Published in the Suburban Trends, July 30th, 2012

DEAR EDITOR:

In the Suburban Trends of July 12, under the "Our View" portion of the editorial page, mention was made of "moderates" in political races across the country.

Terms like "moderate" or "extremist" really tell us nothing about what a candidate's views really are. They are simply media "buzz words" that the uninformed public accepts because they are too mentally lazy to do any serious research.

If a person running for office says they believe that the proper role of government is what is defined in the Constitution and no more, you can be sure they'll be called an "extremist" by the media pundits.

Congressman Ron Paul in seeking the Republican nomination for president is a case in point; he was smeared or ignored.

Mitt Romney, the likely Republican nominee for president, is praised as a "moderate" - which is another way of saying he has no firm beliefs!

"Conservatives" - and sorry to say, some Tea Partiers - are so enraged at Obama that they support an establishment-approved Republican like Romney and delude themselves into thinking they really have a choice this year. These misguided "conservatives" think that Romney is really "one of them" - sorry to burst their bubble but he isn't. His father, former Michigan Governor George Romney, was instrumental in sabotaging Senator Barry Goldwater back in 1964, when Goldwater was the Republican nominee for president.

The liberal Rockefeller wing of the Republican Party has had the Romneys in its pocket for years.

This "fake conservative" tactic started 60 years ago in 1952 when the "moderate" Dwight Eisenhower was chosen to play the role of the "conservative" and beat the real "conservative" Senator Robert Taft for the Republican presidential nomination. This tactic has worked like a charm ever since Nixon, Ford, Reagan, and both Bushes have all been "fake conservatives" that the voters fell for "hook, line, and sinker."

For anyone who wishes to read a great expose of this tactic, I recommend "The Politician" by the late Robert Welch, which told the truth about Eisenhower. I believe this book can still be obtained through American Opinion Book Services, PO Box 8040, Appleton, WI 54912.

Now for those who supported Ron Paul over the last year or so, I say thank you. I'd also like to let voters know that if they are committed to limited constitutional government and individual liberty on all issues, they still will have a choice in November. Former New Mexico Governor Gary Johnson will be the Libertarian Party candidate for president this year.

Voters can have four more years of a welfare-state socialist Democrat like Obama or a watered-down version of the same in Romney or they can truly in good conscience vote for a man who rejects both versions of collectivism and stands with the founder of our republic and embraces liberty. Will the American sheep be fooled again?

Mark Richards,

West Milford