{"id":1494,"date":"2016-05-10T11:56:24","date_gmt":"2016-05-10T15:56:24","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/attheintersectionoffaithandculture\/?p=1494"},"modified":"2016-05-10T11:56:24","modified_gmt":"2016-05-10T15:56:24","slug":"the-conservative-dilemma-of-the-nevertrumpster","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/attheintersectionoffaithandculture\/2016\/05\/the-conservative-dilemma-of-the-nevertrumpster.html","title":{"rendered":"The “Conservative” Dilemma of the NeverTrumpster"},"content":{"rendered":"

The NeverTrumpster is on the horns of a dilemma, for if Trump is the faux conservative that he claims he is, then so too are presidential candidates that they\u2019ve supported <\/em>the same. On the other hand, if the latter are conservative, then so too is Trump conservative.<\/p>\n

John McCain 2008<\/strong><\/p>\n

A self-confessed admirer of Big Government \u201cprogressive\u201d Theodore Roosevelt, McCain allied with another Teddy\u2014Ted Kennedy\u2014to grant amnesty to 12 to 20 million illegal immigrants. He as well joined with Democrat Russ Feingold to pass \u201ccampaign finance reform,\u201d a set of federally-imposed restrictions on the first amendment that the Supreme Court deemed unconstitutional.<\/p>\n

McCain rejected George W. Bush\u2019s tax cuts \u201cfor the rich,\u201d and he joined the \u201cGang of 14,\u201d a bipartisan coalition of Republican and Democrat senators that existed for the sake of enabling the Democrat minority to block those of President Bush\u2019s judicial nominees like Sam Alito who McCain described as \u201ctoo conservative<\/a>,\u201d managed to make it to the bench (Unfortunately for McCain, Alito survived the confirmation hearings).<\/p>\n

McCain, a firm believer in anthropogenic<\/em> \u201cglobal warming,\u201d proposed \u201ccap and trade\u201d legislation, a move that, had it been successful, would\u2019ve left \u201cthe American economy in tatters<\/a>; supported using taxpayers\u2019 monies via the federal government for embryonic stem cell research; and, while claiming to be \u201cpro-life,\u201d never tired of castigating Republicans for talking about abortion<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The NeverTrumpster states as a reason for rejecting Trump the latter\u2019s \u201ctemperament.\u201d Yet as both Democrat<\/a> and <\/em>Republican<\/a> sources have verified, McCain has a notoriously terrible temper. On multiple occasions, he has berated and cursed out those of his colleagues\u2014and his fellow Republicans <\/em>to boot!\u2014with whom he has disagreed. John \u201cMcNasty\u201d<\/a> McCain is as well known for making off-color remarks and, allegedly, has even gotten physical<\/a> with people who have upset him.<\/p>\n

Mitt Romney 2012<\/strong><\/p>\n

This Massachusetts liberal<\/a> was the darling of the NeverTrumpster during the primaries of both<\/em> 2008 and<\/em> 2012. National Review, <\/em>far from sponsoring an \u201cAgainst Romney\u201d symposium, endorsed him\u2014twice. So too did those \u201cconservative\u201d talk radio hosts who are now weeping over Ted Cruz\u2019s defeat<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Both the politically opportunistic timing as well as the blatant nature of Romney\u2019s \u201cflip flops\u201d over a range of issues made him the classic textbook case of the shameless politician.<\/p>\n

However, the NeverTrumpster assured us, Romney had \u201cevolved<\/a>.\u201d It didn\u2019t matter how many different positions Romney held. It didn\u2019t matter that his \u201cRomneycare\u201d was the blueprint for Obamacare, or that he ran to the left<\/em><\/a> of Ted Kennedy in their Massachusetts senate race on the issues of abortion, \u201cgay marriage,\u201d and the rights of gun owners. It didn\u2019t matter that he praised portions of Obamacare during his first debate with the President, or that he substantially raised taxes while governor of Massachusetts\u2014\u201cconservatives\u201d still supported him<\/a>.<\/p>\n

It didn\u2019t matter that, six years after <\/em>Ronald Reagan left office, Romney claimed to have left<\/a> the Republican Party because of the damage inflicted upon its label courtesy of Reagan.<\/p>\n

The NeverTrumpster embraced the real Romney<\/a>.<\/p>\n

George W. Bush<\/strong><\/p>\n

To this day, the NeverTrumpster refuses to recognize this \u201cconservative\u201d president for the Big Government \u201cprogressive\u201d that he was.<\/p>\n

Yet Bush II inflicted massive\u2014indeed, quite possibly unprecedented<\/em>\u2014damage on the Republican Party. Thanks to our 43rd<\/sup> president, the country witnessed the GOP-dominated Congress that Bush II inherited transform into a Congress with Democrat supermajorities<\/a> in both chambers.<\/p>\n

Bush\u2019s role in thrusting the country leftward can\u2019t be overstated. As even Mark Levin, a one-time <\/em>self-described \u201cbig fan\u201d of Bush, concedes, the federal government grew<\/a> under 43 at a rate that significantly surpassed<\/em> that at which it expanded under LBJ\u2019s \u201cGreat Society!\u201d<\/p>\n

