{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ContentRecord_id=29547372-2514-4890-a102-f75656a424b4", "Excerpts from Lee\u2019s Speech on a New Conservative Reform Agenda", "2013-10-29", "2013", "2013-10", "Republican", "House", "UT", "Mike Lee", "L000577", "www.lee.senate.gov", null, null, "legacy", "WASHINGTON \u2013 Today, Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) will give a speech at the Heritage Foundation at 2:30 pm EST on the way forward for conservatives and the need for a new conservative reform agenda. \u00a0 The following are selected excerpts from the speech: \u201cThe ideas that defined and propelled the Reagan Revolution did not come down from a mountain etched in stone tablets. They were forged in an open, roiling, diverse debate about how conservatism could truly meet the challenges of that day. That debate invited all conservatives and as we know, elevated the best\u2026 Together, that generation of conservatives transformed a movement that was anti-statist, anti-communist, and anti-establishment, and made it pro-reform. Contrary to the establishment\u2019s complaints, conservatives in the late 1970s did not start a \u201ccivil war.\u201d They started a (mostly) civil debate. Because of that confident and deeply conservative choice \u2013 to argue rather than quarrel, to persuade rather than simply purge - the vanguards of the establishment never knew what hit them.\u00a0 The bottom line was that in 1976, the conservative movement found a leader for the ages, yet it still failed.\u00a0 By 1980, the movement had forged an agenda for its time and only then did it succeed.\u201d \u2026 \u201cIt\u2019s time for another Great Debate, and we should welcome all input. Grassroots and establishment. Conservatives and moderates. Libertarians and traditionalists. Interventionists and non-interventionists. Economic conservatives and social conservatives. All are part of our movement, and all are vital to our success \u2013 so all should be welcome in this debate. There are still nearly three years before Republicans will have a chance to select a new, unifying conservative leader. But together we can start debating and developing a new, unifying conservative agenda right now.\u201d \u2026 \u201cI submit that the great challenge of our generation is America\u2019s growing crisis of stagnation and sclerosis\u00a0 - a crisis that comes down to a shortage of opportunities.\u00a0 This opportunity crisis presents itself in three principal ways: immobility among the poor, trapped in poverty; insecurity in the middle class, where families just can\u2019t seem to get ahead; and cronyist privilege at the top, where political and economic elites unfairly profit at everyone else\u2019s expense. The Republican Party should tackle these three crises head on.\u201d \u2026 \u201cTo do my part, today I want to talk about four pieces of legislation specifically designed to address four leading challenges facing middle-class families today: the cost of raising children, the difficulties of work-life balance, the time Americans lose away from work and home, stuck in traffic, and the rising costs of and restricted access to quality higher education. These bills won\u2019t solve every problem under the sun. Raising a family isn\u2019t supposed to be easy. But each would restore to working families more of the freedom they deserve to pursue their happiness: to earn a good living and build a good life.\u201d \u2026 \u201cEspecially in the wake of recent controversies, many conservatives are more frustrated with the establishment than ever before. And we have every reason to be.\u00a0 But however justified, frustration is not a platform. Anger is not an agenda. And outrage, as a habit, is not even conservative. Outrage, resentment, and intolerance are gargoyles of the Left. For us, optimism is not just a message \u2013 it\u2019s a principle. American conservatism, at its core, is about gratitude, and cooperation, and trust, and above all hope. It is also about inclusion. Successful political movements are about identifying converts, not heretics. This, too, is part of the challenge before us.\u201d The full text of the speech can be found below:\r\nWhats Next For Conservatives", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.lee.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ContentRecord_id=29547372-2514-4890-a102-f75656a424b4"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.0801281314343214, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}