Slate of Speakers set for the Conservative Leadership Conference | Eastern North Carolina Now

   Publisher's note: This article was originally published in Civitas,

Speakers

All Speakers Below are Confirmed
Charles Krauthammer

    Winner of the Pulitzer Prize and named by The Financial Times as the most influential commentator in America, Charles Krauthammer has been honored from every part of the political spectrum for his bold, lucid and original writing -- from the famously liberal People for the American Way (which presented him their First Amendment Award) to the staunchly conservative Bradley Foundation (which awarded him their first $250,000 Bradley Prize).

    Since 1985, Krauthammer has written a syndicated column for The Washington Post for which he won the 1987 Pulitzer Prize for distinguished commentary. It is published weekly in more than 240 newspapers worldwide.

    Krauthammer is a contributing editor to The Weekly Standard and The New Republic, and a weekly panelist on Inside Washington. He is also a contributor to FOX News, appearing nightly on FOX's evening news program, Special Report with Bret Baier.

    For three decades, his influential writings have helped frame the very shape of American foreign policy. Krauthammer coined and developed The Reagan Doctrine (Time, April 1985), defined the structure of the post-Cold War world in The Unipolar Moment (Foreign Affairs, Winter 1990/1991), and outlined the principles of post-9/11 American foreign policy in his much-debated Irving Kristol Lecture, Democratic Realism (AEI Press, March 2004).

    The Daily Telegraph calls him "unquestionably the pre-eminent conservative columnist in a country where columnists still carry enormous heft." National Review featured him on its cover as "Obama's critic-in-chief." Der Spiegel calls him "the leading voice of America's conservative intellectuals." New York Times columnist David Brooks says that today "he's the most important conservative columnist." Politico calls him "leader of the opposition ... a coherent, sophisticated and implacable critic of the new president."

    Born in New York City and raised in Montreal, Charles Krauthammer was educated at McGill University (B.A. 1970), Oxford University (Commonwealth Scholar in Politics) and Harvard (M.D. 1975). While serving as a resident and then chief resident in psychiatry at Massachusetts General Hospital, he published scientific papers, including the discovery of a form of bipolar disease, that continue to be cited in the psychiatric literature.

    In 1978, he quit medical practice, came to Washington to help direct planning in psychiatric research in the Carter administration, and began contributing articles to The New Republic. In 1980, he served as a speechwriter to Vice President Walter Mondale. He joined The New Republic as a writer and editor in 1981. His New Republic writings won the 1984 National Magazine Award for Essays and Criticism, the highest award in magazine journalism.

    From 2001 to 2006, he served on the President's Council on Bioethics. He is president of The Krauthammer Foundation and chairman of Pro Musica Hebraica, an organization dedicated to the recovery and performance of lost classical Jewish music. He is also a member of the Chess Journalists of America.


Arthur C. Brooks

    Arthur C. Brooks is an expert on public policy and economics who has published extensively on social entrepreneurship and the connections between culture, politics and economic life. A behavioral economist by training, he has written three books on the social value and economic impact of nonprofits and charitable giving. He is the author of a major study of association membership titled Generations and the Future of Association Participation, an optimistic and valuable look at what young people want from their involvement in associations. His new book, The Battle: How the Fight Between Free Enterprise and Big Government Will Shape America's Future, looks at the new culture war facing America, a battle between free enterprise and social democracy.

    In 2008, Arthur has released two books--Gross National Happiness and Social Entrepreneurship.
Gross National Happiness: Why Happiness Matters for America -- and How We Can Get More of It, explores the relationship between values and happiness--what makes people happy and fulfilled in life and work, and how public leaders and public policy can help make America happier.

    Social Entrepreneurship: A Modern Approach to Social Value Creation combines the methods of the entrepreneur with leading edge nonprofit and public management tools. Arthur's first book offers surprising perspectives on the values and practices of conservatives and liberals in America. Who Really Cares: The Surprising Truth About Compassionate Conservatism proves with hard numbers that conservatives give far more to charity than liberals and explains why values make the difference.

    Arthur C. Brooks is President of the American Enterprise Institute.


Jason Lewis

    Jason Lewis has returned to the Twin Cities and is on KTLK-FM weekdays 4-7 p.m. He was on the air at WBT in Charlotte, N.C. While in Charlotte, N.C., Jason Lewis was listed as one of "The Heavy Hundred 2005″ by Talkers Magazine. He has been named by the magazine as one of the top 100 most important talk show hosts in the nation.

    Prior to WBT, Jason spent ten years at Hubbard Broadcasting in Minneapolis, where he was rated number one.

    Lewis earned his Masters of Arts Degree in Political Science at the University of Colorado-Denver and his Bachelor of Arts Degree in Education/Business at the University of Northern Iowa. He also completed the Series 7 General Securities Examination requirement from the National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD). In 1990, he was the Republican nominee for the United States Congress from Colorado's Second District.

    Lewis has been twice featured in ABC Radio's "The Year in Talk" and has also been a substitute host for Rush Limbaugh. He's been quoted in the Washington Post and has written editorials for newspapers throughout the country, including the Wall Street Journal. Lewis has also appeared on such nationally broadcast television programs as NBC's Today Show, CNN, Fox News Channel, MSNBC and CNBC.


Robert E. Moffitt

    Robert E. Moffit, a seasoned veteran of more than three decades in Washington policymaking, is The Heritage Foundation's senior fellow in domestic and economic policy studies.

    Moffit long has specialized in health care and entitlement programs, including Medicare. He brings to the reform effort his government experience as a senior official of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) during the Reagan administration.

