State Press:
I’m writing a column this week about the conservative movement. I’m first going to say that, if Obama’s presidency was good for one thing, the common disapproval was good for fueling the conservative movement, especially when it comes to the economy. I’m going to basically touch upon what conservatism really is since it seems that a lot of people don’t understand it, and why it’s important that we start heading back to what the Constitution granted us. I was hoping you could give me a comment for the column on what you think about the direction the country is taking, and what we should do in order to course-correct ourselves back to a better future. Thank you for your time. I hope to hear back from you soon.
My Response:
Sometimes I worry that the galvanization of the conservative movement aimed at blocking Barack Obama’s policy decisions is keeping the conservative movement from facing some of the demons in its own closet. The worst thing that the conservatives in D.C. could do right now is assume that the disillusionment with the Obama Administration is the same as fondness with conservative values as they have been interpreted over the past few years. Conservatives must shift focus, perhaps finding home in a type of conservativeness that reminds people of a time before the neo-conservative movement infiltrated the true conservative movement, stealing and adulterating the principles that made the real conservative movement so strong. The conservative politicians must convince the people that they stand on principles of small government and individual liberties. The only way to convince the people that they will actually stick to their principles when they are in power is to consistently apply them before they gain power.
The conservative movement must vocally denounce the policies of the Bush administration as being an un-ambiguous, big government, power grabbing mess that it was. They must ditch the notion that someone like Mitt Romney will be able to save the party because he is no different than George W. Bush and the Tea Partiers and Ron Paul followers alike know this is true. Of course the base of the Republican Party will go with whoever is thrown up as a candidate but the same is not true for the fringe voters such as moderate independents, Tea Party types, and Ron Paulites.
Conservatives should stick to individual rights, focus on the economy, and stay consistent to the principle of freedom in America so people will know that they really have woken up to what is important to the majority of Americans.
