Political renegade and former Rep. Virgil H. Goode Jr., of Rocky Mount, is running for president.
The Democrat turned independent turned Republican has filed his paperwork and is seeking the Constitution Party’s nomination for the nation’s top job.
Goode, who lost his 5th District congressional seat to Democrat Tom Perriello in 2008, is running on a platform of securing the border, balancing the budget and preserving Social Security and Medicare.
“To balance the budget you have to stop illegal immigration, reduce legal immigration and cut spending significantly,” Goode said in an interview with WSLS in Roanoke.
Goode has made a career of being a political non-conformist. He served Southside in the Virginia state Senate as a conservative Democrat from 1973 to 1997. In 1996 he forced fellow Democrats to share power with Republicans in the evenly divided chamber.
He unsuccessfully sought the Democratic nomination for the U.S. Senate in 1982 and in 1994.
Goode served in Congress from 1997 to 2009, first as a Democrat, then as an independent, and converted to a Republican in 2002.
He now says there is a good reason why he is seeking the Constitution Party's nomination at an April convention in Nashville.
“Over time I have seen the leadership in the Republican Party was unwilling to deal with the border security issues in the way they should have and also did not want to take the very unpopular position to balance the budget,” he said.
Goode admitted he has a slim chance of winning the presidency, but says his campaign isn't about winning -- it is about a message.
“Both Republicans and Democrats the presidential candidates are getting as many maximum contributions as possible from PACS and individuals and I just think a grassroots campaign is the kind we need. We need frugality in the White House.”
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