“Big Government Conservatism”
There is no such thing, and people who vote for it are not conservatives.
“Big Government Conservatism” exists. The phrase was first used by Fred Barnes to describe George W. Bush who is, in fact, a “Big Government Conservative.”
George W. Bush saw Big Government Conservatism as a trade-off. To gain free-market reforms and expand individual choice, he was willing to broaden programs and increase spending. Thus his aim in proposing to add a prescription drug benefit to Medicare is to reform the entire health-care system for seniors.
George W. Bush believed that People like big government so long as it is not a huge drag on the economy.
I am a Conservative. It was well known that George W. Bush was a “Big Government Conservative” well before 2004. I still voted for George W. Bush in 2004 because the alternative was worse.
I am a Conservative. I hate Big Government Conservatism. Big Government Conservatism is a total failure. But whatever it is, “Soviet Style Communism” is far worse.
When faced with a choice between “Big Government Conservatism” and “Soviet Style Communism,” I, a Conservative, will reluctantly vote for “Big Government Conservatism.” And hate it.