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We were very blessed that the respected historian David Barton taped a video for us last fall, while here to keynote our Pastors Summit, to promote this year’s Call To Prayer in Colonial Williamsburg on June 1. Little did we know, coincidentally, that he appeared on Comedy Central’s The Daily Show with Jon Stewart yesterday, the day after we debuted the video here and via e-mail, Facebook, YouTube and Twitter to tens of thousands of people (see it here).

As an avid student of history, especially the Founding period of America, and with a degree in history and English from one of the commonwealth’s well thought of institutions of higher learning, I always thought of myself as pretty well informed on early American history. Not that I knew it all, but with a life-long study of it, I thought I at least knew the major points pretty well. But then I started my association with The Family Foundation and got my first exposure to Mr. Barton, the founder of WallBuilders.

What a breath of fresh air! Not only does he give voice, reason and fact to what I always instinctively and academically believed was our Founding Fathers’ actual intent regarding religious liberty, he also has thousands of original period documents which prove the point — that nowhere in the constitution can it be construed that government is hostile to religious expression, whether in private or public. No one in America has done more research from original sources on this topic than David Barton and he can quote from them faster than I can items from a fast food menu. It’s hard to imagine a more informed person on this subject — anywhere.

He also points to hundreds of events from the period, long neglected in the classroom, that flesh out principles by which these Founders lived, argued, fought and died. Actions do speak louder than words, even words on paper, and the same men who put those words to paper participated in events that today would have them fined, suspended, fired or kicked out of club, association, job or public position. Go figure. In the end, though, no one is better than simply explaining the simple or basic elements of an already straightforward document: Congress shall establish no law . . . how does that translate to prohibiting a prayer to Jesus at a high school graduation? Or state police chaplains praying in Jesus’ name? Or a city council opening its session with a prayer? How are public acts of prayer a Congressional law establishing a religion? Maybe if secularists just read the constitution they would come to understand this themselves. Otherwise, we are left to think they have a blatant disregard for it and are intent on nothing less than to “transform” America.

No one exemplifies this misguided, misinterpreted, contorted, secularist slant on the constitution in pop culture more than Jon Stewart. I give him credit for inviting Mr. Barton on his show (at the insistence of another guest, former Arkansas Governor and another friend of The Family Foundation, Mike Huckabee). But it was nothing more than mismatch, a true learning moment for Mr. Stewart.

Learning curve: David Barton taught Jon Stewart, a William & Mary grad (and not his real name), a good deal Wednesday night on The Daily Show. (Part 1 is mainly introductory talk.)

It’s unfair debating a left-wing celebrity type, but instructive: Stewart gives truth to the adage “That a little bit of knowledge is a dangerous thing.”

We’ve been making the case that our 25th Anniversary Gala speaker, Congressman Mike Pence (R-Ind.), is one of the leading conservatives in America. Well respected by his colleagues and those in the conservative media, his star is shining brightly among the grassroots now, too, as Saturday he won the closely watched Values Voter Summit Presidential Straw Poll with 24 percent of the vote over 17 potential candidates (see Politico.com).

The 2,000 summit attendees voted (see Outside The Beltway’s Doug Mataconis) last year’s gala speaker, former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee, second. The others who received votes in the straw poll, in alphabetical order, were Haley Barbour, Jan Brewer, Chris Christie, Mitch Daniels, Jim DeMint, Newt Gingrich, Bobby Jindal, Bob McDonnell, Ron Paul, Mitt Romney, Marco Rubio, Paul Ryan, Sarah Palin, Rick Santorum and John Thune.

This year’s gala not only will be a chance to hear one of the leaders and intellectual forces behind the conservative movement, but also to share in the celebration of 25 years of fighting the good fight for traditional and family values. Already, more than 900 people have bought tickets to the event (nearing last year’s record), and you will want to see for yourself why Congressman Pence is so respected by thousands of conservative grassroots leaders and activists from around the nation.

This very special Family Foundation event, one that will be remembered long after it is over, is Saturday, October 9, at the Greater Richmond Convention Center at 6:30 (5:15 sponsors reception with Congressman Pence). To order your tickets or for sponsorship information, get complete details here, e-mail us at Gala@FamilyFoundation.org, or call The Family Foundation at (804) 343-0010.

