be as individuals. I believe that government should protect its people from the threat of hostile powers, whether they are terrorists or corporate profiteers.As a civilized society we pool our recourses to protect our food supply, our air, and our livelihood. I believe in a government that provides for the security, health, and survival of its citizenry. Some are driven to pursue wealth and power, and in a free society, they should be allowed to follow this desire, but only to the extent that they do not harm others. Education, Health Care, Energy, Water – these are necessities of contemporary life, and we must resist the avaricious few who wish to squeeze profit from our basic human survival. Please vote for Ben Mitchell in the republican primary on September 14th.http://www.libertyunion.windham.vt.us/Ben%20Mitchell/Ben%20Mitchell.htm