The American Right Wing

The Rise and Influence of the NRA

Dismayed by the lack of marksmanship shown by their troops, Union veterans Col. William C. Church and Gen. George Wingate formed the National Rifle Association in 1871. The primary goal of the association would be to "promote and encourage rifle shooting on a scientific basis," according to a magazine editorial written by Church. The NRA's interest in promoting the shooting sports among America's youth began in 1903 when NRA Secretary Albert S. Jones urged the establishment of rifle clubs at all major colleges, universities and military academies. By 1906, NRA's youth program was in full swing with more than 200 boys competing in matches at Sea Girt that summer. Today, youth programs are still a cornerstone of the NRA, with more than one million youth participating in NRA shooting sports events and affiliated programs with groups such as 4-H, the Boy Scouts of America, the American Legion, Royal Rangers, National High School Rodeo Association and others. In 1990, NRA made a dramatic move to ensure that the financial support for firearms-related activities would be available now and for future generations. Establishing the NRA Foundation, a 501 (c) (3) tax-exempt organization, provided a means to raise millions of dollars to fund gun safety and educational projects of benefit to the general public. Contributions to the Foundation are tax-deductible and benefit a variety of American constituencies including youth, women, hunters, competitive shooters, gun collectors, law enforcement agents and persons with physical disabilities. While widely recognized today as a major political force and as America's foremost defender of Second Amendment rights, the NRA has, since its inception, been the premier firearms education organization in the world. But our successes would not be possible without the tireless efforts and countless hours of service our nearly five million members have given to champion Second Amendment rights and support NRA programs. As former Clinton spokesman George Stephanopoulos said, "Let me make one small vote for the NRnA. They're good citizens. They call their congressmen. They write. They vote. They contribute. And they get what they want over time." Seen as one of the three most influential lobbying groups in DC.

Richard Nixon

- Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913 - April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 until 1974. The nation's 36th vice president from 1953 to 1961, he came to national prominence as a representative and senator from California. After five years in the White House that saw the conclusion to the U.S. involvement in the Vietnam War, and the establishment of the Environmental Protection Agency, he became the only president to resign from the office. - Nixon was born to a poor family in a small town in Southern California. He graduated from Duke University School of Law in 1937 and returned to California to practice law. He and his wife Pat moved to Washington in 1942 to work for the federal government. He served on active duty in the Navy Reserve during World War II. He was elected to the House of Representatives in 1946. His pursuit of the Hiss Case established his reputation as a leading anti-Communist and elevated him to national prominence, and he was elected to the Senate in 1950. He was the running mate of Dwight D. Eisenhower, the Republican Party presidential nominee in the 1952 election, and he became the second-youngest vice president in history at age 40, serving for eight years in that capacity. He waged an unsuccessful presidential campaign in 1960, narrowly losing to John F. Kennedy, and he lost a race for governor of California to Pat Brown in 1962. In 1968, he ran for the presidency again and was elected, defeating Vice President Hubert Humphrey and Alabama Governor George Wallace in a close election. - Nixon ended American involvement in the war in Vietnam in 1973, ending the military draft that same year. Nixon's visit to China in 1972 eventually led to diplomatic relations between the two nations, and he initiated détente and the Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty with the Soviet Union the same year. His administration generally transferred power from federal control to state control. He imposed wage and price controls for 90 days, enforced desegregation of Southern schools, established the Environmental Protection Agency, and began the War on Cancer. He also presided over the Apollo 11 moon landing, which signaled the end of the moon race. He was re-elected in one of the largest electoral landslides in American history in 1972 when he defeated George McGovern. - In his second term, Nixon ordered an airlift to resupply Israeli losses in the Yom Kippur War, leading to the oil crisis at home. By late 1973, the Watergate scandal escalated, costing Nixon much of his political support. On August 9, 1974, he resigned in the face of almost certain impeachment and removal from office—the only time an American president has done so. After his resignation, he was issued a controversial pardon by his successor, Gerald Ford. In 20 years of retirement, Nixon wrote his memoirs and nine other books and undertook many foreign trips, thereby rehabilitating his image into that of an elder statesman and leading expert on foreign affairs. He suffered a debilitating stroke on April 18, 1994, and died four days later at age 81. Personal: - He was known for being kind of awkward and strange. Context: - Law and Order and anti-hippy stance was key to his success, he was a reaction to the 1960s hippie stuff. Border state strategy was very effective. Watergate: On August 5, 1974, the White House released a previously unknown audio tape from June 23, 1972. Recorded only a few days after the break-in, it documented the initial stages of the cover-up: it revealed Nixon and Haldeman had conducted a meeting in the Oval Office where they discussed how to stop the FBI from continuing their investigation of the break-in, as they recognised that there was a high risk that their position in the scandal may be revealed.After explaining how the money from CRP was traced to the burglars, Haldeman explained to Nixon the cover-up plan: "the way to handle this now is for us to have Walters [CIA] call Pat Gray [FBI] and just say, 'Stay the hell out of this ... this is ah, business here we don't want you to go any further on it.'"[80] Nixon approved the plan, and after he was given more information about the involvement of his campaign in the break-in, he told Haldeman: "All right, fine, I understand it all. We won't second-guess Mitchell and the rest." Returning to the use of the CIA to obstruct the FBI, he instructed Haldeman: "You call them in. Good. Good deal. Play it tough. That's the way they play it and that's the way we are going to play it."[80][81] Nixon denied that this constituted an obstruction of justice, as his instructions ultimately resulted in the CIA truthfully reporting to the FBI that there were no national security issues. Nixon urged the FBI to press forward with the investigation when they expressed concern about interference. Before the release of this tape, Nixon had denied any involvement in the scandal. He claimed that there were no political motivations in his instructions to the CIA, and claimed he had no knowledge before March 21, 1973, of involvement by senior campaign officials such as John Mitchell. The contents of this tape persuaded Nixon's own lawyers, Fred Buzhardt and James St. Clair, that "the President had lied to the nation, to his closest aides, and to his own lawyers—for more than two years".[83] The tape, which Barber Conable referred to as a "smoking gun", proved that Nixon had been involved in the cover-up from the beginning. The release of the "smoking gun" tape destroyed Nixon politically. The ten congressmen who had voted against all three articles of impeachment in the House Judiciary Committee announced they would all support the impeachment article accusing Nixon of obstructing justice when the articles came up before the full House.[86] Additionally, Rhodes, the House leader of Nixon's party, announced that he would vote to impeach, stating that "coverup of criminal activity and misuse of federal agencies can neither be condoned nor tolerated".[87] Important to realize that he didn't know he would kick butt next election.

Proud Boys

- The Proud Boys is a far-right neo-fascist[9][10][11] organization that admits only men as members and promotes political violence.[2][12][13][14] It is based in the United States and has a presence in Canada, Australia, and the United Kingdom.[15][16] The group was started in 2016 by Vice Media co-founder and former commentator Gavin McInnes, taking its name from the song "Proud of Your Boy" from the Disney film Aladdin.[17][18] Proud Boys emerged as part of the alt-right, but in early 2017, McInnes began distancing himself from the alt-right, saying the alt-right's focus is race while his focus is what he defines as "Western values". This re-branding effort intensified after the Unite the Right Rally.[19][20] The Proud Boys say they have an initiation process that has four stages and includes hazing. The first stage is a loyalty oath, on the order of "I'm a proud Western chauvinist, I refuse to apologize for creating the modern world"; the second is getting punched until the person recites pop culture trivia, such as the names of five breakfast cereals; the third is getting a tattoo and agreeing to not masturbate; and the fourth is getting into a major fight "for the cause."[25][18][49][50][51][52] The Proud Boys discourages its members from masturbating and watching pornography so as to motivate them to get "off the couch" and meet women.[51] McInnes added no masturbation to the group's core ideas after interacting with Dante Nero, a relationship expert and comedian with a podcast on Riotcast, who came to serve as a sort of "pope" for this idea within the organization.[57] In October 2018 McInnes gave a talk at the Metropolitan Republican Club on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. He stepped out of his car wearing glasses with Asian eyes drawn on the front and pulled a samurai sword out of its sheath. Police forced him inside. Later, inside the event, McInnes and an Asian member of the Proud Boys re-enacted the 1960 murder of Inejiro Asanuma, the leader of the Japanese Socialist Party; a captioned photograph of the actual murder had become a meme in alt-right social media.[37] The audience for the event was described by The New York Times as "a cross-section of New York's far-right subculture: libertarians, conspiracy theorists and nationalists who have coalesced around their opposition to Islam, feminism and liberal politics."[91] Roger Stone, the long-time informal advisor to Donald Trump, has close connections to the Proud Boys. According to University of Nevada researcher Samantha Kutner, during McInnes' time as head of the group, Stone was "one of only three approved media figures allowed to speak" about the group. A photo of Stone, Fox News anchor Tucker Carlson and two Proud Boys in the Fox News greenroom was posted by Stone on Instagram in May 2018. Reddit Takes: - Gavin Mcinnes is a crazy mother ****er that pleasured himself anally on camera to "own the libs" and ate frosted flakes after he pissed on them. I like some of his videos (at least older ones, haven't watched him in a year or two) but anyone that would join a group lead by someone like that, who apparently also gives them all rules for masterbation...are probably also crazy. I don't think they are that big of a threat, political rallies ever since the 2016 election have just been a shit fest that has shitty people on both sides. I would like to see groups like these on both sides not show up and cause issues to any rally/demonstration. - Never heard of them until yesterday. If you allow Antifa to exist, there will be a counter movement. You can't expect people to take harassment lying down. This is called "escalation". Note the guy at the beginning says: We like Trump Political correctness is just another word for censorship Gender pay gap's a myth Islam is not a very good ideology and we're allowed to criticize it. I agree with all these statements. 1/4 are opinions and 2/3 are facts. Cut to guy calling them "White Nationalism". So now I'm a white nationalist? This is basically how guys are getting radicalized. Steven Pinker basically explain how liberals are creating the Proud Boys. - They routinely call people ******s Proud Boy Jason Kessler helped set up the Unite the Right rally, which is one of the defining moments for the alt-right. Gavin McInnes is a sexist: Maybe the reason I'm sexist is because women are dumb. No, I'm just kidding, ladies. But you do tend to not thrive in certain areas — like writing." —Gavin McInnes, The Gavin McInnes Show, June 28, 2017 and a racist: I just realized something. Cory Booker is kind of like Sambo. He's kind of shucking and jiving for the white man. —Gavin McInnes on his CRTV show "Get Off My Lawn," January 17, 2018 Well, at least they're not ******s or Puerto Ricans. At least they're white. — Gavin McInnes on what he thinks about his Williamsburg neighbors, New York Press, 2002 and an islamophobe: I'm not a fan of Islam. I think it's fair to call me Islamophobic." —Gavin McInnes, NBC interview, 2017 Palestinians are stupid. Muslims are stupid. And the only thing they really respect is violence and being tough." —Gavin McInnes, The Gavin McInnes Show, March 8, 2017 They also encourage violence against the left and support president Trump, which would place them pretty firmly on the right. Straight from the source: - Focus on people that have legitimized them, focus on the response to the proud boys. Spotlight is suspiciously on others. - The Proud Boys are a men's organization founded in 2016 by Vice Media co-founder Gavin McInnes. McInnes has described the Proud Boys as a pro-Western fraternal organization for men who refuse to apologize for creating the modern world; aka Western Chauvinists. - Proud Boys' values center on the following tenets: Minimal GovernmentMaximum FreedomAnti-Political CorrectnessAnti-Drug WarClosed BordersAnti-Racial GuiltAnti-RacismPro-Free Speech (1st Amendment)Pro-Gun Rights (2nd Amendment)Glorifying the EntrepreneurVenerating the HousewifeReinstating a Spirit of Western Chauvinism - Though these are our central tenets, all that is required to become a Proud Boy is that a man declare he is "a Western chauvinist who refuses to apologize for creating the modern world." We do not discriminate based upon race or sexual orientation/preference. We are not an "ism", "ist", or "phobic" that fits the Left's narrative. We truly believe that the West Is The Best and welcome those who believe in the same tenets as us. We have an international reach, with members spanning the globe. If you have any questions or would like get in contact with your local chapter, feel free to contact us directly via our staff page. This, after all, the one and only Proud Boy Magazine. For Proud Boys, by Proud Boys. UHURU! - We are not alt-right.

