What Does It Mean To Be a “Conservative?”

For a half century before the election of President Ronald Reagan, it was politically acceptable throughout much of America to describe oneself as a “liberal” or a “progressive.” Since the election of President Reagan in 1980, it is increasingly difficult to find a self-admitted “liberal,” but politicians of all stripes and philosophies are happy to call themselves conservatives.

Within the Republican Party there are “economic conservatives,” “social conservatives,” “religious conservatives,” “fiscal conservatives,” “neoconservatives,” “paleoconservatives,” and given the enormous growth of government in the past decade here in South Carolina and at the federal level where most Republicans consider themselves conservatives, it appears there are even “big government conservatives,” or as they prefer to call themselves, “compassionate conservatives.” Indeed, both of our political parties contain a mixing of political philosophies, and this mixing can even be found within single candidates and elected officials.

To make matters even more confusing, the terminology we use for describing the major political philosophies has evolved to the point that what we regard as conservative today is really classical liberalism, which was the philosophy of Jefferson and the signers of the Declaration of Independence. It is the philosophy that permeates our founding documents and strongly shaped American thought and history until fairly recently.

Many Americans are frustrated by the inconsistencies, contradictions, and compromises that are all too typical of so many holding offices today. Accordingly, in the coming weeks this blog will attempt to objectively address the history of the conservative movement, its major thinkers and political practitioners, its major philosophical foundations and ideas, and how those ideas translate into policy today.

I am convinced that the ideas upon which our nation was founded account for the freedom and prosperity that we have enjoyed for much of our history and that when we depart from those principles our economy suffers and the social fabric of our nation begins to fray. I am also convinced that only when we understand the great principles, formed through centuries of experience, secured through much bloodshed, and upon which our nation was founded, can we ensure the survival of our great republic, which is, in the words of President Reagan, “the last best hope of men on earth.”

The subject I will tackle in coming weeks is large, but it is an exercise that I believe is important to our state and nation. As always, I hope you will share your thoughts and join the discussion.