See the speech that drove Values Voter Summit attendees to vote Mike Pence its 2012 presidential favorite:

Pence, commonsense and common values: “Those who would have us ignore the battle being fought over life, marriage and religious liberty, have forgotten the lessons of history. As in the days of a house divided, America’s darkest moments have come when economic arguments trumped moral principles.”

Today and Saturday, beginning at 8:00 a.m., FRC Action is partnering with the American Family Association for a live Webcast from the 2010 Values Voter Summit. The free Webcast will feature all the action from the ballroom of the Omni Shoreham Hotel in Washington, D.C. Watch live as our stellar lineup of speakers address the critical issues facing our country today.

The speaker lineup is impressive and includes our Virginia’s own, Governor Bob McDonnell and our 25th Anniversary Gala speaker, Congressman Mike Pence (R-Ind.), chairman of the House GOP Conference, as well as:

Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.), Dr. Bill Bennett, Ken Blackwell, The Duggar Family, Sean Hannity, David Limbaugh, Mike Huckabee, Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.), Delaware Republican U.S. Senate nominee Christine O’Donnell, Mitt Romney, Rick Santorum and many more respected defenders of conservative, traditional values.

View the Webcast online beginning at 8:00 a.m. each day at  ValuesVoterSummit.org. Watch live what you’ll read about in the headlines later. After the summit concludes, many of the highlights and speeches are archived, so be sure to return to ValuesVoterSummit.org next week to see matters of interest that you may miss during the weekend.

Since our founding 25 years ago, The Family Foundation has worked to engage pastors in the civic process. With new threats to religious liberty and the rights of the church to proclaim publically the gospel exposed every day, there is no time like the present to get involved.

In that vein, on September 20, our Pastors for Family Values outreach arm is holding its third annual Pastors Summit, from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., at the Ramada Plaza Richmond West (directions, information). More than 200 pastors from all corners of the commonwealth already have committed to attending. More are welcome as we have assembled a lineup of extraordinary speakers whose credentials rival that of any national convention, and of which we barely scratch the surface here, including: 

» Historian David Barton, Founder and President of WallBuilders, who appears frequently on cable news channels (see interview with Mike Huckabee on Fox News Channel); 

» Virginia 4th District Congressman Randy Forbes, Founder and Co-chairman of The Congressional Prayer Caucus, whose House floor speech on religious liberty is one of the most watched Congressional speeches ever (see video);

» Bishop E. W. Jackson, Sr., Family Foundation Chaplain and President of S.T.A.N.D., a national organization dedicated to maintaining America’s Judeo-Christian heritage;

» Alliance Defense Fund Senior Counsel David French, one of the country’s top religious liberty attorneys, (see Fox News interview with Laura Ingraham, here);

» Author and lecturer Bill Federer (see video), President of Amerisearch and frequently quoted in the media; and

» Family Foundation President Victoria Cobb, a recent participant in the 2010 The King’s College Distinguished Visitor Series.

The theme this is, “A Passion to Preserve Our Religious Liberty,” which is timely with new and greater threats to our religious liberty emerging almost every day, coming at us from every direction. It is imperative that pastors are equipped and engaged for the inevitable battles that lie ahead, and the reknown speakers addressing the summit will educate and inspire. 

The event is free for pastors, but registration is required (click here). Summit information, including hotel room discounts, can be found there. If you are not a pastor, but think your pastor should know about the summit, please share this link with him. For more details, please call Roger Pogge at 804-343-0010 or e-mail him at roger@familyfoundation.org. It is vitally important that every pastor in Virginia is informed and encouraged to engage the culture in this very important area of our faith.

Bishop E.W. Jackson, Sr., speaking at a Pastors For Family Values event in Norfolk earlier this year, where he underscored the importance of pastor engagement in the public square. 

The Family Foundation’s Annual Gala is one of Virginia’s premiere political events and an opportunity to get your message in front of the commonwealth’s most dedicated pro-family, traditional-values conservatives. Last year’s gala, featuring keynote speaker Mike Huckabee, was our most successful ever and nearly doubled the previous attendance record. This year’s special 25th Anniversary Celebration Gala, with keynote speaker Congressman Mike Pence (R-Ind.) is no different. We already are on our way to matching last year’s attendance with five weeks to go and invitations just arriving in mailboxes. Whoever said the conservative movement was dead after 2006 and 2008 (and there were many) might want to rethink their prognostications.

