May 11, 2020

Good morning. We continue to wish you and your loved ones good health and safety. Last week, the Heritage-led National Coronavirus Recovery Commission released a new set of recommendations on how we must combat the spread of COVID-19 and to prepare for economic recovery. You can read more below. Also, Heritage President Kay C. James joined Rep. Dan Crenshaw, R-Texas, on his podcast to talk about the commission’s plan for reopening America. We hope you listen to their full discussion. A Pulitzer Prize was awarded to the author of The New York Times’ “1619 Project” essay, even though it’s filled with mistakes and exaggerations. Heritage visiting fellow Allen C. Guelzo breaks down why this is so disappointing. Lastly, Heritage headquarters is still closed, but social distancing isn’t stopping us from hosting great events that you can “attend” online! Check out our list of upcoming webinars to find an event that interests you.

Heritage-Led Coronavirus Commission Offers a Plan for Reopening America
The Heritage Foundation and National Coronavirus Recovery Commission have been working diligently to make recommendations for government leaders and the private sector. Last week, the commission issued 179 recommendations to guide local, state, and federal officials, and the private sector with the steps necessary to reopen America. The newest recommendations focus on the importance of building out the science to combat COVID-19 and establishing U.S. leadership to drive the free world in economic recovery. They focus particularly on doing away with a one-size-fits-all approach to relief and removing unnecessary barriers to business and health care. One of the new recommendations, for instance, argues: “Governors should promptly allow all medical offices to reopen, augment hospital capacity only where needed, and remove government barriers to a more flexible health care workforce.” Find out more about the commission’s new recommendations.

Heritage President Joins Rep. Dan Crenshaw’s Podcast ‘Hold These Truths’
Heritage Foundation President Kay C. James joined Rep. Dan Crenshaw's podcast “Hold These Truths” to unpack the National Coronavirus Recovery Commission's latest set of recommendations to safely reopen America. The two discussed the commission’s approach of tackling both the priority of health safety and economic recovery. “In order for this thing to work, we as individuals have to take responsibility for our own health,” James said. “Government can’t and shouldn’t be in a position to ‘force’ us to wash our hands, to ‘force’ us to wear masks, ‘force’ us to social distance. But if we accept personal responsibility and do those things on our own, we can see that we can get this country up and running again far quicker.” Listen to the whole episode.

Pulitzer Ignores Serious Flaws to Honor New York Times’ ‘1619 Project’
Nikole Hannah-Jones recently won the Pulitzer Prize for commentary for her essay in The New York Times Magazine’s “The 1619 Project,” despite a flood of criticism from academics and journalists saying the essay presents major misinformation about our nation. Princeton University professor Allen C. Guelzo, a visiting fellow in Heritage’s Feulner Institute, walks us through how such an egregious misstep in journalistic integrity happened. “We have seen journalistic irresponsibility before. (Think Walter Duranty, Janet Cooke, and Jayson Blair.) It grows out of the credulity of the public, the inexperience of journalists, the pressure to write dramatic copy that will fill space in a relentless 24-hour news cycle, and the confidence that the intent of the articles would be politically applauded as an act of virtue-signaling, no matter what the content,” Guelzo writes. “All one can do, however, is speak truth. Truth is great and will prevail.” Read Guelzo’s commentary to find out more about how Pulitzer overlooked the 1619 Project’s flaws.

Heritage President Kay C. James reminds us why it’s so important to celebrate our mothers and how central the family is to American life. Read her most recent Washington Times column.

Kim Holmes, executive vice president of The Heritage Foundation, issued a statement in support of Texas Rep. John Ratcliffe’s nomination to be director of national intelligence. “In a time when political fights have caused some to look unfavorably upon this vital profession, John Ratcliffe has the opportunity to again highlight the intelligence community’s professionalism, commitment to country, and long track record of keeping Americans safe,” said Holmes. Keep reading the statement.

Andrew McIndoe, vice president of development at The Heritage Foundation, has been selected as one of the Claremont Institute’s esteemed Lincoln Fellows for 2020. Learn more.

Heritage’s Phillip N. Truluck Center for Leadership Development has graduated its inaugural class of the Heritage Speechwriters Fellowship. “Speechwriters are in demand,” said Kristine Bramsen, director of the Truluck Center. “We frequently get requests from the administration and Capitol Hill for speechwriters, so we created this program to deepen the pool of talent in the conservative movement that is available to policymakers.” Learn more.

Monday at 11 a.m., Heritage will host a webinar on lessons from the Great Depression with historian Amity Shlaes, author of four New York Times bestselling books and chairman of the board at the Calvin Coolidge Presidential Foundation. Register for the webinar.

Tuesday at 2 p.m., the Network of Enlightened Women will host a Facebook Live broadcast with Lindsey Burke, director of Heritage's Center for Education Policy to discuss how COVID-19 has changed and will continue to impact higher education and student loan debt. Tune in live on Facebook.

Wednesday at 11 a.m., Heritage will host an in-depth discussion about current topics in the pro-life policy movement as they relate to the COVID-19 pandemic. Featured speakers include Ken Connelly, senior legal counsel at Alliance Defending Freedom; Brian Fisher, president of the Human Coalition; and Katie Glenn, government affairs counsel at Americans United for Life. Register for the webinar.

Thursday at 11 a.m., Heritage will host a webinar about teaching American exceptionalism. Trapped in government-run schools, young people learn that America is a nation of imperialism, greed, and racism. Join this virtual discussion on how to overcome impediments to teaching the history we need. Featured speakers include David Bobb, president of the Bill of Rights Institute; Jeffrey Sikkenga, executive director of the Ashbrook Center; and Lindsey M. Burke, director of Heritage’s Center for Education Policy. Register for the webinar.

Thursday at 2 p.m., Heritage will host a webinar on the severe fiscal pressures that states are facing due to the unprecedented self-imposed economic freeze. Featured speakers include Jonathan Williams, executive vice president for Policy and chief economist at the American Legislative Exchange Council; Rachel Greszler, a research fellow in Heritage’s Grover M. Hermann Center; and Adam Michel, a senior policy analyst in heritage’s Grover M. Hermann Center. Register for the webinar.

Friday at 1 p.m., Heritage will host a discussion on the good, the bad, and the ugly when it comes to the Federal Reserve’s attempt to contain COVID-19. Featured speakers include Norbert J. Michel, director of the Center for Data Analysis, and Joel Griffith, research fellow in Heritage’s Roe Institute. Register for the webinar.

Here are highlights from Heritage experts on TV. This week they talked about Heritage’s National Coronavirus Recovery Commission, holding China accountable, the economic impact of COVID-19, state bailouts, voter fraud and more. Watch the clips.