“We believe that every child and every person, especially every child in the United States, should be exposed to and participate in the arts.”

WASHINGTON, DC – Emmy-nominated actor Tim Daly took center stage Friday afternoon at a luncheon meeting of The Ripon Society and the Franklin Center for Global Policy Exchange, delivering remarks on the vital role of the arts in American life and culture.

“We believe that every child and every person, especially every child in the United States, should be exposed to and participate in the arts,” Daly stated in his opening remarks. “Not so that they can become professional artists necessarily, but because we know that it will make them better human beings.”

Daly has served as President of The Creative Coalition – the nation’s premier nonprofit, nonpartisan advocacy organization for the arts and entertainment industry – since 2008. In 2016, Daly launched the Coalition’s nationwide Right to Bear Arts campaign championing the arts as a vital pillar of American society.

“We’re not here to fight for Hollywood. We’re not here to fight for Broadway. We’re not here to espouse the artistic prowess of our big cities. We are here to make sure that the National Endowment for the Arts exists because it gives federal grants to every congressional district in the United States. And that means that the small cities and towns across this country, who otherwise might have no arts at all, can have a chamber orchestra, or a choir, or a museum. And that is of vital importance to all the little places in this country that otherwise would have nothing.”

“The arts are the emissaries of our culture. What’s the first thing that happens when some dignitary comes to Washington? Out come the artists, the singers, the dancers, the poets. So, there’s an understanding that arts are important, but we’ve got to put our money where our mouth is. We need this support to make sure that everyone in the United States has access to arts.”

“Look around this town – the art, the architecture, the sculptures, it’s everywhere. It surrounds us. And I challenge all of you, all of us, to be present in the knowledge that arts are an integral part of our life.”

Joining Daly at Friday’s lunch discussion were 11 other actors and Coalition members, including: The Creative Coalition delegation Co-Chair Michael Chiklis, Pamela Adlon, Iain Armitage, William Stanford Davis, Peri Gilpin, Asher Grodman, Zachary Levi, Wendie Malick, Rob Morrow, Cory Michael Smith, and Rebecca Wisocky.

“Every year, we gather for two reasons: to have a serious conversation about federal arts funding in America, and to reflect on what the arts mean to us as a nation,” stated Jim Conzelman, President & CEO of The Ripon Society and Franklin Center for Global Policy Exchange. “The arts speak to something deeper than politics. They inspire, they challenge, and they connect us — to each other and to the best of what America can be. It is that spirit that brings us together each year, and why we are so honored to welcome back Tim Daly and members of the Creative Coalition.”

To view Daly’s remarks before The Ripon Society and Franklin Center, please click the link below:

The Ripon Society is a public policy organization that was founded in 1962 and takes its name from the town where the Republican Party was born in 1854 – Ripon, Wisconsin. One of the main goals of The Ripon Society is to promote the ideas and principles that have made America great and contributed to the GOP’s success. These ideas include keeping our nation secure, keeping taxes low and having a federal government that is smaller, smarter and more accountable to the people.

Founded in 1978, The Franklin Center for Global Policy Exchange is a non-partisan, non-profit 501(c)(3) organization committed to enhancing global understanding of important international issues. The Franklin Center brings together Members of the U.S. Congress and their international parliamentary counterparts as well as experts from the Diplomatic corps, foreign officials, senior private sector representatives, scholars, and other public policy experts. Through regular conferences and events where leading international opinion leaders share ideas, the Franklin Center promotes enlightened, balanced, and unbiased international policy discussion on major international issues.