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Peter Vidrine is a Constitution Party candidate in the 2008 congressional elections for the 7th Congressional District (map) of Louisiana. He is challenging incumbent Rep. Charles Boustany (R-La.).

Positions, record and controversies

Positions

Sanctity of Life

Peter believes that all life begins at conception, and as such, the not yet born child deserves full protection of the law. He believes the starting point to ending abortions in America is by Congress excercising the Constitutional authority granted in Article III, Section 2, and limiting the appellate authority of the Supreme Court and all other Federal courts in abortion cases. The immediate impact of this action will be the nullification of Roe v. Wade, and will allow individual states to prosecute abortion cases as their legislative bodies deem necessary.

Immigration

Peter believes that it is the duty and responsibility of the federal government to guard and protecting those borders.

• Opposes the provision of welfare subsidies and other taxpayer-supported benefits to illegal aliens.

• Opposes the practice of bestowing U.S. citizenship on children born to illegal alien parents while in this country.

• Opposes H-1B and L-1 visa provisions of the immigration act which are resulting in the displacement of American workers with foreigners.

• Supports a moratorium on immigration to the United States, except in extreme hardship cases or in other individual special circumstances, until the availability of all federal subsidies and assistance be discontinued, and proper security procedures have been instituted to protect against terrorist infiltration

• Supports requiring that individual groups and/or private agencies requesting the admission of an immigrant to the U.S., on whatever basis, be required to commit legally to provide housing and sustenance for such immigrants, bear full responsibility for the economic independence of the immigrants, and post appropriate bonds to seal such covenants.

• Support the restoration of immigration policies based on the practice that potential immigrants will be disqualified from admission to the U.S. if, on the grounds of health, criminality, morals, or financial dependence, they would impose an improper burden on the United States, any state, or any citizen of the United States.

• Opposes any extension of amnesty to illegal aliens.

• Supports the use of U.S. troops to protect the states against invasion.

• Opposes bilingual ballots.

Gun Control

• Peter believes that the right to bear arms is inherent in the right of self defense, defense of the family, and defense against tyranny. This is a right bestowed by God, not government, and as such the government cannot ever take it away.
• The right to keep and bear arms is guaranteed by the Second Amendment to the Constitution; it may not properly be infringed upon or denied.
• Unconditionally supports the right of the citizen to keep and bear arms.
• Opposes any attempt to prohibit ownership of guns by law-abiding citizens, and will stand against all laws which would require the registration of guns or ammunition.
• Supports the repeal of all federal firearms legislation, beginning with Federal Firearms Act of 1968.
• Supports rescinding all executive orders, the prohibition of any future executive orders, and the prohibition of treaty ratification which would in any way limit the right to keep and bear arms.

Taxes

• Supports legislation to abolish the Internal Revenue Service.
• Supports replacing income tax with a tariff based revenue system supplemented by excise taxes.
• Supports an apportioned "state-rate tax" in which the responsibility for covering the cost of unmet obligations will be divided among the several states in accordance with their proportion of the total population of the United States.
• Supports taxation of corporations.
• Opposes collection of direct Federal personal income taxes.
• Support ratification of the Liberty Amendment which would repeal the Sixteenth Amendment, and provide that "Congress shall not levy taxes on personal incomes, estates, and/or gifts."
• Support the use of motor fuel excise taxes, at rates not in excess of those currently imposed, to be used exclusively for the erection, maintenance, and administration of Federal highways.
• Supports the use of excise taxes to curb the use of tax dollars for media advertising, and to provide so-called "tax abatements," "tax incentives," and "economic development grants," which are pretexts to raid the public treasury and rob the workingman for the benefit of wealthy interests favored by the politicians.

Banking

• Supports legislation to restor fair usury laws.
• Supports capping US Bank credit card interest to 5 percent above the federal dicount rate and limiting "late fees" and "overlimit fees".
• Support the repeal of the "Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005."
• Supports legislation to controlhow banks assess overdraft fees.
• Supports returning to the money system set forth in the Constitution.
• Supports the Repeal of the Federal Reserve Act
• Supports reforming the current Federal Reserve banks to become clearing houses only.
• Supports the prohibition of fractional reserve banking.

Terrorism and Personal Liberty

• Opposes legislation and executive action, that deprive the people of their rights secured under the Fourth and Fifth Amendments under the guise of "combating terrorism" or "protecting national security".
• Opposes the National Security Act.
• Opposes the USA PATRIOT Act.
• Opposes the USA PATRIOT Act II.
• Opposes National ID cards.
• Opposes using The 'war on terrorism" as an excuse for perpetual U.S. occupation of foreign lands, military assaults on countries which have not injured us, or perpetual commitment of taxpayer dollars to finance foreign governments.

