Heritage Members News | Winter 2006

Getting America Right

Heritage President Ed Feulner discusses his upcoming book

Is it the government’s business? Does it promote self-reliance? Is it responsible? Does it make America more prosperous? Does is make us safer? Does it unify us?

Using these questions as a framework, Heritage President Ed Feulner tackles a range of issues in his new book, Getting America Right. Co-written with Townhall.com chairman Doug Wilson, Feulner’s latest work is designed as a plan of action for concerned Americans. Ed sat down with HMN to discuss the need for conservative policies, citizen action and civil discourse.

You are the author of five books, and you’ve contributed to and edited many more. What’s the difference between this book and the other books you’ve been involved with?

The others have been fundamental restatements of conservative philosophy and ideas. Getting America Right is a citizen’s handbook on how to get involved and make a difference.

Why did you feel this was an important project to tackle?

I was concerned that so few Americans know about our country’s values and principles. I wanted to try to change this depressing fact. When you are done with this book, you will know more than 95 percent of Americans, and you will know how to turn those ideas into action. That’s what we’ve always been about here at Heritage.

Getting America Right has all the marks of a Heritage work—it’s user friendly and a great resource for policymakers and citizens. Was this a goal of yours?

Very much so. What we’ve tried to do is make the issues that come up very real to people. After they’ve read this book, hopefully readers will take a look at the front page of their local newspaper or watch the news and ask the questions featured in Getting America Right.

How did you decide on the specific questions detailed in Getting America Right?

Any American can relate to the questions we ask. We’re in the company of some crazy ideas—whether it’s the “Bridge to Nowhere” to a tiny island of just 50 residents in Alaska or an indoor rainforest in Iowa. This is not what people elected their leaders to do in Washington. People need to ask, “Is this responsible?”

Do you think Heritage’s work to expose the “Bridge to Nowhere” is a good example of holding Congress accountable?

Absolutely. The fact that this particular incident—uncovered by Heritage analysts Ron Utt and Brian Riedl—gained so much notoriety proves that if Americans are sufficiently informed, they’ll be outraged.

You avoid the heated rhetoric we see in so many political debates right now. Is the lack of civility we’re seeing in Congress and in Washington something that concerns you?

In the commencement speech I gave at Hillsdale College about two years ago, I pointed out that one of the problems with today’s political environment is the need for 15- or 20-second sound bites. This doesn’t offer a civilized exchange of ideas. This makes debates more confrontational—and that drives people away from even listening to them, which is not what we want. We want to encourage people to be involved.

So you take a more hopeful approach to public policy?

We at Heritage are optimists as we look ahead. I think that is very important for today’s conservatives, because I think we are on the winning side. Doug and I are especially positive, optimistic and upbeat—and that’s why we’ve written the book. Not because we are outraged or angry, but because we want the American people to take a more active role in the policy process.

What else is Heritage doing to help its members get involved?

We’ve launched MyHeritage.org, where members can find specific information on particular issues that they believe are most important. This will allow Heritage supporters to not just find out what we’re saying about particular issues, but also to put that information into a framework of taking action—whether it’s by contacting members of Congress, writing letters to the editor of local newspapers or sending along information to a friend or family member.

You end Getting America Right with the rallying cry, “Let’s get to work.” What is the most important work you believe Heritage will be doing in the coming months?

We’ll be building a bipartisan consensus about the level of spending. If we don’t get Congress to act and get the President to realize that this is the fundamental challenge facing the government, we’re not going to be able to protect the tax cuts that are helping to create new jobs. We also must rally around effective security measures for America in the global War on Terrorism.