In an important speech at the Heritage Foundation on Wednesday that demonstrated the new British government’s commitment to standing shoulder to shoulder with the U.S., Dr. Liam Fox, the British Secretary of State for Defense, issued a blunt warning that the U.S., Britain, and its allies in Afghanistan need to “hold our nerve” and “see the job through.” But in the question and answer session following his speech, Dr. Fox pointed out that when British Prime Minister David Cameron visits Washington later this month, he will be the third British …
Former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney makes a strong case against the Obama administration’s New START with Russia in today’s Washington Post. We have posted the entire op-ed below. You can find The Heritage Foundation’s work on the treaty here, including The New START Working Group‘s Independent Assessment of New START. But now, Gov. Romney: Given President Obama’s glaring domestic policy missteps, it is understandable that the public has largely been blinded to his foreign policy failings. In fact, these may have been even more damaging to America’s future. He fought …
In last week’s hearings to determine whether former Harvard Law School dean Elena Kagan should be a justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, a number of liberal Senators criticized the Supreme Court’s 2007 decision in Ledbetter v. Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. as the work of “conservative activists.” In Ledbetter, the Court reaffirmed that the 180-day time period – a period that Congress itself established – for bringing a charge of discrimination under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act is triggered when the alleged act of unlawful discrimination takes …
Remember 9/11. Remember Katrina. Remember Haiti. Often, after a disaster of epic proportions, we are urged to remember the victims and the lessons of how to avoid a similar catastrophe. These reminders are necessary because after the moment of impact passes, people’s attention is drawn to other major events. Rarely ever, however, is the phrase used while the crisis continues unabated; while the administration that the media needs to hold accountable flounders in a sea of ineptitude, red tape and finger pointing. Yes, we’re talking about the Gulf oil spill. It …
Happy Birthday America! America is 234 years old. She was born on July 4, 1776, with the passage of the Declaration of Independence. Since then, America has grown from thirteen colonies on the east coast to fill a vast continent. Her economic and military power is envied around the world. And the American people are hardworking, churchgoing, affluent, and generous. Independence Day is an opportunity each year to remember the root of our success—our founding principles as set forth in the Declaration of Independence. The Declaration of Independence serves as …
In this final part of our series highlighting the thoughts of conservative and libertarian leaders on American Independence and the Founding, we asked: What do you think makes America exceptional? Lawrence W. Reed, President of the Foundation for Economic Education: America is exceptional because Americans after the Founding showed that they really did take their new freedoms seriously. They did not expect much from their new government, other than to protect the peace and otherwise leave them alone. They didn’t wait for government to show them how to build a …
In 2001, Kiron Skinner, Annelise Anderson, and Martin Anderson edited a superb book that all friends of freedom, and of President Ronald Reagan, should read. Titled Reagan in His Own Hand: The Writings of Ronald Reagan that Reveal His Revolutionary Vision for America, it published a selection of Reagan’s daily radio broadcasts between 1975 and 1979. Reagan composed and wrote these broadcasts himself, and the book reproduces them just as he wrote them. They provide indisputable proof that Reagan gave lengthy, serious thought to the major issues of the day, …
Here is a quick Independence Day quiz: Who is the only president to share a birthday with America? Which president gave one of the best defenses of The Declaration of Independence and America’s First Principles? Who said “Some principles are so constant and so obvious that we do not need to change them, but we need rather to observe them.” Did your answer William Henry Harrison? No? Good, because the correct answer these questions is Calvin Coolidge.
During the 1700s, Philadelphia was an unpleasant place in the summer. Malaria and yellow fever were rampant. There were no cures and no known ways to prevent infection. Most people of means tried to escape the city, if they could. But in the scorching summer of 1776, scores of our country’s leading men remained behind closed doors in Philadelphia. They were kept there by their work. And what a monumental work it turned out to be. The 56 leaders, representing all 13 British colonies, signed a declaration that would birth …
In this fourth installment of our series highlighting the thoughts of conservative and libertarian leaders on American Independence and the Founding, we asked: What Founder is either your favorite or one who you think deserves more credit for his or her contributions to America? (This series will conclude with one more post tomorrow morning.) John J. Miller, National Political Reporter for National Review: John Adams. He was colorful and cantankerous, had the best wife, and lived through the entire arc of America’s founding period. He started out as an anti-tax …