Veterans

• Supports providing equitable pay and benefits to our military personnel, and generous health, education, and other benefits to veterans.
• Opposes the attempt by any government agency to nullify or reduce earned benefits to veterans and their survivors, including but not limited to, compensation, pensions, education, and health care.

The Judiciary

• Supports exerting the congressional power to prohibit all federal courts from hearing cases which Congress deems to be outside federal jurisdiction pursuant to Article III, § 2 of the Constitution.
• Supports all legislation which would remove from Federal appellate review jurisdiction matters involving acknowledgement of God as the sovereign source of law, liberty, or government.
• Supports repudiation of the validity of judicial rulings that use foreign court rulings to overturn U.S. precedent.

Religious Freedom

• Supports legislation to deny all branches of government their ability to attack the religious liberties of the people and the states, regardless of the forum in which these liberties are exercised.
• Support legislation to end all form of taxation on churches and other religious organizations, along with using 401(C) status to limit church activities.
• Supports, pursuant to Article III, § 2 of the Constitution, legislation to restrict the Federal courts from hearing any more cases concerning:
  • Prayer in School;
  • Pray in school sponsored sporting events;
  • Displays of the Ten Commandment, wherever they may be;
  • Prayer in court proceedings.

State Sovereignty

• Opposes the federal government mandating policies relating to state education, natural resources, transportation, private business, housing, health care, ad infinitum.
• Supports divesting the Federal Government of all operations not authorized by the Constitution, extracting the federal government from such enterprises, whether or not they compete with private enterprise.
• Opposes any legislation contrary to the Tenth Amendment.

Personal and Private Property Security

• Opposes any legislation and executive action that deprive the people of their Fourth and Fifth Amendment rights under claims of necessity to "combat terrorism" or to "protect national security."
• Oppose legislation and administrative action utilizing asset forfeiture laws which enable the confiscation of the private property of persons not involved in the crime. Forfeiture of assets can only be enforced after conviction of the property owner as a penalty for the crime. Such forfeitures must follow full due process of law under criminal prosecution standards.
• Oppose the monitoring and controlling of the financial transactions of the people through such proposed laws as "Know Your Customer." Banks should be repositories of treasure and fiduciaries for the people, not enforcers for the State. Any information regarding customer transactions the State obtains from banks must be subject to the traditional Fourth Amendment safeguards.
• Support privacy legislation that would prohibit private parties from discriminating against individuals who refuse to disclose or obtain a Social Security number.
• Support legislation prohibiting all governmental entities from requiring the use of the Social Security number except for Social Security transactions.
• Support the repeal of all laws, regulations, and statutes that require the use of the Social Security number for any purpose other than Social Security transactions.

Cost of Government

• Opposed to federal funding of duties, functions, and programs not specifically assigned to the federal government by the Constitution.
• Opposes all federal expenditures which are not specifically authorized by the U. S. Constitution.
• Supports the restoration to the states all powers, programs, and sources of revenue that the federal government has hijacked.
• Supports the systematic reduction of the federal debt through, but not limited to, the elimination of further borrowing and the elimination of unconstitutional programs and agencies.
• Opposes dishonest accounting practices such as "off-budget items" used unscrupulously to hide unconstitutional spending practices.
• Supports ending the raiding by the federal government of the Social Security, Railroad Retirement and Medicare funds.
• Supports the abolition of the Federal Civil Service system, which is perceived to confer on government employees a "property right" regarding their jobs.

Bio

2008 elections

Vidrine is seeking the Constitution Party nomination to challenge Rep. Charles Boustany (R-La.) in the 2008 congressional elections.^[1][2]

Money in politics

Committees and affiliations

Committees

Vidrine will be assigned committees if and when he is elected to Congress.

Affiliations

More background data

Contact

Eunice, LA:
231 West Park Avenue Phone: 337-457-1818
Fax: 337-457-1122
Campaign Web Site: http://PeterNow.com

Articles and resources

See also

• 2008 U.S. congressional elections
  • 2008 U.S. congressional election dates
• Portal:Louisiana and the U.S. Congress

References

1. ↑ 2008 Race Tracker page on Louisiana's 7th Congressional District
2. ↑ Official Peter Vidrine for Congress website

External resources

• 2008 Race Tracker page on Louisiana's 4th Congressional District
• Official Peter Vidrine for Congress website

External articles