David French’s conservative credentials are impeccable.
An evangelical “Constitutional lawyer“ and former National Review columnist, French is She is strongly against abortion, pro-gun, and against campus protests (which predate the current Gaza war). She is pro-war when it comes to the neoconservative remaking of the Middle East, and against Prince (the musician) for supposedly replacing religion in people’s hearts.
In the National Review he wrote Things like this:
I’m confused. When debates over gay marriage were raging, there were theologians assuring us that Jesus was gay. And now he’s transgender? And all this from a movement that also seems to argue that a divine Jesus is no more real than the mythical Flying Spaghetti Monster?
And yet last Sunday he supported Vice President Kamala Harris to the presidency. He says that’s not because he agrees with her on most issues, but because he hopes Donald Trump’s Republican Party fails and creates an opportunity for something new.
In his commentary for the New York Times, French explains his support as follows:
The only real hope for restoring a conservatism that values integrity, shows genuine compassion and defends our basic constitutional principles is not to make the most of Trump, a man who values only himself. If he wins again, it will confirm his cruelty and his ideological transformation of the Republican Party. If Harris wins, the West will still stand against Vladimir Putin, and conservative Americans will have a chance to build something decent out of the ruins of a party that was once a genuine force for good in American life.
Leaving aside his notion of a conservative political party being a “force for real good,” I have also been thinking hard about what a post-Trump Republican Party might look like.
Here’s what we know: MAGA is a world of con artists, and they celebrate each other’s con artists. Consider, for example, that then-President Donald Trump pardoned former chief strategist Steve Bannonwho was charged with fraud Trump’s own fans of the millions of dollars that had been raised to supposedly build a wall along the US-Mexico border.
The MAGA crooks include a gun rights extremist Kyle RittenhouseFounder of Turning Point USA Charlie Kirk (who now helps run the Trump campaign’s election program), adviser Roger SteinMember of the Republican National Committee David Bossieformer national security advisor Michael FlynnInfluencer Jordan PetersonLawyer who denies the elections Kurt OlsenPillow seller Michael LindellSenate candidate Lake KariConspiracy theorists Alex Jonesformer undertaker of Trump John McEnteeself-proclaimed Misogynist Influencers Andrew Tate, Donald Trump Jr.former prosecutor Kimberly Guilfoyleas well as all in this article about a recent attempt by the right to create panic and raise money around the mythical “Disease X” and other scams. Donald Trump is also on this list, although his current scams are less about accumulating money and more about accumulating power.
Here’s my prediction of what will happen to the Republican Party if Trump loses this year: Everyone on this long list of diehard MAGA supporters has seen Trump use the power of scams to amass money and power, and they want in on the act. We already know that. The thing is, though, that these are all terrible people, and terrible people do not play nicely with each other. Trump is a singular force that can largely keep this hornet’s nest from turning on itself. But take him out of the equation? It’s going to be a battle of all against all. Each of the names mentioned above, and more (not forgetting former Fox News host Tucker Carlson) see themselves as leaders of the movement, especially if that leadership translates into money. And yet none of them – not even Don Jr. – has the heft to inherit Trump’s kingdom. It will splinter.
David French dreams of this collapse and the resurrection of a conservatism “that values integrity, shows genuine compassion and defends our fundamental constitutional principles.” Will he revive the Republican Party, a party that welcomes back disaffected conservatives? at The Bulwarkformer congressman from Wyoming. Liz Cheneyand the growing list of Never Trumpers?
Perhaps.
But it’s just as likely that something worse is happening. Because if there’s one thing we’ve learned from the modern conservative movement, it’s that it keeps finding new lows.
It goes without saying that things would definitely get worse for the Republican Party if Trump wins in November, so let’s make sure that doesn’t happen by donating to Harris’ campaign today.