    Moffit, a senior member of Heritage's pace-setting health care team, directed the think tank's Center for Health Policy Studies from 2003 until June 2010. He was one of only a few conservatives to make Modern Healthcare magazine's August 2010 list of "The 100 Most Powerful People in Healthcare."

    At the request of leading conservatives in Congress, Moffit and Heritage colleagues provided technical assistance for a variety of amendments and alternative bills in 2009 and 2010. He continues to work closely with federal and state lawmakers to help design practical, consumer-centered health care reforms. Moffit's research also involves him in continuing debates over how to reform Medicare.

    During the Reagan years, Moffit served as assistant director of congressional relations at OPM and then as deputy assistant secretary for legislation at HHS. He later was a senior associate at Capitol Resources Group International, where he helped clients on matters involving federal health care policy.

    Upon joining Heritage in 1991, Moffit's first task was to frame the think tank's response to President Clinton's plan to nationalize the health care system. Since then, Moffit has been one of the media's go-to experts on health care. He has appeared on the major cable news channels as well as the broadcast networks, and is quoted regularly by USA Today and other leading newspapers. His analysis and commentary have been cited or published by The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Post and The Washington Post, among scores of newspapers large and small.

    Moffit also has published in many professional journals, among them Health Affairs, Health Systems Review, Harvard Health Policy Review, Journal of Contemporary Health Law and Policy, Postgraduate Medicine and Journal of Medicine and Philosophy. He was a contributor to Controversial Issues in Social Policy (Allyn and Bacon, 2003), a university textbook on public policy.

    Moffit, who comes from a well-known family of Philadelphia police officers, co-wrote the book Making America Safer, a how-to guide for local governments to support their police departments. His co-author Edwin Meese III, the former U.S. attorney general who is now Heritage's Ronald Reagan Distinguished Fellow in Public Policy and chairman of its Center for Legal and Judicial Studies. Moffit also was co-editor of the Heritage publication School Choice 2001: What's Happening in the States.

    He is chairman of the Board of Directors of the Buckley Foundation for Communications. Recognition for his work includes public service awards from such diverse organizations as the American College of Eye Surgery, the Great Lakes Association of Clinical Medicine and the National Hispanic Family Against Drug Abuse.

    Moffit holds both a master's degree and a doctorate in political science from the University of Arizona. He received his bachelor's degree in political science from LaSalle University in Philadelphia.



Hans von Spakovsky

    Hans von Spakovsky examines how civil justice is administered in state and federal courts as senior legal fellow in The Heritage Foundation's Center for Legal and Judicial Studies.

    As manager of the think tank's Civil Justice Reform Initiative, von Spakovsky is particularly interested in the ways that plaintiffs' attorneys and activists try to manipulate the courts for their own ends -- at the expense of the public. The project studies not only how the civil justice system can be protected but improved and made more efficient, resulting in greater fairness and predictability for all.

    "This is an issue vital to the economy of the country as well as the health and well-being of Americans," von Spakovsky says.

    Among other responsibilities, von Spakovsky researches and writes about aspects of election law such as campaign finance, voter fraud and voter identification as well as registration and equipment issues. These have emerged as important topics in an era of razor-thin victory margins for national candidates.

    Before joining Heritage in 2008, he served two years as a member of the Federal Election Commission, the authority charged with enforcing campaign finance laws for congressional and presidential elections, including public funding.

    Previously, von Spakovsky worked at the Justice Department as counsel to the assistant attorney general for civil rights, providing expertise in enforcing the Voting Rights Act and the Help America Vote Act of 2002.

    A former litigator, in-house counsel and senior corporate officer in the insurance industry, von Spakovsky worked on tort reform and civil justice issues there for more than a decade.

    He also has served on the Board of Advisors of the U.S. Election Assistance Commission and on the Fulton County (Ga.) Board of Registrations and Elections. He is a member of the Fairfax County (Va.) Electoral Board and the Virginia Advisory Board to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights.

    His analysis and commentary have appeared in The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Times, Politico and Human Events, as well as such outlets as National Review Online and Townhall. He has testified before state and congressional committees and made presentations to, among other organizations, the National Association of Secretaries of State, the Federalist Society, the National Conference of State Legislatures and the American Legislative Exchange Council.

    A 1984 graduate of Vanderbilt University School of Law, von Spakovsky received a bachelor's degree in 1981 from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He currently resides in Vienna, Va.


Brian Kemp

    Georgia Secretary of State Brian Kemp, a lifelong resident of Athens, is a graduate of Clarke Central High School and of the University of Georgia, where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Agriculture.

    Secretary Kemp has served as Secretary of State since January, 2010. Among the office's wide-ranging responsibilities, the Secretary of State is charged with conducting efficient and secure elections, the registration of corporations, and the regulation of securities and professional license holders. The office also oversees the Georgia Archives.

    Secretary Kemp served in the Georgia State Senate from 2002-2006. Among his many accomplishments, he led efforts to cut wasteful spending and streamline government, cut red tape and support small business growth, protect the HOPE Scholarship, preserve our water resources and green space, and promote early learning efforts.

    In the Senate, Secretary Kemp served in committee leadership roles including Chair of Public Safety & Homeland Security, Vice-Chair of Higher Education, and Secretary of Agriculture & Consumer Affairs. He also served as a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee.

    During his career, Secretary Kemp has helped found and develop many small businesses. Today, among his numerous business interests, he is the owner of Kemp Properties, a small business specializing in real estate investments and property management.