Why conservatives should make government simpler, not smaller

Emphasis on simplicity and clarity offers more advantages to more Americans than a dogmatic commitment to small government

Maybe conservatives should forget about starving the beast...
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The last year has presented a tableau of conservative disarray. The problems began in the presidential primaries, when a series of gaffes by unappealing candidates led many voters to question Republicans' seriousness. The challenges continued as Mitt Romney struggled to solidify his support by feigning a "severe" conservatism that had little basis in his record. Following Romney's decisive defeat, conservatives in the House of Representatives tried to force President Obama to make concessions on taxes and spending. They failed to do so in the fiscal cliff negotiations — and are likely to fail again when it comes to the debt ceiling.

Some of these setbacks can be blamed on contingent factors, including the weakness of the presidential field, the brilliance of Obama's campaign, and increasing residential polarization. But the most basic problem is rooted in the genetic code of conservatism itself. Since the 1950s, American conservatives have emphasized the goal of shrinking government. The trouble is, most Americans don't actually want smaller government, especially when they understand that means major cuts to popular entitlements like Social Security and Medicare.

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Samuel Goldman

Samuel Goldman is a national correspondent at TheWeek.com. He is also an associate professor of political science at George Washington University, where he is executive director of the John L. Loeb, Jr. Institute for Religious Freedom and director of the Politics & Values Program. He received his Ph.D. from Harvard and was a postdoctoral fellow in Religion, Ethics, & Politics at Princeton University. His books include God's Country: Christian Zionism in America (University of Pennsylvania Press, 2018) and After Nationalism (University of Pennsylvania Press, 2021). In addition to academic research, Goldman's writing has appeared in The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and many other publications.