Liberal democracy retreats as politics take a right turn

 

Gordon L. Weil

The world is taking a right turn.

Even when parties clash on policy, their shared values can yield practical results through compromise. But now, conservatives increasingly reject compromise, jeopardizing shared values.

Liberal democracy may be retreating. It emerged from the adoption of social welfare policies and the defeat of fascism by American and European democracies. Once widely accepted, it is now openly challenged.

Listen to Viktor Orban, the Hungarian Prime Minister idolized by some American conservatives. His country has lived under a monarchy, Nazism and Communism, and he now proclaims, “We have replaced a shipwrecked liberal democracy.” He labels his new form of government “illiberal democracy,” which amounts to an elected dictatorship with no need to compromise.

Orban’s views are extreme, but many conservatives favor smaller and more authoritarian government, lower taxes, and fewer foreign commitments. They believe that only by being uncompromising, contrary to the practices of liberal democracy, can they gain control.

Even in Maine, this way of thinking is appearing.

Unless two-thirds of the Legislature agrees on a state budget, a version adopted by a simple majority and signed by the governor must be delayed for 90 days. That’s what happened this year with the basic budget. But hopes remained for a supermajority to adopt the supplemental budget.

The minority Republicans and the majority Democrats had conflicting legislative goals. They reached a compromise with some GOP gains, but the majority unsurprisingly dominated the result. The 13-member bipartisan Appropriations Committee sent the agreed budget to the House and Senate with the opposition of only one Republican.

The compromise budget, enjoying the support of Republican leaders, was expected to get the required supermajority. Then, GOP House members rebelled against a budget that had been negotiated by their own picked representatives. The House GOP leader had to abandon them.

Minority Leader Billy Bob Faulkingham said that efforts had been made at compromise. “But at the end of the day, I listen to my caucus, and I answer to them.” With remarkable honesty, he reported that he had accepted its refusal to agree. The GOP required even more concessions to add to their major win on highway funding, which should reduce taxes.

In the final tally, the compromise budget received only three GOP votes. Two came from members of the Committee, veterans of political compromise politics who stuck by their position and the third was by the Senate GOP leader.

Maine Republicans in the Legislature had openly shed the shared values of compromise for partisan conflict. Their backs may have stiffened when the Democrats led in adopting liberal legislation on abortion and gender.

This situation revealed much about the Republican Party. While there may be more degrees of conservatism at the national level, the split between party factions was revealed by the Maine budget switch.

Nationally, the GOP is composed of four elements: Trump loyalists, the hard or extreme right, strong conservatives and moderate or economic conservatives.

The Trump loyalists are attached to Donald Trump (and possibly to any successor named Trump). They can be understood as an ultra-loyal cult or at least an ardent fan club. Wherever he leads on policy, they follow. If he is found legally guilty of anything, they would see him as the victim of a plot.

The hard right places partisanship above political responsibility. They not only disagree with Democrats; they want to destroy Democrats. This leads to conspiracy theories and endless attempts to discredit their opponents. Social media lies are their weapons. Autocratic government is their goal. They are the Orban people.

Strong conservatives will fight on wedge issues like abortion, gender identity and gun control, and also support voter suppression and more emphasis on religious rights. They demand smaller government and lower taxes. They want to reduce government aid programs for the poor and disadvantaged.

Traditional conservatives want lower taxes and reduced regulation, which they see as standing in the way of economic growth. The business wing of the party, they are less concerned about social issues than other conservatives. They are willing to seek compromises with Democrats. Among Republicans, they are fading out. The Maine budget vote showed that happening.

The growth of the hard right and strong conservatism is not limited to the U.S. The right turn has been seen in the end of U.K. membership in the EU. Italy, Israel, Sweden and France have all seen a surge of parties on the right.

In the U.S., the split between strongly conservative states and other states following more traditional politics is becoming increasingly obvious, shown by contrasting red and blue states.

Conservative Republicans want to give voters a clear choice, undiluted by compromise. They believe that’s the way to win. The 2024 elections, with or without Trump, may provide the key test for the powerful Republican right.