Monday, January 06, 2014

The Tea Party is Ruining Conservatism


Yet another conservative columnist is making the case that I have made many times: The Tea Party - which is basically a recast cover for the Christofascists - is ruining conservatism and by extension, the Republican Party.  There are indeed things that government needs to do - perhaps must do.  Simply being an obstructionist and blocking all policies isn't governing.  This time, the columnist making the case for government programs and involvement is Michael Gerson, who once served as President George W. Bush's chief speechwriter from 2001 to June 2006,and  as a senior policy advisor from 2000 through June 2006.  Here are highlights from Gerson's Washington Post op-ed:

One of the main problems with an unremittingly hostile view of government — held by many associated with the tea party, libertarianism and “constitutionalism” — is that it obscures and undermines the social contributions of a truly conservative vision of government. 

[G]overnment should, as the first resort, set the table for private action and private institutions — creating a context in which civil society can flourish. This goal has moral and cultural implications.  

Government has a necessary (if limited) role in reinforcing the social norms and expectations that make the work of civic institutions both possible and easier.

But conservatives also need to take seriously the economic implications of this governing vision. Just as citizens must be prepared for the exercise of liberty, individuals must be given the skills and values — human capital — that will allow them to succeed in a free economy.

This is the essence of equal opportunity. But it is not a natural social condition. And many conservatives have failed to recognize the extent to which this defining American promise has been hollowed out.

Economic mobility has stalled for many poorer Americans, resulting in persistent, intergenerational inequality. This problem is more complex than an income gap. It involves wide disparities in parental time and investment, in community involvement and in academic accomplishment.

Where are the creative conservative policy ideas to strengthen civil society and private enterprise in places where the playing field of equal opportunity is scandalously tilted? 

This history highlights the current conservative divide. Many in the tea party and libertarian wings, if left to their own devices, would say almost nothing about these matters. Yet a number of Republican governors and members of Congress — see recent efforts by Sen. Marco Rubio (Fla.) and Rep. Paul Ryan (Wis.) — promise a more constructive spirit of governance.

The appeal of conservatism as a governing vision now depends on the transformation of this nascent effort into a movement that is strong enough to redefine a party.

1 comment:

UrbanProgressive said...

So much of the Republican agenda is being driven by millionaire pundits that exploit the fears and anxieties of Americans—much like the way the image of mushrooms clouds were used to persuade Americans to get into an unnecessary war.