As part of the the 25th Anniversary Celebration Gala, we will produce a special program for the evening. The program is an excellent opportunity for pro-family small business owners, family-friendly organizations or elected officials and candidates to promote their enterprises to like-minded conservatives, while also supporting the work of The Family Foundation. To learn more, click here and download the order form using the link at the bottom of the page. The deadline for submitting ads is Friday, September 17. For more information, contact John Downer at 804-343-0010 or john@familyfoundation.org. Opportunities to sponsor or purchase tickets for this special 25th Anniversary Gala are still available as well.

Thank you for your support of The Family Foundation. We hope you’ll consider advertising in the program and joining us on Saturday, October 9.

Yesterday, I was honored to receive Focus on the Family’s 2010 Family Policy Council Family Champion Award in recognition of our successful Winning Matters 2009 campaign. Winning Matters was the largest voter education and mobilization campaign in our 25-year history. I received the award while attending Focus’ annual Family Policy Council Leaders Conference in Chicago.

We are particularly flattered to have been selected from nearly forty family policy councils from around the country to receive this special recognition from Focus on the Family. In presenting the award, Focus on the Family Action (CitizenLink) Vice President Tom Minnery said:

Because the results of their successful efforts were so decisive, Victoria Cobb and The Family Foundation of Virginia have distinguished themselves as a 2010 Family Champion Award recipient.

Winning Matters proved that with the right plan and the right message, values focused voters can be motivated to turn out and can make a difference in any election. We plan to use what we learned from our successes in 2009, combined with the instruction I am receiving this week in Chicago regarding campaigns, to begin formulating our strategy for next year’s crucial state Senate elections.

You may recall the Winning Matters campaign included eleven staff, nine that were in the field working with churches across Virginia, meeting pastors, attending community and political events, and using social networking to educate and mobilize our voters. Together, they contacted more than 4,000 churches, distributed nearly 125,000 General Assembly Report Cards — more than twice as many as ever before — and conducted or initiated hundreds of voter registration drives. The Family Foundation Action also produced Get Out The Vote phone calls with Chuck Colson, Mike Huckabee and Alveda King, the niece of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. The Family Foundation Action mailed thousands of voter education pieces to key House districts and distributed nearly one million non-partisan Voter Guides for the three statewide races and 38 House races, to educate voters — including Spanish and Korean statewide Voter Guides for the first time. In another first, the non-partisan organization created a video Voter Guide as well, to distribute virally through social networking sites.

According to exit polls, the number of evangelicals who voted in 2009 surpassed the previous 2004 Virginia election benchmark, and 83 percent of these voters voted for pro-life, pro-family candidates. Consequently, nearly half of all Governor Bob McDonnell’s votes came from self-identified evangelicals.

I would also like to express my appreciation to all of you who supported Winning Matters either financially or through your hard work on the campaign!

I am also pleased to report that there were no protests at today’s award presentation!

Our Annual Gala this year will be a little more special than most years and we’re excited about that. It will be extra special because it will be our 25th Anniversary Gala, and we’re celebrating it on a Saturday evening instead of the typical weekday so more people can attend.

So, please save the date: October 9 at the Greater Richmond Convention Center.

Befitting a silver anniversary event, we’re planning activities throughout the day in addition to the dinner, which will make the Gala a fully rounded, lively and engaging celebration. It is certain to be a memorable event as we look back on a quarter century of defending our shared values and celebrate our many victories. We’ll also look ahead to the next 25 years as we advance our critical mission.

Okay, Okay . . . people hear that all the time and the word has been out for a bit, but people keep asking me who the keynote speaker is, or even if we have one lined up yet. The answer is, yes, we do a have a speaker and, just as with last year, when former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee inspired a crowd of more than 1,250 guests, the keynoter this year will encourage, motivate and energize you for the future. In fact, we have a pretty good track record of Gala speakers: William Bennett, Tony Snow, former Senators Rick Santorum and George Allen, Gary Bauer, David Barton, Rabbi Daniel Lapin, Steve Forbes, Maggie Gallagher, Eric Metaxas and former Kansas Attorney General Phill Kline, among them.

This year’s speaker — named one of the “Top 20 Most Influential Conservatives in America” and a frequent national television guest — is a national leader for conservative principles and is certain to bring a powerful, engaging and inspiring message that you won’t want to miss. In fact, you will be disappointed if you do. So, please get your tickets now to see. . . .

