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A New Conservatism, part 1
It’s time to face facts: Conservatism as we have known it as a political force is dying. Like “in an ICU waiting on the next of kin to show up before officially pulling the plug” dying.
How did we get here?
It’s time to face facts: Conservatism as we have known it as a political force is dying. Like “in an ICU waiting on the next of kin to show up before officially pulling the plug” dying.
How did we get here?
While some would gleefully blame Trump and his supporters, my personal belief is that the Conservatism we’ve been sold for years has been a load of hogwash from the past couple decades. Trump just exposed the frauds.
They have responded by smothering whatever conservative principles they once espoused with a pillow. When your version of “conserving conservatism” requires you to vote for a straight D party line and demean anyone who votes for Trump as a “cultist”, you’ve either lost the plot
or you’re just grifting. Either way, the Conservatism you once promoted is dead.
The warning signs have been there for a day or two. W was put in a bad spot, but when TruCon (my name for the “Conservative mouthpiece old guard”) gleefully supported the Patriot Act,
The warning signs have been there for a day or two. W was put in a bad spot, but when TruCon (my name for the “Conservative mouthpiece old guard”) gleefully supported the Patriot Act,
the hairs on our necks should have stood up. But we were assured it was all okay and conservatismy. When John McCain was walked out as the nominee, after being “the Maverick of the GOP” for years, we were told it was all just a smoke screen;
“he really is a conservative” they whispered in our ears. When Mitt Romney was held aloft by TruCon as a Conservative we should all gather behind, we held our noses and ignored his record because, by God, Mitt was the obvious choice.
And then along comes Trump.
And then along comes Trump.
And much like a mad bull running through the streets on market day, he upsets everyone’s apple cart, storms through the china shop, and leaves a load of manure on the chess board in the park. About that time, TruCon realizes they have a problem.
See, people have been listening to TruCon for YEARS. They’ve been out front since Reagan, exclaiming the virtues of Conservatism, explaining why this policy or that policy clearly fits within the Conservatism worldview. They made their names and their bank account grow
by being the voices of the voiceless Conservative. It didn’t matter the policy; they could shape and reshape it without a disruption to their bottom line. Meanwhile behind closed doors, TruCon is making nice, hitting the cocktail party circuit with the very people
who keep society and culture shifting to the Left.
But Trump…
Trump is a different animal altogether. He’s not beholden to the GOP for his election. He’s not beholden to the media. Most of all, he’s not beholden to TruCon. Trump gained power the old-fashioned American way:
But Trump…
Trump is a different animal altogether. He’s not beholden to the GOP for his election. He’s not beholden to the media. Most of all, he’s not beholden to TruCon. Trump gained power the old-fashioned American way:
he spoke directly to the American people. Trump became a voice for the voiceless, and the people that had been following TruCon all these years suddenly started realizing how impotent TC had been all along.
“He’s not a real conservative!” they shouted. But the people started looking at what exactly they had been paying TruCon for all these years.
What exactly had TruCon conserved? Abortion had moved from “legal, safe, and rare” to “shout your abortion!”
What exactly had TruCon conserved? Abortion had moved from “legal, safe, and rare” to “shout your abortion!”
Transwomen were sharing restrooms and locker rooms with women who were called “bigots” because they didn’t want to see a penis in the woman’s space. Gay marriage, something TruCon had railed on for years, was legal.
TruCon’s track record showed that they were an abysmal failure on the national stage. They rarely fought back against allegations of being “racist/sexist/homophobic/etc.” Instead, they took it on the chin and kept going, putting up enough fight to keep their wallets full
but not so much that their party invites would be rescinded. TruCon needs a social life, you know.
Trump never met an insult he didn’t respond to. The media barrage that would make Romney hide under his desk and TruCon cry for mommy only made Trump happier; it gave him a target
Trump never met an insult he didn’t respond to. The media barrage that would make Romney hide under his desk and TruCon cry for mommy only made Trump happier; it gave him a target
and he used it effectively. He fought back like no one else. He espoused conservative views and policies, even if he himself didn’t hold to those principles. He made himself a beacon for the tired conservatives to rally under.
It galvanized his support among conservatives, even those who didn’t vote for him or agree with him on many issues. While some held him up as the future of Conservatism, many just appreciated his willingness to fight and stand firm.
With Trump in the White House, TruCon had a difficult decision to make. Either they back Trump’s conservative policies (immigration, the judiciary) and be lumped in with him (say goodbye to the NY/DC elites’ open doors) or they reframe Conservatism in a way to “prove”
Trump was no conservative. They most certainly could not support the indecent Tangerine Dictator, so off they went to change Conservatism to mean the exact opposite of what it had always been. Where “due process” was always a conservative point,
TruCon decided allegations were enough. “Honoring the office of the president” became “as long as it’s Trump, I can’t honor the office.”
The standard bearers of Conservatism’s principles were now shifting those principles away from any position Trump held.
The standard bearers of Conservatism’s principles were now shifting those principles away from any position Trump held.
This shift wasn’t just against Trump though. When a man with a clean record was put up for a SCOTUS seat, suddenly there were complaints from women everywhere. TruCon rent their clothes and cried “How can we support a man who has so many allegations against him?!
He must be removed from consideration! It doesn’t matter if the allegations are true!”
And now with the election almost upon us, the Conserving Conservatismers are saying “we need to burn down anyone who spouts conservative principles by voting for the
And now with the election almost upon us, the Conserving Conservatismers are saying “we need to burn down anyone who spouts conservative principles by voting for the
Democrat (Socialist/Communist) party straight down the ticket.” That doesn’t sound like Conservatism to me. That sounds like a “loyal opposition” party that never meant to conserve anything, only to game the rubes out of money while acting like they were fighting the good fight
between glasses of 12 yr old single malt but has now realized the jig is up.
If our standard bearers are gone, who now will defend Conservatism? Who will speak up for it?
But before we can answer that, we have to decide what exactly Conservatism is.
That is part 2.
If our standard bearers are gone, who now will defend Conservatism? Who will speak up for it?
But before we can answer that, we have to decide what exactly Conservatism is.
That is part 2.
