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INTERVIEW: Justice Jeff Brown is the Republican Justice, Supreme Court of Texas, Place 6 Running for re-election AUBREY R. TAYLOR: What does freedom mean to you? JUSTICE JEFF BROWN: Freedom is a gift of God. Government can help secure and protect our freedom, but it’s not the source of our freedom. And government can just as easily deprive us of our freedom. God intends for us to live freely—to worship Him as our conscience directs us, to speak fearlessly against oppression and tyranny, and to be free to work and provide for our families. Living freely is the only way each of us can become the complete person God wants us to be. But freedom cannot be taken for granted; it must be protected and nourished. Perhaps Ronald Reagan said it best: “Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn't pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and our children's children what it was once like in the United States where men were free.” AUBREY R. TAYLOR: Why are you proud to be an American? JUSTICE JEFF BROWN: I’m proud to be an American because our country is an exceptional place. It’s a place where big dreams can come true for those willing to work hard to achieve them. Being an American is not about belonging to one ethnicity; it’s about buying into a collection of ideas about how people should live their lives: freely, dutifully, and according to the rule of law. And I’m proud to be an American because more often than not, America has stood up for goodness and decency and fair play. America and Americans are far from perfect, but we are exceptional because of the ideals we strive to realize, both for ourselves and the whole world.
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INTERVIEW: Judge Wesley Ward is the Republican District Judge, 234th Judicial District running for Re-election in 2014 AUBREY R. TAYLOR: What does freedom mean to you? JUDGE WESLEY WARD: Freedom is opportunity, choice, and duty. It is our God-given (not government-allowed) freedom to live, become educated, vote, speak, and work how we choose. But it is not all take and no give, for with our freedom comes duty, our responsibility to protect that freedom and to nourish it by living it. “For to be free is not merely to cast off one’s chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others,” said Nelson Mandela. Freedom is fragile. Freedom must always be guarded, because there are always those who would seek to restrict our freedoms. As Ronald Reagan said, “Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. It is not passed to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same.” As Judge of Texas’ 234th District Court, I fight everyday to protect our freedom, through fair and equal enforcement of the law. Because freedom can only exist through the rule of law -- the backbone of our democracy, and the safeguard of our liberty. For me, on a personal level, freedom is on the back of a horse, on a high bluff looking west, with the rising sun at my back, my wife and my children around me, looking out across the endless vista of opportunity that America gives to the world. AUBREY R. TAYLOR: Why are you proud to be an American? JUDGE WESLEY WARD: Why NOT?!? (That seems like a good place to start.). My pride in America has always been thorough and complete. It did not start at some point, and it will not end. For America is more than any single point in time or any single victory or
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