Heritage, FRC Launch National Tour with South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley
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Family Research Council president Tony Perkins (left) with Governor Nikki Haley and Heritage president Ed Feulner (right)
“We want people to know the power of their voice. We want people to understand: Don’t complain about it. Do something about it.” – Governor Nikki Haley (R)
A year-long educational tour across America, Your Money, Your Values, Your Vote kicked off yesterday morning as Heritage President Ed Feulner, Family Research Council President Tony Perkins, and the Values Bus were welcomed warmly by South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley (R).
Charleston, South Carolina, served as an ideal launching pad for the national tour, with a large turnout of interested citizens and activists. Though a bright sunny day, the mood turned serious at times as Governor Haley did not shy away from underlining the very real issues at stake.
There has never been a time in our country when we have seen our credit rating dramatically downgraded, and our national debt rise to unprecedented levels.
Did you ever think that the National Labor Relations Board would go after a company like Boeing just because they chose to create jobs in a right-to-work state? Did you ever think the federal government would mandate health care? We have a government that’s trying to be in charge of everything. And we can change that.
This is the launch of a huge grassroots movement. If you know marriage is between one man and one woman, if you believe preserving life is important, if you respect the value of a dollar—and know that it’s taxpayers’ money that Washington is spending—that’s why we need to be involved and get other people involved.
Perkins agreed that social conservative issues are indivisible from economic conservatism, saying: “What makes America strong is a strong economy and the moral values that provide us a foundation. It’s one thing to create jobs, but you’ve got to have workers of character…and you’ve got to have a government that’s not filled with characters.”
Meanwhile, Feulner revealed why he’s committed to Saving the American Dream and restoring prosperity in our nation.
I’m a grandfather. I’ve got three grandkids, ages eight, six, and five. Right now, each one of my grandkids is going to be inheriting a $200,000 mortgage from my wife and me. The problem is, that mortgage doesn’t have a house attached to it! That’s their share of unfunded Social Security, unfunded Medicare, unfunded government programs. And that’s not fair to successor generations, for us to be putting that burden on them.
Let’s bring America back to the constitutional principles it should be founded upon. That’s what our plan Saving the American Dream is all about. We are absolutely delighted to take our message out directly to the American people here in the Palmetto State and around the nation over the next many months.
Governor Haley closed by turning to both Feulner and Perkins with these words: “I congratulate you both on doing this. There is nothing I won’t do to help you, because with this tour you are singing the song of the people of South Carolina.”
Next stop: Florida. The tour rolls into Fort Lauderdale for a series of events this Friday and Saturday, then it will head up to Washington, D.C., in time for Monday’s March for Life gathering.
Visit ValuesBus.com to learn more about the Your Money, Your Values, Your Vote 2012 Tour, co-sponsored by The Heritage Foundation and Family Research Council.