And Foreign Policy. Tel he is a graduate of west point, army,ear veteran of the serves as a professor at Georgetown University and has visiting professor at the National Defense university. He serves on the board of marine corps the University Foundation and the Advisory Boards for the west for oral history and operation renewed hope. Me in welcoming jim. [applause] you for coming to what should be an extraordinary event. Pete is not only a great friend but he defines the definition of american. Graduate of princeton and harvard. We wont hold that against him. He served in the u. S. Army. Right . Yes. Is another mark in his favor. Three combat tours, right . Three tours. Yes. Three tours. Combatnze stars, infantry man badge. Extraordinary, including now working with fox news. Put his life on the line im not really sure what possessed him to write this, but i think in the arena is both, you know, courageous, dangerous politicallyy incorrect. In the world in which you live, something that just seems quaint and distasteful tond address anymore. But for those of us who have around the island in the potomac and seen some of not just his legacy but the legacy of people who thought, you know what . Matterhis really does that, decide whog wing who we as being aential to democracy. Maybe theres not a better time for this book. Certainly i applaud pete for on and coming here today to share his thoughts. Pete is going to talk. Well take q a and pete will recognize his own questions and well do that till the end of the hour. When we get to q a, if you would wait for the microphone if hand and waitur for pete to recognize you, then wait for the microphones so hear listening online can the question as well. And if youd state your name and affiliation, that would be awesome. Sometimeshat, because we start late here, but we always end on time. So with that, please join me in the author of in the arena. [applause] jim, thank you very much. The heritage foundation, im grateful for this opportunity. Got the book early, you read it, engaged in it, offered to host. That. Rateful for this feels like a Family Reunion basically, in this audience. I thank all of you for being here. So many wonderful faces, people known and worked with. Folks online, thanks for sticking with us. First i want to thank a bunch of people, but my former colleagues here at concerned vets which make up a big bulk of this audience, im grateful that youre here. To 8te this book from 4 a. M. On many mornings while running cba. What we did at cba that was an inspiration for me. To action. That is exactly the call to action that is the organization. Pleasure toways a work with you. I appreciate the work you continue to do from jay and bill caroline and sarah and dan and will and sean, amber and kevin, fred, and even my brother, phil, who is in the front row here. To thank all of you. And, of course, who was with us pomeroy. Kate kate was also an inspiration for me to write this book. Me, you need to write it and i took her advice. Im glad i did. So, kate, thanks for being here. I also want to thank my very nat hoops,e buddy, who is here and is acknowledged as well in the book. This book literally would not happened without nat, without him teaching me how to think and write and argue in fromge and pulling me back the brink of some absurd things that i put in the pages of publications. That is the content editor and for good reason. Nat, thank you for your help on project. And then so many others that are not here. Wife, our boys, boone and rex, who i dedicate this book to. Yes. I always get laughs out of that. Theyre good southern names up north. My parents, my brother nate, who himself. In the arena i also want to recognize david, who is a very good friend of was a fellow traveler of vets for freedom and author thislf and also encouraged project from the beginning. To the book itself, when i was afghanistan, i carried with me a quote in a black frame. Durable black frame. It up wherever i was. It was Teddy Roosevelts man in the arena quote. Of you are familiar with it. Its the quote its not the critic who counts, its the man the arena,ally in whose face is marred by blood and sweat and dust, who strives valiantly, who comes up short again and again, because there ando effort without error short coming but who does deeds,y strive to do the who spends himself in a worthy cause, who at the best, knows in of highthe triumph achievement and if he fails, greatly so daring that his place will never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat. Its a famous quote. Many of you probably are motivated by it as well. This book aims to ask those questions of the American People today. This book is not about my life. Im not audacious enough to believe that i should be writing a biography at the age of 35. State senator from illinois. [laughter] this book is also not about Teddy Roosevelt. Of course, it channels his historic speech but its not about him. To litigatempting his life as a conservative. Im very aware of his and what helurch gave us in 1912 in the candidacy presidency of Woodrow Wilson. To say that Teddy Roosevelt as failed while daring greatly is generous. So this book is not about me, not about roosevelt. It is a call to action. Is meant to inspire, motivate and remind americans of makesgeneration what America Special and that it is wort fighting for. And some worth fighting for. Of us carried a rifle and many in this generation still do. But you dont have to carry a in the arena. Its our job to instill in every generation the principles that is, as you all here know, an experiment. An experiment in human freedom. See, if the 21st century isnt an American Century, then 21st century will not be a free century. Its just a fact. The worldround in today, there are threats that ideologist around the ideologies around the world, quite different from ours. Quote i put throughout the book is the phrase, history is not over. History is never over. Have to do is look to western europe today to realize that when you decide to gut your to pay for your welfare state and you forget who you have a tendency