Overview of the Republican Party

- The new party was founded in the Northern states in 1854 by forces opposed to the expansion of slavery, ex-Whigs, and ex-Free Soilers. The Republican Party quickly became the principal opposition to the dominant Democratic Party and the briefly popular Know Nothing Party. The party grew out of opposition to the Kansas-Nebraska Act, which repealed the Missouri Compromise and opened Kansas Territory and Nebraska Territory to slavery and future admission as slave states.[24][25] The Republicans called for economic and social modernization. They denounced the expansion of slavery as a great evil, but did not call for ending it in the Southern states. The first public meeting of the general anti-Nebraska movement, at which the name Republican was proposed, was held on March 20, 1854 in Ripon, Wisconsin.[26] The name was partly chosen to pay homage to Thomas Jefferson's Republican Party.[27] The first official party convention was held on July 6, 1854 in Jackson, Michigan. - The party's success created factionalism within the party in the 1870s. Those who believed that Reconstruction had been accomplished, and was continued mostly to promote the large-scale corruption tolerated by President Ulysses S. Grant, ran Horace Greeley for the presidency in 1872 on the Liberal Republican Party line. The Stalwart faction defended Grant and the spoils system, whereas the Half-Breeds pushed for reform of the civil service.[33] The Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act was passed in 1883;[34]the bill was signed into law by Republican President Chester A. Arthur.[35] - The Republican Civil War era program included free homestead farms, a federally subsidized transcontinental railroad, a national banking system, a large national debt, land grants for higher education, a new national banking system, a wartime income tax and permanent high tariffs to promote industrial growth and high wages. By the 1870s, they had adopted as well a hard money system based on the gold standard and fought off efforts to promote inflation through Free Silver.[37] They created the foundations of the modern welfare state through an extensive program of pensions for Union veterans.[38] Foreign-policy issues were rarely a matter of partisan dispute, but briefly in the 1893-1904 period the GOP supported imperialistic expansion regarding Hawaii, the Philippines and the Panama Canal.[39] - The 1896 realignment cemented the Republicans as the party of big business while Theodore Roosevelt added more small business support by his embrace of trust busting. He handpicked his successor William Howard Taft in 1908, but they became enemies as the party split down the middle. Taft defeated Roosevelt for the 1912 nomination and Roosevelt ran on the ticket of his new Progressive ("Bull Moose") Party. He called for social reforms, many of which were later championed by New Deal Democratsin the 1930s. He lost and when most of his supporters returned to the GOP they found they did not agree with the new conservative economic thinking, leading to an ideological shift to the right in the Republican Party.[40] The Republicans returned to the White House throughout the 1920s, running on platforms of normalcy, business-oriented efficiency and high tariffs. The national party platform avoided mention of prohibition, instead issuing a vague commitment to law and order.[41] - The New Deal coalition of Democrat Franklin D. Roosevelt controlled American politics for most of the next three decades, excepting the two-term presidency of Republican Dwight D. Eisenhower. Blacks moved into the Democratic Party during the New Deal era. After Roosevelt took office in 1933, New Deal legislation sailed through Congress and the economy moved sharply upward from its nadir in early 1933. However, long-term unemployment remained a drag until 1940. In the 1934 midterm elections, 10 Republican senators went down to defeat, leaving the GOP with only 25 senators against 71 Democrats. The House of Representatives likewise had overwhelming Democratic majorities.[43] The Republican Party factionalized into a majority "Old Right" (based in the Midwest) and a liberal wing based in the Northeast that supported much of the New Deal. The Old Right sharply attacked the "Second New Deal" and said it represented class warfare and socialism. Roosevelt was re-elected in a landslide in 1936; however, as his second term began, the economy declined, strikes soared, and he failed to take control of the Supreme Court or to purge the Southern conservatives from the Democratic Party. Republicans made a major comeback in the 1938 elections and had new rising stars such as Robert A. Taft of Ohio on the right and Thomas E. Dewey of New York on the left.[44] Southern conservatives joined with most Republicans to form the conservative coalition, which dominated domestic issues in Congress until 1964. Both parties split on foreign policy issues, with the anti-war isolationists dominant in the Republican Party and the interventionists who wanted to stop Adolf Hitler dominant in the Democratic Party. Roosevelt won a third and fourth term in 1940 and 1944, respectively. Conservatives abolished most of the New Deal during the war, but they did not attempt to reverse Social Security or the agencies that regulated business. - In the Republican Revolution of 1994, the party—led by House Minority Whip Newt Gingrich, who campaigned on the "Contract with America"—won majorities in both Houses of Congress. However, as House Speaker, Gingrich was unable to deliver on many of its promises, including a balanced-budget amendment and term limits for members of Congress. During the impeachment and acquittal of President Bill Clinton, Republicans suffered surprise losses in the 1998 midterm elections. Gingrich's popularity sank to 17%; he resigned the speakership and later resigned from Congress altogether.[50][51][52] For most of the post-World War II era, Republicans had little presence at the state legislative level. This trend began to reverse in the late 1990s, with Republicans increasing their state legislative presence and taking control of state legislatures in the South. From 2004 to 2014, the Republican State Leadership Committee (RSLC) raised over $140 million targeted to state legislature races, while the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee (DLSC) raised less than half that during that time period. Following the 2014 midterm elections, Republicans controlled 68 of 98 partisan state legislative houses (the most in the party's history) and controlled both the executive and legislative branches of government in 24 states (Democrats had control of only seven) - A Republican ticket of George W. Bush-Dick Cheney ticket won the 2000 and 2004 presidential elections.[54] With the inauguration of Bush as President, the Republican Party remained fairly cohesive for much of the 2000s as both strong economic libertarians and social conservatives opposed the Democrats, whom they saw as the party of bloated, secular, and liberal government.[55]The Bush-era rise of what were known as "pro-government conservatives"—a core part of the President's base—meant that a considerable group of the Republicans advocated for increased government spending and greater regulations covering both the economy and people's personal lives as well as for an activist, interventionist foreign policy.[citation needed] Survey groups such as the Pew Research Center found that social conservatives and free market advocates remained the other two main groups within the party's coalition of support, with all three being roughly equal in number.[56][57] However, libertarians and libertarian-leaning conservatives increasingly found fault with what they saw as Republicans' restricting of vital civil liberties while corporate welfare and the national debt hiked considerably under Bush's tenure.[58] In contrast, some social conservatives expressed dissatisfaction with the party's support for economic policies that conflicted with their moral values.[59] - In the presidential election of 2008, the John McCain-Sarah Palin ticket was defeated by Senators Barack Obama and Joe Biden.[62] The Republicans experienced electoral success in the wave election of 2010, which coincided with the ascendancy of the Tea Party movement.[63][64][65][66] (The Tea Party movement is an American fiscally conservative political movement Members of the movement called for lower taxes, and for a reduction of the national debt of the United States and federal budget deficit through decreased government spending.[67][68] The Tea Party movement has been described as a popular constitutional movement[69] composed of a mixture of libertarian,[70] right-wing populist,[71] and conservative activism - Obama and Biden won re-election in 2012, defeating a Mitt Romney-Paul Ryan ticket.[75] The campaign focused largely on the Affordable Care Act and President Obama's stewardship of the economy, as the country still faced high unemployment numbers and a rising national debt stemming from the Great Recession. A post-2012 post-mortem report by the Republican Party concluded that the party needed to do more on the national level to attract votes from minorities and young voters.[81] In March 2013, National Committee Chairman Reince Priebusgave a stinging report on the party's electoral failures in 2012, calling on Republicans to reinvent themselves and officially endorse immigration reform. - The election of Republican Donald J. Trump to the presidency in 2016 marked a populist shift in the Republican Party.[90] Trump's defeat of Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton was unexpected, as polls had shown Clinton leading the race.[91] Trump's victory was fueled by narrow victories in three states—Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin—that traditionally vote for Democratic presidential candidates. According to NBC News, "Trump's power famously came from his 'silent majority' — working-class white voters who felt mocked and ignored by an establishment loosely defined by special interests in Washington, news outlets in New York and tastemakers in Hollywood. He built trust within that base by abandoning Republican establishment orthodoxy on issues like trade and government spending in favor of a broader nationalist message".[92]

Barry Goldwater

Barry Morris Goldwater (January 2, 1909[1] - May 29, 1998) was an American politician, businessman, and author who was a five-term Senator from Arizona (1953-1965, 1969-1987) and the Republican Party nominee for president of the United States in 1964. Despite his loss of the 1964 presidential election in a landslide, Goldwater is the politician most often credited with having sparked the resurgence of the American conservativepolitical movement in the 1960s. He also had a substantial impact on the libertarian movement.[2] Goldwater rejected the legacy of the New Deal and fought with the conservative coalition against the New Deal coalition. Although he had supported earlier civil rights legislation, he notably opposed the Civil Rights Act of 1964 as he believed it to be an overreach by the federal government. In 1964, Goldwater mobilized a large conservative constituency to win the hard-fought Republican presidential primaries. Although raised as an Episcopalian,[3]Goldwater was the first candidate of ethnically Jewish heritage to be nominated for President by a major American party (his father was Jewish).[4][5]Goldwater's platform ultimately failed to gain the support of the electorate[6] and he lost the 1964 presidential election to incumbent Democrat Lyndon B. Johnson. Goldwater returned to the Senate in 1969 and specialized in defense and foreign policy. As an elder statesman of the party, Goldwater successfully urged President Richard Nixon to resign in 1974 when evidence of a cover-up in the Watergate scandal became overwhelming and impeachment was imminent. Goldwater's views grew more libertarian as he reached the end of his career; he retired from the Senate in 1987. A significant accomplishment of his career was the passage of the Goldwater-Nichols Act of 1986. He was succeeded by John McCain, who praised his predecessor as the man who "transformed the Republican Party from an Eastern elitist organization to the breeding ground for the election of Ronald Reagan." Goldwater strongly supported the 1980 presidential campaign of Reagan, who had become the standard-bearer of the conservative movement after his "A Time for Choosing" speech. Reagan reflected many of the principles of Goldwater's earlier run in his campaign. The Washington Post columnist George Willtook note of this, writing: "We [...] who voted for him in 1964 believe he won, it just took 16 years to count the votes." After leaving the Senate, Goldwater's views cemented as libertarian. He criticized the "moneymaking ventures by fellows like Pat Robertson and others [in the Republican Party] who are trying to...make a religious organization out of it." He lobbied for homosexuals to be able to serve openly in the military, opposed the Clinton administration's plan for health care reform, and supported abortion rights and the legalization of medicinal marijuana. In 1997, Goldwater was revealed to be in the early stages of Alzheimer's disease. He died one year later at the age of 89. The Goldwater-Nichols Act was an attempt to fix problems caused by inter-service rivalry, which had emerged during the Vietnam War, contributed to the catastrophic failure of the Iranian hostage rescue mission in 1980, and which were still evident in the invasion of Grenada in 1983.[1][2] Such problems existed as well in World War II, during which two independent lines of command flowed from the President, one through the Secretary of the Navy to naval forces, and the other through the Secretary of War to land and air forces. In 1947, the military restructuring placed all military forces, including the newly independent Air Force, under a single civilian Secretary of Defense. The 123-page book covers such topics as education, labor unions and policies, civil rights, agricultural policy and farm subsidies, social welfareprograms, and income taxation. The book is considered to be a significant statement of politically and economically American conservative ideas which were to gain influence during the following decades.[1] In his book, Goldwater states explicitly that there are "laws of God" and "truths of God" which inform his concept of 'conservatism' and under which the US should operate. Although he had supported earlier civil rights legislation, he notably opposed the Civil Rights Act of 1964 as he believed it to be an overreach by the federal government. He put it simply: "I see no reason for labor unions — or corporations — to participate in politics."

