Contact: Richard Viguerie, 540-937-5171, 703-392-7676

MANASSAS, Va., July 4 /Christian Newswire/ -- The following statement was released by Richard A. Viguerie, Chairman of ConservativeHQ.com, regarding the death of former Senator Jesse Helms (R-NC):

"Without Senator Jesse Helms, there may not have been a New Right.

"It was the New Right that energized and led the conservative movement in the 1970s and 1980s and our beloved leader was Senator Helms.

"Without the New Right, there would not have been a strong, vibrant, and effective conservative movement. Without a strong, vibrant, and effective conservative movement, there would not have been a President Ronald Reagan. And without a President Reagan, the Soviet Union would have lasted many more years and socialism would still dominate and impoverish the people of most countries.

"It's the free market views, policies, and leadership of President Reagan, Jesse Helms, and Milton Friedman that have led the world to experience the greatest movement out of poverty in history.

"Jesse Helms was a conservative Horatio at the Bridge--leading conservatives in the 1970s to successfully oppose most liberal legislation and then in the 1980s to go on the offensive in Congress.

"His retirement from Congress was an enormous loss for the conservative movement. His departure from the Senate left a massive vacuum that has not been filled to this day.

"His death has saddened all of us who worked closely with him over the decades. All of us extend our deepest sympathies to his wife, Dot, and his family."

NOTE TO EDITORS: Richard A. Viguerie pioneered political direct mail and has been called "one of the creators of the modern conservative movement" (The Nation magazine) and one of the "conservatives of the century" (The Washington Times). He is the author of the 1980 book, The New Right: We're Ready to Lead. His latest book is Conservatives Betrayed: How George W. Bush and Other Big-Government Republicans Hijacked the Conservative Cause (Bonus Books), which, Jerome Corsi wrote in WorldNetDaily, is "destined to become a classic of conservative thinking" and "may be the most important conservative book written in the last quarter century."