to end up riding the wave of history as shaping it. If getting off to a good start isimportant, then no one more responsible for the 20th century being the 20th century than Teddy Roosevelt. Sent the great white fleet around the world in 1907 and who the chief agitator for american involvement in world war i. If you remember, Woodrow Wilson declared he wanted peace without victory which would be i think and would be a very different looking peace than we have today. Ways, the 20th century the back of Teddy Roosevelt. Why then, as i think about it, rooseveltd the entire speech, thats when i really woke up to the power of the quote. The quote itself is powerful. The quote itself is motivating. Ways theres no value assertion in the quote. Its being in the arena. Arena . T is the where is the arena . What does it mean . What i write in the book is its youre arena or my arena or a you do you argument. The arena for this exceptional american experiment that was gifted to us 240 years and has to be perpetuated in every single generation. Know the reagan quote. Were never more than one generation from extinction. It doesnt get passed to the next generation. A beautiful quote. And a more reminder difficult reality in a on a daily basis. See, the moat, man in the arena, is just one quote of the larger speech called citizenship in a republic. Roosevelt gave it in 1910 in front of french elites at the university of paris. And when i read the speech for time, after just looking at the quote and never really thinking of the context, i was blown away. In many ways, it is sort of was p. C. Fore there it struck me as the road map of what we need in America Today in order to restore our republic. Why should i stand up and think theat i direction of america should be, when instead i can channel a that has speech timeless resonance today and reminds us of the very of republics that are required in every generation, no matter what, no matter whether or not we have or any othercebook number of modern developments. The ingredients, the basic seeds same. Epublic are the he posits a very simple thieves. Thesis. The he says the average citizen must be a good citizen if great sched. Cs are to succeed. The average citizen must be a citizen if great republics are to succeed. Or event rulers necessarily heroic citizens. A dailyizens that on basis, in a personal way, understand what it takes to keep the greatestica country in the world. Good citizens are the only to big government. Us, goodstory shows citizens who understand why america is exceptional and lineal, they are the thin between freedom and tyranny. They are the ones who understand our american experiment truly is exceptional, not pause or boastful, because because we understand that this american experiment, when it was was just that, an experiment. In fact, europe sort of laughed at us and said, a piece of paper . A constitution is whats going to stand between you and a tyrant . Gonna hand over power peacefully . There was this sense that it just wasnt possible. Founders reminded us that our rights come from a creator and not from government. They understood a balance of power which checked the fallen tendency humans, the toward tyranny and ambition. They understood freedom of as opposed to freedom from religion. They understood amendments like the first and second are indispensable to free peoples, the ability to articulate speech spectrum,across the which roosevelt talks about powerfully in the speech. Tolerance is tolerating very dissenting opinions. And the second amendment, the bear arms and protect yourself. Also understand were a country of laws, not men. Angels, we wouldnt need these types of arrangements. Citizens andt good good patriots. Good citizens at home and good patriots in the world. Thats really the breakdown of the book. Thatts intentionally in order. Because i talk about its militaryolicy and then and National Security. You look at the world today and theres a lot to talk about. But you cant talk about American Leadership until you talk about restoring and maintaining citizenship. If you dont understand who you what you believe and you dont educate that in every generation, you can forget about attempting to be the leader in the world or attempting to in controversial and difficult places. You need to shore up, you might first. E homefront what is a good citizen . Its not just voting or jury duty. Not protesting necessarily. Those are all ingredients of what we do in republics, of what citizens do. Of course, voting and all those things are good. But roosevelt points out that gritty, homely virtues, the civic virtues. He uses the word efficient, usually a word we think of when we think of light bulbs and starting pitchers. You dont think of it when you think of citizens. Is firstof citizenship inward. Who are you as an individual, and who do you do . Others oughtng how live. He uses the first principle is work. Willingness to keep a job and provide for your family. The second is fight. And viral people, a men ande spirit for women. Strength, vigor and power. Were a bike helmet culture. Wimps. H our kids to be we turn our men into women and our women into men. We need to be willing to stand up for and fight for the things that we believe in, whether its on a battlefield or here at home. He talks about his large patriotic families, demographics. A lot aboutote demographics and talked a lot demographics. The anecdote i use oven is of an interpreter. Not a radical. Young kid, in the United States today. Risk his he would life for me and i would for him. And he we were talking about religion, christianity, islamment and he said, pete, it islam willle that rule the world. The prophet foretold it. And youreg 10 kids having one. Powerful poignancy in that phrase. I mentioned theyre gutting forr militaries to pay their welfare state. When you forget who you are and demand allegiance and assimilation from populations that separate themselves and kids while youre having one, thats how london becomes the most the most in london becomes muhammad for newborn boys. For us to think that things like go away is