One of The Heritage Foundation’s goals is to educate the American people about America’s First Principles and how they apply to today’s issues.

In the last four years, Heritage has distributed nearly 60,000 copies of our literature on First Principles, including a summary of the Federalist Papers, a Citizen’s Guide to the Constitution, and an introduction to Ronald Reagan’s political thought.

To get your copies of these information-packed yet accessible pamphlets, you can order them from our online bookstore. Continue Reading »

The Declaration of Independence at the National Archives in Washington. Photo: Flickr/Chris McCorkle

Heritage Foundation scholar Matthew Spalding took to the pages of the Boston Globe on July 4 to discuss the enduring truths we celebrate every Independence Day.

Here’s how he began:

Many political documents are nothing more than statements of a moment. They’re outdated almost as quickly as a daily newspaper.

Is the same thing true of the Declaration of Independence? It may be seen as nothing more than a list of complaints filed against a tyrannical monarch by a bunch of white landowners wearing wigs. Since George III and the colonists are long dead, their words no longer matter, right?

Wrong.

Read the whole article to find out why Spalding thinks the Declaration of Independence still matters.

Tell us in the comments: Does the Declaration still speak to all those who strive for liberty and seek to vindicate the principles of self-government?

While the Declaration of Independence formally declared our independence from Great Britain, it accomplished so much more. Its unique combination of general principles and government theory has resulted in an enduring nation.

With Independence Day just around the corner, it is important to be reminded of our Founding Fathers’ foresight and why the Declaration’s principles matter 236 years later.

“The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America,” drafted by Thomas Jefferson, was unanimously approved on July 4, 1776 by the Continental Congress.  In the second paragraph, the Declaration spells out the fundamental principles of American government: Continue Reading »

In his State of the Union address, President Obama touted the “Buffett Rule” which he said would bring about equality in the tax code. Meanwhile, “Occupy” protests have been living in encampments across the nation to protest  what they say is an unjust income inequality.

What’s the true meaning of equality in America? The Founders were deliberate about including the concept of equality in the Declaration of Independence, which proclaims: “That all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights.”

But does the America of today view equality in the same way the Founders did? Continue Reading »

David Azerrad

Every year, it’s the same ole resolutions. You want to lose weight, eat healthier, stop swearing, etc. But more often than not, these resolutions crash and burn just as quickly as they’re started.

So rather than drastically try to change your life, why not start with a more modest goal? Let’s try to change the way conservatives speak.

With an important year for freedom upon us, it is important to use words and embrace ideas that are consistent with our nation’s Founding principles.

The Heritage Foundation’s David Azerrad suggests four simple resolutions to begin getting right with America’s principles.

“Once you have these down,” he writes, “you can start correcting your friends and move on to other core concepts.” Continue Reading »