Conservative Call to Arms
[Editors’ note: This is a transcript of a speech delivered by Senator Jim DeMint at the David Horowitz Freedom Center’s recent Santa Barbara Retreat. To watch the video of the speech, click here.]
QUOTES from Speech
“And it should sound familiar. We want to stop socialism. We’ve gone from coffee shops to Tea Parties. But what we’re seeing is the same type of awakening in America that I think Reagan was stirring up even back in the 1960s. We don’t want socialism. And what we hear from the Tea Parties, what we hear from you tonight, what people are saying all over the country, is to stop the spending, stop the borrowing, stop creating more debt for our children and grandchildren, and stop the government takeovers.
It’s not real complicated. It comes back to that limited-government, constitutional idea. And people just keep saying, What about the Constitution? This is not a radical idea. It’s not a rightwing idea. There’s nothing radical about don’t spend more than you bring in. There’s nothing radical about honoring our oath of office. The only oath of office that we take — as President, as congressmen, as senators, as judges — is, I swear to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies foreign and domestic.”
…You know, we’re not on two sides of theoretical arguments here. We’re not just arguing about a political theory, as conservatives. This is facts about history, about what made this country great. There’s no question that America is unique, not because of our people — our people came from all over the world — not because of our geography, but because of the principles and the ideals — the principles of a limited government and a big people — individual responsibility, free markets, Judeo-Christian values, and just a private sector that works like Adam Smith talked about — that invisible hand that just is — Obama doesn’t understand.
He’s never been in a business. None of his cabinet has. They’ve never signed the front of a paycheck. They don’t know what it means to take a risk and create jobs. But they think they do. They think they know it better than we do. We have different worldviews.
“…In the world’s greatest bastion of freedom, today, the federal government owns the largest auto companies in America, the largest insurance company in America, the largest mortgage company in America. They’ve just completed the takeover of healthcare. They control our education system. They control our whole energy sector. They control our transportation infrastructure. The federal agencies, like the EPA, are involved with almost every area of our economic activity. There are people coming through my office every day saying, We can’t do business, because we don’t know what they’re going to do.
The FCC is trying to regulate the Internets. The courts told them they couldn’t, and they’re still presenting rules to regulate an Internet that’s working without their help. The Interior Department — we’ve intercepted memos where they’re trying to figure out how to take over more federal land.
I mean, it’s pretty amazing what they’re talking about doing. And the judges are out of control. You know, last week, a judge said that the National Day of Prayer is unconstitutional. And Presidents since George Washington have been calling on our nation to pray. And since our Constitutional Convention, it was clear that if a sparrow doesn’t fall without God’s notice, a nation is not going to rise without His help.
We can’t forget those principles that made this country great. And we’re not talking theory. We’re talking fact, and truth. And that’s what’s on our side, and that we need to go boldly.”
“…People criticize me because they say, DeMint, we need a big tent as Republicans. And I say, Have you looked at the polls? Forty percent of Americans sympathize with the Tea Parties. Another 20 percent say they’re Republicans. I think that’s 60 percent. That’s a big enough party for me, in a country like this.
So let’s embrace the passion, the ideals of these. Because Tea Parties are Americans. And those who show up for rallies are just the tip of the iceberg. You know, there are soccer moms and dads, who are never going to go to a rally. But they’re just saying, Yeah. Yeah, get those guys, yeah, stick it to ‘em.
They really are. This a big movement in America. This is an American awakening. And I hope my party will embrace that. And I know if we do that we will re-earn the trust of the American people, that we will take back the majority. And when we do, we’ll prove that that trust was well-founded.
You know, Reagan said that freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. And that’s true. Every generation has to fight for freedom. And many times, it’s on the battlefield, where we shed blood. But many times, it’s at the ballot box. In America, we settle our differences with our voices and our votes, and sometimes our feet. And I think what we’re going to see over the next few months is Americans demonstrating that this is their government, that they have had enough, and that they are going to stand up. The country does not belong to politicians; it belongs to the people. And they’re going to show that this.”