Stay tuned for the big reveal in the weeks to come. We will have exciting announcements and updates delivered to you in exciting ways, so sign up for our e-mails, return to this blog, join us on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. Help us launch an exciting new era at The Family Foundation where we bring our traditional message to new audiences with modern techniques. 

The dinner will begin at 6:30 p.m., preceded by a private reception for sponsors with the speaker. We hope you’ll reserve this date on your calendar.

Additional information on sponsorship packages, tickets and program advertisements will be provided this summer via email and online at www.familyfoundation.org/gala.htm. To receive the information by mail, please call us at (804) 343-0010 or e-mail Gala@FamilyFoundation.org.

Annotations & Elucidations

Calling Mr. Ripley 

It’s more Tea Party mania as Tax Day fast approaches. Groups are seeking Tea Party support in potential opposition to President Obama’s next choice to the U.S. Supreme Court; liberal activists are trying to infiltrate Tea Parties with the purpose of embarrassing them (as we’ve known all along, and which the mainstream media finally has picked up on, see Aleksandra Kulczuga at The Daily Caller as well as the AP); and in Virginia, Tea Party activists have won two western GOP unit chair elections in recent days.

Meanwhile, nationally, and speaking of Tea Parties, support for the health care law is plummeting faster than a Soprano victim in the Elizabeth River, and more Americans than pay income tax think we’re over taxed! That should tell you something, and Scott Rasmussen and Richard Olivastro do in Analysis and Commentary, respectively.

Think the Virginia Health Care Freedom Act is nervy, standing up to the big, bad federales? William Green of the Tenth Amendment Center has an idea that will knock your boots off. Also in that vein, and speaking of New Jersey (The Soprano’s), many here patted themselves on the back after Governor McDonnell and the General Assembly balanced our budget without a general tax increase and reduced spending to $70 billion (over two years), a figure last seen in 2006. Very nice. But, as Norman Leahy notes at Tertium Quids, the other new governor, Chris Christie of New Jersey, is fighting for, and winning, real reforms, not to mention that even though it is larger than Virginia, it’s annual budget is $29.3 billion. Even more impressive: The N.J. deficit is $10 billion; our two-year deficit was $4 billion. New Jersey more frugal than Virginia? Call Mr. Ripley.

News

Morrissey, Style Weekly settle $10 million libel lawsuit (Richmond Times-Dispatch)

Griffith reaping GOP support (Roanoke Times)

Boyer elected head of Bedford GOP unit (Lynchburg News & Advance)

National News

Groups look for Tea Party support on nomination (AP/GOPUSA.com)

Foes of Tea Party movement to infiltrate rallies (AP/GOPUSA.com)

Census: No evidence of a conservative boycott (AP/GOPUSA.com)

Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee on gay adoption: Kids ‘aren’t puppies’ (New York Daily News)

Analysis

Support for Repeal of Health Care Plan Up To 58% (Scott Rasmussen/Rasmussen Reports)

66% Say America Is Overtaxed (Scott Rasmussen/Rasmussen Reports)

Florida Senate GOP Primary: Rubio 57%, Crist 28% (Scott Rasmussen/Rasmussen Reports)

Christie may be the real GOP model (Norman Leahy/Tertium Quids Blog)

Media Research Center: Coverage of Tea Parties is disparaging and biased (Aleksandra Kulczuga/The Daily Caller Blog)

Commentary

Next it will be government crashing the Tea Party (Richard Viguerie & Mark Fitzgibbons/Washington Examiner)

Ending the Fed From the Bottom Up (William Green/Tenth Amendment Center)

Stupak’s Final Retreat (Editorial/Washington Times)

Good Riddance (Thomas Sowell/GOPUSA.com)

Democrats Manipulate CBO (David Limbaugh/GOPUSA.com)

Can You Afford More Taxes? (Richard Olivastro/GOPUSA.com)

A V-Shaped Boom Is Coming (Larry Kudlow/GOPUSA.com)

Is Romney Grasping at Straws? (Aaron Goldstein/The American Spectator)

While we post a lot about the goings on at the General Assembly, and try to keep you informed of what is happening in Richmond, there is far more going on each day than we could possibly tell you about. Yesterday was a day, however, that I think tells a little bit of the story of what we do to protect our values and your family on issues that don’t normally grab the headlines or get a great deal of attention.

