Common Good Conservatism In Action
by Terry Schilling, First Things:
Over the past year, conservatism has changed. At least, the way conservative intellectuals and some politicians talk has changed. Many now speak of orienting our society toward the common good, and about using government power to pursue that good. But has anything really changed within the Republican party? Politics and policy often run a course independent of philosophical debate. Are policymakers ready to go on offense and commit to a different strategy for combatting transgender ideology and the gay agenda? The answer seems to be yes.
Last month, NBC News announced: “Dozens of anti-LGBTQ state bills already proposed in 2020, advocates warn.” The story highlighted an interesting development. As the new year begins, conservative lawmakers in numerous states have started a fresh attempt to push back against the LGBT agenda. Unlike most of the legislative priorities of the recent past—Religious Freedom Restoration Acts (RFRAs), conscience protections, and parental rights bills—the proposals being put forward in 2020 go beyond merely carving out a space for Christians to freely practice their faith.
Up against a movement set on not only erasing biological sex in law and culture but also subjecting children to this gender ideology at increasingly younger ages, conservative legislators are responding in a new way. Rather than asserting a classically liberal right to be left alone by government, they are instead defending biological reality as important for the common good. And drawing a lesson from recent efforts to pass “bathroom bills” in some states, they have honed in on the area most likely to galvanize popular support: protecting children. As one state policy leader told me, “We need to be bold and try to protect as many children as possible.”
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