Texas grassroots leader and constitutionalist Dwayne Stovall announced his candidacy in the Republican 2016 primary for the office of U.S. Representative for the 36th congressional district on Wednesday.

He faces Congressman Brian Babin, who famously used his first vote as a member of Congress to vote “present” in the House speaker’s race.

During his announcement, Stovall said, “Today, there is no question that this Republic has declined into a national government with an all-powerful king, a Congress that is no more than a powerless parliament, and a Supreme Court that has become an unelected army of nine lawyers who rule according to their whims more than the Constitution. I am motivated to run for Congress because the federal system we were gifted is being destroyed, and it doesn’t have to be that way.”

After working for several years to teach grassroots activists about the founding constitutional principles upon which this nation was founded, Stoval decided to run against U.S. Senator John Cornyn in the 2014 Republican primary. While he did not win that election, Stovall told Breitbart Texas that the race gave him a great opportunity to learn more about what the voters of Texas are looking for in a representative.

“The framers of our Constitution and the States that agreed to it had every intention of constraining the federal government,” Stoval said in his announcement. “They understood the inherent danger in a government too large. The further power is removed from the people, the greater the opportunity for corruption.”

Stoval reminded voters that our first president, George Washington, turned down the opportunity to become a king. “For some reason we’ve allowed Barack Obama to become king, and without check,” Stovall continued. “Everyone knows that the Constitution provides checks and balances. Those necessary checks and balances will never work if they’re not employed, but it would appear that too many in office don’t understand that they even exist.”

He cited last week’s rulings by the U.S. Supreme Court as examples of a branch of the government that has overstepped its founding boundaries.

“The Supreme Court recently ruled in favor of Obamacare and ignored the Constitution,” he explained. “The following day, the Supreme Court decided to tell us in Texas what marriage is, once again ignoring the Constitution. When the President and the Supreme Court invade matters that rightfully belong to the states and to the people, and are allowed to get away with it, it’s obvious that too many in Washington, DC, have clearly forgotten the rule of law and the Constitution.”

Stovall said his campaign will focus on issues relating to restraining the federal government to its basic constitutional responsibilities. Those include:

“I look forward to working hard to earn your vote and to stand in Congress for the principles and traditions that we Texans hold dear,” Stovall concluded.

Bob Price is a senior political news contributor for Breitbart Texas and a member of the original Breitbart Texas team. Follow him on Twitter @BobPriceBBTX.