Freedom means that people should be able to make their own decisions, but that freedom is not achievable when government forces values upon its people, said Heritage President Jim DeMint at the Values Voter Summit.

“As we cringe at what’s going on in Washington today, particularly with Obamacare, it should remind us that every time Washington tries to control another part of our lives it creates division and diminishes the love that Americans have for our country,” DeMint said.

“They think that if everyone is forced to do the same thing and believe the same things that there will be more equality and unity,” he said. “But when people have many different values and beliefs, if they are forced to endure, pay for, or participate in activities that violate their conscience, this creates disharmony and division, even hate.”

DeMint said that Americans need to learn to love their country again, and one of the ways to do that is to give the power back to the people.

“We can unite America and restore our prosperity and our strength, but it can’t be done from Washington,” DeMint said. “We must push dollars and decisions back to the states and to the people.”

For the rest of Senator DeMint’s speech on restoring freedom to America, watch the video above.