Chuck Smith has been a marine, a U.S. Navy JAG corps commander, and a lawyer. Now, he wants to be an Attorney General.
“Never before in the history of the United States has the Constitution been more at risk,” he told a crowd at the 41st annual GOP Pig Roast on Saturday. “Never before in the history of Virginia have the rights of man, the freedoms of Americans been more at stake. If there ever was a time that we need to get back to our common sense, get back to common sense views, get back to God, get back to our leadership, that time is now.”
Smith is the first Republican to announce his candidacy for the 2021 Attorney General primary. Since January, he has raised $144,096, according to The Virginia Public Access Project. Smith was ubiquitous at the Saturday pig roast, shaking hands with everyone he could find. His speech was well received.
“The gentleman that’s running for Attorney General, first time I’ve ever heard him speak,” attendee Barry Bennett told The Virginia Star. “That was a great, great, great speech he gave about standing up for America and what America stands for. Ex-marine. Very impressive.”
In his speech, Smith said, “We need leaders with a spine who will stand and say ‘[No, you] will not take down our statues, you will not take down our monuments, you will not take down our police officers, you will not take down our military bases, you will not take down our Second Amendment, you will not take down our president, and by God, you will not take down the United States of America.'”
“It’s important [for me] to run so we can get the Constitution back as the supreme law of the land,” Smith said in an interview. “The Governor is governor because we have a state law. The Constitution is a federal law. The federal law trumps state laws. Even under certain divisions of the Constitution like the Tenth Amendment specifically, the states get their police power. But their police power never trumps the federal law.”
Smith continued, “And so our Attorney General has completely ignored the fact that the Constitution is higher than the state law on questions of masks, mandating masks, mandating injections, questions of the red flag law, all issues of the Second Amendment, opening churches.”
Smith said his experience makes him the best choice for Attorney General. He said, “I think God put me in this position, I think the people deserve someone with the kind of leadership I bring to the table, and we’re going to make it happen.”
– – –
Eric Burk is a reporter at The Virginia Star and the Star News Digital Network. Email tips to [email protected].
Photo “Chuck Smith” by Eric Burk.
