In case you missed it, Indiana Congressman Mike Pence won the “straw poll” at the Values Voter Summit last week in Washington, D.C. Here are a few excerpts from the speech he delivered.
Congressman Mike Pence:
“I’m a Christian, a conservative and a Republican, in that order.”
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“These are serious times. A nation conceived in liberty has come of age in bondage to big government. We’ve lost respect to the world. We are going broke. And our social and cultural fabric is unraveling. People are scared.”
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“[A] vision for a better America must recognize that our present crisis is not merely economic and political, but moral in nature. At the root of these times should be the realization that people in positions of authority have walked away from the timeless truths of honesty, integrity, an honest day’s work for an honest day’s pay and the simple notion that you ought to treat the other guy the way you want to be treated. We will not restore this nation with public policy alone. It will require public virtue, and that emanates from the traditional institutions of our nation – life, family and religion.
Now I know some say that Republicans should stay away from such issues this year…that the American people are focused on jobs and spending and our movement would do well to stand aside, bank the win and return to fight after this fiscal and economic crisis has passed.
But we do not live in a world where an American leader can just focus on our financial ledger. A political party that would govern this great nation must be able to handle more than one issue at a time. We must focus on our fiscal crisis and support our troops. We must work to create jobs and protect innocent human life, defend traditional marriage and secure religious liberty.
To those who say that marriage is not relevant to our budget crisis, I say, ‘you would not be able to print enough money in a thousand years to pay for the government you would need if the traditional family continues to collapse.’
To those who say we should focus on cutting spending, I say ‘Ok, let’s start by denying all federal funding for abortion at home and abroad! Stop funding research that destroys human embryos in the name of science, and let’s deny any and all funding to Planned Parenthood of America.’
We must not remain silent when great moral battles are being waged. Those who would have us ignore the battle being fought over life, marriage and religious liberty, have forgotten the lessons of history. As in the days of a House divided, America’s darkest moments have come when economic arguments trumped moral principles.
Men and women, we must demand, here and now, that the leaders of the Republican Party stand for life, traditional marriage and religious liberty without apology!
Thomas Jefferson said, ‘When the heart is right, the feet are swift.’ We are at our strongest when our movement is grounded in what matters most. Victory comes when we stand together, fighting arm in arm for fiscal responsibility, a strong national defense and traditional moral values.
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“The time has come to take our stand. We must not be afraid and we must fight for what has always been the source of American greatness: our faith in God and our freedom.
“And if we hold that banner high, I believe with all my heart the good and great people of this land will rally to our cause. We will win this Congress back in 2010, and we will win this country back in 2012, so help us God.”
You can read the full speech here.
