Four years ago, Democrats booed God at their convention. Now, God is no longer welcome at the Republican convention either. This is the first convention speech delivered by a GOP nominee in recent memory that had no mention of God other than the obligatory “God bless America” at the end. Yet, it had two references to the pagan contrived distinction of LGBT LGBTQ.
When viewing the speech through the lens of the three-legged conservative stool, it’s quite evident two of the legs are missing or corroded. Here is the good, the bad, and the ugly:
The Good – Law and Oder
However, it must be said that, as is always the case, his speech is light on solutions and very heavy on emotional appeal. Remember, Republicans have always been good at identifying Democrat failures, especially in this era. This speech did not disappoint in that respect, as the indictment against Hillary was very effective.
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The Bad – Limited Government and Economy
There was simply no mention, nor foundation, of limited government and the power of a civil society and free markets to create economic growth. Once again, he diagnosed some problems some will agree with on trade, but just like we are not one trade deal away from prosperity (as suggested by some ardent free traders), we are not one more nullification of a trade deal to prosperity. There were no solutions or positive vision other than Trump will make America great again. And there was certainly no mention of reducing the size of government and tackling the debt in a serious way, which is actually killing the economy now.
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The Ugly- No God, Values, Inalienable Rights
Let’s face it, this party is done not only with social conservatism but even religious libertarianism. The crisis of conscience in this country in which religious Americans are being fined or imprisoned for not violating their conscience and inalienable rights ranks among the most existential threats to our society. Yet, there was no mention of it, nor was there mention of life, Planned Parenthood’s butchery, a strong civil society, property rights, or anything remotely resembling values. This is a first for nomination speeches. Most appallingly, there was not a single mention of God or faith other than the obligatory “God bless America” and the thank you to Evangelicals….for voting for him. This should shake conservatives of all stripes to their core.
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I certainly can’t fault someone for wanting to stop Hillary Clinton and for placing some hope at least in parts of the security leg of Trump’s campaign platform. But just remember, when coupled with his cult of personality, no foundation in God (never asked God for forgiveness), lack of specific solutions and consistency, and many of the people around him being liberal or establishment hacks, there are major problems here. Rather than shout down concerns, we need to pressure those around him to keep him strong and consistent on his good points and fill in the gaps on at least some of the problematic positions.
Most importantly, we must recognize that whether Trump wins or loses, conservatives do not have a political party that represents them anymore on so many levels. So let’s not get bogged down over the question for who to cast the ballot this fall, but what we are going to do now to build a party that represents that values that made America great in the first place.
- Discussion
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Trump Speech: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly https://t.co/Mj8N1ks3lU
— Daniel Horowitz (@RMConservative) July 22, 2016
It seems maybe Cruz spoke to party that no longer exists, and Trump spoke to a country that no longer exists.
— Steve Deace (@SteveDeaceShow) July 22, 2016
Kicking out all outsiders, forbidding companies to leave, and building a wall around the country. #thumbsup
— Ben Howe (@BenHowe) July 22, 2016
I’ve heard this sort of speech a lot in the last 15 years and trust me, it doesn’t sound any better in Russian.
— Garry Kasparov (@Kasparov63) July 22, 2016
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