Republicans are finally getting serious about ending abortion, in the states and in the federal courts. In a move designed to bypass federal court scrutiny, Texas created a new tort allowing private citizens to sue abortion providers. Mississippi chose direct confrontation with federal abortion law. The Gestational Age Act outlaws abortion after 15 weeks, excepting medical emergencies. At the federal level, a leaked opinion from the United States Supreme Court shows that some conservative justices intend to overturn Roe v. Wade.
It’s about time. Modern conservatives now have a restorationist mission. Conservatism isn’t about preserving the status quo any longer. Against very little opposition, the Left took over the commanding heights of the culture, the law, and the government. There is little left to conserve in what remains. Conservatives must instead restore a lost cultural and constitutional order. Conservatives started with the abortion issue, but there is much more to do.
Conservative states can do more. Many other issues need restoration. Children are being chemically castrated and sexually mutilated in transgender medical procedures. Our southern border is in crisis. Federal education agencies have pushed racist curricula into our schools. Our taxes are too high.
The conservative future of the Union is federalist. Federalism makes the state governments stronger and the federal government weaker. It restores the proper balance of power in the country. States must take back the rights and authority ceded to the federal government over the last 50 years. Conservative states must join together in a restoration compact to restore their power and influence. A group of contiguous, conservative states, working together, can reverse federal overreach.
The restorationist project requires conservative leadership that is as wise as a serpent and as innocent as a dove. It requires the exercise of political power by conservatives. Our voters must become more savvy in their consumption of media, more willing to engage in confrontational politics, and more wise in their choice of representatives.
Over the last 50 years, our conservative representatives have failed us. They have allowed the Left to win, over and over, on every issue. We elected those of unblemished character to office. They turned out to be hopelessly naïve. We need a different approach. Character matters, but so does practical wisdom, and a passion to fight for liberty. Too many of our leaders lack the latter two characteristics. Often, the conservative fighter will have a checkered past. He will have made mistakes. He will have erred on the side of audacity and boldness. He will exhibit a willingness to confront tyrants. We can find conservative fighters, but not in the places we have been looking.
Those who have been harmed by government should now be elected to government. Our representatives should have skin in the game. The only people we elect should be people who have been hurt by government overreach. We often ask candidates, why are you running? The answer should be: the government did this to me, and I’m going to stop it. There’s really no other reason for a candidate to be in office. Either he wants to change something that really hurt him, or he is just seeking power. We need representatives who will fight for change.
Social issues are all that matter to the restorationist project. The aim of all policy is to preserve the traditional family, to defend our traditional ways of life, and to maintain a system of ordered liberty. To do that effectively will require conservative leaders with skin in the game who are willing to fight. We have plenty of such people to choose from. We can end abortion and turn back the excesses that are destroying the country. Choose representatives with skin in the game, and win.