TOM RIDGE: THE TEST OF OUR TIMES
MONDAY, September 14, 2009, 6:30 p.m.
Free. Reservations required. Please call 215.409.6700 or order online.
Annenberg Center for Education and Outreach
F.M. Kirby Auditorium
National Constitution Center
Independence Mall
525 Arch Street
Philadelphia, PA
Governor Tom Ridge joins the National Constitution Center to discuss The Test of Our Times: America Under Siege…And How We Can Be Safe Again, a memoir of his time as secretary of Homeland Security. Writing with praise and criticism for both Democrats and Republicans, Ridge recounts the politics in and around the Bush administration, offering candor on both the successes and missteps of the Department of Homeland Security and the challenges faced in his new post. Author, journalist and policy advisor Tony Blankley moderates. This program is sponsored by Cozen O'Connor, as part of the Knight Constitutional Conversation Series, which has been generously underwritten by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.
Tom Ridge was a Congressman for 12 years and Governor of Pennsylvania for six when he was tapped by President George W. Bush to coordinate the federal domestic counterterrorism effort after the attacks of September 11, 2001. In an enormous and politically charged reorganization, Congress consolidated 22 agencies into the Department of Homeland Security. According to Ridge, the Bush administration allegedly pressured him to connect homeland security to the international “war on terror” and Iraq. The White House, Ridge also says, attempted to manipulate the national security alert for political gains. In The Test of Our Times, Ridge also offers a prescriptive look to the future, advocating ways that America may reaffirm its safety, but not at the cost of personal liberty.
Thomas J. Ridge became the first secretary of Homeland Security in 2001 and served in President George W. Bush's cabinet until 2005. The former Congressman and Governor of Pennsylvania is the president and CEO of Ridge Global. He is a graduate of Harvard University. After his first year at the Dickinson School of Law, he was drafted into the United States Army, where he served as an infantry staff sergeant during the Vietnam War. After serving with distinction and earning the Bronze Star, Ridge returned to Pennsylvania and completed law school. Ridge was born in Munhall, Pennsylvania, in Pittsburgh's Steel Valley.
For more than 25 years, moderator Tony Blankley has been at the intersection of national politics, media and public policy. He has served as press secretary to then Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Newt Gingrich and, prior to that, as a speechwriter and senior policy analyst for President Ronald Reagan. Before coming to Washington, Blankley was a California Deputy Attorney General. He co-hosts KCRW’s popular show, “Left, Right & Center.” In 1999, he founded his nationally syndicated political column with The Washington Times. In 2002, he began his service as the paper’s editorial and opinion page editor. Blankley authored his first book in 2005, a New York Times bestseller, The West's Last Chance: Will We Win the Clash of Civilizations?
The Knight Constitutional Conversation series has been generously underwritten by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation. The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation promotes excellence in journalism worldwide and invests in the vitality of the U.S. communities where the Knight brothers owned newspapers. Knight Foundation focuses on projects with the potential to create transformational change. For more, visit http://www.knightfoundation.org/.
A book sale and signing will follow the program, courtesy of Joseph Fox Bookshop. Parking for this event is available for $7.00 at the National Constitution Center garage located at the rear of the building on Race Street between 5th and 6th Streets. Parking availability is subject to change, so please call the Constitution Center on the day of the program or check our web site for more information. Please also see our directions by public transportation.
For reservations please call 215.409.6700 or order online. Programs at the National Constitution Center begin promptly and latecomers may not be admitted to the program. Please note that this program is subject to change.
Related Links:
The Test of Our Times: America Under Siege...And How We Can Be Safe Again
