The Conscience of America

Modern Conservatism is greatly based on political developments in the 1960s, although the primary source of influence is up to debate. Was it Barry Goldwater and extremism which laid out the foundation of Southern Conservative support, or was it Ronald Reagan's charisma that roused up the voters? These political figures and events each contributed significantly to the multifaceted Conservatism we have today, but perhaps the most influential of them all was the publication of The Conscience of a Conservative by Barry Goldwater.

Goldwater's The Conscience of a Conservative was a summary of his own conservative ideas which greatly reflected on American insecurities during the time. In his book, he discusses topics such as education, labor unions and policies, civil rights, agricultural policy and farm subsidies, social welfare programs, and income taxation. He adds religious appeal to his book by stating that there exist "laws of God" and "truth of God," and that his ideas align directly with the will of God. His emphasis on the government exerting control over the people and the American political incline towards socialism (to which he opposed) appealed to the American populous, especially when contrasted with Lyndon B. Johnson's new "Great Society" plan.

Barry Goldwater was not unaware of the potential of social movements across America when he first published the book. He suggested a principled and individualistic challenge to the status quo, putting emphasis on popular ideas such as civil disobedience to increase its appeal. He writes that "the first principle of totalitarianism" is "that the State is competent to do all things and is limited in what it actually does only by the will of those who control the State." His condemnation of authoritarianism and socialism reflected American opposition towards Communism and the support for civil rights, which made Conservatives realize that their ticket to victory would be to follow his methods and gain public support. This message which strongly resonated within the American populous contributed to Republican success with Ronald Reagan. As John McCain once said, he "transformed the Republican Party from an Eastern elitist organization to the breeding ground for the election of Ronald Reagan."

Through Goldwater's efforts, the Republican Party was able to appeal to the American public with more liberal and progressive concepts. However, this eventually led to his conversion to a libertarian politician. He was considered a radical Conservative politician. He eventually left the Senate and began criticizing many in the Republican Party, including the "money making ventures by fellows like Pat Robertson." He began to advocate for gays to serve openly in the military, abortion rights and many policies that modern Leftists would support. While Goldwater's liberal influence on modern conservatism still remained, his divergence from conservatism allowed the Republican Party to change from supporting social progress to advocating for the status quo. This change, accompanied by popular Republican Goldwater's change in political mindset, polarized the American political environment. Therefore, rather than saying that Goldwater and his The Conscience of a Conservative led to the creation of modern Conservatism, it would be more accurate to say that his departure from the Conservatives contributed to the current political situation of the United States and the current state of the Conservative Party.