The Rise of the Evangelical Right

In the United States, the Christian right is an informal coalition formed around a core of conservative evangelical Protestants and Roman Catholics.[2][3][4] The Christian right draws additional support from politically conservative mainline Protestants and members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.[2][5] The movement has its roots in American politics going back as far as the 1940s and has been especially influential since the 1970s.[6][7] Its influence draws from grassroots activism as well as from focus on social issues and the ability to motivate the electorate around those issues.[8] The Christian right is notable for advancing socially conservative positions on issues including school prayer, intelligent design, embryonic stem cell research,[9] homosexuality,[10] euthanasia, contraception, sex education, abortion,[11] and pornography.[12] Although the term Christian right is most commonly associated with politics in the United States, similar Christian conservative groups can be found in the political cultures of other Christian-majority nations. John C. Green of the Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life states that Jerry Falwell used the label religious right to describe himself. Gary Schneeberger, vice president of media and public relations for Focus on the Family, states that "[t]erms like 'religious right' have been traditionally used in a pejorative way to suggest extremism. The phrase 'socially conservative evangelicals' is not very exciting, but that's certainly the way to do it."[14] Evangelical leaders like Tony Perkins of the Family Research Council have called attention to the problem of equating the term Christian right with evangelicals. Although evangelicals constitute the core constituency of the Christian right, not all evangelicals fit the description and moreover, a number of Roman Catholics are also members of the Christian right's core base.[2] The problem of description is further complicated by the fact that religious conservative may refer to other groups. Mennonites and the Amish, for example, are theologically conservative, however, there are no overtly political organizations associated with these denominations. - In 1863, representatives from eleven Christian denominations in the United States organized the National Reform Association with the goal of adding a Christian amendment to the U.S. Constitution, in order to establish the country as a Christian state.[15] The National Reform Association is seen as one of the first organizations of the Christian right, through which adherents from several Christian denominations worked together to try to enshrine Christianity in American politics.[15] - Patricia Miller states that the "alliance between evangelical leaders and the Catholic bishops has been a cornerstone of the Christian Right for nearly twenty years".[16] Since the late 1970s, the Christian right has been a notable force in both the Republican party and American politics when Baptist pastor Jerry Falwell and other Christian leaders began to urge conservative Christians to involve themselves in the political process. In response to the rise of the Christian right, the 1980 Republican Party platform assumed a number of its positions, including adding support for a restoration of school prayer. The past two decades have been an important time in the political debates and in the same time frame religious citizens became more politically active in a time period labeled the New Christian Right.[17] While the platform also opposed abortion[6][7][18] and leaned towards restricting taxpayer funding for abortions and passing a constitutional amendment which would restore protection of the right to life for unborn children,[18] it also accepted the fact that many Americans, including fellow Republicans, were divided on the issue.[18] Since about 1980, the Christian right has been associated with several institutions including the Moral Majority, the Christian Coalition, Focus on the Family and the Family Research Council.[19][20] - While the influence of the Christian right is typically traced to the 1980 Presidential election, Daniel K. Williams argues in God's Own Party that it had actually been involved in politics for most of the twentieth century. He also notes that the Christian right had previously been in alliance with the Republican Party in the 1940s through 1960s on matters such as opposition to communism and defending "a Protestant-based moral order."[21] - In light of the state atheism espoused by communist countries, secularization came to be seen by many Americans as the biggest threat to American and Christian values,[22][23] and by the 1980s Catholic bishops and evangelicals had begun to work together on issues such as abortion.[4][24][25] - The alienation of Southern Democrats from the Democratic Party contributed to the rise of the right, as the counterculture of the 1960s provoked fear of social disintegration. In addition, as the Democratic Party became identified with a pro-choice position on abortion and with nontraditional societal values, social conservatives joined the Republican Party in increasing numbers.[26] - In 1976, U.S. President Jimmy Carter received the support of the Christian right largely because of his much-acclaimed religious conversion. However, Carter's spiritual transformation did not compensate for his liberal policies in the minds of Christian conservatives, as reflected in Jerry Falwell's criticism that "Americans have literally stood by and watched as godless, spineless leaders have brought our nation floundering to the brink of death."[27] - Much of the Christian right's power within the American political system is attributed to their extraordinary turnout rate at the polls. The voters that coexist in the Christian right are also highly motivated and driven to get out a viewpoint on issues they care about. As well as high voter turnout, they can be counted on to attend political events, knock on doors and distribute literature. Members of the Christian right are willing to do the electoral work needed to see their candidate elected. Because of their high level of devotion, the Christian right does not need to monetarily compensate these people for their work.[8][31] -Led by Robert Grant advocacy group Christian Voice, Jerry Falwell's Moral Majority, Ed McAteer's Religious Roundtable Council, James Dobson's Focus on the Family, Paul Weyrich's Free Congress Foundation and The Heritage Foundation,[32] and Pat Robertson's Christian Broadcasting Network, the new Religious Right combined conservative politics with evangelical and fundamentalist teachings.[19] The birth of the New Christian right, however, is usually traced to a 1979 meeting where televangelist Jerry Falwell was urged to create a "Moral Majority" organization.[20][33] In 1979, Weyrich was in a discussion with Falwell when he remarked that there was a "moral majority" of Americans ready to be called to political action.[32] Weyrich later recalled in a 2007 interview with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that after he mentioned the term "moral majority," Falwell "turned to his people and said, 'That's the name of our organization.' "[32]Led by Robert Grant advocacy group Christian Voice, Jerry Falwell's Moral Majority, Ed McAteer's Religious Roundtable Council, James Dobson's Focus on the Family, Paul Weyrich's Free Congress Foundation and The Heritage Foundation,[32] and Pat Robertson's Christian Broadcasting Network, the new Religious Right combined conservative politics with evangelical and fundamentalist teachings.[19] The birth of the New Christian right, however, is usually traced to a 1979 meeting where televangelist Jerry Falwell was urged to create a "Moral Majority" organization.[20][33] In 1979, Weyrich was in a discussion with Falwell when he remarked that there was a "moral majority" of Americans ready to be called to political action.[32] Weyrich later recalled in a 2007 interview with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that after he mentioned the term "moral majority," Falwell "turned to his people and said, 'That's the name of our organization.' "[32] - One early attempt to bring the Christian right into American politics began in 1974 when Robert Grant, an early movement leader, founded American Christian Cause to advocate Christian ideological teachings in Southern California. Concerned that Christians overwhelmingly voted for President Jimmy Carter in 1976, Grant expanded his movement and founded Christian Voice to rally Christian voters behind socially conservative candidates. Prior to his alliance with Falwell, Weyrich sought an alliance with Grant.[34] Grant and other Christian Voice staff soon set up their main office at the headquarters of Weyrich's Heritage Foundation.[34] However, the alliance between Weyrich and Grant fell apart in 1978.[34] - Both Christian right and secular polling organizations sometimes conduct polls to determine which presidential candidates will receive the support of Christian right constituents. One such poll is taken at the Family Research Council's Values Voter Summit.[46][47] George W. Bush's electoral success owed much to his overwhelming support from white evangelical voters, who comprise 23% of the vote. In 2000 he received 68% of the white evangelical vote; in 2004 that percentage rose to 78%.[48] In 2016, Donald Trump received 81% of the white evangelical vote.[49][50] - Religious broadcasting began in the 1920s through the radio.[55] Between the 1950s and 1980s, TV became a powerful way for the Christian right to influence the public through shows such as Pat Robertson's The 700 Club and The Family Channel. The Internet has also helped the Christian right reach a much larger audience. Organization's websites play a strong role in popularising the Christian right's stances on cultural and political issues, and informed interested viewers on how to get involved. The Christian Coalition, for example, has used the Internet to inform the public, as well as to sell merchandise and gather members.[56] - The Christian right strongly advocates for a system of educational choice, using a system of school vouchers, instead of public education. Vouchers would be government funded and could be redeemed for "a specified maximum sum per child per years if spent on approved educational services".[57] This method would allow parents to determine which school their child attends while relieving the economic burden associated with private schools. The concept is popular among constituents of church-related schools, including those affiliated with Roman Catholicism. - The Protestant members of the Christian right in the United States generally promotes the teaching of creationism and intelligent design as opposed to, or alongside, biological evolution.[58][59][60][61] Some supporters of the Christian right have opposed the teaching of evolution in the past, but they did not have the ability to stop it being taught in public schools as was done during the Scopes Trial in Dayton, Tennessee, in which a science teacher went on trial for teaching about the subject of evolution in a public school.[62] Other "Christian right organizations supported the teaching of creationism, along with evolution, in public schools", specifically promoting theistic evolution (also known as evolutionary creationism) in which God is regarded as the originator of the process.[58][59] The overwhelming majority of scientific research, both in the United States and elsewhere, has concluded that the theory of evolution, using the technical definition of the word theory, is the only viable explanation of the development of life, and an overwhelming majority of biologists strongly support its presentation in public school science classes.[66] Outside the United States, as well as among American Catholics and Mainline Protestants, Christian conservatives have generally come to accept the theory of evolution. - The Christian right promotes homeschooling and private schooling as a valid alternative to public education for parents who object to the content being taught at school. In recent years, the percentage of children being homeschooled has risen from 1.7% of the student population in 1999 to 2.2% in 2003.[78] Much of this increase has been attributed to the desire to incorporate Christian teachings into the curriculum.[79] In 2003, 72% of parents who homeschooled their children cited the ability to provide religious or moral instruction as the reason for removing their children from public schools.[80] The Kitzmiller v. Dover Area School District case established that creationism cannot be taught in public schools, and in response officials have increasingly appropriated public funds for charter schools that teach curricula like Accelerated Christian Education.[81] - Supporters of the Christian right have no one unified stance on the role of government since the movement is primarily one that advocates social conservatism; in fact, "struggles [have] broken out in state party organizations" between supporters of the Christian right and other conservatives.[82][83] It promotes conservative interpretations of the Bible as the basis for moral values and enforcing such values by legislation. Some members of the Christian right, especially Catholics, accept the Catholic Church's strong support for labor unions. - The Christian right believes that separation of church and state is not explicit in the American Constitution, believing instead that such separation is a creation of what it claims are activist judges in the judicial system.[84][85][86] In the United States, the Christian right often supports their claims by asserting that the country was "founded by Christians as a Christian Nation."[87][88] Members of the Christian right take the position that the Establishment Clause bars the federal government from establishing or sponsoring a state church (e.g., the Church of England), but does not prevent the government from acknowledging religion. The Christian right points out that the term "separation of church and state" is derived from a letter written by Thomas Jefferson, not from the Constitution itself.[89][90][91] Furthermore, Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) takes the view that the concept of "separation of church and state" has been used by the American Civil Liberties Unionand its allies to inhibit public acknowledgment of Christianity and restrict the religious freedoms of Christians.[92] - Early American fundamentalists, such as John R. Rice[95][96] often favored laissez-faire economics and were outspoken critics of the New Deal and later the Great Society.[95] The contemporary Christian right supports economic conservative policies such as tax cuts and social conservative policies such as child tax credits.[97][98] - Many evangelical Protestant supporters of the religious right have given very strong support to the state of Israel in recent decades, encouraging support for Israel in the United States government.[99] Some have linked Israel to Biblical prophesies; for example, Ed McAteer, founder of the Moral Majority, said "I believe that we are seeing prophecy unfold so rapidly and dramatically and wonderfully and, without exaggerating, makes me breathless."[100] This belief, an example of dispensationalism, arises from the idea that the establishment of Israel is a prerequisite for the Second Coming of Jesus, because it represents the Biblically prophesied Gathering of Israel. A 2017 poll indicates that this belief is held by 80% of evangelicals, and that half of evangelicals consider it an important cause of their support for the state of Israel.[101] - The Christian right contends that morning-after pills such as Plan B and Ella are possible abortifacients, able to interfere with a fertilized egg's implantation in the uterine wall.[105] The labeling mandated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for Plan B and Ella state that they may interfere with implantation, but according to a June 2012, The New York Times article, many scientists believe that they work only by interfering with ovulation and are arguing to have the implantation language removed from product labels. The Christian right maintains that the chemical properties of morning-after pills make them abortifacients and that the politics of abortion is influencing scientific judgments. Jonathan Imbody of the Christian Medical Association says he questions "whether ideological considerations are driving these decisions."[105] Specifically, many Catholic members, as well as some conservative Protestant members, of the Christian right have campaigned against contraception altogether.[106][107] - The modern roots of the Christian right's views on sexual matters were evident in the 1950s, a period in which many Christian conservatives in the United States viewed sexual promiscuity as not only excessive, but in fact as a threat to their ideal vision of the country.[10]:30 Beginning in the 1970s, conservative Christian protests against promiscuity began to surface, largely as a reaction to the "permissive sixties" and an emerging prominence of sexual rights arising from Roe v Wade and the gay rights movement. The Christian right proceeded to make sexuality issues a priority political cause.[10]:28 - Due to the Christian right's views regarding ethics and to an extent due to negative views of eugenics common to most ideologies in North America, it has worked for the regulation and restriction of certain applications of biotechnology. In particular, the Christian right opposes therapeutic and reproductive human cloning, championing a 2005 United Nations ban on the practice,[110] and human embryonic stem cell research, which involves the extraction of one or more cells from a human embryo.[9] The Christian right supports research with adult stem cells, amniotic stem cells, and induced pluripotent stem cells which do not use cells from human embryos, as they view the harvesting of biological material from an embryo lacking the ability to give permission as an assault on a living being. - Criticisms of the Christian right often come from Christians who believe Jesus' message was centered on social responsibility and social justice. Theologian Michael Lerner has summarized: "The unholy alliance of the Political Right and the Religious Right threatens to destroy the America we love. It also threatens to generate a revulsion against God and religion by identifying them with militarism, ecological irresponsibility, fundamentalist antagonism to science and rational thought, and insensitivity to the needs of the poor and the powerless."[113] Commentators from all sides of the aisle such as Rob Schenck, Randall Balmer, and Charles M. Blow criticized the Christian right for its tolerance and embrace of Donald Trump during the 2016 presidential election despite Trump's failure to adhere to any of the principles advocated by the Christian right groups for decades.[114][115] - They love Trump because Trump has payed special attention to the issues they have traditionally cared a lot about, such as contraception mandate of Obamacare, anti-choice judges, Johnson amendment, Christian schools discriminating, etc. MORE COOL INFO; - Carter campaign in 1976 was a big deal because he often give religion infused speeches about being born again and about sinful society, obscure terms most Americans had never thought about. Yet he fails with the hearts and minds of his religious supporters, as his goodtwoshoes interpretation of Christianity flounders. - They end up flooding to Reagan despite his far more substantial personal baggage, as he supports anti-Communism and limited government. The awakening of the Moral Majority was a massive sea change. - The truth is evangelicals are getting absolutely routed in this country, so declinist populism is huge for them - Some evangelicals are indeed alienated by Trump's fascism

