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Our Republican Legacy (ORL) Texas State Chair Merrill Matthews appears on Newsmax to talk about the Republican Primary race for U.S. Senate in Texas.

Our Republican Legacy (ORL) Texas State Chair Merrill Matthews appears on Newsmax to talk about the Democratic and Republican Primary races for U.S. Senate in Texas.

The Trump presidency, for far too much of the time, bears more resemblance to a lawless syndicate than to an honorable governmental administration. The repetitive commission of war crimes on the high seas and in Venezuela, the threats to resort to force against Greenland, one of the United States’ closest allies for over seven decades and the deployment of a staggering array of military assets to confront Iran with overwhelming force — all without constitutionally-required co

ORL supports the Constitution and the Rule of Law as one of our founding principles. Absent military attack or the imminent threat of attack, only Congress can declare war or authorize the use of military force, not the President.

President Donald Trump has embroiled the United States in another illegal war. Less than two months after an unconstitutional and unauthorized U.S. military operation in Venezuela, Trump has launched a full-scale bombing campaign against Iran. He did so with open intent to effect regime change (among other ostensible purposes).

As the fifth year of Russia’s illegal aggression and ongoing war crimes begins, it’s time to ask what more Ukraine’s friends and allies can do to help defend that war-ravaged nation and, by extension, secure the rest of Europe.

(Originally published in The Hill ) By Emily Brooks For the Republican officials and operatives who have been turned into outcasts as they balk at  President Trump  and his MAGA takeover of the party, there’s a question about what to do next: Join the Democrats? Try to influence specific issues? Or try to retake control of the Republican Party? Those in  Our Republican Legacy (ORL)  are attempting the latter path, forming a “shadow RNC” with the goal of working to regain cont

In an era when partisan loyalty often trumps individual conviction, Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky and Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky stand out as lawmakers willing to break with their party when principle demands it.

Watch a full recording of the Winter National Committee Meeting of Our Republican Legacy (ORL) held on February 20, 2026, in National Harbor, MD.

While moderate Republicans are typically branded as Republicans in Name Only (RINOs) for failing to enthusiastically embrace every element of President Trump’s shifting agenda, they are right on almost every issue and the MAGA Republicans are wrong. Properly understood, moderate Republicans are the true Republicans, and we need more of them—not fewer.

Our Republican Legacy’s foundational principle is respect for the Constitution, the Rule of Law, and all the guardrails that exist in law to protect our rights and freedoms. This means we support state primacy in our elections, subject to Congressional intervention only when absolutely necessary and justified as was the case with civil rights and nondiscrimination in voting in the 1950s and 1960s.

On February 2, 2026, President Donald Trump advocated that elected Republicans should “nationalize” the 2026 elections, which explicitly violates the Constitution and abandons the core Republican principle of federalism. ORL emphatically opposes this suggestion.

When government abuses its power, the American people must be heard. This was the lesson of the Civil Rights movement in the 1960s: Bull Connor’s dogs in Birmingham and the brutality of state troopers in Selma awakened the conscience of average Americans, prompting Congress to act.

Putin and Trump have been trying to channel some of Russia’s frozen assets back to Moscow or into the US president’s Board of Peace scheme. This must not be allowed.

In his addled and bellicose Davos World Economic Forum speech, President Trump threatened U.S. takeover of Greenland to satisfy his self-admitted psychological “need” to own and control the North Atlantic island, which comprises 97 percent of the territory of the Kingdom of Denmark. Predictably, his cascading threats blindsided our NATO allies, further undermining their trust in the United States.

But, it is elemental that it is the American people, the ultimate sovereign, who own the government of the United States of America. And, contrary to the disingenuous exclamations of two Congressional Committee chairs, they most assuredly can handle the truth, even if Congress can’t.

Our Republican Legacy (ORL) Texas State Chairman, Dr. Merill Matthews, appeared on 570 KLIF's "The Clayton Neville Show" to talk about ORL's guiding principles and current events.

There are moments in a nation’s life when words matter more than usual. When any president suggests, as President Trump did last week, that the only limit on his power is his own morality and his own mind, Americans should listen carefully. But for conservatives — those who claim allegiance to the tradition of Edmund Burke and the constitutional wisdom of the Founders — such words should trigger serious concern.

The Founders of our Republic united around the rule of law. According to John Adams: “the very definition of a Republic is an Empire of laws and not of men.”  In response to an inquiry about whether the new government would be a republic or a monarchy, Ben Franklin said “A Republic if you can keep it.”  He was concerned that over time the Republic would give way to corruption and ultimately despotism.

We strongly oppose President Trump’s public threats and unnecessary acts of aggression against other sovereign nations, including our neighbors in this hemisphere with whom we have had long-standing engagement over time through trade, investment, commerce, and other bilateral and multilateral agreements.