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The James Madison Institute exists because economic 2017 freedom, free-enterprise systems and free-market principles possess the best POLICY hope for Florida and its citizens to succeed, thrive and prosper. These principles PRIORITIES deserve a champion. We take up that mantle. Trusted Solutions for a Better Florida Economic Opportunity | Limited Government | Personal Responsibility President's Message n the aftermath of the 2016 And suddenly it dawned on me; those who would read Ielection, it has helped me this letter a hundred years from now will know whether to recall my baptism into those missiles were fired. They will know whether we met the movement I have made our challenge. Whether they have the freedoms that we my passion. In the summer have known up until now will depend on what we do here. of 1976, I was 11 years old Will they look back with appreciation and say, "Thank and vacationing with my God for those people in 1976 who headed off that loss of family. My father, mother, freedom, who kept us now 100 years later free, who kept our sisters, and I were sitting in world from nuclear destruction"? front of a small television And if we failed, they probably won't get to read the letter in Niagara Falls watching at all because it spoke of individual freedom, and they won't the tumultuous Republican be allowed to talk of that or read of it. National Convention unfold, as a jet-black haired governor This is our challenge; and this is why here in this hall from California took to the podium (after losing in his quest tonight, better than we have ever done before, we have got for the nomination). He began speaking of the rhetorical task to quit talking to each other and about each other and go of writing a letter that would be included in a time capsule to out and communicate to the world that we may be fewer in be opened 100 years later. His words would etch themselves numbers than we have ever been, but we carry the message in my brain and shape my worldview from that point to this they are waiting for. very day: Seven years later, I was proud to cast my first-ever vote for I set out…riding down the coast in an automobile, President of the United States to re-elect that man – Ronald looking at the blue Pacific out on one side and the Santa Wilson Reagan. Ynez Mountains on the other, and I couldn't help but I included his remarks because it is amazing to me exactly wonder if it was going to be that beautiful a hundred years how far we have come from that moment. We have seen the end from now as it was on that summer day. of the Cold War, the fall of Communism, Desert Storm I, the Then as I tried to write -- let your own minds turn to that impeachment of a president, 9/11, ongoing wars in Afghanistan task. You are going to write for people a hundred years from and Iraq, the election of our first African-American president, now, who know all about us. We know nothing about them. the Great Recession; along with movements such as the Tea We don't know what kind of a world they will be living in. Party, Occupy Wall Street, ISIS, and Black Lives Matter – and And suddenly I thought to myself if I write of the problems, most recently, the sheer tornado that was the 2016 election. they will be the domestic problems the president spoke of I wonder how far we have drifted from that summer of 1976. here tonight; the challenges confronting us, the erosion of We seemed then, in my youthful perspective, so connected by freedom that has taken place under Democratic rule in our common virtues – liberty, faith, freedom, and a belief that this country, the invasion of private rights, the controls and our republic was the greatest governing experiment in the restrictions on the vitality of the great free economy that we history of mankind. It leads one to wonder, where do we go enjoy. These are our challenges that we must meet. from here? Where do we go collectively as a nation, but also as And then again there is that challenge of which he spoke a movement firmly grounded in principles that are supposed that we live in a world in which the great powers have poised to transcend both politicians and the politics of the day? and aimed at each other horrible missiles of destruction, As a movement dedicated to the preservation of freedom, nuclear weapons that can in a matter of minutes arrive liberty, individual rights and economic prosperity, we will be at each others’ country and destroy, virtually, the civilized faced with a president and Congress that have, within both world we live in. political parties, veered off course from the great ideals set The James Madision Institute | 2017 Policy Priorities | 2 about by our Founders that fled their over-burdensome ruler, politics – the corrupting power inherent in a multitrillion- so they could chart the course of their own lives, their own dollar system of federal governance. He pointed at a system of destinies. We have, little by little starting in the 20th century, capitalism that is antithetical to that which we would promote inched our system of governance away from the individual – what we know as crony capitalism. Where we disagree with and centered it on the power of the federal state. the Senator from Vermont lies in our policy prescriptions. Our Under President Donald Trump, we may begin to see (and message is that freedom works, every time it’s tried. must encourage) a return to the principles of constitutional Many in the liberty movement have privately (and checks and balances and we should expect that the tensions sometimes publicly) made the claim that our movement is will only increase as political forces turn into policy and slowly deteriorating because we have abdicated our role in governing in Washington D.C. It is for that very reason – the culture, media and academia. We have lost the clear majority day-to-day realities of governing in a divided country – that of our higher education instructors to the culture of leftism/ we must stand grounded in the principles that embody our socialism/totalitarianism, and we have lost the clear majority cause in our personal and professional lives – the commitment of our media to the culture of moral relativism. This is not to advance free-market solutions in state policy. untrue, particularly when viewed solely from the lens of the As we have seen the trend of elections over the past eight federal telescope. Those of us who believe in liberty must years continue to bring waves of new conservatives to state engage these areas as happy warriors who know that through capitals and governors' mansions around the country, we must the system of free enterprise, all people will benefit. Learning choose to be deliberate and consistent. We must live out our to convey that in a relevant manner is critical. principles. Our message – one focused on giving people the Yet currently, our movement and response continues to freedom to choose their own destinies without the hindrance see impressive growth where it counts most – in the halls of overbearing government – must be the centerpiece of our of state capitals from Maine to New Mexico and all parts in efforts. It will transcend political terms. It does not depend on between. Our movement has grown here in Florida – where a savior of today or tomorrow. Our willingness to continue representatives and senators of both parties have come together carrying that message will ensure our success. It exists in our to push back against aggressive and unconstitutional overreach commitment to educate those future generations, and in our from the federal government. In health care, criminal justice, perseverance in knowing that we have truth on our side. property rights, education choice, and a host of areas in which Free enterprise, and all its benefits, has been the single policy has a direct and significant impact on our lives, we have greatest anti-poverty program in human history. It is the only continued to carry the message set forth almost 30 years ago system that has lifted more than 2 billion out of poverty. It is by our founder, Dr. J. Stanley Marshall. why individuals set out on boats, rafts, and even tires in the Here at The James Madison Institute, this is our mission – face of probable death to navigate 90 miles of ocean just for “to carry the message they have been waiting for.” the chance to reach our shores. They’re not setting out off Key And to that end, it is our pleasure to provide our policy West aiming their crafts for the shores of Cuba and all that priorities for 2017. Havana offers. They’re not migrating from Seoul to Pyongyang. They’re not leaving Singapore for Hanoi. The tide of individual choice always moves toward a universal hunger for freedom. It might seem shocking considering my background, but I actually agree with some of what Bernie Sanders said during the 2016 campaign and what he identified as a considerable J. Robert McClure III, Ph.D. challenge facing our great country as it seeks to expand President and CEO prosperity. Sanders aimed to shed light on the distortions and The James Madison Institute unfairness in the current culture embodying Washington, D.C.

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