Evangelical Christianity

)Evangelicalism (/ˌiːvænˈdʒɛlɪkəlɪzəm, ˌɛvæn-, -ən/), evangelical Christianity, or evangelical Protestantism,[note 1] is a worldwide, trans-denominational movement within Protestant Christianity which maintains the belief that the essence of the Gospel consists of the doctrine of salvation by grace, solely through faith in Jesus's atonement.[1][2][3] Evangelicals believe in the centrality of the conversion or "born again" experience in receiving salvation, in the authority of the Bible as God's revelation to humanity, and in spreading the Christian message. The movement has long had a presence in the Anglosphere before spreading further afield in the 19th, 20th and early 21st centuries. Salvation in Christianity, also called deliverance, or redemption, is the "saving [of] human beings from death and separation from God" by Christ's death and resurrection,[1][note 1] and the justification following this salvation. Its origins are usually traced to 1738, with various theological streams contributing to its foundation, including English Methodism, the Moravian Church (in particular its bishop Nicolaus Zinzendorf and his community at Herrnhut), and German Lutheran Pietism. Preeminently, John Wesley and other early Methodists were at the root of sparking this new movement during the First Great Awakening. Today, evangelicals are found across many Protestant branches, as well as in various denominations not subsumed to a specific branch.[4] Among leaders and major figures of the evangelical Protestant movement were John Wesley, George Whitefield, Jonathan Edwards, Billy Graham, Bill Bright, Harold Ockenga, John Stott and Martyn Lloyd-Jones. The movement gained great momentum during the 18th and 19th centuries with the Great Awakenings in Great Britain and the United States. In 2016, there were an estimated 619 million evangelicals in the world, meaning that one in four Christians would be classified as evangelical.[5] The United States has the largest concentration of evangelicals in the world.[6] American evangelicals are a quarter of the nation's population and its single largest religious group.[7][8] The main movements are Baptist churches, Pentecostalism, charismatic Evangelicalism, neo-charismatic Evangelicalism and nondenominational Evangelicalism.[9] [10] The word evangelical has its etymological roots in the Greek word for "gospel" or "good news": εὐαγγέλιον euangelion, from eu "good", angel- the stem of, among other words, angelos "messenger, angel", and the neuter suffix -ion.[11] By the English Middle Ages, the term had expanded semantically to include not only the message, but also the New Testament which contained the message, as well as more specifically the Gospels, which portray the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus.[12]The first published use of evangelical in English was in 1531, when William Tyndalewrote "He exhorteth them to proceed constantly in the evangelical truth." One year later, Thomas More wrote the earliest recorded use in reference to a theological distinction when he spoke of "Tyndale [and] his evangelical brother Barns".[13] During the Reformation, Protestant theologians embraced the term as referring to "gospel truth". Martin Luther referred to the evangelische Kirche ("evangelical church") to distinguish Protestants from Catholics in the Catholic Church.[14][15] Into the 21st century, evangelical has continued in use as a synonym for (mainline) Protestant in continental Europe, and elsewhere. This usage is reflected in the names of Protestant denominations, such as the Evangelical Church in Germany (a union of Lutheran and Reformed churches) and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.[12] Bebbington identifies four main qualities which are to be used in defining evangelical convictions and attitudes:[5][6] Biblicism: a particular regard for the Bible (e.g. all essential spiritual truth is to be found in its pages) Crucicentrism: a focus on the atoning work of Christ on the cross Conversionism: the belief that human beings need to be converted Activism: the belief that the gospel needs to be expressed in effort During the Reformation, Protestant theologians embraced the term as referring to "gospel truth". Martin Luther referred to the evangelische Kirche ("evangelical church") to distinguish Protestants from Catholics in the Catholic Church.[14][15] Into the 21st century, evangelical has continued in use as a synonym for (mainline) Protestant in continental Europe, and elsewhere. This usage is reflected in the names of Protestant denominations, such as the Evangelical Church in Germany (a union of Lutheran and Reformed churches) and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America.[12] In the English-speaking world, evangelical was commonly applied to describe the series of revival movements that occurred in Britain and North America during the late 18th and early 19th centuries.[16] Christian historian David W. Bebbington writes that, "Although 'evangelical', with a lower-case initial, is occasionally used to mean 'of the gospel', the term 'Evangelical', with a capital letter, is applied to any aspect of the movement beginning in the 1730s."[17] According to the Oxford English Dictionary, evangelicalism was first used in 1831.[18] In 1812, the term "evangelicalism" appeared in "The History of Lynn" by William Richards.[19] In the summer of 1811 the term "evangelicalists" was used in "The Sin and Danger of Schism" by Rev. Dr. Andrew Burnaby, Archdeacon of Leicester.[20] The term may also be used outside any religious context to characterize a generic missionary, reforming, or redeeming impulse or purpose. For example, One influential definition of evangelicalism has been proposed by historian David Bebbington.[22] Bebbington notes four distinctive aspects of evangelical faith: conversionism, biblicism, crucicentrism, and activism, noting, "Together they form a quadrilateral of priorities that is the basis of Evangelicalism."[23] Conversionism, or belief in the necessity of being "born again", has been a constant theme of evangelicalism since its beginnings. To evangelicals, the central message of the gospel is justification by faith in Christ and repentance, or turning away, from sin. Conversion differentiates the Christian from the non-Christian, and the change in life it leads to is marked by both a rejection of sin and a corresponding personal holiness of life. A conversion experience can be emotional, including grief and sorrow for sin followed by great relief at receiving forgiveness. The stress on conversion differentiates evangelicalism from other forms of Protestantism by the associated belief that an assurance of salvation will accompany conversion. Among evangelicals, individuals have testified to both sudden and gradual conversions. These people believe the Bible is 100% factual and irrefutable. - Crucicentrism is the centrality that evangelicals give to the Atonement, the saving death and the resurrection of Jesus, that offers forgiveness of sins and new life. This is understood most commonly in terms of a substitutionary atonement, in which Christ died as a substitute for sinful humanity by taking on himself the guilt and punishment for sin.[26] - Activism describes the tendency toward active expression and sharing of the gospel in diverse ways that include preaching and social action. This aspect of evangelicalism continues to be seen today in the proliferation of evangelical voluntary religious groups and parachurch organizations.[27] - For a majority of evangelical Christians, biblicism ensures that the miracles described in the Bible are still relevant and may be present in the life of the believer.[36][37] Healings, academic or professional successes, the birth of a child after several attempts, the end of an addiction, etc., would be tangible examples of God's intervention with the faith and prayer, by the Holy Spirit.[38] In the 1980s, the neo-charismatic movement re-emphasized miracles and faith healing.[39] In certain churches, a special place is thus reserved for faith healings with laying on of hands during worship services or for campaigns evangelization.[40][41] Faith healing or divine healing is considered to be an inheritance of Jesus acquired by his death and resurrection.[42] - In matters of sexuality, several evangelical churches promote the virginity pledge among young Evangelical Christians, who are invited to commit themselves during a public ceremony at sexual abstinence until Christian marriage.[63] This pledge is often symbolized by a purity ring.[64] In evangelical churches, young adults and unmarried couples are encouraged to marry early in order to live a sexuality according to the will of God.[65][66]

Born-again Christians

- Born again is a phrase used by many Protestants to describe the phenomenon of gaining faith in Jesus Christ. It is an experience when everything they have been taught as Christians becomes real, and they develop a direct and personal relationship with God.Born again is a phrase used by many Protestants to describe the phenomenon of gaining faith in Jesus Christ. It is an experience when everything they have been taught as Christians becomes real, and they develop a direct and personal relationship with God. The phrase "born again" applies to people who have accepted Jesus as their Savior or Redeemer. The born again soul realizes that they are a sinner (Romans 3:23) and that the penalty for that sin is death (Romans 6:23). To rectify the circumstances, God sent His only Son to die in their place, to take the punishment for sin (Romans 5:8). After Jesus' death, He arose from the dead (1 Corinthians 15:3-6). Jesus is the only way to God (John 14:6) and He provides the blessing of salvation. Each person has the choice to receive or reject God's gift through faith (Ephesians 2:8-9) and experience new birth (John 3:1-8). Whoever follows Jesus as Christ, the Son of God, and has accepted His gift of life can be called Christian. That is where the journey of rebirth begins. According to AllAboutReligion.org: Being born again is having a change or transformation of the soul and heart by the work of God's Spirit. One's soul is the part of our being that consist of three things: the mind (or its disposition), emotions (feelings), and our will (what we determine).

Overview of American Conservatism

- Conservatism in the United States is a political and social philosophy characterized by respect for American traditions, republicanism, support for Christian values,[1] moral universalism,[2] pro-business and anti-labor union,[3] anti-communism,[4][5] individualism,[4] advocacy of American exceptionalism,[6] and a defense of Western culture from the perceived threats posed by socialism, authoritarianism, and moral relativism.[7] - As with all major American political parties, liberty is a core value. American conservatives consider individual liberty—within the bounds of American values—as the fundamental trait of democracy; this perspective contrasts with that of modern American liberals, who generally place a greater value on equality and social justice and emphasize the need for state intervention to achieve these goals.[8][9] American conservatives believe in limiting government in size and scope, and in a balance between national government and states' rights. Apart from some libertarians, they tend to favor strong action in areas they believe to be within government's legitimate jurisdiction, particularly national defense and law enforcement. Social conservatives oppose abortion and same-sex marriage, while privileging traditional marriage and supporting Christian prayer in public schools.[10][11][12][13] - Like most American political ideologies, conservatism originates from republicanism, which rejected aristocratic and monarchical government and upheld the principles of the United States Declaration of Independence ("All men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness") and the United States Constitution (which established a federal republic under the rule of law). Conservative philosophy is also derived in part from the classical liberal tradition of the 18th and 19th centuries, which advocated for laissez-faire economics (i.e. economic freedom and deregulation).[14][15] - Historians such as Patrick Allitt and political theorists such as Russell Kirk argue that the conservative tradition has played a major role in American politics and culture since 1776. However, they assert that an organized conservative movement with beliefs that differ from those of other American political parties has played a key role in politics only since the 1950s.[16][17][18] The recent movement is based in the Republican Party; however, some Southern Democrats were also important figures early in the movement's history.[19][20][21] - Certain continuities can be traced through American history. The conservative 'attitude' [...] was one of trusting to the past, to long-established patterns of thought and conduct, and of assuming that novelties were more likely to be dangerous than advantageous. Political divisions inside the United States often seemed minor or trivial to Europeans, where the divide between the Left and the Right led to violent polarization, starting with the French Revolution. - Political conservatives have emphasized an identification with the Founding Fathers and the Constitution.[75] Historians of conservative political thought "generally label John Adams as the intellectual father of American conservatism."[76] Russell Kirk points to John Adams as the key Founding Father for conservatives, noting that "some writers regard him as America's most important conservative public man."[77] Historian Clinton Rossiter places Adams, "At the head of the conservative ranks in the early years of the Republic and Jefferson as the leader of the contrary liberal current."[79] It was a fundamental doctrine for Adams that all men are subject to equal laws of morality. He held that in society all men have a right to equal laws and equal treatment from the government. However, he added, "no two men are perfectly equal in person, property, understanding, activity, and virtue."[80] Peter Viereck concluded: Hamilton, Adams, and their Federalist party sought to establish in the new world what they called a "natural aristocracy." [It was to be] based on property, education, family status, and sense of ethical responsibility. - In the past, conservatives have supported conservation efforts, from the protection of the Yosemite Valley, to the creation of the Environmental Protection Agency.[126] However, more recently, conservatives have opposed environmentalism; with environmentalists often ridiculed as "tree huggers". Republican Party leaders such as Newt Gingrich and Michele Bachmann advocate the abolition of the EPA, calling it "the job-killing organization of America."[127] Conservative think tanks since the 1990s have opposed the concept of man-made global warming; challenged scientific evidence; publicized what they perceived as beneficial aspects of global warming, and asserted that proposed remedies would do more harm than good.[128] The concept of anthropogenic global warming continues to be an ongoing debate among conservatives in the United States,[129] but most conservatives reject the scientific consensus that climate change is caused by humans. A 2015 poll showed that 73% of Republicans believed humans were uninvolved in causing global warming. - National conservatism, a form of populist conservatism proposed by supporters of President Donald Trump that breaks with the "conservative consensus, forged by Cold War politics" of "markets and moralism".[64] It emphasizes nationalism and social conservatism,[64] opposes immigration, and abandons laissez-faire, free-market economic policy[65] to describe the movements in the United States supporting Donald Trump and in England supporting Brexit. A 2019 political conference featuring "public figures, journalists, scholars, and students" dubbed this variety of conservatism "National Conservatism".[66] Critics allege its adherents are merely attempting to wrest "a coherent ideology out of the chaos of the Trumpist moment".

