The first principles from which I operate are self-reliance and self-determination. That's the metric by which I evaluate proposed laws. As far as the role of a national government, I believe it should be restricted to these four things:

1. Enforcing contracts (i.e. judiciary)

2. Ensuring for the defense of the nation

3. Maintaining infrastructure

4. Regulate commerce (lightly)

There are some areas of public activity that are, in my opinion, appropriate for local government action but should be outside the national government's purview:

5. Education

6. Building codes

7. Law enforcement

I do not believe government at any level should engage in social engineering programs or advocacy, which is primarily what puts me at odds with my more liberal-minded brethren. I don't believe that personal choices of free adults that impact no one other than the consenting parties should be restricted, monitored or prohibited, which is where I come into conflict with my more conservative friends.

I tend toward free-market libertarianism inasmuch as I think that quick, reactive markets create efficient marketplaces, and an efficient marketplace is the best way to create prosperity. I'll never argue that it's a perfect system, but I believe that erring on the side of ground-up (rather than top-down) solutions will do the most good for the most people.