There are a lot of people who are anti-Trump but still consider themselves Conservative, who are quite delighted with Barrett being placed on the Supreme Court.

It has me quite confused and it made me think of this tweet. https://twitter.com/kurteichenwald/status/1319023874495971332?s=20

It could easily be argued that everything on that list is something Progressives stand for. And I realized I don’t get it—I don’t understand why anyone (never-trumper or otherwise) would still identify as Conservative. Whether Trump wins or loses, what is it Conservatives want?

I grew up in a small politically conservative town in Utah. My dad was a Democrat, my mom was a Republican. I was always taught that debate and opposing views were good and healthy for our country. In some instances, I can see how that’s true.

If a new law has been proposed, it is healthy and good to look at it from all angles; to discuss and debate it; to consider all the people that will be impacted and learn from them so we can find out information we might be missing, or that we might not have factored in.

But the way Conservatives argue is not good or healthy for our country. It’s just a manipulative waste of time. So I’m wondering: 

What if Conservatives stopped wasting time arguing positions that the vast majority of the country has no interest in?

There are a whole bunch of common sense, easily understandable positions that the majority of the country wants, and that Conservatives (even before Trump) continue to fight against. Why? It’s hard to tell. We know it’s about status quo and money and preserving white power.

But the endgame doesn’t make any sense. They hurt a ton of people. They don’t win anyone to their point of view. And when they have a “victory”, like rushing to put Barrett on the Supreme Court, they just get angrier and meaner. It’s bizarre. https://twitter.com/JudiciaryGOP/status/1320878683423428609?s=20

Take the ACA for example. Despite the nickname of Obamacare, the basis for the ACA plan was originally created by Conservatives. Simply adopting that plan was a major compromise on the part of Progressives. They used a Conservative plan!

They could have fought for something much more progressive (I wish!), but they didn’t. They compromised instead. There is no better bridge building than that.

So Conservatives, what did you do in response? You rejected it anyway. You fought against your own plan tooth and nail.

You continue to fight it all these years later, and not once, not even for a minute, have you come up with something to replace it with. And we know why you haven’t come up with a replacement. It’s because it was your plan in the first place. It was already your best ideas!

The vast majority of the country agrees that healthcare is a right. It’s a no brainer. The whole country benefits from a healthy population. And we can see that so many other countries have already figured this out with great success.

Should we waste more time and energy and resources debating whether or not everyone should have access to healthcare? Absolutely not. Should we discuss and debate the best way to tax the ultra-wealthy to ensure free healthcare for all? Absolutely yes.

The vast majority of the country is VERY worried by climate change. People are ready and willing to make changes that will help; to drive healthier cars, choose solar power for their homes, work from home to limit a commute. We just need leaders who will prioritize this.

What if Conservatives would stop wasting time arguing about whether climate change is real, and instead the country could debate how best to implement the most effective ways to stop or reverse the damage?

Conservatives, tell me: what is the negative outcome of using cleaner energy? Hint: There is none! What if we shifted to clean energy—and the water was safe, and the coral reefs began coming back, and 500,000 babies didn’t die of air pollution. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2020/oct/21/polluted-air-killing-half-a-million-babies-a-year-across-globe

But then, just as Conservatives suspected all along, we found out some other reason for global warming that no one has thought of.

SO WHAT?! We’d all still benefit from the clean air, clean water, the organic food, the safer technologies.

There are only positives for pushing clean energy and fighting global warming. It creates jobs! It encourages American ingenuity! There are zero downsides! Why in the WORLD would Conservatives, who claim to love America, fight against this? Make it make sense!

The vast majority of the country wants excellent, free education available to all—PreK thru college. Literally everyone benefits as the general population becomes more educated. Employers and Employees benefit. Children and Communities benefit. Conservatives and Liberals benefit.

And we have plenty of money for education. We just keep wasting it by allocating it to things like a swollen military and the prison-industrial complex. What if we didn’t have to debate whether or not college should be free, and instead discussed how we want to fund it?

The vast majority of the country wants the government to stay far away from legislating women’s bodies. We agree abortion is something a doctor and patient should discuss and it is nobody else’s business, certainly not the government’s business.

There is no mandate for criminalizing abortion. There is nothing to debate here. Nothing to discuss. There is no mandate for legislating abortion at all. We could eliminate all abortion-related laws and it would improve politics in major ways.

Think of all the time and resources we could save if the only people who ever needed to talk about abortion were doctors and their patients?

(Plus we know Progressive policies decrease abortion, and Conservative policies increase abortion. So there's that.)

The vast majority of the country is completely on board with gay marriage. Like, we don’t even think of it anymore because it’s been legal for 5 years and there have been exactly zero negative consequences for anyone. Why would you still cling to this fight? It’s over. Let it go.

You never had a good argument against gay marriage. Stop wasting everyone’s time, and torturing vulnerable communities, by bringing this happily resolved fight back to the surface. And the future? Gen Z? Even the most sheltered Gen Zers have no interest in this particular fight.

The vast majority of the country is aching for nationwide, effective, common sense gun laws. Anyone who has recently read the 2nd amendment can see that it takes mind-bending manipulation to try and use that amendment to justify a private citizen owning an arsenal of AR-15s.

Nothing about the Conservative approach to guns makes any sense. Even the vast majority of gun owners want better gun laws! What if Conservatives stopped wasting our time, making everyone debate the idea that the writers of the Constitution could predict the future.

Conservatives have no platform. Even when Trump is gone (and I realize he may win again), there will be no platform. What does it even mean to be Conservative? What is it exactly you are trying to conserve at this point?

You fight against education. You fight against healthcare. You fight against clean air and water. You fight against equality and justice. You fight against de-militarizing the police. You fight against balancing the budget. You fight against loan forgiveness.

You fight against gay marriage. You fight against bodily autonomy. You fight against preventing disinformation. You fight against balancing the budget. You fight against free speech and protests. You fight against freedom of religion. You fight against preventing monopolies.

You fight against a living wage. You fight against reparations. You fight against free and easy access to voting. You fight against keeping families together. You fight against helping refugees. You fight against immigration. You fight against the most basic gun laws.

What do you fight *for*? What do you believe? What could you say to convince anyone to your side? You’ve demonstrated repeatedly you have no interest in conserving political norms. So what is it you are so invested in conserving? Why are you determined to waste everyone’s time?

When you picture the future of the country as run by Conservatives, what is it you’re imagining? I do not understand what your Conservative endgame is. What do you want the country to look like in ten years, and what do you picture your role will be?

If we follow the current Conservative trajectory toward its logical and inevitable end, what we have left is Bannon, Kellyanne, Kavanaugh, and the Koch Brothers ruling 5000 white QAnon diehards in a very cold hideaway in rural Idaho.

Just like Ayn Rand’s paranoid Atlas Shrugged fantasy, except without anyone even remotely talented or interesting. Is that your endgame? If not, explain how your actions don’t lead to that specific end. If yes, then hey: go do that now and let the rest of the country progress.

Make your arguments, Conservatives. I’m all ears. What do Conservatives want? What do Conservatives believe? And in October 2020, why would anyone still want to call themselves a Conservative?

/end