It would be presumptuous to speak of the conservative movement as a monolithic entity, because now, more than ever, the once-indomitable rulers of America are embroiled in an internecine struggle for the future of the party. Moderate factions have signaled their willingness to work with president Obama – so long as he does not cross too severely their ever-changing party principles; the Fundamentalist Christian wing of the GOP holds onto the threadbare illusion that John McCain lost in November because he wasn’t (socially) conservative enough; Neoconservatives are in exile; Paleoconservatives want to hit the Goldwater reset button; and the movements’ top propagandists, including Rush Limbaugh and Fox News, are already chipping away at the new president’s authority and rooting for his failure. This dangerous man, who will, according to them, destroy everything they know and love, nevertheless has pushed through a victory for conservatism, in its younger, healthier form. By reversing the Bush administration on energy policy, Obama is displaying an understanding, even acceptance, of the idea of state’s rights.
Not that you’ll hear much praise or celebration from the opposition party. The policy reversal has to do with the environment, after all.
