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Tom Cotton on Principles & Values

 

 


No more urgent task than simple, unapologetic patriotism

That's why there's no more urgent task today than the defense of America and a simple, unapologetic patriotism. We face many threats in this country, whether from China, or Iran, or Islamic terrorism, but there is no more pernicious threat to America than the rejection of our founding principles and our heritage and our tradition. And to all those on the left who would reject those things, I have a message. We will defend America without fear, without reservation, and without apology.

I'll confess that it makes my blood boil when I see liberals desecrating our flag. When I was in the army, I served at Arlington National Cemetery, and we performed funerals for our fallen heroes. I had to present that flag to their widows, the same flag was burned in our streets last year. The same flag that pampered athletes disrespect by taking a knee during our national anthem. A lot of our wounded warriors don't have the ability to take a knee anymore.

Source: Remarks by Senator Cotton at the 2021 CPAC Conference , Feb 26, 2021

Slavery was necessary evil upon which union was built

On colonial America: "We have to study the history of slavery and its role and impact on the development of our country because otherwise we can't understand our country. As the Founding Fathers said, it was the necessary evil upon which the union was built, but the union was built in a way, as Lincoln said, to put slavery on the course to its ultimate extinction," he said. Instead of portraying America as "an irredeemably corrupt, rotten and racist country," the nation should be viewed "as an imperfect and flawed land, but the greatest and noblest country in the history of mankind," Cotton said.
Source: Arkansas Democrat-Gazette on 2020 Arkansas Senate race , Jul 26, 2020

Served in military, academia, and as management consultant

Ben Sasse and Tom Cotton have a lot in common: Republican candidacies for the Senate, Ivy League advanced degrees--a Yale PhD for Sasse, a Harvard law degree for Cotton--and a tour of duty in the white-shoe world of management consulting. One more thing: They are running as common-man conservatives from the heartland under the banner of the Tea Party.

The resumes of Sasse (R, NE) and Cotton (D, AR) do not exactly fit the profile of populists. That is especially true for the lines dedicated to the Boston Consulting Group and McKinsey & Company, firms that advise corporations on strategy, efficiency and ways to increase profitability.

Most of Cotton's adult life has been in academia and the military, and he has spent a year in Congress. His time at McKinsey was also barely more than a year, during which time his group leader immersed him in the intricacies--and the value--of the Affordable Care Act.

Source: N.Y. Times on 2014 Arkansas Senate race , May 17, 2014

Fastest male in Congress; has finished 11 marathons

Rep. Tom Cotton retained his title as the fastest male in the 113th Congress, running the 3-mile course of the 33rd Annual ACLI Capital Challenge in 18:29. Cotton ran the course in 17:55 in 2013. Former Rep. Bart Gordon (D-TN) holds the record for the House: he finished in 16:59 in 1995.

Unfortunately for Cotton, his other big race--the heated Arkansas Senate campaign against Sen. Mark Pryor--has taken a toll on the congressman's workout regime. "I do have to work harder to get my runs in each morning," Cotton said. Proceeds from the event went to the Fidelco Guide Dog Foundation, which helps provide guide dogs to wounded veterans.

The congressman took up running as part of his Army training in 2005, and discovered he enjoyed the sport. Cotton has since run 11 marathons. If Cotton beats Pryor and runs the race as a senator in 2015, he has a better chance of breaking a record. The Senate record belongs to former Sen. Max Baucus (D-MT), who ran the 1981 Capital Challenge in 18:15.

Source: Roll Call's Gossip Blog on 2014 Arkansas Senate race , May 1, 2014

Endorsed Member of the Tea Party movement.

Cotton is endorsed by the Tea Party movement

The Tea Party movement is a populist conservative social movement in the United States that emerged in 2009 through a series of locally and nationally coordinated protests. The protests were partially in response to several Federal laws: the stimulus package; te healthcare bill; and the TARP bailouts. The name `Tea Party` refers to the Boston Tea Party of 1773, the source of the phrase, `No Taxation Without Representation.`

Source: Tea Party movement 10-Tea on Aug 11, 2010

Certify 2020 Presidential election as fully & fairly counted.

Cotton voted NAY blocking certification of the Electoral vote

Explanation of 1/6/21 Electoral Certification, by Emily Brooks, Washington Examiner:Sen. Ted Cruz and Rep. Paul Gosar led an objection to counting Electoral College votes from the state of Arizona, the first formal objection to state results in a series of moves that will delay the certification of Joe Biden as the winner of the 2020 presidential election over President Trump. Cruz is advocating for an `emergency 10-day audit` of election returns in disputed states. The usually ceremonial joint session of Congress that convenes to count and accept Electoral College votes will be put on hold as the House and Senate separately debate the objection.