“The God who gave us life, gave us liberty at the same time,” Thomas Jefferson once wrote. “The hand of force may destroy, but cannot disjoin them.” Among the American Founders, there was a profound sense that faith and freedom were deeply intertwined. Nowadays, we are often told that religion is divisive and ought to kept away from politics for the sake of liberty. Religion somehow is opposed to liberty, and so liberty requires a diminution of religion in the public square. The view long consistent with our historical practice, …
Be sure to listen to Matt Spalding discuss the history and importance of Christmas in America. Tune in here! How did early Americans celebrate Christmas? Since Christmas is also a time of giving, what are traditional ways Americans have done so? Is there a particular story about Christmas from the founding or other times in America that is relevant today? Be sure to tune in to hear Spalding answer these questions and more!
Let us turn one more time to Ronald Reagan, in his centennial year, for some Christmas cheer. President Reagan loved America, his shining city on a hill, but he loved one thing—or rather one person—more: Nancy, his wife of more than 50 years. Theirs was a marriage of affection and devotion and commitment, captured in this Christmas letter of December 1980 addressed to “My Beloved First Lady.” I do not think it is possible to read it without a tear or two or more. December 25, 1980 My Beloved First …
The official end of U.S. operations in Iraq last week calls to mind controversial issues from the past decade. One of the most important intellectual and policy battles, which remains relevant today, is over how to defend both civil liberties and security in time of war. In other words, how should America defend itself from enemies at home and abroad while also preserving the freedoms that we enjoy and that make our country great? People often say that we need to balance liberty and security. This implies that the two …
Barack Obama ran for President claiming the mantle of Abraham Lincoln. Then he took office and recast himself as the second coming of FDR. He then railed against the “Do Nothing” Congress in his very best Harry Truman impression. Now, in a pilgrimage to the small town of Osawatomie, Kansas, President Obama has given the defining address of his administration and revealed that his heart lies with the old Bull Moose progressive, Theodore Roosevelt. Osawatomie is where Teddy Roosevelt delivered his famous speech in 1910 calling for a “New Nationalism” and …
In recognition of the 63rd anniversary of the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights, President Obama proclaimed this week Human Rights Week. Americans know a thing or two about rights, considering that the country was founded on the self-evident truth that “all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights.” But, when the President invokes human rights, is he talking about the same concepts from the Declaration of Independence? That is to say, are human rights the same as natural rights? At the …
Click here Join us on Friday right now for a special “Lunch with Heritage” chat where are joined by the Assistant Director for the Center for Principles and Politics David Azerrad. He is taking your questions about what the left has been up to and he will also be taking your questions on how we can go back to a Constitutionally based government. Lunch with Heritage feat. David Azerrad
It seems people think that they have a right to everything these days: a right to the Internet, to free health care, to a good job, and to a free college education. The Supreme Court is famous for finding new rights in the “penumbras” and “emanations” of the Constitution. Today marks the 220th anniversary of the ratification of the Bill of Rights. What better opportunity to look at the rights the Constitution actually guarantees? A right is not merely something you want or claim. You may, for example, want a …
Well, we can’t say he didn’t warn us. After the November 2010 elections when the President’s party lost control of the U.S. House, Barack Obama told America that where he can’t legislate, he will regulate. In the last year, he lived up to that pledge, and now he’s promising to do even more of it in 2012. With 2011 coming to a close and the President about to embark on an election year, he is unabashedly showing his cards and telling America that he’s going to enact his agenda, whether the legislative …
What explains such passionate philosophical disagreement between the Occupy Wall Street movement and the Tea Party? The seemingly insurmountable divide between left and right is perhaps most clearly understood by their respective concepts of human nature. As understood by our Founders, human nature is innate. In the words of the Declaration of Independence, individuals are “endowed by their creator” with “natural rights,” among which are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Beyond that, individuals are born with different faculties and talents. Government should allow individuals to freely cultivate these …
