For lovers of liberty, the Trump years have been a nightmare, but even as that nightmare ends following last week’s election, another is about to begin. Still, this is not a time for conservatives to lose hope; it’s a time to fight hard and pray harder.
Since the day Donald Trump descended from the infamous escalator to announce his candidacy for President of the United States, many conservatives have been frantically trying to warn that he is a proven far-left, amoral demagogue with frightening socialist tendencies.
Trump repeatedly validated our warnings throughout the 2016 primary campaign by declaring his support for universal healthcare, socialist trade policies and government mandated maternity leave and childcare, and viciously attacking anyone whom he considered a threat to his path to the White House and all of its proposed power. Yet, his strongman rhetoric and outlandish campaign themes were more appealing to his fans than facts or conservative principles, which sadly proved to be the case for the duration of the Trump era. With every outrageous lie spewed, more and more people fell under his spell.
The tribalism from both sides during the Obama era led to the Donald Trump nightmare. Anger and frustration over Obama’s far-left liberal governance and the egregious abuses of power from every branch of federal government consumed those on the right to the point where we were seething with rage.
While infuriated, the grassroots understood that both Democrats and Republicans were responsible for the advancement of Obama’s agenda, and we wanted Republicans held equally accountable for their role in advancing them; especially TEA Party Republicans who ran on defunding Planned Parenthood, repealing Obamacare, protecting the second amendment, securing religious liberty, limiting the size and scope of government, ending illegal immigration, and stopping the far-left agenda.
We elected them based on these promises, but once they arrived in Washington, even when they held majorities in their respective chambers, they conceded to the left on nearly every single policy fight.
Faux-conservative pundits on the radio and FOX NEWS attacked Obama and the left for advancing his political agenda while failing to hold compromised Republicans accountable for facilitating it. The focus was always on the “evil liberal agenda;” which, by the way, is VERY real. The problem is the right-wing media neglected to inform its seething audience that Republican culpability is also very real.
It all went downhill from there.
While the liberal media was busy cramming their “everybody should be offended by anyone who isn’t a Democrat” narrative down the throats of their viewers, the conservative media narrative ignored actual discernible policy outcomes to embrace conspiracy-theory-driven news in an attempt to “own the libs.” The stage was set for Donald Trump’s wild birther theories about Obama.
Trump, who already had his sights set firmly on the White House, set the wheels in motion to make his break from the Democrat Party to run for president as a Republican. He stoked the fires of sectarian discord as often as he could, nurturing a growing base of rabid supporters who hung onto his every word.
I’m someone who only subscribes to facts, so this is when conservative media began to lose what little credibility it still had with me. But unfortunately for America, so many others chose to follow this new style of politics right over the proverbial cliff.
The Trump nightmare was born when more and more people abandoned logic, truth, and Christian conservative principles to sign up for Trumpism. At the same time, grassroots conservatives, busy fighting Democrats and capitulating Republicans in epic policy fights, largely ignored the static from Trump fans.
We were not willing to let our hard work be undermined by Trump, his fans, or their conspiracy theories.
Real conservatives never dreamed that a lifelong, amoral, Democrat would win the Republican Party nomination. But Trump did win, and as a result the last four years of far-left governance from Trump and the GOP — they held the trifecta of power for two years — the Trump nightmare has been exhausting for conservatives to expose and fight.
Personally, I we never gave up; I kept fighting this nightmare despite the lies, the tribalism, the threats, the relentless attacks on truth, our families, and our principles. And as I shared with you recently, it has cost me plenty.
But I’m still here.
Going forward, I vow to continue fighting for life, freedom, religious liberty, the UNINFRINGED right of every American to keep and bear arms, our founding principles, limited government, fiscal, social, and constitutional conservatism, family values, traditional marriage, and Judeo-Christian values.
And as a non-binary INDEPENDENT CONSERVATIVE, I’ll draw comparisons between Trump era discernible policy outcomes and Biden era discernible policy outcomes in an effort to educate those who will undoubtedly continue to believe that Trump is different than the Democrats they claim to despise.
As the Trump nightmare ends and another begins, we need to fight hard and pray harder. And may God bless America!!
David Leach is the owner of the Strident Conservative. He holds people of every political stripe accountable for their failure to uphold conservative values, and he promotes those values instead of political parties.
Follow the Strident Conservative on Twitter and Facebook.
Subscribe to receive podcasts of his daily two-minute radio feature: iTunes | Stitcher | Tune In | RSS
sp;
3 comments for “Trump nightmare ends but another begins: Fight hard, pray harder”