Posted on 02/07/2016 1:39:56 PM PST by conservativejoy
In the latest debate Donald Trump made it clear, once again, that not only he is not conservative, but he has absolutely no idea what conservatism is. When asked to define conservative, Trump, who usually gives expansive answers, could only manage to speak for less than 30 seconds before running out of ammo. His answer was that "Conservatism means... to conserve... your wealth".
That's not what conservatism is. A two year transfer student into Wharton College (with an uncle in MIT) should be able to give a better answer than that. Marco Rubio, perspiring like a fire hydrant, nonetheless came closer to the mark with his canned answer to the same question: "Conservatism means limited government, free enterprise, and a strong national defense." And he (or whoever prepared him with that answer) is right. Conservatism is about advocating the liberty of the individual and preventing the government from encrouching on it. Conservatism is about protecting private property rights and giving businesses the opportunity to grow without the stranglehold of regulation. It's also about protecting our country with a strong national defense. And, although it didn't occur to Marco or his debate prep team, it's also about adhering to what's in the Constitution.
But Donald Trump didn't raise any of these points. Since he's not and never been a conservative, he knows no more about conservatism than he knows about 'two corinthians'.
But this will not hurt him, because Trump's supporters, by and large, are not conservatives. It seems like a reason that he underperformed in Iowa was that he was competing with Marco Rubio for presumably more moderate voters, and when Marco Rubio surged, it was at Trump's expense.
If Trump supporters are not conservative, what are they? Well, polls have shown they are likely to be less educated than supporters of other candidates, but that doesn't really get to ideology.
Talk show host Mark Levin calls them "agrarian national populists", because of Trump's support for government regulation and subsidies for ethanol. While Trump compares himself to Ronald Reagan, Mark Levin compares him to Richard Nixon, not for Nixon's criminality, but for Nixon's ideological flexibility.
"This is this populism thing," he said. "It's not populism. It's pandering. And let me tell you something else - if you believe in our constitutional system and people say they do, the Constitution is not about populism. It's not about pluralism. It's about liberty. You cannot have a majority of people voting whether or not you have unalienable rights. You have unalienable rights no matter what anybody says. They belong to you. Are we supposed to shred it? Are we supposed to give it up? Is that ideological purity, a phrase that everybody is throwing around now? No we want 1980, not 1968 - 1980, not 1968. We're not ideological purists. We're conservatives."
In the past I've compared Trump supporters to "whateverists", the cult of personality around Chairman Mao who approved of whatever Chairman Mao said because they were so enthralled with Mao. To a lesser extent, this kind of cult of personality is what draws in Trump supporters and makes issues such as "conservatism" and "constitutionalism" irrelevant.
Exit question: If you support Donald Trump, as long as he secures the border, are you content to let him do whatever he thinks is right, even if that isn't defined before he gets elected?
(Abridged version originally published in American Thinker)
Even more disturbing than Trumps demonstrated lack of knowledge on Conservatism, the President’s primary duty is to protect and defend the Constitution against all enemies, both foreign and domestic.
How on earth can someone do that who doesn’t know the Constitution? Ted Cruz has known the Constitution by heart single he was 13 years old. He has defended the Constitution his entire adult life.
I doubt Trump could recite the Preamble.
[Conservatism means... to conserve... your wealth”. That’s not what conservatism is.]
To look at the majority of elected officials newsletters, that is apparently what it means. The only bills they elaborate on are fiscal in nature; NEVER social issues.
Why don’t you quote his entire answer?
Never pay much attention to the definition because it is a contrived definition....means what you want it to mean.
Feel free to recite his entire 30 second answer yourself. He has no clue what Conservatism is.
I didn’t watch it. Unbelievable. But I see Levins point. If trump does win, we are still in trouble but probably less than if any lefty is in there.
And yeah, I do think it's important that this country conserves our wealth. That 19 Trillion debt Obama and the GOPe Cronies have racked up isn't going to take care of itself.
Thank you for your opinion.
His answer was that “Conservatism means... to conserve... your wealth......... “Conservatism means limited government, free enterprise, and a strong national defense.” And he (or whoever prepared him with that answer) is right. .....Conservatism is about protecting private property rights and giving businesses the opportunity to grow without the stranglehold of regulations......Where was Trump wrong?
Conservatism, as used here, is a political term. Therefore, it is understandable that Trump — a non-politician — might have a non-political definition.
Candidates and news junkies use variations of conservatism as their litmus test to measure others. Most of those on the Republican debate stage, at one time or another, claimed to be conservatives. John McCain in AZ is running for reelection against and is trying to give the impression that he is a staunch conservative.
Yes. And the nation’s. And our children’s.
Headline grade: C-
cjoy. Just another poster to ignore.
It doesn’t really matter if Trump’s not as “conservative” as Cruz, Rubio, whoever. not like any of them are going to lead on their beliefs. They’re bought and paid for, they’ll do what they’re told.
So if Trump doesn’t measure up to these solid conservative, I don’t care. He’s more than conservative enough for me and he will actually act on what he believes.
I heard his entire answer and I thought it was good.
In this day and age, Conservatism means growing the Federal Government when you are in Power and then helping the DemoncRats grow the Federal Government when you are out of Power.
So, what did the 2010 and 2014 Mid Term Elections do to bolster Conservatism? Well, we do have Speaker Ryan now.
cough, cough...
Actually, that’s not true. Conservatism is a set of ideals that apply to society and governance, just as liberalism is an opposing ideology.
Maybe if you read some of the seminal writing on conservatism by Edmund Burke, William F. Buckley, Russel Kirk, Barry Goldwater, and others you would learn that Trumps answer was correct and how ignorant you appear by posting things like this.
“A conservative is a person who believes there is something in our life worth saving.”
Well, shouldn’t the nation preserve its wealth? I’m mean, $19T in debt.
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