many people at heritage were instrumental and deserve my think starting with f. amir for his early support of this project and for contributing the forward to "big tent". thank you ed for forever urging me onward. general ed meese perpetrating the critical chapter on reagan and his keen observations on the early version of this manuscript. most of all i'm grateful for heritage is fine work in conserving and renewing principles of the american founding. my friends, i grew up in bridgeport connecticut, a homeless phineas taylor barnum. pt barnum as he was known was the greatest circus showman in history. let me paint a picture for you of how it was when i was a boy in an industrial new england city and the circus came to town a mile-long train with 60 cars pulled into the train station. trucks moved on to the fairgrounds and local kids began to gather to watch the roustabouts unpack. finally they set out the three huge rings and raised the big tent, which seems to us impossibly big. it held the promise of a thrilling spectacle of the flying trapeze acts, typo -- tightro