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In one of the most anticipated interviews of this primary season, I got to interview Shane Hazel, the man looking to unseat long-time Congressman and political operative Rob Woodall.
Expectations were high for this interview but Shane blew them all away. He called me about 15 minutes before our interview was to begin and asked to delay it by a half hour so he could take advantage of the available sunlight to keep knocking on doors to meet those whom he sought to represent.
Knocking. On. Doors.
Old school. How many of those running for Congress go door-to-door anymore? Not many I’ll wager. Most are too busy rubbing elbows with the elites from their district or outside the district, making promises in the hopes that big donations will buy votes through advertising. Not Shane Hazel. The former Marine is pounding the pavement, working hard, something he knows from his time in the Marine Corps special operations, known as Force Reconnaissance.
What immediately struck me was his energy and his Constitutional knowledge. In the military, there is brotherly and sisterly teasing between the services. None of the stereotypes are really true, but sometimes they are true enough for comedy’s sake. Marines are lovingly thought of as the jocks, the ones who aren’t all that intellectual.
If one had been inclined to believe that’s what a Marines were truly like, Shane Hazel would have put the lie to that immediately. He demonstrated the raw Constitutional knowledge and intelligence of Ted Cruz, the true desire for fiscal discipline of Rand and Ron Paul, the unrelenting pursuit of liberty of Austin Petersen, and the passion for people of Erin Cruz. If freedom was baseball, Shane Hazel would be a true 5-tool player.
BW: What made you decide to run for Congress?
SH: Well, I’ll tell you, this is not something I ever sought nor something I thought I would ever do. I have a great career that allows me to spend a lot of time with my family and work with my brothers in special operations. It’s hard to give that up, but I have felt my faith calling me to take a stand, a weight on my shoulders. The same kind of weight was on my shoulders in the days immediately following 9-11 which was my faith calling me to join the Marine Corps in September of 2001. It’s simply a sense of duty and faith.
Rob Woodall (the current Republican Congressman of the Georgia 7th), has done nothing to forward conservative values, and in fact rates, F’s across the board on the major Constitutional and Conservative scorecards. He has voted for higher spending, for restricting the gun rights of law-abiding Americans, and has never held a job outside of DC where he has been since 1994. He hasn’t even conducted a town hall in the last 2 years. It’s time for someone who truly represents the people of the Georgia 7th to step in.
BW: What specific experiences and education make you feel ready and qualified for the job?
SH: I have taught the US Constitution and its lineage for years to local groups of citizens, which per art 6 sec 3 we are bound by oath to uphold as Representatives. In addition to that, I was a non-commissioned officer in Marine Force Reconnaissance and have seen the devastating effects of war up close and the ramifications that follow our men and women back home. I have a BA from UGA in International Affairs, and I worked both domestically and internationally in business development and as a subject matter expert in Aerospace for the last 11 years, developing and training our service members in emerging technologies which has given me even more insight into our DOD and our broken acquisition processes.
BW: What issues are your top priorities if elected?
SH: Spending is definitely a big one. I would not have voted for this deficit-heavy spending bill that just passed through Congress. Every spending bill needs to start with the Constitution. So much of what the federal government spends is outside of the few and defined powers of the Constitution, yet the government robs its citizens through taxation by force and then doesn’t spend the money wisely. Further, spending bills should be voted upon separately. No more holding the military hostage. We need a constitutionally balanced budget. We must fix our money by ending the Federal Reserve once and for all, Abolish the IRS and pass the Fair Tax.
Abolish the IRS. We’ve seen the IRS weaponized and used against our own citizens for political purposes. The tax reform just enacted is nice, but it needs to go further and we need to abolish the IRS which is why I would push for and support the “Fair Tax.”
We need to shut down the vast incentive system that draws people to America illegally. We want and need immigration, but LEGAL, immigration, with people who respect our laws and want to become Americans. America needs to bring our troops home to secure the border, and with trillions of dollars not wasted if we still need to build a wall we can, and we can give our military the pay they deserve and it would look like a rounding error compared to what we are doing now.
I also want to see military action debated and voted on in Congress before we send my brothers and sisters anywhere. And, when they are deployed it is with a clearly defined mission to completely destroy the enemy and then leave. No more indefinite deployments. No more nation building. No more rules of engagement.
Also, in order to reform the care our veterans receive, I will seek to abolish the Department of Veterans Affairs, and instead allow veterans to seek their own care in the private sector, but the expense is picked up by the DOD as a cost of national defense.
BW: You mentioned the recent spending bill. Do you think the increases in military spending were necessary?
SH: Absolutely not. In fact, the Department of Defense needs a thorough audit. The DOD acquisition process needs to be driven by end users and brought up to speed to meet 21st-century markets and emergence of technology. Too often bureaucrats, engineers, and people who have absolutely no experience in the mission bloat and encumber the process of getting our men and women the equipment they need.
*Authors note: See folks? I’m not the only veteran who thinks military spending is out of control*
BW: How do you feel about Congress and the President reauthorizing FISA?
SH: The 4th Amendment demands that four prerequisites be met before a warrant shall be issued. Which if done incorrectly carries the charge of perjury. All four must be met, every time, no exceptions in order to get a warrant. FISA does away with 4th Amendment protections and prerequisites for “probable cause” approving 99.7% of all FISA warrants applied for.
Again we have seen as a result of this usurpation FISA used as a weapon by the FBI and other agencies to take down its political enemies.
BW: It appears that President Trump May have himself been a victim of abuse of the FISA courts. How do you explain he and the GOP Congress reauthorizing it?
SH: I can’t. I think they should have released the Nunes memo before they voted, but either way, I can’t explain them reauthorizing it.
BW: You touched on immigration already but what else do you think needs to be done?
SH: Article I, Section 8 clause 4 of the Constitution gives the Federal government the power of naturalization. In the earliest days of the country, it was agreed that states shouldn’t be able to inflate their numbers with mass immigration for more power through votes in Congress. That’s what is happening now. We need to empower state and local governments to enforce federal immigration laws, not restrict them from doing so, and there needs to be consequences for cities and states who harbor illegals. Governors as executives to the contract between the states which is the Constitution need to make it extremely difficult for those governors who allow sanctuary cities in their states.
BW: Would you support the criminal prosecution of city and state officials who subvert immigration laws?
SH: Yes I would.
You can find it more about Shane Hazel at his website here.
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