The Real Value of Jeb’s “Unfortunate Comments”
George W.’s description of himself, in the 2000 campaign, as a “compassionate conservative” was brilliantly vague—liberals heard it as “I’m not all that conservative,” and conservatives heard it as “I’m deeply religious.” It was about him as a person, not a program. Jeb’s slogan, “Right to rise,” is harder-edged, more specific in its implications, less personal, and easier to attack.
.. No less than liberals, conservatives feel themselves to be perpetual underdogs, because the other side’s main selling point, the provision of government benefits to people, is far more immediately appealing. Conservatives see themselves as having the challenge of arguing that you really shouldn’t want the goodies the Democrats are offering you. That’s the place where Bush’s unfortunate comment about taking care of you with free stuff seems to come from.
.. Bill Clinton’s typically centrist attempt to address the larger issue was to say, in his second inaugural address, that government was not the problem but neither was it the solution. Who can argue with that?
.. It seems possible that, in a year, we might have two candidates who openly disagree, both about the proper role of government in theory and about many specific programs in practice. That would be wonderful, because voters would have an unusually clear sense of the choice they are making.