- Rephrase social conservatism as resistance to radical change, not support for reactionary thought. It's all about defining "normal." Right now, the Democrats have done a decent job of phrasing themselves as "normal" and the GOP as antiquated. The GOP needs to support SLOWER social progress, not NO social progress.
- Make creative environmental initiatives our thing. Tax breaks for companies who are more green, for example. CONSERVATION should again be a part of CONSERVATISM. If you think all of these rural people aren't actual environmentalists (not the granola-y kind that care as much about what it *means* to be an environmentalist as they do actually protecting nature), then you have never spent any time in a rural community, IMO. Hunting and fishing and having a bonfire in a field aren't exactly the anti-animal and fumes-emitting dumb hick traditions that some Atlasians probably see them as; they're legitimate ways to connect with nature. Your average Republican would be MORE than open to protecting the environment if they didn't constantly see the weirdo hippies out in Denver talking about how dumb and evil you are for using a straw at a restaurant.
- Stop phrasing economic redistribution in terms of White vs. minority dog whistles, as some Republicans do. Taking more of "your hard-earned money" would hit home with plenty of affluent minorities if they didn't feel fundamentally unwanted (at best) or threatened (at worst) by many in the Republican Party. It's the big bad government that will waste your money and always wants more of it anyway vs. you, the hard-working taxpayer. Taxpayers come in all colors.
We don't need to become super pro-choice to win more women. We don't need to support total amnesty to win more Hispanic voters. We don't need to completely abandon references to God to win more secular voters. Leave the crazy and out-there strategies with liberalism and the Democratic Party where they belong; our space is to provide a modified, more responsible and better thought out alternative to pie in the sky ideas. Whether that is opposing blanket amnesty but being open to all legal immigration, opposing $15 nationwide minimum wage hikes overnight but acknowledging it needs raised and indexed to inflation or any number of other examples, that is what I believe conservatism should be. It can still stand for tradition, nationalism, liberty, private enterprise, etc. without coming off as reactionary.
Well said! Plastic straws are kind of wasteful though.
