(delia lloyd-Politicsdaily).The British Conservative party did something astounding at its national conference last week: It spoke to its members like grown-ups. American conservatives would do well to follow suit.
I'm not the first person to suggest that Republicans would do well to steal a page from the Tory playbook. A long line of conservative pundits -- including The New York Times's David Brooks and The Weekly Standard's Fred Barnes -- have been making this case for more than a year now. In particular, they see Conservative party leader David Cameron (pictured) as a pivotal figure in leading his party out of the wilderness, providing a model of how a conservative opposition ought to behave.
I agree with them, but not -- primarily -- for the reasons they lay out.
Their arguments rest mainly on policy - i.e., Cameron has shrewdly rebranded conservativism with a kinder, gentler touch (to borrow a phrase). They point to his embrace of environmentalism, decentralization and social inclusion. (Heck! The man even thinks same-sex partnerships should be treated like heterosexual marriages. Egads!) All this, alongside traditional conservative values of fiscal constraint and national defense.
That's all well and good. But I think what the Tories have done superbly is to treat voters like adults.
Take last week's Conservative conference. George Osborne -- the party's "shadow" chancellor (or secretary of Treasury) -- told the party faithful that he would freeze pay for all but the poorest public-sector workers, raise the retirement age, cut benefit payments to middle-class families and slash civil service spending. He also told the City of London (the equivalent of Wall Street) that it might face higher taxes.
Wowza. That's a whole lot of honesty from one politician. But apparently, the Tories think voters can take it.
And guess what?
So far, party members -- and the electorate more broadly -- are responding favorably. The Conservative party now enjoys a double-digit lead over the government's Labour party. Voters apparently feel that a Tory government is more likely to make cuts with the best interests of ordinary people at heart.
Note that this message of fiscal conservatism is exactly the same one that animates many conservatives in the land of the free and the home of brave, most notably in the newly fashionable Tea Party movement. Except that British conservatives are able to promote this message without calling their country's leader a socialist . . . or yelling "You Lie!". . . or questioning his citizenship.
I'm not the first person to suggest that Republicans would do well to steal a page from the Tory playbook. A long line of conservative pundits -- including The New York Times's David Brooks and The Weekly Standard's Fred Barnes -- have been making this case for more than a year now. In particular, they see Conservative party leader David Cameron (pictured) as a pivotal figure in leading his party out of the wilderness, providing a model of how a conservative opposition ought to behave.
I agree with them, but not -- primarily -- for the reasons they lay out.
Their arguments rest mainly on policy - i.e., Cameron has shrewdly rebranded conservativism with a kinder, gentler touch (to borrow a phrase). They point to his embrace of environmentalism, decentralization and social inclusion. (Heck! The man even thinks same-sex partnerships should be treated like heterosexual marriages. Egads!) All this, alongside traditional conservative values of fiscal constraint and national defense.
That's all well and good. But I think what the Tories have done superbly is to treat voters like adults.
Take last week's Conservative conference. George Osborne -- the party's "shadow" chancellor (or secretary of Treasury) -- told the party faithful that he would freeze pay for all but the poorest public-sector workers, raise the retirement age, cut benefit payments to middle-class families and slash civil service spending. He also told the City of London (the equivalent of Wall Street) that it might face higher taxes.
Wowza. That's a whole lot of honesty from one politician. But apparently, the Tories think voters can take it.
And guess what?
So far, party members -- and the electorate more broadly -- are responding favorably. The Conservative party now enjoys a double-digit lead over the government's Labour party. Voters apparently feel that a Tory government is more likely to make cuts with the best interests of ordinary people at heart.
Note that this message of fiscal conservatism is exactly the same one that animates many conservatives in the land of the free and the home of brave, most notably in the newly fashionable Tea Party movement. Except that British conservatives are able to promote this message without calling their country's leader a socialist . . . or yelling "You Lie!". . . or questioning his citizenship.
1 comment:
Thanks for the link. Really appreciate it.
Best, Delia Lloyd
www.politicsdaily.com
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