Left: President Ronald Reagan delivers his acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention in Dallas, August 23, 1984. Right: Donald Trump does the same in Cleveland, July 21, 2016.(White House / National Archives; Carlo Allegri / Reuters)
In the 1990s, everyone said the same thing about American conservatism: For decades, the conservative movement was held together by anti-Communism. All the disparate elements were connected by anti-Communism. What connects them now?
The same question may be posed today. I think of two immediate answers. First, to be a conservative is to be anti-Left, as George Will says. Thats not nothing (as he also says). In fact, thats a big thing. And the second answer? By and large, we are anti-abortion. Thats also a big thing. A momentous thing.
And beyond those...?
Returning to Will, he says that to be a conservative an American conservative is to defend the Founding. The Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, in particular. The first of those documents contains what some think of as the American idea: We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with...
Now, hang on a minute. Increasingly, I meet young people who call themselves integralists or post-liberals. They believe that the American Founding was a tragic mistake. They favor some sort of church-state government, though some are too shy to be explicit about their hearts desire. (I suspect they will get bolder more candid which is welcome.) They are more Franco than Jefferson, more Orbn than Reagan more Pat Buchanan than Will or Charles Krauthammer.
There has long been a distinction between American conservatism and European rightism. More Americans favor the latter than I once would have guessed.
Conservatives or people identifying as conservative differ sharply on economics. Some are for free enterprise, free trade a free economy generally. The American Enterprise Institute still has the E-word enterprise as its middle name. It is not embarrassed, so far as I know. Other conservatives are much more statist, and anti-trade. Some say Wall Street with the same sneer as the Left.
Related to this is the size of government the size and scope of government, as we used to say. How big should the federal government be and what are its proper responsibilities? How far, and how wide, should its reach be?
This past summer, a caller to Rush Limbaugh mentioned our $1 trillion budget deficit. Trump doesnt really care about that, the caller said. Hes not really a fiscal conservative. The Great One El Rushbo said, Nobody is a fiscal conservative anymore. All this talk about concern for the deficit and the budget has been bogus for as long as its been around.
I recall the fight between the Bob Dole conservatives and the Jack Kemp conservatives. (Amazingly, those two men joined to form the 1996 GOP ticket.) Kemp & Co. said the Dole-ites were green-eyeshade Republicans with no imagination. They were like dentists, specializing in root canal. Dole & Co. said that the Kempites were irresponsible children who would bankrupt the country.
(Personally, I saw both points of view, though I leaned Kemp.)
Today, some of my colleagues want what they call a workers party. For a symbol, I would suggest a hammer and sickle, but that has been taken. (The hammer stands for labor manufacturing, for example and the sickle for Great Patriot Farmers.) The old Daily Worker is no longer in circulation, so that name is available.
In foreign policy, of course, we are all over the map. Some conservatives still press for American engagement in the world and American leadership in the world. We think it is in the U.S. interest, and good for the world, to boot. Think of what has happened in Syria in recent days: the green light to the Turks; the slaughter of our onetime Kurdish allies; the freeing of ISIS prisoners. American leadership, or American abdication, makes a difference.
Other conservatives long for normalcy, in Warren G. Hardings word. They think America has borne too great a burden, paid too great a price. Though they might not put it this way, they want America to be another pleasant country on the U.N. roll call, somewhere between Albania and Zimbabwe. (I have quoted Bush the Elders criticism of Michael Dukakis, in 1988.)
We have very different ideas of immigrants and refugees. (I addressed the issue of refugees in a post two weeks ago, here.) All of us, I believe, are against illegal immigration, and for measures to eliminate or reduce illegal immigration from e-verify to a Wall. But we differ strongly on legal immigration: the value of it, the place of it in the American story, its role in American greatness.
Make America Great Again. What is meant by great? There is no consensus on that question.
There is no consensus on patriotism either. (I addressed that here.) Many on the right are calling themselves nationalists. Trump told a rally in Texas, You know what I am? Im a nationalist, okay? Im a nationalist. Nationalist! Use that word! Use that word! The Trump Right has revived an old word, an old epithet: cosmopolitan. They also deploy globalist. And, naturally, they have revived America First.
Can any Reaganite have partnership with any of that?
