Preamble
The Preamble to the Lake Anna Declaration
We, as Young Conservatives, seek to resurrect our movement’s meaning and political relevance by re-discovering, not re-defining, our movement’s principles for a new generation of Americans;
We, as Young Conservatives, believe that Conservatism is best understood as a philosophy of experience – an attempt to steward the wisdom of the ages forward to solve the problems of the present, and provide a valuable inheritance for future generations;
We, as Young Conservatives, believe that each person has been granted unique talents and gifts by our common Creator, and that history has shown man’s spiritual freedom to be inseparable from his economic freedom. Man’s quest for spiritual virtue provides the indispensable social support for his quest for prosperity, and that any increase in the size of the state harms all parts of man’s free-will;
We, as Young Conservatives, recognize that history has similarly shown the greatest encroachments to man’s free-will occurs at the hands of an ever-increasing state power that disregards its constitutional limitations in favor for what it views as “necessary”;
We, as Young Conservatives, believe that because of these historical truths, man must seek in politics the maximization of freedom for all individuals, which requires conserving the constitutional-design of our founding – limited government, free market economy, fiscal responsibility and less taxation, strong national defense, preserving traditional values, strict adherence to the Constitution, federalism, American-interest foreign policy, belief in the power of the individual, the family, churches, and the local community;
We, as Young Conservatives, in order to reinvigorate our movement, embrace tools of the 21st century including new media and technology, harness the intellect and rising power of the modern young professional, and truly understand the necessity of growing our coalition by inviting new people and groups to participate in our revolution – understanding that only through diversifying our party will we have a truly sustainable future;
We, as Young Conservatives, are ready to provide the necessary leadership to lead the next American generation and recommit ourselves to fight those who would empower a large and encroaching federal government. We reject the notion from naysayers that the greatness of America is in decline. The power of our destiny has always been held within the American populace and it is only through their determination will we rise or fall – not the determination of those who seek to undermine and thwart American Exceptionalism;
We, as Young Conservatives, have an excellent model to work from – the model of Buckley, Weyrich, Evans, Kirk, Reagan, and all the other godfathers and godmothers of the conservative movement. When they began to organize themselves, nearly fifty years ago, most of them were young conservatives themselves. It is in their spirit that we embark on rebuilding the movement to lead America through the challenges of the 21st century to ensure a stable, peaceful and prosperous America;
We, as Young Conservatives, offer the following Platform answering the call of what conservatives stand for in the upcoming legislative year. The Lake Anna Declaration is a statement of policy positions that will guide our movement and answer the question of what it means to be a conservative in the year 2009. The Young Conservatives Coalition, a diverse and representative group of young professional, committed conservatives from the DC area, met in Lake Anna, Virginia to develop the following planks to assist and guide the movement as a whole but to also showcase the mind of a young conservative and what we think the future direction of our country should be.
With this, we invite you to read and adopt our Platform and join the cause for freedom, liberty, and 21st century Conservatism. Thank You and God Bless America.