Aspects of the Republican Platform I am unsure about:

- I don't really understand the health care debate - I don't really understand economics, to what extent socialism or regulation is bad, etc.

Newt Gingrich/Contract with America

- The Contract with America was a legislative agenda advocated for by the United States Republican Party during the 1994 Congressional electioncampaign. Written by Newt Gingrich and Dick Armey, and in part using text from former President Ronald Reagan's 1985 State of the Union Address, the Contract detailed the actions the Republicans promised to take if they became the majority party in the United States House of Representatives for the first time in 40 years. Many of the Contract's policy ideas originated at The Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank.[1][2] - Proponents say the Contract was revolutionary in its commitment to offering specific legislation for a vote, describing in detail the precise plan of the Congressional Representatives, and broadly nationalizing the Congressional election. Furthermore, its provisions represented the view of many conservative Republicans on the issues of shrinking the size of government, promoting lower taxes and greater entrepreneurial activity, and both tort reform and welfare reform. Critics of the Contract describe it as a political ploy and election tool designed to have broad appeal while masking the Republicans' real agenda and failing to provide real legislation or governance. The 1994 elections resulted in Republicans gaining 54 House and 9 U.S. Senate seats. When the Republicans gained this majority of seats in the 104th Congress, the Contract was seen as a triumph by party leaders such as Minority Whip Newt Gingrich, Dick Armey, and the American conservative movement in general. - Some of The promises: - Fiscal Responsibility Act: An amendment to the Constitution that would require a balanced budget unless sanctioned by a two-thirds vote in both houses of Congress (H.J.Res.1, passed by the US House Roll Call: 300-132, January 26, 1995, but rejected by the US Senate. - The Taking Back our Streets Act An anti-crime package including stronger truth in sentencing, "good faith" exclusionary rule exemptions - Personal Responsibility Act: An act to discourage illegitimacy and teen pregnancy by reforming and cutting cash welfare and related programs. This would be achieved by prohibiting welfare to mothers under 18 years of age, denying increased Aid to Families with Dependent Children (AFDC) for additional children while on welfare, and enacting a two-years-and-out provision with work requirements to promote individual responsibility. - American Dream Restoration Act: An act to create a $500-per-child tax credit, add a tax credit for couples who pay more taxes in aggregate if they are married than if they were single (but keep in place the fiction of Earned Income Splitting), and creation of American Dream Savings Accounts to provide middle-class tax relief. - National Security Restoration Act: An act to prevent U.S. troops from serving under United Nations command unless the president determines it is necessary for the purposes of national security, to cut U.S. payments for UN peacekeeping operations, and to help establish guidelines for the voluntary integration of former Warsaw Pact nations into NATO. H.R.7, passed 241-181, February 16, 1995. - Journalist and senior congressional reporter Major Garrett equated the Contract with a game of miniature golf, "fun, popular, and largely diversionary exercise meant to satisfy middle-class sensibilities", contrasted with the golf of governing America and leadership. Republicans interviewed by Garrett when the Contract was being compiled said it was meant to be a political document of easy goals, not a governing document, with one senior aide explaining, "We don't care if the Senate passes any of the items in the contract. It would be preferable, but it's not necessary. If the freshmen do everything the contract says, they'll be in excellent shape for 1996".[12] - The poor showing by Republicans in the 1998 Congressional elections, a reprimand from the House for Gingrich's ethics violation, pressure from Republican colleagues, and revelations of an extramarital affair with a congressional employee 23 years his junior resulted in Gingrich's resignation from the speakership. Clinton impeachment hurt him and they got routed in 1998 elections. The political victory produced by the Contract With America in 1994 led to six years of significant policy successes for Gingrich and the Republican majority and showed that Republican principles can produce results that dramatically improve the country. But not taking credit for that success and instead focusing on the personal weaknesses of Clinton and de facto impeachment, unfortunately, allowed the late '90s to become "Bill Clinton's economy," something that has haunted Republicans for decades and continues today. As we look back at the 25th anniversary, Republicans should celebrate the moment and take satisfaction that Republican principles and policies provided for one of the most robust economies in our history, not unlike today. But they should also recognize that political miscalculation cost them crucial seats in the House in 1998 and an eerily similar strategic miscalculation cost them the majority in 2018, even with the winds of a good and growing economy at their backs. Newt also came to resent some of the extremists he helped sweep into office.

The 1960s Revolution and the Nixonion Counterrevolution

- The Civil Rights Act contributed to the immediate break up of a previously stable "Solid South" for Democrats, and an on and off trickle of racist Southerners to the Republican Party, until the party became dominate in the south. - The Vietnam War and its defeat severely undermined support of the United States Military for a generation, and irreversibly fragmented how people in the country viewed patriotism and service. - The chaos, urban riots, and drug use counterculture galvanized the reactionary forces around the country, leading to the borderline authoritarian Richard Nixon. - A lot of radical racists did manage to maintain influence in the country, so you can only assume that they continued to enact racist policies behind the scenes to some extent. Smoking guns and hot mics have been found on this topic on several occasions related to the Nixon campaign.

The Populist Shift of the 2016 Election

- The Electoral College disproportionately favors decaying, backwards, and uneducated states that have their best days behind them, and are a ripe ground for political radicalization and conspiracy theories. - The Democrat candidate was an uninspiring retread who didn't get anyone excited and had her own baggage, a lot of people just stayed home. - The Democrats lost the white working class in droves due to repeated failures to improve their lot, a rhetorical focus on ethnic and sexual minorities, and a growing cultural gap between educated libs and blue-collar libs. - The 2008 Financial Crisis, Iraq War, opioid epidemic, set the stage for a rise of extremism on a global scale. - The changing media environment also plays a role. Because of dwindling subscription rates, traditional media increasingly focus on topics they expect to sell well, such as scandals and conflict, fuelling the sense of crisis that populists can draw on. - Political correctness and anti-Americanism from the left certainly didn't help.

The Reagan Revolution / Reagan Era

- The Reagan Era or Age of Reagan is a periodization of recent American history used by historians and political observers to emphasize that the conservative "Reagan Revolution" led by President Ronald Reagan in domestic and foreign policy had a lasting impact. It overlaps with what political scientists call the Sixth Party System. Definitions of the Reagan Era universally include the 1980s, while more extensive definitions may also include the late 1970s, the 1990s, the 2000s, the 2010s, and even the 2020s. In his 2008 book, The Age of Reagan: A History, 1974-2008, historian and journalist Sean Wilentz argues that Reagan dominated this stretch of American history in the same way that Franklin D. Roosevelt and his New Deallegacy dominated the four decades that followed it. - The Reagan Era included ideas and personalities beyond Reagan himself; he is usually characterized as the leader of a broadly-based conservative movement whose ideas dominated national policy-making in areas such as taxes, welfare, defense, the federal judiciary, and the Cold War. Other major conservative figures and organizations of the Reagan Era include Jerry Falwell, Phyllis Schlafly, Newt Gingrich, and The Heritage Foundation. The Rehnquist Court, which was inaugurated during Reagan's presidency, handed down several conservative decisions. The Reagan Era coincides with the presidency of Reagan, and, in more extensive definitions, the presidencies of Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, George H. W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Barack Obama, and Donald Trump. Liberals generally lament the Reagan Era, while conservatives generally praise it and call for its continuation in the 21st century. Liberals were significantly influenced as well, leading to the Third Way. - Upon taking office, the Reagan administration implemented an economic policy based on the theory of supply-side economics. Taxes were reduced through the passage of the Economic Recovery Tax Act of 1981, while the administration also cut domestic spending and increased military spending. Increasing deficits motivated the passage of tax increases during the George H. W. Bush and Clinton administrations, but taxes were cut again with the passage of the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001. During Clinton's presidency, Republicans won passage of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act, a bill which placed several new limits on those receiving federal assistance. - Obama: I think Ronald Reagan changed the trajectory of America in a way that Richard Nixon did not and in a way that Bill Clinton did not. He put us on a fundamentally different path because the country was ready for it. I think they felt like with all the excesses of the 1960s and 1970s and government had grown and grown but there wasn't much sense of accountability in terms of how it was operating. I think that people . . . he just tapped into what people were already feeling, which was we want clarity, we want optimism, we want a return to that sense of dynamism and entrepreneurship that had been missing. - Most historians begin the era in 1980, when Reagan was elected president, and usually probe back into the 1970s for the origins of the Reagan Era. For example, Kalman (2010) explores multiple crises of the 1970s that eroded confidence in liberal solutions: the rise of the religious right and the reaction against the gay rights movement, feminism and the Equal Rights Amendment, grassroots reactions against busing ordered by federal judges, the defeat in Vietnam, the collapse of détente and fears of Soviet power, the challenge of imported cars and textiles, the deindustrialization of the Rust Belt, soaring inflation, stagflation, and the energy crisis, as well as the humiliation the nation suffered during the Iran hostage crisis and the sense of malaise as the nation wondered if its glory days had passed. She shows step by step the process by which one political alternative after another collapsed, leaving Reagan standing.[2] - The endpoint of the Reagan Era is often seen as the election of Democrat Barack Obama in 2008.[5] Midterm elections in 2010 and 2014 seemed to cast doubt on a true end of the Reagan Era as conservative Republicans claimed two major victories winning both the House and later the Senate. However, the sweeping policies pursued by the Obama Administration constituted a clear break with Reagan Era social issues, as Americans became more supportive of social issues like gay marriage and the legalization of marijuana. The 2016 election victory of President Donald Trump has stirred debate over whether his rise signifies the continuation of the Reagan Era or represents a paradigm shift for American politics. Political scientist Stephen Skowronek argues that Trump's election shows that the Reagan era continues. Skowronek compares Obama to former presidents like Woodrow Wilson and Richard Nixon, who governed at a time when their own party was generally in the minority at the federal level.[6] Julia Azari, by contrast, argues that Trump's election signifies the end of the Reagan Era and the beginning of a new cycle in politics.[7] - During his presidency, Carter alienated many of those who had voted for him in 1976, including many in his own party. In the 1980 Democratic primaries, Carter defeated a strong challenge from the left in the form of Senator Ted Kennedy, who had clashed with Carter over the establishment of a national health insurance system.[13] Carter, and the Democratic Party as a whole, also alienated other voters, while the conservative movement gathered strength. A continually poor economy bred frustration over taxes, and voters became increasingly receptive to those advocating for a smaller government. A backlash also developed against affirmative action programs, as some whites claimed that the programs constituted reverse discrimination. The president had won a majority of evangelical Protestant voters in 1976, but the increasingly-politicized Christian right came to strongly oppose his presidency. Many of these religious voters were swayed by the public campaigns of leaders such as Jerry Falwell of the Moral Majority and Phyllis Schlafly, who opposed ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment. Another important conservative organization, The Heritage Foundation, emerged as an important conservative think tank that developed and advocated conservative policies.[14] - Upon taking office, Reagan argued that the United States faced a dire crisis, and that the best way to address this crisis was through conservative reforms.[16] His major policy priorities were increasing military spending, cutting taxes, reducing federal spending, and restricting federal regulations. Reagan believed that reducing the role of the government would lead to increased economic growth, which in turn would lead to higher revenues that would help pay down the national debt. Working with Congressman Jack Kemp, the Reagan administration introduced a major tax cut bill that won the support of enough Republicans and conservative Democrats to pass both houses of Congress. In August 1981, Reagan signed the Economic Recovery Tax Act of 1981, which enacted a 27% across-the-board federal income tax cut over three years, as well as a separate bill that reduced federal spending, especially in anti-poverty programs.[17] - Negative take: he believed in supply side economics but discovered that nobody else did. They set their goal to bankrupt the Federal government by cutting revenue well past a reasonable level. Their ultimate goal was to so cripple the Federal government that it would be incapable of doing anything & control would fall back to the states so they could go back to the 'good old days' of segregation, cronyism and local 'Boss Tweed' control. - Reagan is one of the "great" presidents from which you can really define an era around. I'm not saying his policies were good, but I am saying that he was highly consequential. Sean Wilentz, a political historian, argues that Reagan deserves to be listed among Jefferson, Jackson, and the Roosevelts as one of the most influential presidents in history. This is particularly notable because of Wilentz's self-professed liberalism. - To a large degree, Reagan is so mythologized by both conservatives and liberals because he embodied the transition into a new era of politics for the United States, an era in which liberalism was dying and a more hard-line form of conservatism was rising. If the 1940s-1960s were the heyday of American liberalism, the 1980s-2000s were the heyday of American conservatism. Even Bill Clinton took many of his economic ideas from Reagan. We see this transition from liberalism to conservatism in the mid-1970s. Republicans like Nixon and Ford were, in comparison to Reagan, moderates. Moderate republicans by the 1970s had for the most part eschewed segregationist beliefs, didn't oppose wholesale the federal programs established under the New Deal and Great Society, and supported detente--or the lessening of tensions--with the Soviet Union. Hard-line conservatives, as part of what is called the New Right, viewed these moderate Republicans as too weak on both domestic and foreign policy issues. This New Right movement arose largely for the same reasons as the New Left in the 1960s. Specifically, it was a counter-cultural revolution against the ideas and government programs that made up Lyndon Johnson's Great Society--civil and voting rights acts, federal aid for the indigent, etc. Throughout the 1980s, Reagan and his supporters cast himself as the embodiment of the New Right. This is probably why you see liberals vilify Reagan so much. - At the same time, by mid-1985 Reagan was actively trying to improve relations between the United States and Soviet Union. Obviously, Reagan's foreign policy initiatives didn't exactly square with his overly-patriotic, take-it-to-the-Soviets rhetoric. I think this disparity between Reagan's words and actions is really important to your question as it gets at the heart of how Reagan became so mythologized by conservatives. Many conservatives today look at Reagan's rhetoric, not his policies. They see him as a president that lifted the United States out of a freefall--both domestically and internationally--that began with Johnson and became exacerbated under Jimmy Carter. In fact, it appears now that the historical Reagan of the conservative imagination is largely inaccurate (as is the liberal idea of Reagan, although that's a different question). In general, the most recent historians view Reagan as being a "pragmatic conservative" that, despite his rhetoric, was not quite as much of an ideologue as most Americans would today consider him.

