James Rensing

JEFFERSON CITY - James Rensing, the Constitution Party candidate running for lieutenant governor, acknowledged that he might not be the obvious choice for office.

But, he said, many residents cast a vote for Republicans or Democrats each election without feeling completely comfortable with their decision.

"People should vote with their conscience and their opinions and what they believe in," he said. "We should have three, four, five, six parties running the government. I think that would be better for everyone."

Rensing, a resident of Webster Groves in St. Louis County, worked as a licensed nursing home administrator in Clayton before moving to independent real estate sales in 1995. Currently, he is a certified signing agent, or, as he described, an intermediary between banks and customers seeking loans to refinance their homes.

He is married with one son.

As a member of the Constitution Party of Missouri, Rensing said he stands for wresting power away from the federal government and giving it back to the states.

"I think government's are run better the closer they are to their people," he said.

Asked if he supported restoring Medicaid cuts made in 2005 and what, if anything, he would do to make health care more affordable to all Missourians, Rensing said, he was "not a big fan of entitlement programs."

"Personally I think they're bankrupting our society and states," he added. "I think Medicare or Medicaid is kind of a socialistic program that we're in. If it could be phased out, I'd be more in favor of that."

He said that by eliminating certain government programs, health care would be more affordable for everyone.

As with other issues, Rensing said that the "free market system seems to always work."

The 41-year-old spent time in Arizona involved in the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps, a border-security group, "helping build the fence that's never going to be built by our government."

He said he stands in support of a constitutional amendment that would make English the official language of government proceedings.

"I think English-only would be a great thing not only for the state but for this country," Rensing said, adding, "I don't think we're at a point right now where we can just be bringing everyone and their brother into our country."

He encouraged Missouri residents to vote for him Nov. 4, because, he said, "I'm not an insider; I'm not entrenched in the system.

"...It's time for a third party to step in and get involved"