On October 27, 1964, a well-known Hollywood actor delivered a speech that electrified and forever changed the nation.
The words within the speech coined the term “fiscal responsibility” and launched one of the most successful political debuts in the history of American politics by propelling the career of one of the country’s most beloved and celebrated statesman – Ronald Reagan.
Sixteen years after his “A Time for Choosing” speech, Reagan would himself stand in the shadow of the U.S. Capitol while outlining the modern conservative vision of a responsible and transparent government motivated by the wants and needs of the very people who elected him – the taxpayers.
Two short years into his presidency, Reagan recruited late industrialist J. Peter Grace to carry out his vision, known as the Grace Commission, in which he directed 161 corporate executives and community leaders to “be bold and work like tireless bloodhounds to root out government inefficiency and waste of tax dollars.”
As November 4, 2014 marks the 34th year since The Gipper’s presidential election, taxpayers are again faced with the choice to either return to the institutionalized belief of fiscal responsibility, or continue trudging through a dismal economic environment (thanks in large part to a government that mismanages their money through a bloated and incorrigible federal bureaucracy.)