"Conservatism" is a Lie
And it always has been.
Conservatives have always claimed to care about patriotism, law and order, fiscal responsibility, personal morality and children.
They gave us the January 6th riots, wasteful and pointless wars, public lawlessness, the largest budget deficits in history, and the Epstein files.
Conservatism has never been about patriotism, or law, or morality. It is, and always was about power, using that power to protect their wealth and privileges, and brutally punishing dissent.
That is why the “christian nationalists,” and “fiscal conservatives” put aside their “principles” so readily and embraced a man like Trump, whose personal morals would shock a prison cell block, and whose actions have been both fiscally and legally reckless to an insane degree. They want access to power, Trump has it, and that’s as far as their “moral” calculus extends.
They have ignored judicial rulings with impunity, overturned Constitutional precedents, attacked the freedom of the press, and ignored every legal limitation on power. They ignore judicial rulings against them, and attack the rule of law and the judiciary publicly.
Those who murder protesters and attack police officers get protection and pardons. Those who rape children get redactions and cover-ups. Those who plunder the public treasury get sweetheart deals and further tax cuts.
Those who peacefully protest get brutalized, bullied, prosecuted and murdered.
Those who oppose them politically get slander, death threats and violent attacks.
The brutality is not a last resort. It is their preferred method of dealing with dissent.
They are not “Conservatives,” any more than the “Union of Soviet Socialist Republics” was a republic. They are white supremacist, greed-worshipping radicals, seeking to destroy every vestige of the Constitutional system and American liberty in favor of authoritarian rule.
They are authoritarian radicals. And they always have been.
Every word of this. Thirty-seven years in federal service, watching the institutional rot spread in real time, and the 'principles' were always bullshit. What I've seen up close, and what I've watched play out in my own family, is that the moment power was on the table, every stated value evaporated without a second thought. Patriotism, rule of law, fiscal discipline, basic decency toward children: gone, instantly, for a man who embodies none of it. This isn't a recent corruption of conservatism. It's the thing itself, finally undisguised.
I recently tried to provide examples of my conservative values and mentioned environmental conservation. It didn't land well.