The Titanium Backbone Makes A Move

Today South Carolina Senator Jim DeMint announced that he's leaving the Senate to become the President of the Heritage Foundation (www.Heritage.org). DeMint is one of the clearest, most unapologetic conservative lawmakers and thinkers in America today. He has been an invaluable voice for first principles and has served as a titanium backbone for his fellow Republicans in the Senate. Without DeMint, who was Tea Party before there WAS a Tea Party, we may never have gotten Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz, Rand Paul, Pat Toomey, Jeff Flake, and Mike Lee in the Senate. Now that DeMint is leaving, we're going to have to make sure we get those conservatives some back-up in the Senate. The 2014 election cycle is right around the corner.

DeMint's departure also points to how thoroughly dysfunctional the Senate is under Majority Leader Harry Reid. Reid has ensured that it's a paralyzed nightmare. It may very well be that come 2014, the composition of the Senate will be far different, with Republicans holding the majority. We can only hope---and work hard for that to happen. But for now, DeMint saw a chance to move to an organization where he'll be free to help lead the conservative movement in far more interesting and effective ways.

So while I'm sad to see DeMint leave an institution he's done so much to transform, I'm thrilled that he's going to lead the movement from a different perch. And I'm really excited to see what he's going to do, how he's going to do it, and how the rest of us can get involved.

If we're going to turn this country around, we're going to need all hands on deck. DeMint just moved into a Director's chair, and this can only mean one thing: "Action!"