The Impeachment Attempt and Trump Admin Drama

- The U.S. Congress is due to hold a trial to consider whether President Donald Trump should be removed from office, after the House of Representatives voted in December to impeach him for pressuring Ukraine to investigate former Vice President Joe Biden, a potential rival in the 2020 presidential election. - The Trump-Ukraine scandal is an ongoing political scandal in the United States. It revolves around efforts by U.S. President Donald Trump to coerce Ukraine and other foreign countries into providing damaging narratives about 2020 Democratic Party presidential primary candidate Joe Biden as well as information relating to Russian interference in the 2016 United States elections. Trump enlisted surrogates within and outside his official administration, including his personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani and Attorney General William Barr, to pressure Ukraine and other foreign governments to cooperate in supporting conspiracy theories concerning American politics.[1][2][3][4][5] Trump blocked but later released payment of a congressionally mandated $400 million military aid package to allegedly obtain quid pro quo cooperation from Volodymyr Zelensky, the president of Ukraine. A number of contacts were established between the White House and the government of Ukraine, culminating in a phone call between Trump and Zelensky on July 25, 2019.[1][2][3][6] The scandal reached public attention in mid-September 2019 due to a whistleblower complaint made in August 2019.[7] The complaint raised concerns about Trump using presidential powers to solicit foreign electoral intervention in the 2020 U.S. presidential election.[8] The Trump White House has corroborated several allegations raised by the whistleblower. A non-verbatim transcript of the Trump-Zelensky call confirmed that Trump requested investigations into Joe Biden and his son Hunter Biden, as well as a conspiracy theory involving a Democratic National Committee server, while repeatedly urging Zelensky to work with Giuliani and Barr on these matters. - On December 10, 2019, Democrats on the House Judiciary Committee announced that they would levy two articles of impeachment, designated H. Res. 755: (1) abuse of power, and (2) obstruction of Congress,[89][90] in its investigation of the President's conduct regarding Ukraine. - As U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, Yovanovitch became the target of a conspiracy-driven smear campaign.[133][134][135] Allegations against her were then made by Trump's personal attorney Giuliani, as well as conservative commentator John Solomon of The Hill and Ukraine's then-top prosecutor, Yuri Lutsenko, who accused her of being part of a conspiracy involving anti-corruption probes in Ukraine and efforts by the Trump administration to investigate ties between Ukrainian officials and the Hillary Clinton 2016 presidential campaign.[136][137][138] Lutsenko, who has been accused by Ukrainian civil society organizations of corruption,[139] claimed that Yovanovitch, an Obama administration appointee, had interfered in Ukraine politics, had given him a "do-not-prosecute" list and was interfering in his ability to combat corruption in Ukraine.[140][137] The U.S. State Department said that Lutsenko's allegations against Yovanovitch were "an outright fabrication"[137] and indicated that they were a "classic disinformation campaign."[134] Lutsenko subsequently recanted his claims of a "do-not-prosecute" list.[141] Solomon's stories were nonetheless amplified by President Trump, his son Donald Trump Jr., Giuliani, Solomon, and conservative media outlets.[137][142] Ukrainians who opposed Yovanovitch were also sources for Giuliani, who "was on a months-long search for political dirt in Ukraine to help President Trump."[139] Giuliani confirmed in a November 2019 interview that he believed he "needed Yovanovitch out of the way" because she was going to make his investigations difficult.[143] - On September 24, 2019, a formal impeachment inquiry by the House of Representatives into President Trump was announced by House Speaker Pelosi, who said "The actions of the Trump presidency have revealed the dishonorable fact of the president's betrayal of his oath of office, betrayal of our national security and betrayal of the integrity of our elections."[17] Six House committees (Judiciary, Intelligence, Oversight and Reform, Foreign Affairs, Financial Services, and Ways and Means) began or continued their formal inquiries.[17][286] The impeachment inquiry came in the wake of a whistleblower complaint alleging a widespread abuse of power and a cover-up by Trump.[28][174][287] Concurrently, the Trump administration released a memorandum of the July phone call between Trump and Zelensky, confirming that Trump had asked Zelensky to "look into" the Biden controversy as a favor.[25] The whistleblower complaint also implicated Giuliani and U.S. Attorney General William Barr as part of a wider pressure campaign directed towards the Ukrainian government.[27][288] Within days, Ukraine envoy Kurt Volker resigned and three House committees issued a subpoena to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to schedule depositions for Volker and four other State Department employees, and to compel the release of documents.[289][290] In a letter to House Foreign Affairs Committee chairman Eliot Engel, Pompeo declined to allow the depositions until "we obtain further clarity on these matters", asserting the demand was "an attempt to intimidate, bully, and treat improperly, the distinguished professionals of the Department of State".[291] In response to Pompeo's letter, the chairmen of the House Intelligence, Oversight and Foreign Affairs committees wrote to deputy secretary of state John Sullivan that because Pompeo took part in the Trump-Zelensky call, he was now considered a witness with a conflict of interest that should preclude him from making such decisions. The congressmen also warned that witness intimidation and withholding of documents could constitute obstruction of the impeachment inquiry. - The impeachment of Donald Trump, the 45th president of the United States, occurred on December 18, 2019, when the House of Representatives approved articles of impeachment on charges of abuse of power and obstruction of Congress. Trump was acquitted by the senate on these two counts of impeachment on February 5, 2020, with only Mitt Romney breaking ranks within the Republican Party.

Aspects of the Republican Platform I abhor:

- The anti-immigrant rhetoric from some of the twitter figures is pretty disgusting, hateful, and over generalizing in my opinion. - I think conservatives tend to underestimate how much harder life is for the poor, how massive the advantage is for the rich, and how little of what they have can be attributed to their own greatness. - I am an atheist and I strongly believe in questioning everything, learning, and listening to alternative viewpoints. Conservatives have a belief in individuality, faith, and C O N F I D E N C E that I find utterly bizarre if I'm being honest. Listening to others and entertaining ideas is so important. - The anti-environmentalist stuff and anti-wall street regulation stuff strikes me as a combination of populist retardation and naked corruption. - Any anti-poor or anti-minority elitism disgusts me so much. Yet the poor/rich and the liberal/conservative are all capable of this. - The police and military are flawed and there are some instances where it really doesn't even seem gray area where they get off the hook.

Aspects of the Republican Platform I sympathize with:

- Your life is your life. Within the realm of reality everything you get comes from your own hard work. Complaining and wishing things were different is usually a complete and total waste of time, you are better off working harder and remaining fanatically loyal to your leaders and the system. - The Federal Government has a real potential to force liberal metropolitan values on states to which they are totally foreign. I object to this and strongly believe our federal system is threatened by idealistic liberals far more than cynical Republicans. Guns and Abortion should be completely left to the states. - There is NOTHING wrong with favoring YOUR OWN people over foreigners. This is nothing against foreigners, it is FOR your own people. The radical belief of global union pedaled by the far left is absolutely nuts and dangerous. If closed borders helps the workers of our country in any meaningful way, then by god slam the door shut. - Woke culture and cancel culture are often pretty pathetic and easy to make fun of. - Pacifism is just as dangerous an ideology as militarism. - The police and military have very hard jobs and deserve a great degree of sympathy and leniency.

Jerry Falwell

- a Southern Baptist minister who, in 1978, founded the conservative religious interest group the Moral Majority. Founded Thomas Road Baptist Church in Lynchburg, VA. Grandpa was an atheist and father was agnostic. Graduated from Baptist Bible College in Springfield, Missouri. Founded his megachurch in 1956 at the age of 22. - During 60s Falwell spoke against MLK and School integration. LCA was white. - Began a crusade when the IRS revoked the tax-exempt status of Bob Jones U due to racist stuff. - Falwell and other white evangelicals came into common cause due to 1978 Supreme Court ruling that stripped tex exempt status from all white private schools. Jimmy Carter ironically spearheaded this. - Moral Majority became one of the largest political lobby groups for evangelicals in the 1980s. Pro-life, pro-traditional family, pro-moral, pro-American. Was huge on painting Jimmy Carter as a traitor to the South and fake christian. AIDS is not just God's punishment for homosexuals; it is God's punishment for the society that tolerates homosexuals. The idea that religion and politics don't mix was invented by the Devil to keep Christians from running their own country. If you're not a born-again Christian, you're a failure as a human being. Any sex outside of the marriage bond between a man and a woman is violating God's law. Christians, like slaves and soldiers, ask no questions. God created the family to provide the maximum love and support and morality and example that one can imagine. The whole global warming thing is created to destroy America's free enterprise system and our economic stability. I think the Moslem faith teaches hate There's been a concerted effort to steal Christmas.. During South African Bishop Desmond Tutu's rise as an anti-apartheid leader, Falwell said, "I think he's a phony, period, as far as representing the black people of South Africa." On Islam, "I think [the Prophet] Muhammad was a terrorist. In that sense, I am stricken by his similarities to another conservative religious extremist I have known for more than two decades: Minister Louis Farrakhan. The black Chicago-based Nation of Islam minister could hardly have less in common with the Lynchburg Baptist preacher at first glance. But look deeper. Farrakhan billed himself as "The Charmer" in his days as a calypso performer before he joined the Nation in the 1950s. And he can be quite charming in person or in the pulpit. Or he can sound like a hater, depending on whether he feels like making news.

