Colorado Springs Congressman Doug Lamborn for the second year in a row has been announced one of five “most conservative” members of Congress by the National Journal. “This is an honor I share with my constituents in Colorado’s Fifth District,” Lamborn wrote in an email to supporters. “I am privileged to represent Americans who share my love of liberty and freedom and who recognize that the government that governs least, governs best.”
In his email, Lamborn celebrated political conservativism as an approach to policy-making that stresses small government, individual liberties and economic freedom and that attacks budget deficits.
Dear Friends,
For the second year in a row, I have been named the Most Conservative Member of Congress. In its annual ranking of House Members, the National Journal gave me a score of 95% for my conservative voting record. I tied with my colleagues Reps. Randy Neugebauer (TX), Sam Johnson (TX), Jim Jordan (OH), and Trent Franks (AZ)….
This is an honor I share with my constituents in Colorado’s Fifth District. I am privileged to represent Americans who share my love of liberty and freedom and who recognize that the government that governs least, governs best.
I will continue to fight for individual liberties and economic freedom so that our nation can grow and prosper. This fight is especially important today when we face annual deficits of more than $1.6 trillion…
Some lawmakers and conservative analysts, of course, may find the rankings suspect or at least question the validity of the definition of “conservative” to which the National Journal researchers subscribe.
Lamborn has backed billions in military spending despite the ballooning federal deficit and strained budget. In the last two years, he has sought $54 million in military earmarks for projects in his district and last week introduced an amendment to restore $22 billion in defense budget cuts, even as his GOP colleagues are working to slash the budget by hundreds of millions of dollars.
Indeed Colorado Rep. Mike Coffman, a war veteran, has been a leading voice among Republican members of Congress arguing for cuts to the bloated military budget. Coffman proposed ending the Selective Service System to save roughly $25 million a year as well as winnowing the ranks of military brass and lowering troop levels in Europe.
“Among my conservative colleagues there is a mistaken belief that we measure our commitment to defense simply by how much money we spend on it,” Coffman told the Denver Post.
Lamborn staunchly opposed the Coffman proposals.
Lamborn’s outspoken support for the rash of sweeping anti-abortion bills proposed this session might also raise the eyebrows of Fifth District individual-liberty and small-government lovers. Lamborn has signed on as a co-sponsor of H.R.212: the Sanctity of Human Life Act; H.R.217: Title X Abortion Provider Prohibition Act; and H.R.3: No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion Act.
The laws seek to strip access to abortion for women around the country and would significantly limit access to family planning education and to contraception available through Planned Parenthood.
