Other Spaces

The End of Neoconservatism

After 2001 my political prognosis was very different than now, in 2006. Bush’s foreign policy plans were all but approved by Congress following 9/11, including the reckless pre-emptive strike on Iraq; domestic policies, including the unfortunate Patriot Act, were almost all rubber-stamped approved by a cowering Congress; and Republicans made gains in the house and the senate in consecutive elections. Needless to say, the conservative movement seemed alive and well, though I think any contemporary political prognosis must take into account that this movement may very well be in demise, and here’s why.

The neoconservative branch of the conservative movement is markedly in decline. Fukayama, the supposed intellectual progenitor of the neoconservative movement, has stated that the Iraq War is in shambles, calls for resignations and investigations into Sec. Rumsfield and other policy "hawks" are increasing, and many initiatives of the Bush administration, including his privatization for social security, aren’t even seeing the light of day of a congressional vote. Democrats consistently outpoll Republicans in polls for 2006, and it is not a question of whether Democrats will pick up seats in the house or senate, but instead just how many. Though the media is certainly corporate -- and thus, by logical extension, conservative – and Republicans will continue to hold majorities in both chambers after 2006 in all probability, the political mood is swinging away from the neoconservative movement and instead towards progressivism.

It is important that not only will Americans move away from conservatism and all its permutations in terms of cultural identity and larger societal shifts, but also that the political structure also becomes Democratic; without votes and winning elections, this anti-Bush and anti-conservative thrust means very little except on a local level. As evidenced in the financial backing of Sen. Kerry in 2004, Democrats can compete financially with the richer Republican elite, and this relatively equal distribution of resources for election is important for Democrats to win over the electorate. In some respects, just as, factually speaking, one must support evolution over creationism because it demonstrates concrete truths, so might American society come to understand and sympathize with the demonstrable truths of progressive politics, and move towards a left-of-center country, particularly in the fields of universal health care, environmental protection, a balanced foreign policy and war on terror, preservation of civil rights, and ethical but pro-business economic policies.

posted by Michael Martin @ 2:22 PM