U.S. Conservatives Divide Themselves

“I miss the time when ‘I am a conservative’ made sense to each other. In the Ronald Reagan administration, all were under one flag,” said a Georgetown University professor, a former national security advisor of the Reagan administration, to the reporter on Thursday.

He was explaining the situation where Senator John McCain became a Republican nominee but the party’s key conservatives were disgruntled at it.

The professor added, “Most candidates dropped out of the race, but when you look at every candidate by early January, you will realize where conservatism now stands.”

○ Candidates Reluctant to Admit Each Other as Conservatives

Conservatism in the U.S. is represented by free trade, strong security based on military power, small government, respect for traditional values, and all of them are closely combined.

Recently, however, the U.S. conservatives divided into several categories. Last fall, as the presidential campaign began to heat up, anti-gay marriage and anti-abortion, “social conservatives” gathered around former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee and former Senator Fred Thomson.

Those who supported strong security, patriotism, and the war in Iraq rooted for Senator McCain, while those who valued the war on terrorism and homeland security supported former New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani.

Pro-tax cut and pro-small government “economic conservatives” stood behind former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney.

It is natural that each supporter follows different candidates in the primary race and stick together when a nominee is decided. But that is not the case with the Republican Party.

Some Republican supporters do not want to recognize others as “real conservatives.” In particular, social conservatives seemed to regard McCain and Giuliani as heretics who are worse than Democrats.

Key Republican leader Newt Gingrich, former U.S. House Speaker, wrote in his latest book, “Republicans have enjoyed an amazing combined era over the past 30 years, but we are now in a completely new phase. Those who call themselves next Republican leaders claim that they are the descendants of Reagan. As a matter of fact, they are holding Reagan’s pieces.”

Endorsing McCain’s nomination on Thursday, Romney appealed to the supporters, saying “I have my own view, and Senator McCain has his, but we are now one in the same party.”

So, McCain now have the support from Romney as well as Giuliani and Thomson. On Feb.10, he drew support from President George W. Bush when the president said he would back McCain if the senator becomes a Republican nominee.

But a Republican leader said, “Despite President Bush’s support, key Republican conservatives are concerned that conservative values can be undermined, if McCain, who have taken non-Republican attitudes in policy issues such as illegal immigration, tax reduction, political fund raising, becomes the president.”

“Key Republican leaders do not let their guard down because they have memories of the first Bush administration,” he added. Former President George H.W. Bush promised not to raise taxes at first but he reversed the promise and shocked conservatives when he appointed a liberal figure as a Supreme Court Justice.

Some people see that the division of conservatives is an inevitable product with the change of times.

○ Korea Also Undergoes the Division of Conservatives

Professor Park Yoon-sik of George Washington University said, “With the increasing number of immigrants, and the emergence of new issues such as abortion and homosexuality, views are divided on different issues among the Republicans. The flag of conservatism in the past can no longer embrace all.”

“Republicans now have to embrace neutralists as the views of members have diversified. The number of people who are conservatives in politics and the economy but neutral in social values is on the rise,” he added.

The diversification of U.S. conservatives on social issues is similar to that of South Korea. In last year’s presidential election, hawkish conservatives, who were against Lee Myung-bak, then presidential candidate of the conservative party, due to the disagreement on the relationship between South and North Korea, flocked to support independent candidate Lee Hoi-chang.

sechepa@donga.com