Not every hero gets a memorial. Not every hero even gets recognition. But heroes who come around once in a lifetime ought to be memorialized for their contributions to America.
Reflecting 150 years of our nation's heritage, the granite etchings of Mount Rushmore honor some of the greatest leaders of this republic: George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln and Teddy Roosevelt.
Washington was the "indispensable man." Commander of the Continental Army, president of the Constitutional Convention, and first president of the United States, he truly was the father of our country. Thomas Jefferson penned the immortal word of the Declaration of Independence - "that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness." Abraham Lincoln saved the Union, freed the slaves and made certain America lived up to these words. Teddy Roosevelt epitomized the bully spirit of this nation at the dawn of a century that would see it become an unparalleled power.
But it is our opinion that the greatest president of the 20th Century is missing from Mount Rushmore. That President is Ronald Reagan.
Reagan called the Evil Empire by its proper name and won the Cold War. Large sections of the globe were freed or preserved from Communist domination because of his strategic vision and leadership. No one articulated our national ideals of individual liberty, self-sufficiency, limited government and traditional values better Ronald Reagan did.
If any man of recent times belongs on that rock in South Dakota, it is Reagan.
Human Events says: Put him there.
To truly honor a President who deeply believed in limited government and free enterprise, the editors of Human Events suggest the funds to memorialize Reagan on Mount Rushmore be raised through private donations to the Reagan Legacy Project.
Keep the optimistic spirit of Reaganism alive for future generations. Call upon your congressman to pass a resolution honoring a president we must never forget - with a carving on Mount Rushmore.
