None of these caveats suggests that conservatives should cease caring about family formation—but berating single and childless Americans is not helpful. Turning this into an explicitly partisan issue may even be self-defeating; in an age of cultural polarization, it may discourage liberals from forming families at all.

As we think about what a pro-family platform would look like, we should pay special attention to economic concerns. It takes too long for Americans to reach the level of economic security that they need to feel comfortable marrying and bringing children into the world. Changing cultural attitudes is important, but we should also seek lower housing costs—especially for single-family homes. We should also rethink our approach to education, creating more paths to middle-class security for those without college degrees. It’s a problem that so many Americans feel they must spend a large share of their early adult years pursuing post-secondary education, accruing tremendous debt, and delaying financial stability.

Vance is correct that declining marriage and parenthood rates have political consequences, though I hope this is not anyone’s primary reason for supporting family formation. Responsible conservatives should think carefully about what kinds of cultural, political, and economic changes we can realistically make to encourage marriage and parenthood. A majority of single, childless Americans aspire to get married and have children eventually. Helping them achieve these goals should be our task.