As another presidential election approaches, the battle over conservatism and how to define it continues to heat up among Republicans and self-described conservatives. The arrival of the Donald Trump era put a huge dent in the neoconservatism that dominated Republican policy for decades, prompting longtime Republicans or 'conservatives' like Bill Kristol and George Will to abandon the party and the movement altogether.
This battle continues in the current GOP primary. At the first debate, Nikki Haley, Mike Pence and Chris Christie touted the traditional neoconservative philosophy on foreign policy, while Vivek Ramaswamy and Ron DeSantis espoused the new conservatism focused more on domestic policy and personal freedom, rather than grandiose global goals. Nathanael Blake, writer and scholar with the Ethics and Public Policy Center, calls for a redefinition of conservatism in a new piece for The Federalist, in which he states "Conservatives must understand where they went wrong before they can go right."
Blake tells KTRH the philosophy of neoconservatism is based on a misguided view of our nation's founding. "Viewing the United States, from its founding, as a revolutionary liberal nation...this was pushed by prominent neoconservatives, and it had implications that were very bad for our nation," he says. "Efforts to remake the world in this global liberal democratic fashion cost a lot of blood and treasure," continues Blake. "A lot of us on the right bought into that idea, and it didn't work."
Blake tells KTRH he's heartened to see a growing number of conservatives and Republicans rejecting neoconservatism. "It is telling that the top candidates in polling in the Republican primary---Trump, DeSantis, Ramaswamy---are all urging a more restrained foreign policy," he says.
As for what the 'new' definition of conservatism should be? "On international policy, an emphasis on being more self-sufficient economically and industrially," says Blake. "On social policy, it means a coalition that fights back against wokeism...emphasizes and recognizes the importance of strong families, and strong institutions like churches and social groups as essential to human well-being and national flourishing."
"And we need to understand conservatism as something historically grounded, that doesn't despise tradition, but instead respects America as a nation with a history, and not just an abstract ideal of freedom, or liberty, or democracy."