willful blindness. So western europe, whether its 50, 75 years from now is going to look very different. Antimuslimn phrase. Its a reality that because they dont do integration, because they havent done that well in not theeurope, theyre melting pot that america has been so far, theyre going to have massive cultural classes as have already seen and then the migrant crisis only accelerate problems that we see there. As many of you know, europe preview of america. In the Second Chapter of the book, its about france and what from france that was frankly a formerly great to give that decided away its status by making very intentional decisions at home. America can learn from that. Now, we have massive advantages but still a lot to learn. Character. Aspect is whether its faith, whether its faith or believing something in something greater than yourself. George washington said in his first inaugural, religion and morality are indispensable supports of a republic. Youout faith, and then wonder why we get what we get in our culture. Social talking about conservatism. In the book, as a former a social i still am ardentative but a former a forr social conservative, you go to war, see some things and you realize theres other things in are a moret important priority. Im not talking about prolife issues. Fight thatts a conservatives should continue to fight and win but i think we obsess over things like samesex marriage and it inhibits our ability to talk about the real challenges facing families, parents and kids in our culture. Then he talks about after you focus on yourself, looking outward. About equalot opportunity, which should be, needs to be the star of and republicans. The left is, of course, the party of equal outcome. The strident if we dont strive daily to be the party of equal opportunity, then the mark. Ss i think its fair to say republicans and conservatives missed they ways mark on that for a long time. Talking about things like marginal tax rates when peoples mindsets are very different and theyre seeing these massive shifts in our economy and the lived. Ir lives are we have to have clear eyes about approaching that. That means not just unburdening regulations and problems for those or pushing back against thendency for those at bottom but also making sure those at the top play by the rules. Its the regulations. Its the tax code. Lobbyists that, of course, rig the system so that tose at the top are able gain it to their advantage. And in many ways, block out who would otherwise have social mobility. Income and equality. About ishould talk social mobility. The about to rise, the ability country to have every opportunity that your parents or previous gen previous generations. He also talks about what undercuts, focused on rights duties, citizenry that believes that man is perfectible and therefore you for utopian ideas. Citizenship that is invested in ise rel tism, that there no relativism. Relativism. We see that on the battlefield. Theres no reason why the had to put things on the front page 32 Straight Days in a row. Is no home team in america. In many ways, the American Press today, because its passe to say that america is good or passe to say that im and therefore i support the causes we undertake. Often many ways, controversial and open to dissint. Is class warfare. Roosevelt says at the end of the hand when class warfare commences, whether its left, right, black, male, female, young, old. Gendersen classes and pitted against each other in this nation over the last seven thes, which is toxic to body politic and citizenship. You start with citizenship without citizenship you cant create the good patriots worldthe good patriots on stage that you need to be. You guys have all seen the i dont know if youve seen the bumper sticker, think globally, locally . Its a popular environmental bumper sticker. Rip thatoosevelt would off and say, think globally act globally. Meaning remember who you are, to ak globally in defense act globally of those america is good, is worth fighting for, is truly beentional and america has a force for good in the world. And, oh, by the way, winning the is a goodwe fight thing. Roosevelt talks about that in the speech. Are we a people willing and able prevail . Sounds like a basic simple question but there are critical write in the book about iraq, 2005 and 2006 when i and then 2007 and 2008 and i see some people here who are part of vets for freedom. Of freedom and tyranny is oftentimes decided in those , when difficult moments half the country wants to take expedient route and say, lets set a time line for the war. Lets pop smoke and leave this difficult battlefield. Says, no,ther half this is the exact moment when you need to be willing to double down, when you need to be take the fight to the enemy. Ive never been more proud, as i book, than when george w. Bush announced the surge in iraq and did the right face of Massive Public pressure, doubledown to defeat a vicious enemy. Future of our security depends on the battle in baghdad. Ask yourself today if he was right. And unfortunately, of course, he was. And the surge did work and it successful and alqaeda and largely defeated. By february of 2010, joe biden a greataring iraq achievement of the obama administration. Such a great achievement that he happened to visit again four, five days ago with political chaos unfolding. Took for granted the stability and the gains that were made through greedy dark moment and assumed they would perpetuate themselves, without how centralg defeating islamists in iraq was ours. Ir narrative and are we the paper tiger that Osama Bin Laden said we are . Are we able to show the resolve of our forefathers and win the wars that we fight . Thats not call for endless nation building or fighting every on the horizon. Learn fromwe should iraq is that resolve works, not mil middle eastern wars are terrible. Home,nation build at fortress america, thats it. The difficult part is, of narrative in the republican and Democratic Army the wrongin direction. What i basically do over a couple of chapters in the book the iraqhe case that war is a war we sho