Elise Stefanik

Elise Marie Stefanik (/stəˈfɑːnɪk/; born July 2, 1984) is an American politician serving as the U.S. Representative for New York's 21st congressional district since 2015. Upon her first House election in 2014, Stefanik, then aged 30, became the youngest woman ever elected to Congress at the time. She is the youngest Republican woman ever elected to Congress. Elise Stefanik was born in Albany, New York in 1984 to Melanie and Ken Stefanik. Her parents own Premium Plywood Products, a wholesale plywood distributor based in Guilderland Center.[1]After graduating from the Albany Academy for Girls, she entered Harvard University, graduating with a degree in Government in 2006.[2][3] While at Harvard, she received an honorable mention for the Women's Leadership Award.[4] After graduating from Harvard, she joined the administration of President George W. Bush,[5] working as staff to the Domestic Policy Council.[6] Stefanik worked in the office of the White House Chief of Staff for Joshua Bolten, Bush's second deputy chief of staff.[6] She also helped prepare the Republican platform in 2012, served as director of new media for Tim Pawlenty's presidential exploratory committee, and worked at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and the Foreign Policy Initiative.[7] Stefanik managed Wisconsin congressman Paul Ryan's debate preparation during the 2012 presidential election.[5][8] Following the Romney-Ryan loss in the 2012 presidential election, she returned to upstate New York and joined her parents' business.[8] Stefanik is pro-life, but says the GOP should be more understanding of other positions on the issue.[32] She opposes taxpayer funding for abortion and supports requiring that health insurance plans disclose whether or not they cover abortions.[33] In 2019, The National Right to Life Committee, a political action committee (PAC) opposed to legal abortion, gives Stefanik a 71% pro-life rating, and NARAL Pro-Choice America, a PAC that supports legal abortion, gave her a 28% pro-choice rating.[34] Stefanik voted in favor of the Keystone Pipeline.[35] Stefanik opposed the 2013 sequestration cuts to the federal U.S. military budget, citing its effect on Fort Drum in Watertown, New York, part of her district.[35] She voted against the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, joining five other New York Republican representatives.[36] Her primary reason for voting "no" was due to the state and local tax deduction "that so many in our district and across New York rely on."[37] Stefanik also criticized "Albany's failed leadership and inability to rein in spending." She stated "New York is one of the highest taxed states in the country, and families here rely on this important deduction to make ends meet. Failure to maintain SALT (state and local tax deductions) could lead to more families leaving our region."[38][39] In a July 2015 profile in The Washington Times, Jacqueline Klimas noted that Stefanik was the only freshman on that year's conference committee for the defense policy bill, a position accorded to her "because of her extensive experience in foreign policy — working in the George W. Bush administration, prepping Rep. Paul Ryan for his vice presidential debates and listening to commanders at Fort Drum in her home district." Jack Collens, a political science professor at Siena College, told Klimas that Stefanik's prize committee position signalled that party leaders wanted Stefanik to be part of "the next generation of Republican leaders. Stefanik criticized President Donald Trump's decision to withdraw from the Paris climate agreement, saying the decision was "misguided" and "harms the ongoing effort to fight climate change while also isolating us from our allies."[41] In January 2017, Stefanik joined the Bipartisan Climate Solutions Caucus, an apparent indication of "a moderate stance on climate change issues." She voted against the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, joining five other New York Republican representatives.[36] Her primary reason for voting "no" was due to the state and local tax deduction "that so many in our district and across New York rely on."[37] Stefanik also criticized "Albany's failed leadership and inability to rein in spending." She stated "New York is one of the highest taxed states in the country, and families here rely on this important deduction to make ends meet. Failure to maintain SALT (state and local tax deductions) could lead to more families leaving our region."[38][39] Stefanik opposed Trump's 2017 executive order imposing a temporary ban on travel and immigration to the United States by nationals of seven Muslim-majority countries.[58] Stefanik declined to condemn the Trump administration family separation policy,[59] instead publishing a press release congratulating Trump after he signed an Executive Order to suspend new separations and detain families.[60] On March 26, 2019, Stefanik was one of fourteen Republicans to vote with all House Democrats to override President Trump's veto of a measure unwinding the latter's declaration of a national emergency at the southern border On May 4, 2017, Stefanik voted on party lines in favor of repealing the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) and passing the House Republican-sponsored American Health Care Act.[43][44] Following a televised community forum in Plattsburgh four days later, in which many attendees opposed her vote and wanted to maintain Obamacare because it was superior,[45] Stefanik said she had been unfairly criticized for her vote for AHCA.[46][47] She defended her vote in a post on Medium, "Setting the Record Straight on the American Health Care Act."[48][49] Her claims about the effects of the AHCA have been strongly disputed by journalists' fact-checking from the Glens Falls Post-Star,[50] North Country Public Radio,[51] and the Albany Times Union.[52] Following constituent backlash over Stefanik's AHCA vote, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee added Stefanik to their list of targeted 2018 House races.[53] In 2017, Stefanik co-sponsored the Preserving Employee Wellness Programs Act (H.R. 1313) in 115th Congress - legislation that, among other things, would eliminate the genetic privacy protections of the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act of 2008 and allow companies to require employees to undergo genetic testing or risk paying a penalty of thousands of dollars, and would let employers see that genetic and other health information. The bill is opposed by the American Society of Human Genetics.[54] Stefanik opposes abortion, but argues for compassion and understanding of different views.[55] She joined her party in supporting H.R. 36, the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act of 2017.[56] After the Federal Communications Commission decided to repeal Obama-era net neutrality in December 2017, Stefanik urged her congressional colleagues to pass legislation restoring the policy.[69] In the 116th Congress, Stefanik was one of eight Republicans to vote in favor of the Equality Act.[72][73] Later in the same Congress, she introduced a bill, The Fairness for All Act, that would prohibit discrimination against LGBT people while also including exceptions for religious groups and small businesses with religious foundations.[74] Some similarities to Josh Hawley. Moderate new generation of republicans that seemed to be radically Pro- Trump when they cameras were on them, perhaps because they know they are vulnerable.

Gavin McInnes

Gavin McInnes (/məˈkɪnɪs/; born July 17, 1970) is a Canadian writer and far-right political commentator known for his promotion of violence against political opponents.[1][2][3] Born in Hitchin, England, McInnes immigrated to Canada at a young age, before moving to America to pursue his political career. He holds both Canadian and British citizenship.[4] He is the co-founder of Vice Media and Vice magazine,[5][6][7] and host of Get Off My Lawn, formerly on Conservative Review Television. He is a contributor to Taki's Magazine and a former contributor to The Rebel Media,[8] and was a frequent guest on television programs on Fox News and TheBlaze.[9] McInnes was a leading figure in the hipster subculture while at Vice, being labelled as the "godfather" of hipsterdom.[10] After leaving the company in 2008, he became increasingly known for his far-right political views.[11] He is the founder of the Proud Boys, a neo-fascist[12] men's group classified as a "general hate" organization by the Southern Poverty Law Center.[13] McInnes has rejected this classification, claiming that the group is "not an extremist group and [does] not have ties with white nationalists". Seems like a serious piece of crap, likely mentally ill. He contradicts himself a lot and just says strange things.

Nikki Haley

Nimrata "Nikki" Haley (née Randhawa; born January 20, 1972) is an American diplomat, businesswoman, author, and politician. A Republican, Haley is a former South Carolina state legislator, a former governor of South Carolina, and a former United States Ambassador to the United Nations. She is the first woman to have served as governor of South Carolina and is the first Sikh-American to have served as a governor in the United States. First elected to the South Carolina House of Representatives in 2004, Haley served three terms in the House. In 2010, during her third term, she was elected governor of South Carolina; she won re-election in 2014. In 2015, Haley signed legislation calling for the removal of the Confederate flag from the State Capitol. She was named by Time magazine as one of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2016. Haley was born Nimrata Randhawa to a Punjabi-American Sikh family in Bamberg, South Carolina.[1] She has always been called Nikki by her family, which means "Little One" in Punjabi.[2][3][4][5]Her father, Ajit Singh Randhawa, and her mother, Raj Kaur Randhawa, immigrated to the United States from Amritsar District, Punjab, India.[6] Her father was formerly a professor at Punjab Agricultural University, and her mother received her law degree from the University of Delhi.[7] Haley's parents moved to Canada after her father received a scholarship offer from the University of British Columbia. When her father received his PhD degree in 1969, he moved his family to South Carolina, after accepting a position as a professor at Voorhees College, a historically black institution.[8] Her mother, Raj Randhawa, earned a master's degree in education and taught for seven years in the Bamberg public schools. In 1976 she started a clothing company, Exotica International.[7] When Nikki Randhawa was five years old, her parents attempted to enter her in the "Miss Bamberg" contest. Reflecting a history of racial segregation, the contest traditionally crowned both an African-American queen and a white queen. Since the judges decided Randhawa did not fit either category, they disqualified her.[6] Nikki has one sister and two brothers. Her sister Simran, born in Canada, became a radio host and Fashion Institute of Technology alumna. Her brother Mitti retired as a member of the United States Army Chemical Corps having served in Desert Storm; her second brother, Charan, is a web designer.[9] At the age of 12, Randhawa began helping with the bookkeeping in her mother's ladies' clothing shop, Exotica International.[10] In 1989, she graduated from the private Orangeburg Preparatory Schools.[11] She graduated from Clemson University[12] with a bachelor's degree in accounting. After graduating from Clemson University, Randhawa worked for FCR Corporation, a waste management and recycling company, before joining her family's clothing business. She later became Exotica International's controller[14] and chief financial officer.[15] Randhawa married Michael Haley in 1996.[16] She later became busy in civic affairs. In 1998, she was named to the board of directors of the Orangeburg County Chamber of Commerce. She was named to the board of directors of the Lexington Chamber of Commerce in 2003. Haley became treasurer of the National Association of Women Business Owners in 2003, and president in 2004.[17] Haley chaired the Lexington Gala to raise funds for a local hospital.[18] She also served on the Lexington Medical Foundation, Lexington County Sheriff's Foundation, and West Metro Republican Women.[19] She was the president of the South Carolina Chapter of the National Association of Women Business Owners, and was chair for the 2006 Friends of Scouting Leadership Division campaign.[20] In 2004, Haley ran for the South Carolina House of Representatives to represent District 87 in Lexington County. She challenged incumbent state representative Larry Koon in the Republican primary. He was the longest-serving legislator in the South Carolina Statehouse. Her platform included property tax relief and education reform.[21] In the primary election, she forced a runoff as Koon did not win a majority, but 42% of the vote. She placed second with 40% of the vote.[22] In the runoff, she defeated him 55-45%.[23] She ran unopposed in the general election.[24] Haley is the first Indian-American to hold office in South Carolina.[25] She was unopposed for re-election to a second term in 2006.[26] In 2008, she won re-election to a third term, defeating Democrat Edgar Gomez 83-17%. Before June 2015, Haley supported flying the Confederate flag on the statehouse grounds.[75] In the immediate aftermath of the Charleston church shooting, Haley did not take a position on removing the flag, saying, "I think the state will start talking about that again, and we'll see where it goes."[76][77] On June 22, Haley called for the removal of the Confederate flag from the statehouse grounds.[78] She stated: In July 2015, Haley signed a bill to authorize removing the Confederate flag from the flagpole on the grounds of the South Carolina Capitol. In April 2016, Haley indicated she would not support legislation introduced by the South Carolina State Senate which would require transgender individuals to use restrooms based on biological sex instead of gender identity. Haley stated: Haley described such restroom legislation as unnecessary. UN Ambassador: - On February 2, 2017, Haley declared to the U.N. Security Council that sanctions against Russia for its Crimean conflict would not be lifted until Russia returned control over the region to Ukraine.[103] On June 4, 2017, Haley reported the United States would retain "sanctions strong and tough when it comes to the issue in Ukraine".[104] - On March 15, 2017, Haley said she would not support a ban on Muslim immigration to the United States should President Trump choose to enact one. Haley said she did not believe "we should ever ban anyone based on their religion" and that a Muslim ban would be "un-American".[105] - Also in April 2017, Haley spoke out against Ramzan Kadyrov and the abuse and murder of gay men in Chechnya. She stated that "We continue to be disturbed by reports of kidnapping, torture, and murder of people in Chechnya based on their sexual orientation ... this violation of human rights cannot be ignored".[118] - In May 2017 interview, Haley expressed interest in moving the U.S. Embassy to Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.[119] On June 7, Haley charged the U.N. with having "bullied Israel for a very long time" and pledged the US would end this treatment while in Jerusalem.[120] Israel occupied the Jordan-controlled East Jerusalem during the Six-Day War in 1967 and formally annexed it in 1980. The Jerusalem Law declared Jerusalem to be Israel's "undivided capital".[121] - In July 2017, after the UNESCO voted to designate the Hebron's Old City and the Cave of the Patriarchs as Palestinian territory as well as endangered world heritage sites, Haley called the choice "tragic on several levels" in a statement (see Israeli-Palestinian conflict in Hebron).[122] - In September 2017, Haley stated that "some countries" (a reference to Russia, although Haley did not refer to Russia by name) were shielding Iran by blocking the International Atomic Energy Agency from verifying Iranian compliance with the international nuclear agreement with Iran. Haley said that it "appears that some countries are attempting to shield Iran from even more inspections. Without inspections, the Iran deal is an empty promise."[123] - In October 2017, the federal Office of Special Counsel determined that Haley had violated the federal Hatch Act in June 2017 by re-tweeting Trump's endorsement of Ralph Norman, a Republican candidate for Congress in South Carolina. Haley deleted the re-tweet after a complaint was filed by the government watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington. The Office of Special Counsel issued a reprimand by letter but did not recommend any further action be taken against Haley. The special counsel's letter warned Haley that any future violation could be considered "a willful and knowing violation of the law".[126][127] - Egypt sponsored a Security Council resolution voiding any unilateral decisions on Jerusalem's status. The resolution further demanded that countries "refrain from the establishment of diplomatic missions in the holy city." In December 2017, Haley warned UN members that she would be "taking names" of countries that voted to reject President Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and move the U.S. Embassy there from Tel Aviv. In a letter, Haley wrote: "As you consider your vote, I encourage you to know the president and the US take this vote personally. The president will be watching this vote carefully and has requested I report back on those who voted against us."[129] The resolution still passed by an overwhelming margin: 128 in favour, 35 abstaining and only nine against. Haley even travelled to some countries that voted "No," such as Guatemala and Honduras, and thanked them for their support in the emergency special session.[50] - Also in December 2017, Haley accused Iran of backing the Houthi rebels in Yemen. The Houthis are fighting the Saudi-backed Hadi government. She said that the "fight against Iranian aggression is the world's fight." Iranian U.N. mission spokesman Alireza Miryusefi said in response that "These accusations seek also to cover up for the Saudi war crimes in Yemen, with the US complicity, and divert attention from the stalemate war of aggression against the Yemenis." Iran likened Haley's presentation to that of then-Secretary of State Colin Powell, before the 2003 invasion of Iraq.[130] Haley also said that "It's hard to find a conflict or terrorist group in the Middle East that doesn't have Iran's fingerprints all over it", but she did not mention the U.S. role in Saudi-led intervention in Yemen and Saudi-led coalition's blockade of Yemen.[131][130] She was initially strongly anti-Trump, endorsing Marco Rubio and then Ted Cruz. Eventually she fell in line behind him while continuing to insist she wasn't a fan. She eventually became fanatically loyal to Trump just like the rest of them.

