How can the greatest nation on earth continue to spend its way to astounding debt without the bill ever coming due? How can we explode federal and state budgets with unreformed entitlement programs without the bill ever coming due?
How can we appease a Syrian tyrant, and embolden his Russian ally, without the bill ever coming due? There is a price to be paid for policies that destroy our economy and embolden our foreign enemies.
And I am here today to say we don't have to accept recent history. We just have to change the presidency. It is not too late for America to lead in the world. But it starts by leading at home. And it starts by returning to the founding principles of our democracy found in the Constitution.
But nowhere does the Constitution declare we can federalize classrooms. Nowhere does it give federal officials primary responsibility over the air we breathe, the land we farm, the water we drink. And nowhere does it say Congress shall nationalize healthcare.
It is inherent in human nature once given power to never give it back. And let me tell you something--this human tendency is a bipartisan offense. That's why we must elect the right kind of leaders to represent us in Washington. Leaders who devolve power to the states and not rob them of it.
My friends, our country is in peril. Our debt is at record amounts. Our economic recovery is stagnant. Our place in the world weakened. So I have a simple suggestion--It is time for a little rebellion on the battlefield of ideas.
But instead of looking to Washington to find the front lines of this battle, I ask you to look to the states, where we find the laboratories of innovation, and 50 different experiments in democracy taking place. Among the states we see two visions for America. There's the vision common in blue states, where the state plays an increasing role in the lives of its citizens. And then there's the vision common to red state America where the freedom of the individual comes first, and the reach of government is limited.
We have demonstrated that no state can tax and spend its way to prosperity, but with the right policies you can grow your way there.
The red state-blue state debate matters because it is about the future of America. The vision that wins out either the big government, protectionist, nanny state version offered by liberal leaders or the limited government, unsubsidized, freedom state offered by conservative leaders will determine the future of our nation.
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The above quotations are from Speeches at Conservative Political Action Conferences (2016-2019).
Click here for other excerpts from Speeches at Conservative Political Action Conferences (2016-2019). Click here for other excerpts by Rick Perry. Click here for a profile of Rick Perry.
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