Rep. Daphne Campbell | Credit: myfloridahouse.gov- Meredith Geddings

In 2006, the Intercollegiate Studies Institute (ISI) published “American Conservatism: An Encyclopedia.” Reading the book, I was struck by the fact that the editors included literally everyone in American history no matter their positions on the issues. The two antagonistic presidents who clashed in the Civil War -- Abraham Lincoln and Jefferson Davis -- were included. So were William Jennings Bryan, Teddy Roosevelt and William Howard Taft. Joseph McCarthy was included -- and so was Eugene McCarthy. It’s often bewildering who gets thrown under the conservative umbrella.

Now there are many types of conservatives, of course. There are neocons and paleocons, evangelical Protestants and traditionalist Catholics. Some look to Alexander Hamilton while others draw inspiration from Thomas Jefferson. The thinkers and writers who continue to shape American conservatism -- Burke and Rand, Kirk and Hayek, Chesterton and Lewis, Mel Bradford and Harry Joffa -- often stand far apart from each other.

There are many forms of conservatives out there -- but Rep. Daphne Campbell, D-Miami Shores, is not one of them.

Kevin Derby

Campbell, a freshman legislator, won attention the past few weeks for attacking abortion and quoting the Bible on the floor of the Florida House. She has been very aggressive in calling out her fellow House Democrats -- namely Rep. Scott Randolph of Orlando and Leader Ron Saunders of Key West. Her battle with Randolph, who certainly is one of the leading liberals in the Legislature, has gotten very personal with clashing accounts of their confrontation on the House floor last week.

With Republicans and conservatives rallying behind Campbell this week, she is becoming something of a folk hero on the right.

Conservative activist John Stemberger, the president of the Florida Family Policy Council, was very generous in his praise of Campbell.

“I spoke to Rep. Daphne Campbell by phone and personally thanked her and told her she is to be applauded for standing alone within her party in support of the weakest and most vulnerable members of society -- the unborn,” said Stemberger in a statement. “She is a hero within our community and we will do everything we can to rally around her and support her. As for Rep. Scott Randolph, his temper-tantrum-like behavior is intolerant and juvenile. His disrespectful and shameless comments are a disgrace to the dignity of the Florida House of Representatives and he has behaved in a manner which is uncivil, undemocratic and un-American."

On Wednesday afternoon, shortly after Stemberger called her a “hero,” Campbell took her stand against school choice.

Campbell came out swinging at bills expanding school choice that passed the House on Monday -- and called for the state to send more money into public education.

“This legislation mindlessly allocates funds to virtual and private schools while simultaneously removing the funds from schools who desperately need the money to improve,” said Campbell, attacking the bills which allow students to take more virtual classes and require high school students, starting with incoming freshmen for the 2011-12 school year, to take at least one online course before they graduate.

“How can we add even another burden to families that are struggling to make ends meet already?” demanded Campbell. “Passing this legislation is blatantly an unfair disadvantage to those thousands of Florida students who have no or very little access to the Internet.”