This is the first of a five part series. In the midst of frenzied efforts to remake our nation—of endless government initiatives involved in virtually every aspect of our daily lives—Americans are increasingly concerned: How did we get so far off track? And how can we get America back on course? Matthew Spalding answers these questions in a new book, We Still Hold These Truths, by looking to the timeless principles and practical wisdom that have been the source of America’s monumental success. An expert in American political history at …
Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-MA) likes to refer to healthcare as “a fundamental right and not just a privilege.” But what exactly does he mean? Is there really a ‘right’ to healthcare? Debate over the purported ‘right to healthcare’ has quieted recently. Or rather, with concrete proposals under consideration, ‘rights questions’ have been drowned out by other concerns—things like cost, taxes, the deficit, a “public option,” end-of-life decisions, and so on. But the rights debate is well worth having because the stakes are so high. If Ted Kennedy is correct—if every …
Around the country, many parents and students are preparing for the first day of school. For high school seniors, this means time is running out to select the best college; for many college students, this means perusing the course catalog and wondering if “Introduction to Popular TV and Movies,” and “Science of Stuff” are still open. The U.S. News and World Report, released yesterday, is often the first stop when students (and parents) consider which college to attend. Harvard, Princeton, and Yale routinely rank as the top three national schools. …
Breaking news: President Obama is a strong believer in free markets. Yesterday, in an address to the Business Roundtable, Obama mounted a vigorous defense of the free market and private enterprise, explaining his basic approach to economics and regulation. In his own words, Obama has “always been a strong believer in the power of the free market. It has been and will remain the very engine of America’s progress – the source of a prosperity that has gone unmatched in human history. I believe that jobs are best created not by government, but …
Candidates running for president in recent decades have sounded in their speeches more like they believe they are running for the position “God” rather than the position “President of the United States.” John Stossel pointed this out in his recent special on 20/20. Politicians claim that they can solve economic crisis, prevent natural disasters, keep the enemy at bay, create millions of jobs, and so on. Gene Healy argues in his book The Cult of the American Presidency that the executive has incredible power outside its original constitutional limits in …
We’ve heard a lot lately about “redistribution of wealth.” What would the American Founders think? Property rights provide the foundation of prosperity. As Americans, we’re accustomed to a revolutionary guarantee that we may labor, earn wages and acquire property — and rest assured that what we earn and acquire will be secure. It’s a simple promise that survives despite the income tax system: Americans get to keep what we earn. The right to enjoy the rewards of your labor is a powerful incentive to work hard and pursue opportunity — …
As all eyes turn to Denver and the Democratic National Convention this week, anticipation is building for Barack Obama’s address to a crowd of 75,000 at Invesco Field. The speech everyone is awaiting is another in a long line of addresses by both candidates this election cycle. What do these speeches tell us about the status of the Constitution in American politics today? Unfortunately, the answer to this question is that our public officials and candidates have progressively ignored the Constitution as a theme of their governing philosophy. Andrew E. …
Widespread ignorance of U.S. history is only the most visible symptom of a troubling decline in popular knowledge of the nation’s core principles. Some hopeful news, as well as sobering facts, arrived earlier this month in “E Pluribus Unum,” a report issued by the Bradley Project on America’s National Identity. The purpose of the project, brainchild of the Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation, is to begin “a national conversation … to affirm the belief that what unites us is far greater than what divides us.” The report warns: Many Americans …
