Conservatives embrace being "the villain"

Because conservatism now sees itself as under siege, there are few standards for joining the cause. Because it distrusts information and media reports, it is allergic to vetting. And because Trump has flouted moral conventions, anyone attempting to police the right or impose standards is seen as being un-Trumpy and, thus, unconservative.

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This probably explains why all those august conservative leaders and institutions—you know, the folks who hold all those meetings, own all those buildings, and write all those self-important memos—aren’t asking Claremont how this guy won their prestigious fellowship. For that matter, where is Claremont? Is this the kind of person they want representing them? Or did they make a mistake in failing to read (or watch) things he has said or done in the past? (I have reached out to their media team but have not gotten a response.)

This family values stuff may have been window dressing for many, but a lot of us still believe that traditional family values—even when we fail to fully live up to them—are best for individual human flourishing, as well as a strong nation. By elevating people who don’t even aspire to these standards, conservative institutions are sending a message that these values really don’t matter. This, of course, is a natural byproduct of having Trump (whom Murphy calls “unabashedly masculine”) as the head of your movement.

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