Late last week we were notified of a bill regarding advanced directives (legal documents that that communicate your desires regarding end-of-life care) that was not as innocuous as it seemed. Often complex in their make up, bills that deal with these types of situations can be confusing and sometimes have unintended consequences. After our policy team reviewed the bill, we determined that the bill made it much easier for hospitals to stop end-of-life treatment on an incapacitated patient who has no advance directive and no family member advocating on their behalf.

We then contacted lobbyists representing the groups promoting the legislation to let them know of our concerns. The bill already had passed the Senate 40-0 and was assigned to a House Health, Welfare and Institutions sub-committee. So we had to stop its momentum.

Yesterday morning, just as the sub-committee began, we negotiated a series of amendments to appease our concerns. The nine page bill was debated for an hour and a half as our concerns and those of several sub-committee members came to light. Because of the problems, in an unusual move, the sub-committee met again last evening. Again, we were in the room to ensure that the end-of-life issues we were concerned about were addressed.

Even as we kept a watchful eye on the committee, a sub-committee member attempted to elevate the role that a “life partner” might play in end-of-life decisions. While the committee had little appetite for introducing new controversial issues into the mix, had they seriously considered this notion, we would have stepped in to ensure marriage continues to be an elevated institution in our public policy. After another hour of debate and discussion, a much improved (at least where we were concerned) piece of legislation — that included amendments fixing the issues we were worried about — passed onto the full committee.

Again, there were no TV cameras in the room and odds are the bill will never be noticed by the general public. But it is these bills that often times go unnoticed that can be most damaging to our values even if the intent of those involved isn’t bad. We try to catch every one, but with more than 2,400 bills in the system, we miss one now and then.  However, when we don’t catch them often times legislators or other lobbyists will let us know because they can count on us to stop a bill in its tracks and ensure it gets fixed.

At our Richmond Gala last fall, Mike Huckabee noted that it is the staff at The Family Foundation that does the work that few want to do. We read and review hundreds and hundreds of bills. We sit in sub-committee and committee meetings that can run for hours, negotiating and lobbying to make sure the bills do no harm to our values and our families. Not very glorious, but the reason we exist as an organization.

Yesterday was a day where we were successful in our mission. Today is another day.

In 2009, we achieved some of the biggest accomplishments since our inception. Winning Matters was a very successful voter education campaign, and we enjoyed the largest Gala attendance in Family Foundation history with former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee as our keynote speaker. But with a new year, a new administration and a new General Assembly — it starts tomorrow! — making 2009 a halcyon memory in the always fast paced world of politics, conservatives across the Old Dominion are focused on the now, motivated and active with the optimism new opportunities afford.

We certainly are at The Family Foundation. That it is to say, previous success should never slow future achievement. Instead, we want to build off of 2009′s momentum rather than reminisce, and make a bigger difference this year than ever before.

To do that, you have to strike fast and hard by capitalizing on your newfound gains and hold lawmakers’ feet to the fire. So, we are hosting our annual Family Foundation Day at the Capitol, Monday, January 18 — commonly known as “lobby day.” This is the way civic advocates and grassroots activists, like you, learn about what legislation, good and bad, will impact the lives of Virginia families in the 2010 General Assembly. Not only will you be educated on the issues by hearing great speakers, but you also will have the opportunity to speak directly to those delegates and senators that represent you in Richmond, and let them know of your desire to keep Virginia a great place to raise a family.

We’ve made it easier than ever to join us for lobby day with our first ever online registration. Simply click here.

On that site, please be sure to register each individual attending with you. We will then make appointments for you with your legislators. We have made room for greater attendance than we have ever experienced in past lobby days and we are already ahead of where we were with registrations last year at this time. So, don’t miss out — or get squeezed out. Reserve places for yourself, your family and your friends at this important event. You may also register by e-mailing John Smith at john@familyfoundation.org or by calling (804) 343-0010.

Family Foundation Day at the Capitol is Monday, January 18, from 10:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. (registration begins at 9 :00) at the newly restored Hilton Garden Inn, 501 East Broad Street, a few blocks from Mr. Jefferson’s Capitol and General Assembly Building. The whole family is invited. In fact, one of the reasons we schedule Family Foundation Day at the Capitol on the Martin Luther King, Jr., holiday is to give parents the opportunity to conduct their own field trip by bringing their children to Richmond to experience their commonwealth’s government at work. Now, there’s an education!