As we have seen, there are still times when the Right unites: in defense of Brett Kavanaugh, for example. Against the NBA, when it kowtows to China (but not against Trump, when he congratulates the Party on its 70 years of dictatorship, or when he asks the Party to investigate his domestic political rivals). We can jump on Greta Thunberg, the 16-year-old autistic girl from Sweden who is the symbol of global-warming activism.
These are moments of unity. They come and go. What stays? Abortion does (though there are people on the right who are comfortable with legal abortion). And, again, we are broadly anti-Left. The Right is anti-Left by definition.
All of us are against political correctness. All of us are against the nuttiness the nasty nuttiness that rules many American campuses.
This nuttiness is extending to the mainstream of the Democratic party, as we see in the Democrats presidential politics. Elizabeth Warren may well be that partys nominee. Kamala Harris, another senator-candidate, gave her pronouns the other night.
What else? What else might fall under the rubric anti-Left? We are for judicial restraint (though rare is the person who wont accept some activism when it favors his side). We are for energy exploration, including fracking. That is big. Important. Not very long ago, we could have said that we defended the FBI and the CIA against their defamers. Oops. We were for character in office for family values and virtue. Oops again. Then there is Putin and the Kremlin...
Maybe it will be enough to be anti-abortion. Maybe it will be enough to be anti-Left (while making exceptions for Chairman Kim and others). Maybe those things will be enough to keep conservatives together, in some roomy tent a very roomy tent. I dont know. I worry that Americas political options will come down to a pink-hued statism and populism and a brown-hued statism and populism.
The thing about big government and populism theyre popular.
I dont know about you, but Ive come to believe that the constituency for freedom is pretty small. Everyone wants freedom for himself, of course. But lots of people, Im afraid, would like to bring others to heel. Freedom for me, not for thee. Do it my way. Heads I win, tails you lose.
This is an age-old human problem, puzzled over by wiser heads than mine some of them wigged and Im done typing for now.
Here is the original post:
What Unites the Right? - National Review
- Patriots For Economic Freedom - December 8th, 2016 [December 8th, 2016]
- Fiscal Freedom and Financial Literacy Campaign :: City of ... - December 30th, 2016 [December 30th, 2016]
- To see how a bill becomes law, follow the money - News Sentinel - February 7th, 2017 [February 7th, 2017]
- Economy to grow more than 7 per cent next fiscal: Shaktikanta Das - The Indian Express - February 7th, 2017 [February 7th, 2017]
- Making the case for an RBI rate cut - Livemint - February 7th, 2017 [February 7th, 2017]
- Cotton Calls for a $26B Uptick in Planned Defense Supplemental - USNI News - February 7th, 2017 [February 7th, 2017]
- Making A FOIA Request Is About To Get Tougher At FBI - Daily Caller - February 7th, 2017 [February 7th, 2017]
- Guest Article: Capitulation before the First Shots Are Fired - Somewhat Reasonable - Heartland Institute (blog) - February 7th, 2017 [February 7th, 2017]
- U.S. Air Force extended some 800 million yen in funds to 128 ... - The Mainichi - February 8th, 2017 [February 8th, 2017]
- Greece and the Folly of Trying to Solve an Overspending Problem with Tax Increases - People's Pundit Daily - February 8th, 2017 [February 8th, 2017]
- Hill Republicans quake at Trump's budget-busting wish list - Politico - February 8th, 2017 [February 8th, 2017]
- Key conservative open to insurer payments during ObamaCare transition - The Hill - February 8th, 2017 [February 8th, 2017]
- Historic audit of illegitimate debts - Inquirer.net - February 8th, 2017 [February 8th, 2017]
- Fiscal Freedom: How Tax Burden Affects Economic Freedom - February 8th, 2017 [February 8th, 2017]
