Britain and the U.S.: Two Peoples United by an Attachment to Self-Determination’

On 11 February 1918, President Woodrow Wilson stated that “National aspirations must be respected; people may now be dominated and governed only by their own consent. ‘Self-determination’ is not a mere phrase; it is an imperative principle of action…” Ninety-five years later, self-determination remains an issue, particularly in regards to recognition of national sovereignty, and popular support through referendums. These key areas of conflict can be seen in the Falklands, Cyprus, and Sudan among other nations.

Democracies such as the United States and United Kingdom must balance the demands of their constituents with resolving ongoing issues of self-determination abroad. However, at a time of economic hardship and weariness with foreign wars, how can Washington and London gather the support necessary to further the cause of self-determination – not just for the present, but also for the future?

By kind invitation of the Rt. Hon. David Davis MP, The Henry Jackson Society is pleased to invite you to a discussion with Jim DeMint, President of The Heritage Foundation. Sen. DeMint will discuss the unity between the United States and Britain in regards to self-determination, specifically on the Falklands, which recently voted to remain a UK territory. Sen. DeMint will also focus on the U.S.’s and Britain’s relationship with the European Union.

Biography

Jim DeMint is the President of the Heritage Foundation. He was born James Warren DeMint on Sept. 2, 1951, in Greenville, S.C. “Jim” and three siblings were raised by a single mother who taught him the value of hard work and perseverance. He attended public schools in Greenville, graduating from Wade Hampton High School. He married his high school sweetheart, Debbie Henderson, in 1973.

That same year, he received a bachelor of science degree in communications from the University of Tennessee. He also holds a master’s degree in business administration from Clemson University.

In 1983, after working 10 years in the research, advertising and marketing business, he started the DeMint Group, a Greenville-based marketing research and strategic planning business. In addition to his family, small business and local Presbyterian church, he immersed himself in Greenville civic life – volunteering and leading numerous charitable organizations.

He ran the DeMint Group until 1998, when he was elected as a Republican to the first of three terms in the U.S. House of Representatives. DeMint kept his promise to serve only three two-year terms in the House. His reputation as one of Washington’s most principled conservative leaders grew after his election to the U.S. Senate in 2004, the 55th to serve from South Carolina. He continued to advocate limited government, individual liberty, a strong national defense and traditional values – all core tenets of America’s founding and Heritage’s public policy mission.

Over the years, DeMint collaborated with Heritage on reforms to entitlements, health care, education and immigration, and on efforts, such as Heritage’s Index of Dependence on Government, to reverse Americans’ growing reliance on taxpayer-funded programs. He drew national attention for working to end the corrupt system of congressional earmarks, stopping the misguided 2007 amnesty bill, arguing for comprehensive missile defense and opposing ill-advised treaties, such as the UN’s Law of the Sea Treaty, which would harm American sovereignty.

He is the author of the books “Now or Never: Saving America from Economic Collapse” (Center Street, 2012); “The Great American Awakening: Two Years that Changed America, Washington and Me” (B&H, 2011); and “Saving Freedom: We Can Stop America's Slide into Socialism” (Fidelis, 2009). His first book, with co-author J. David Woodard, is “Why We Whisper: Restoring Our Right to Say It’s Wrong” (Rowman & Littlefield, 2007).

SPEAKER: Jim DeMint, President of The Heritage Foundation, Washington DC & Former US Senator

TIME: 1 - 2pm, Wednesday 12^th June, 2013

VENUE: Committee Room 16, House of Commons, London, SW1A 0AA

To attend please RSVP to: researchassistant1@henryjacksonsociety.org