Steve Bannon

Stephen Kevin Bannon (born November 27, 1953) is an American media executive, political strategist, former investment banker, and the former executive chairman of Breitbart News. He served as White House Chief Strategist in the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump during the first seven months of Trump's term.[2][3] He serves on the board of Cambridge Analytica,[4] the data-analytics firm involved in the Facebook-Cambridge Analytica data scandal. Bannon was an officer in the United States Navy for seven years in the late 1970s and early 1980s. After his military service, he worked at Goldman Sachs as an investment banker, and left as vice president. In 1993, he became acting director of the research project Biosphere 2. In the 1990s, he became an executive producer in Hollywood, and produced 18 films between 1991 and 2016. In 2007, he co-founded Breitbart News, a far-right[i]website which he described in 2016 as "the platform for the alt-right".[I] In August 2016, Bannon was named the chief executive officer of Trump's 2016 presidential bid.[22][23] Following Trump's victory, Bannon was appointed Chief Strategist in the Trump administration. He left this position on August 18, 2017 and rejoined Breitbart. In January 2018, Bannon was disavowed by Trump for critical comments reported in the book Fire and Fury,[24] and left Breitbart. After leaving the White House, Bannon opposed the Republican Party establishment and supported insurgent candidates in Republican primaries. Bannon's reputation as a political strategist was questioned when Roy Moore, with Bannon's support, lost the 2017 United States Senate election in Alabama.[25][26] Bannon has declared his intention to become "the infrastructure, globally, for the global populist movement."[27] Accordingly, he has supported many national populist conservative political movements around the world. He graduated from Virginia Tech College of Architecture and Urban Studies in 1976, with a bachelor's degree in urban planning. While serving in the navy, he earned a master's degree in national security studies in 1983 from Georgetown University School of Foreign Service.[35] In 1985,[38] Bannon earned a Master of Business Administration degree with honors[39] from Harvard Business School.[40] In 1980, Bannon was deployed to the Persian Gulf to assist with Operation Eagle Claw during the Iran hostage crisis. The mission's failure marked a turning point in his political world-view from largely apolitical to strongly Reaganite, which was further reinforced by the September 11 attacks.[43][44] Bannon has stated, "I wasn't political until I got into the service and saw how badly Jimmy Carter ****ed things up. I became a huge Reagan admirer. Still am. But what turned me against the whole establishment was coming back from running companies in Asia in 2008 and seeing that Bush had fcked up as badly as Carter. The whole country was a disaster."[45] Bannon was a founding member of the board of Breitbart News,[65] a right-wing news, opinion and commentary website. Philip Elliott and Zeke J. Miller of Time have said that the site has "pushed racist, sexist, xenophobic and antisemitic material into the vein of the alternative right".[14] Bannon said that Breitbart's ideological mix included libertarians, Zionists, the conservative gay community, same-sex marriage opponents, economic nationalists, populists, as well as alt-right, the alt-right comprising a very small proportion overall. Conceding the alt-right holds views with "racial and anti-Semitic overtones," Bannon said he has zero tolerance for such views.[66][67] On November 13, following Donald Trump's election to the presidency, Bannon was appointed chief strategist and senior counselor to the President-elect.[81] His appointment drew opposition from the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), the Council on American-Islamic Relations, the Southern Poverty Law Center, Democratic Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, and some Republican strategists because of statements in Breitbart News that were alleged to be racist or antisemitic.[22][23][82][83][84] A number of prominent conservative Jews, however, defended Bannon against the allegations of anti-Semitism, including Ben Shapiro,[84][85][86] David Horowitz,[87] Pamela Geller,[88] Bernard Marcus of the Republican Jewish Coalition,[89] Morton Klein[90] and the Zionist Organization of America,[89] and Rabbi Shmuley Boteach.[91] Alan Dershowitz at first defended Bannon, saying there was no evidence he was antisemitic,[92][93] but then in a later piece stated that Bannon had made bigoted statements against Muslims, women, and others.[94] The ADL stated "We are not aware of any anti-Semitic statements from Bannon."[95] Shapiro, who previously worked as an editor-at-large at Breitbart, said he had no evidence of Bannon being racist or an antisemite, but that Bannon was "happy to pander to those people and make common cause with them in order to transform conservatism into European far-right nationalist populism".[96] Bannon had referred to French National Front (now National Rally) politician Marion Maréchal-Le Pen as "the new rising star".[97]

Reaganomics

The federal economic polices of the Reagan administration, elected in 1981. These policies combined a monetarist fiscal policy, supply-side tax cuts, and domestic budget cutting. Their goal was to reduce the size of the federal government and stimulate economic growth. Coupled with brutal hardline policy against USSR, and brutal takes on social issues like drugs and abortion. Shifted conservatism to the right.

Tucker Carlson

h- Tucker Swanson McNear Carlson (born May 16, 1969) is an American conservative journalist[2] and political commentator who has hosted the nightly political talk show Tucker Carlson Tonight on Fox News since 2016. Carlson became a print journalist in the 1990s, writing for the magazine The Weekly Standard, among others. He was a commentator on CNN, from 2000 to 2005, and co-host of the primetime news debate program Crossfire. Carlson then hosted the nightly program Tucker on MSNBC, from 2005 to 2008. He has been a political analyst for Fox News since 2009 appearing as guest or guest-host on various programs before the launch of his current show. In 2010, Carlson co-founded and served as the initial editor-in-chief of the conservative news and opinion website The Daily Caller. Carlson has written two books, the memoir Politicians, Partisans and Parasites: My Adventures in Cable News (2003) and Ship of Fools: How a Selfish Ruling Class is Bringing America to the Brink of Revolution (2018). - Carlson was born Tucker McNear Carlson (later, Tucker Swanson McNear Carlson) in San Francisco, California. He is the elder son of Richard Warner Carlson, a former "gonzo reporter"[3] who became the director of the Voice of America, the president of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, and the U.S. ambassador to the Seychelles.[4] Carlson's paternal grandparents were Richard Boynton and Dorothy Anderson, teenagers who placed his father in an orphanage where he was adopted when he was two years old by the Carlsons -- a wool broker and his wife. When Carlson was in first grade, his father moved him and his brother to La Jolla, California and raised them there.[15][16] In La Jolla, Carlson attended La Jolla Country Day School and grew up in a home overlooking the La Jolla Beach and the Tennis Club.[17] His father owned property in Nevada, Vermont, and islands in Maine and Nova Scotia.[17][3] Carlson attained his secondary education at St. George's School, a boarding school in Middletown, Rhode Island. He then went to Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut, where he graduated in 1991 with a BA in history.[4] - In 2000, Carlson co-hosted the short-lived show The Spin Room.[4] In 2001, Carlson was appointed co-host of Crossfire. On the show, Carlson and Robert Novak represented the political right (alternating on different nights), while James Carville and Paul Begala, also alternating as hosts, represented the left.[4]During the same period, he also hosted a weekly public affairs program on PBS, Tucker Carlson: Unfiltered. - Carlson's early evening show, Tucker (originally titled The Situation With Tucker Carlson) premiered on June 13, 2005, on MSNBC. He also hosted a late afternoon weekday wrap-up for MSNBC during the 2006 Winter Olympics, during which he attempted to learn how to play various Olympic sports. In July 2006, he reported live for Tucker from Haifa, Israel, during the 2006 Lebanon Warbetween Israel and Hezbollah in southern Lebanon. While in the Middle East, he also hosted MSNBC Special Report: Mideast Crisis. He appeared regularly on Verdict with Dan Abrams as a panelist in political discussions. Tucker was cancelled by the network on March 10, 2008, due to low ratings,[25] and the final episode aired on March 14, 2008. Brian Stelter of The New York Times wrote that "during Mr. Carlson's tenure, MSNBC's evening programming moved gradually to the left. His former time slots, 6 and 9 p.m., were then occupied by two liberals, Ed Schultz and Rachel Maddow." Carlson said the network had changed a lot and "they didn't have a role for me." - Carlson is generally described as a conservative[54][55] or paleoconservative,[56][57] although not all paleoconservatives agree that Carlson is a paleoconservative.[58] Writing for New York's Intelligencer, Park MacDougald called Carlson a "Middle American radical", which he described as someone who holds populist economic beliefs, hostililty to corporatocracy, fervent positions on nationalism, race and immigration, and a preference for strongmen in political authority. MacDouglad identified this form of radicalism as the ideological core of "Trumpism."[59] Carlson has espoused a libertarian view of economics. He supported Ron Paul's 1988 presidential candidacy, when Paul ran the candidate for the Libertarian Party, along with Paul's 2008 presidential candidacy, when Paul ran as a Republican.[60][61] Carlson has argued that the extent to which humans contribute to climate change is "an open question",[70] "not settled",[71][72] and "unknowable."[73] - Carlson is a frequent critic of immigration.[102] Carlson has been accused by Erik Wemple of The Washington Post and by writers for Vox of demonizing immigrants, both legal and illegal.[103][104][105][106] He has opposed demographic changes in the United States, writing that the demographic change seen in Hazleton, Pennsylvania, which saw Hispanics go from a small minority to a majority over a 15-year period, is "more change than human beings are designed to digest".[106] In 2018, Carlson suggested that mass immigration makes the United States "dirtier", "poorer" and "more divided".[107][108] In response to criticism of this, he has said that "we're not intimidated" and "we plan to try to say what's true until the last day. And the truth is, unregulated mass immigration has badly hurt this country's natural landscape".[109] Of illegal immigration, Carlson said in May 2019, "The flood of illegal workers into the United States has damaged our communities, ruined our schools, burdened our healthcare system and fractured our national unity."[90] In December 2019, he falsely claimed that immigrants were responsible for making the Potomac River "dirtier and dirtier."[110][111] Fox News host Tucker Carlson admits media is right about Trump's lying: 'He's a full-blown BS artist'. Conservative presenter says president is a 'compulsive self-promoter'. His twitter looks to be just another conservative promoter focusing on the same few issues: dangerous immigrants, confused liberals, and the media. A unique wrinkle is the narrative about how a selfish elite is destroying the country, with an emphasis on San Francisco in particular. Carlson introduces his thesis by applying the allegory given in Plato's Republic, in which the US ship of state has been commandeered by an incompetent crew (the current political and economic elite ruling class) who are oblivious to the needs of, and contemptuous of the desires of the passengers (the citizens) and intolerant of criticism.[3] Contrary to what might be expected of a conservative political commentator, Carlson does not restrict his definition of the elite to liberal members of Congress, but includes politicians of both political parties, certain neoconservative pundits, and modern entrepreneurs such as the CEOs of Facebook and Amazon, who he blames for decimating the American middle class and thus widening the gap between rich and poor, and generally betraying the liberal values they profess.[4] While Carlson considers the Presidential election of Donald Trump to be an historical aberration, he does not count Trump among the "ship of fools" and explains his election as the passengers' desperate attempt to send a message to the mutineers.