- Police Criticized as Violence Continues in Brazil's City of Vitria - The Rio Times - February 9th, 2017 [February 9th, 2017]
- Business divided on Malloy budget - CT Post - February 9th, 2017 [February 9th, 2017]
- The United Kingdom and the Benefits of Spending Restraint - Cato Institute (blog) - February 9th, 2017 [February 9th, 2017]
- Trump Threatens to Cut Off Government Funds to Universities, and Why Not? - PanAm Post - February 10th, 2017 [February 10th, 2017]
- For Philly Cops Already Awash in Overtime Pay, Another Boost -- Thanks to Trump - NBC 10 Philadelphia - February 10th, 2017 [February 10th, 2017]
- Fiscal Freedom | Prometheism.net - Part 2 - February 10th, 2017 [February 10th, 2017]
- Personal finance lessons from the Budget - Hindu Business Line - February 11th, 2017 [February 11th, 2017]
- The United Kingdom and the Benefits of Spending Restraint - People's Pundit Daily - February 12th, 2017 [February 12th, 2017]
- MEL STA. MARIA | The 1987 Freedom Constitution should not be changed - InterAksyon - February 12th, 2017 [February 12th, 2017]
- Venezuela now leads US asylum requests as crisis deepens - Philly.com - February 12th, 2017 [February 12th, 2017]
- Promoting fiscal discipline - Daily Excelsior - February 12th, 2017 [February 12th, 2017]
- The GOP's Big Tax Dilemma: Repealing Obamacare Taxes - The Fiscal Times - February 13th, 2017 [February 13th, 2017]
- Why Liberty Advocates Should Focus on Spending Restraint over Tax Hikes - PanAm Post - February 13th, 2017 [February 13th, 2017]
- What the papers say: Britain's soaring EU budget bill shows Brexit can't happen soon enough - Spectator.co.uk (blog) - February 14th, 2017 [February 14th, 2017]
- Meet The Venezuelan-Born Mom Who Ran For State Senate To Stop Socialism - The Federalist - February 14th, 2017 [February 14th, 2017]
- GOP defense hawks barely squawked on Mulvaney nomination - Washington Examiner - February 14th, 2017 [February 14th, 2017]
- Floyd Bledsoe urges Kansas to compensate the wrongfully convicted: 'I lost my freedom' - The Garden City Telegram - February 15th, 2017 [February 15th, 2017]
- Are Republicans Losing Momentum on Obamacare Repeal? - The Fiscal Times - February 15th, 2017 [February 15th, 2017]
- Study: US falls to 17th place in 2017 global economic freedom index - Economic Collapse News - February 15th, 2017 [February 15th, 2017]
- Mason Fiscal give WVFD go-ahead - Ledger Independent - February 15th, 2017 [February 15th, 2017]
- Officials Continue to Dodge Attempts to Disclose Use of Stingrays - Reason (blog) - February 16th, 2017 [February 16th, 2017]
- 10 Things to Know About Stephen Feinberg, Trump's Potential Intelligence Czar - The Fiscal Times - February 16th, 2017 [February 16th, 2017]
- Mason Fiscal gives WVFD go-ahead - Ledger Independent - February 16th, 2017 [February 16th, 2017]
- Senate Confirms Fiscal Hawk Mick Mulvaney As Trump's Budget Director - New York Magazine - February 16th, 2017 [February 16th, 2017]
- Thank You, Obama: US Steadily Lost Ground On Economic Freedom Over Past 8 Years - Investor's Business Daily - February 17th, 2017 [February 17th, 2017]
- Scott Pruitt: 5 Fast Facts You need to Know - Heavy.com - February 17th, 2017 [February 17th, 2017]
- Liberia Ahead Of Ukraine In Index of Economic Freedom 2017 - Global News Network - February 18th, 2017 [February 18th, 2017]
- EDITORIAL: The United States continues to drop on the Heritage Foundation's index of economic freedom - Las Vegas Review-Journal - February 18th, 2017 [February 18th, 2017]
- US Economic Freedom Hits Historic Low - theTrumpet.com - February 18th, 2017 [February 18th, 2017]
- Sounds of freedom rattling to far reaches of area - Jacksonville Daily News - February 18th, 2017 [February 18th, 2017]
- State lawmakers looking at forced treatment as option to combat opioid crises - Pittsburgh Post-Gazette - February 20th, 2017 [February 20th, 2017]
- Sri Lanka's govt. integrity, economic freedom deteriorate - Daily Mirror - February 20th, 2017 [February 20th, 2017]
