The Republican Party was in an excellent position to sweep to substantial Congressional majorities in the midterms this year. Yet, it flopped. Why?
There is no question that Donald Trump’s stolen election demagoguery cost them many seats. But there’s more to the story, I believe. Abortion, in the form of the Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe v. Wade, is believed to have been a major factor. Another is the threat that horrendously reactionary ruling implies for Obergefell v. Hodges, which legalized same-sex marriage across America.
The second cause leads me to a book published about a decade agoe, American Individualism—How a New Generation of Conservatives Can Save the Republican Party—which I reviewed for The Objective Standard. The author, Margaret Hoover, great-granddaughter of Herbert Hoover, made a strong case for the idea that social/religious conservatives were holding the Republican Party back from political dominance. On abortion, gay marriage, drug prohibition, immigration, and other social conservative causes, the GOP was losing votes that they should naturally be able to attract, Hoover argued. Her solution was to embrace a consistent platform of American Individualism, which would lead to pro-individual rights positions on these and other issues, including the environment and, naturally, economics.
This is a winning platform, Hoover argues, but not until the GOP disconnects its allegiance from the powerful social/religious conservative movement, which contradicts the Republican Party’s historical allegiance to individual rights and limited rights-protecting government.
I believe the biggest political story of 2022 is the vindication of Margaret Hoover’s thesis. The Republican Party must become the party of American Individualism, and all that the principle implies. A consistent platform of individual rights in the social, economic, and academic fields, accompanied by a consistent allegiance to limited government interference in people’s lives generally, could very likely be the path to solid GOP dominance. If the Republican Party abandons American Individualism—currently, the Trump-infused Party is actually moving away from individualism—it will likely “fade into irrelevance.”
While Hoover is not always consistent, and leaves room for challenge from consistent advocates of individual liberty on some points, she generally points down the correct road. Now more than ever, it’s time for the GOP to heed her challenge and warning. As I concluded in my TOS review:
General support for individualism as the American political ideal is simultaneously a means to a better political environment in the short term and to greater opportunities to make the case for the deeper principles. Imagine a GOP with the explicit banner “American Individualism” firmly planted atop its political platform. This would greatly expand the opportunity for truly consistent champions of individualism to enter the mainstream of political dialogue. It could explicitly redefine American politics as a clash between individualism and collectivism, compelling Republicans toward consistency in defense of freedom while painting Democrats into a collectivist corner. And within both the Republican party and in the country at large, it could infuse U.S. politics with a badly needed debate on individual rights, the proper role of government, and the deeper moral principles at play.
Despite its flaws, Margaret Hoover’s American Individualism is a step by a conservative toward genuine liberty and an opportunity for capitalists to change the terms of the debate for the better.
It’s time—or the GOP’s time may run out.
Related Reading:
Review: American Individualism, by Margaret Hoover by me for The Objective Standard
Contra Mark Levin, Americanism Rests on Reason, Not Faith
George Will: A Conservative “None” in Need of Ayn Rand’s Theory of Rights by Stephen Bourque and Craig Biddle for TOS
A New Textbook of Americanism — edited by Jonathan Hoenig
America's Revolutionary Mind: A Moral History of the American Revolution and the Declaration That Defined It by C. Bradley Thompson.
Individualism vs. Collectivism: Our Future, Our Choice—Craig Biddle
On This Constitution Day, Remember the Declaration of Independence
No comments:
Post a Comment