By “Aaron March”
Political commentator Michael Malice once described conservatism as progressivism while driving on a speed limit. I don’t necessarily disagree with this statement, especially since the country has certainly moved further Left on cultural issues over the past couple of years, but Malice’s argument does, however, beg the question: what does it mean to be a conservative if we’ve failed to conserve anything?
Since the rise of the Populist Right, you’d think this would give the GOP the opportunity to turn the tide away from the wave of woke activism that has plagued our country, and back in our favor for a change. Unfortunately, however, it seems like this prospect is being abandoned by the party’s leaders, thus proving Malice’s point.
For instance, on April 9, the Arizona Supreme Court ruled that it could enforce an abortion law that was first passed in 1864 and later codified in 1901. It outlaws abortion entirely, with the only exception being to save the mother’s life. The law would subject anyone aiding in the process of abortion to be imprisoned for two to five years.
Ideally, so-called “conservatives” should praise the law, appreciating the possibility of saving thousands of additional lives from execution within the womb. Instead, we see that prominent leaders in the GOP are shying away from vocalizing their support.
Kari Lake, former Republican nominee for Arizona’s 2022 gubernatorial election and current candidate for US Senate, condemned the law, despite once promoting herself as being pro-life. In fact, after the court’s recent ruling, Lake stated that she opposes the decision and is, “calling on Katie Hobbs [current AZ governor] and the state legislature to come up with an immediate common sense solution that Arizonans can support.”
Simultaneously, former President Donald Trump also condemned the Arizona law, even after speaking in support of leaving the issue to the states, rather than enforcing a nation-wide ban. Despite helping to pave the way for the Dobbs decision and advancing the pro-life cause, he has also stated, “you must follow your heart on this issue, but remember, you must also win elections to restore our culture.”
But, how exactly can we restore our culture by ceasing more ground to the Left?
We must understand that abandoning principle is not an option. The more we stray from our party platform, the more power we, as conservatives, give to the other side, and politicians like Lake and Trump are just enabling this by using pro-choice language in an attempt to appeal to more moderate voters. They make the mistake of assuming that they might win more votes in total by refusing to take up more hardline stances against abortion as a whole. This is incredibly dangerous and unlikely, as they actually may risk losing more votes by failing to keep up with the demands of their main base of Evangelicals and social conservatives. After all, the prospect of a pro-choice “conservative” winning elections is already very rare.
The GOP must also understand that it is, indeed, possible to win elections by advocating against abortion. The most notable examples of this would be in Ohio, Texas, and South Dakota, where pro-life Republicans have overwhelmingly been elected into state offices, even after restricting abortion rights. Not only that, but the abortion issue itself is not even a top priority for the majority of voters.
There is no reason for us to back away from the pro-life cause. Despite losing some cultural ground over the years, abortion is an issue that the GOP has been given a unique opportunity to push back on. Considering we’ve spent the last fifty years fighting for the rights of the unborn, there’s no excuse as to why we should give up on the issue entirely.
How we frame the issue matters when it comes to what strategy we should use. If President Joe Biden can refer to anti-abortion laws as, “a result of the extreme agenda of Republican elected officials who are committed to ripping away women’s freedom,” then we must also update our rhetoric. The liberals will try to frame this issue as that of what rights one should have. Therefore, it is in the best interests of conservative candidates to promote the idea that the unborn are human lives and are entitled to the same rights as everyone else.
In this regard, Lake should not have stated that she opposed the Arizona ruling. She should’ve supported its restriction on abortion as something to be left to the State to decide, avoided addressing the idea of a federal ban, and framed the issue in a way that shows it is not a right to kill anyone out of convenience. She should also consider sharing her views on her campaign trail, and focus on presenting the idea of the unborn as unique, human lives, ones that are being taken away as a result of pointless abortions. In short, Lake should do whatever it takes to make it harder for others to not be able to configure them with personhood. By doing otherwise, she risks destroying the support she is building to win her Senate race and conceding more territory to the Left.
The time is now to unite the GOP and to not split the party over polarizing ideas regarding abortion. If the current heads of the party refuse to abide by our principles, then perhaps we will need new leadership in the future who won’t have the intention to sell us out. This doesn’t mean I find the Populist Right detrimental to the party, but they need to start fighting back. Pandering buffoons like Lake and Trump will repeat whatever talking point they have up their sleeves just to fail to score a vote at the expense of their supporters and then lose elections by shooting themselves in the foot. We should play no part in aiding the Left whatsoever. The sooner we implement a proper strategy before November, the better.
“Aaron March” (pseudonym) is a sophomore at Chapman University. He is majoring in business administration and minoring in history.
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