- Budget 2017: Why taxes will increase - DA - Politicsweb - February 20th, 2017 [February 20th, 2017]
- PH up by 12 notches in Economic Freedom Index 2017 ranking | SunStar - Sun.Star - February 20th, 2017 [February 20th, 2017]
- County Commission Backs Medical Marijuana, Opposes School Vouchers - Memphis Daily News - February 21st, 2017 [February 21st, 2017]
- Kellogg column: Our culture must shift from dependent to interdependent - Glenwood Springs Post Independent - February 21st, 2017 [February 21st, 2017]
- India's economic freedom plunge | Business Standard News - Business Standard - February 21st, 2017 [February 21st, 2017]
- Ohanaeze president worried about maltreatment of pro-Biafran members worries - Guardian - February 22nd, 2017 [February 22nd, 2017]
- Why is a freedom enshrined in the UN declaration of human rights ... - Stabroek News - February 22nd, 2017 [February 22nd, 2017]
- Gambia: Gambian Man Living In The United States; Former Jammeh Aide Sanna Jarju Named In A Multi million dollars ... - Freedom Newspaper - February 23rd, 2017 [February 23rd, 2017]
- Gauging the Trump Effect on Congress and the DOJ - Freedom Leaf (press release) (blog) - February 23rd, 2017 [February 23rd, 2017]
- PH leaps in economic freedom; 'yes' to calls for lasting peace - Manila Bulletin - February 23rd, 2017 [February 23rd, 2017]
- Ohanaeze Ndigbo decries violence against MASSOB, IPOB - Vanguard - February 23rd, 2017 [February 23rd, 2017]
- PH leaps 12 places in 2017 Economic Freedom Index - Filipino Reporter - February 24th, 2017 [February 24th, 2017]
- Read Scott Walker's Advice on How Republicans Should Handle Protests - TIME - February 24th, 2017 [February 24th, 2017]
- JCPenney to close 13 to 14 percent of stores - Rome Sentinel - February 24th, 2017 [February 24th, 2017]
- Dj vu all over again - The Capitol Fax Blog (blog) - February 24th, 2017 [February 24th, 2017]
- Solution created for county builders - Morehead News - February 24th, 2017 [February 24th, 2017]
- Economic Freedom Up Again, But Not in the US - Investor's Business Daily - February 24th, 2017 [February 24th, 2017]
- Expect the unexpected with upcoming budget, appropriations cycle, experts say - FederalNewsRadio.com - February 25th, 2017 [February 25th, 2017]
- Pleading poverty, demanding new taxes - Washington Times - February 27th, 2017 [February 27th, 2017]
- Newspaper lobby seeks Albany allies in fight for sunlight over state finances - Lockport Union-Sun & Journal - February 27th, 2017 [February 27th, 2017]
- Philippines Improves in Economic Freedom ranking | CFO innovation - CFO innovation ASIA - February 27th, 2017 [February 27th, 2017]
- California lawmakers press ICE for information about raids - The Mercury News - February 28th, 2017 [February 28th, 2017]
- ExclusiveRep. Meadows: We Won't Fix Healthcare By Replacing Obamacare with Another Bad Plan - Breitbart News - February 28th, 2017 [February 28th, 2017]
- Economic Freedom - HATICE KARAHAN - Yeni afak - Yeni afak English - February 28th, 2017 [February 28th, 2017]
- California 'Trust Women' License Plates to Help Pay for Reproductive Care in Trump Era - Rewire - March 1st, 2017 [March 1st, 2017]
- Reader Viewpoint: Recognizing our imperfections, tribulations allows us to be wise - The Herald Bulletin - March 1st, 2017 [March 1st, 2017]
- The Staggering Costs of Operating Air Force One - The Fiscal Times - March 2nd, 2017 [March 2nd, 2017]
- How a Tenet of GOP Orthodoxy Slipped Away - Roll Call - March 2nd, 2017 [March 2nd, 2017]
- Who is the enemy? - Emporia Gazette - March 2nd, 2017 [March 2nd, 2017]
- Wake Up, Republicans: This Could Be the Democrats' Tea Party - POLITICO Magazine - March 2nd, 2017 [March 2nd, 2017]
- Pakistan ranked ahead India in Economic Freedom Index report ... - ARY NEWS - March 2nd, 2017 [March 2nd, 2017]
- Excess rules stifle freedom - The Robesonian - March 2nd, 2017 [March 2nd, 2017]
- Law & (Executive) Order - Patriot Post - March 3rd, 2017 [March 3rd, 2017]
- A Closer Look at Trump's 10% Defense Spending Increase - Morningstar.com - March 3rd, 2017 [March 3rd, 2017]