WASHINGTON, D.C. –Saturday, in Northern Virginia, the National Council for a New America held its first “Conversation for a New America.”
Holding Saturday's Conversation were House Republican Whip Eric Cantor (R-VA) and two members of the group’s national panel of experts – Governor Jeb Bush and Governor Mitt Romney. Watch video of the event.
Below, please find excerpts of the panelists’ opening remarks:
Excerpted Remarks From The “Conversation For A New America” (Arlington, VA, 5/2/09):
Rep. Eric Cantor: “This is the inaugural kickoff event for the National Council for a New America. This is a group that we have put together and started to begin a conversation with the American people. Just like we are all gathered here today, the National Council is meant to bring people together so that we can have a serious discussion about the challenges facing our country and the challenges facing small business people and the working families of this country every single day.
“We’ve chosen Pie-Tanza [pizza parlor] because it is emblematic of thousands of small businesses across the country. Ed McKee and what he goes through as a small business person is just like the struggle that so many small business people go through every day – decisions on staffing, negotiating with health insurers as to whether you’re going to be able to continue to have and provide benefits for your employees. These are the type of issues that small businesses are grappling with. Ed talks about his expansion plans and the challenges that he faces because of the credit markets, and what can we do to make sure that businesses and entrepreneurs such as Ed and Karen have a leg up so that they can continue to provide opportunity for communities such as this.
“Just the same, all of you are emblematic of the millions of people across this country facing extremely difficult economic times. And whether it is your decision as to how to provide for your children and their education, to save for college, to deal with the evaporation in retirement plans, these are the real issues that we want to hear about, what it is you feel that Washington has done either right or wrong because right now we have some serious decisions to make in Washington. It is very, very important for us to engage in this discussion and that’s why we’re here.
“As far as the agenda, the National Council for a New America is a wide-open policy debate. We’re going to be talking about things economic, things education, health care. These are the discussions that need to occur with the American people of any political stripe. We need to make sure that the discussions, I believe, should be to be focused on the principles that have made America great – the principles of freedom and opportunity.
“We’re joined today with obviously some terrific leaders. Leaders that have made a real difference in the lives of the people they represented in their states and have provided some true inspiration to so many. So we’re delighted to have them with us today. I’d like to first turn the mic over to Governor Jeb Bush of Florida.”
…
Governor Jeb Bush: “I’ve seen conservatives move up. I’ve seen conservatives move down. I’ve seen liberals move up and move down. That’s just kind of the nature of things in our country and that’s a good thing. But what I’ve seen in the last few years is really troubling, which is most of politics, it seems to me, is dominated by a food fight rather than about the issues going forward for our country. The short-term challenges we face are real. Ed talked a little bit about being a small business man in a severe recession. It is tough around the country. People are scared. They’re anxious. They’re fearful for their savings. They’re wondering how they’re going to retire. Those are short-term challenges that we need to face.
“And then there are the longer-term challenges related to things that we haven’t been able to deal with in a substantial way that we need to. We need to pause what we’re doing and as a country realize that the greatness of our country is in peril if we can’t figure out to deal with the ticking time bomb of our entitlement challenges of Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security. If we can’t figure out how the greatest country on the face of the Earth continues to be that way as it relates to being competitive in a world that is moving at warp speed, changing dramatically, where the China’s and the India’s have a command focus for economic growth and it does create opportunities for us but it also creates great challenges.
“My reason for being here is that I think ideas have consequences and that we ought to have a thoughtful discussion about those ideas. From the conservative side, it’s time for us to listen first, to learn a little bit, to upgrade our message a little bit, to not be nostalgic about the past because things do ebb and flow and it’s nice to remember the good old days when the good guys if you’re a conservative were in power or if you’re a liberal, remember nostalgically when they were in power. None of that matters right now. What we need to do is to listen, to learn and then there will be a new generation of leaders that will lead.
“Listen, learn, lead and that’s what I believe this National Council can provide is a chance to create a forum for people to truly listen and then to create a consensus around 21st century ideas that truly matter for American families. And then hopefully – God willing – embrace our conservative principles and take these new ideas and present them to the American people in elections and all sorts of other ways and lead.”
…
Governor Romney: “It’s an honor to be here with you and to have the chance to listen to you. I’ve learned that when you sit in a position of responsibility as you do now and as we did once, you typically get the best ideas that really make a difference from people that you’re serving. And I know that there are other people who have a different view of that. Some people think they have all the answers, all the ideas and that the people that they’re working with and they lead are just not going to offer much benefit to them. But I feel very differently.”
…
“Let’s not underestimate the people of America. Let’s make sure and listen to the people of America and that’s what Congressman Cantor is attempting to do with this Council. Make sure we get the chance to go across the country, and listen to what people are feeling and get their ideas because that will make a real difference.
“I remember I was in my office – I had just been elected. It’s a humbling experience to be elected and to have the responsibility to try and help a state and help its people. I campaigned with a pretty simple slogan which is I was running for office to try and help people. I wanted to help people. One of my constituents came in after I had been elected. He said, ‘Mitt, you said you wanted to help people right?’ I said, ‘Yeah.’ He said, ‘Well, if you really wanted to help people, you’ll find a way to get everybody health insurance.’ I said, ‘Tom, that’s impossible. I’m not going to raise taxes and I’m not going to have government take over health care.’ He said, ‘No, I know. I don’t want those things to happen but I want you to find a way to get everybody health insurance.’ And again I said it was impossible and again he said no, that’s why we elected you, to help people.
“So I went to work on that with a group of people – not government people – from all sorts of sectors and we spent a lot of time on it. Long story short we found a way to do just that.
“Listening to people can make a difference and we’ve got ideas about how we can help people get health insurance, how we can improve our schools, how we can make our economy strong today as well as down the road, how we can reform entitlements. These are the people of America that have these ideas. We want to share these ideas with one another and make sure that we’re laying out a vision and a plan for America that makes our lives and the lives of our kids better.
“There’s a divide about how you think of America. There are some folks who think that government really does know best. That people who are elected know better how to run the country and what to do than everybody else. Then there are those who say no, America is great because of the American people and the skill, and ingenuity and entrepreneurship of the America. That’s what we happen to believe. We’re going to work very hard to listen to the American people, and to do our very best to strengthen the American people and thereby to strengthen our nation.
“I happen to think right now with regards to our economy that we’re risking doing the very thing to our economy that government did to our housing market and that is borrow so much money that you create a bubble that ultimately collapses. And that’s the worry that I have. And I want to make sure that we turn this economy around and we stimulate the economy in the right way but not in such a way that we create a bubble of massive spending and debt that ultimately comes crashing down on us or on our kids.
“I want to thank you for letting be a part of this. Looking forward to spending more time with you and I’m honored today to be here and to listen to your thoughts.”
Additional information at SWAC Girl.