Amnesty<\/a>; McCain-Feingold<\/a>; No Child Left Behind<\/a>; the Homeownership Society<\/a>; federal funding for embryonic stem-cell research<\/a>; Medicare part B<\/a>; the creation of the bureaucratic behemoth, Department of Homeland Security<\/a>; TARP<\/a>; the Economic Stimulus<\/a> and Housing and Economic Recovery Acts<\/a> of 2008\u2014these are just some<\/em> of the ways in which our last \u201cconservative\u201d president advanced the cause of centralization and social \u201cprogressivism.\u201d<\/p>\n

However, while Trumpphobes (as well as, to be fair, many in the \u201cconservative\u201d media<\/a> who are now <\/em>styling themselves opponents of \u201cthe Establishment\u201d) would have us forget this, Bush, not unlike Woodrow Wilson in an earlier era, insisted upon taking his \u201cprogressivism\u201d (and the rest of us) global<\/em> so as to make the world, the Islamic world specifically, \u201csafe for Democracy\u201d under the pretext of the \u201cWar on Terror<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n

Not coincidentally, McCain<\/a> and Romney<\/a> also excitedly embraced this democratizing project\u2014a project that the vast majority of the electorate rejected in no uncertain terms in 2006 and 2008.<\/p>\n

Ronald Reagan<\/strong><\/p>\n

What about Reagan<\/em>? Well, this \u201cconservative\u201d president whose legacy Trump allegedly threatens to squander, upon cutting taxes in \u201981, proceeded to raise <\/em>taxes 11<\/em> times<\/em><\/a> in subsequent years. And he raised payroll taxes<\/em> to pay for \u201cgovernment-run healthcare,<\/a>\u201d i.e. Medicare (as well as<\/em> to subsidize Social Security). Medicaid<\/a> expanded <\/em>under Reagan.<\/p>\n

The federal government grew exponentially <\/em>under Reagan<\/a>, and the Gipper abolished not a single program<\/a>, much less an agency. In fact, he actually created <\/em>a new government department<\/a>.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s much hand ringing on the part of \u201cconservatives\u201d\u2014and \u201cReagan conservatives\u201d especially!\u2014over Trump\u2019s \u201cprotectionism.\u201d But Reagan<\/em> was \u201cprotectionist<\/a> (as shown here<\/a> and here<\/a>).<\/p>\n

Reagan amnestied millions<\/a> of illegal immigrants; \u201ccut and run<\/a>\u201d when over 240 Marines were murdered fighting Islamic terrorists; appointed two left-leaning<\/a> justices to the Supreme Court; and, once his tenure was over, supported the Brady bill<\/a>.<\/p>\n

As governor of California, this celebrity-turned-politician (sounds very contemporary, does it not?)\u2014who didn\u2019t become a Republican until he was in his 50\u2019s–<\/em>legalized abortion<\/a>, <\/em>imposed both \u201cgun-control<\/a>\u201d and the largest tax increase in the history of the state<\/a>, and proposed mandatory health insurance<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The NeverTrumpster\u2019s dilemma is inescapable: If these GOP presidential candidates are \u201cconservative,\u201d then so too is Trump the same. On the other hand, if Trump is not a conservative, then neither is these \u201cconservative\u201d candidates anything of the kind.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The NeverTrumpster is on the horns of a dilemma, for if Trump is the faux conservative that he claims he is, then so too are presidential candidates that they\u2019ve supported the same. On the other hand, if the latter are conservative, then so too is Trump conservative. John McCain 2008 A self-confessed admirer of Big…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":399,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1494","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"yoast_head":"\nThe "Conservative" Dilemma of the NeverTrumpster<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/attheintersectionoffaithandculture\/2016\/05\/the-conservative-dilemma-of-the-nevertrumpster.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The "Conservative" Dilemma of the NeverTrumpster\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The NeverTrumpster is on the horns of a dilemma, for if Trump is the faux conservative that he claims he is, then so too are presidential candidates that they\u2019ve supported the same. On the other hand, if the latter are conservative, then so too is Trump conservative. John McCain 2008 A self-confessed admirer of Big…\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/attheintersectionoffaithandculture\/2016\/05\/the-conservative-dilemma-of-the-nevertrumpster.html\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"At the Intersection of Faith and Culture\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2016-05-10T15:56:24+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Jack Kerwick\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"The \"Conservative\" Dilemma of the NeverTrumpster","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/attheintersectionoffaithandculture\/2016\/05\/the-conservative-dilemma-of-the-nevertrumpster.html","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"The \"Conservative\" Dilemma of the NeverTrumpster","og_description":"The NeverTrumpster is on the horns of a dilemma, for if Trump is the faux conservative that he claims he is, then so too are presidential candidates that they\u2019ve supported the same. 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I teach philosophy at several colleges in the New Jersey and Pennsylvania areas.","sameAs":["http:\/\/www.jackkerwick.com"],"url":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/attheintersectionoffaithandculture\/author\/jkerwick"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/attheintersectionoffaithandculture\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1494","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/attheintersectionoffaithandculture\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/attheintersectionoffaithandculture\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/attheintersectionoffaithandculture\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/399"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/attheintersectionoffaithandculture\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1494"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/attheintersectionoffaithandculture\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1494\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1495,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/attheintersectionoffaithandculture\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1494\/revisions\/1495"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/attheintersectionoffaithandculture\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1494"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/attheintersectionoffaithandculture\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1494"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/attheintersectionoffaithandculture\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1494"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}