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Are Americans Becoming More Conservative?

Posted on Monday, July 31, 2023
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by Ben Solis
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AMAC Exclusive – By Ben Solis

Conservative

As the Biden administration wages war on traditional American values, there has been a growing sense within the conservative movement that this effort is backfiring and causing people to become more ideologically conservative. But what does the evidence say?

On average last year according to Gallup, 37 percent of Americans described their political views as moderate, 36 percent as conservative, and 25 percent as liberal. These numbers have remained relatively unchanged over the last decade, suggesting that neither Biden nor Trump’s presidency for that matter have much impacted the national political identity of the country.

But an issue-by-issue examination of this question produces some noteworthy results that suggest the country may indeed be becoming more conservative in certain key areas.

On social issues, for instance, conservatives appear to be gaining ground – even as the Biden administration pursues the most far-left social agenda in American history. Another Gallup poll from June of this year found that 38 percent of Americans say they are “conservative” or “very conservative” on social issues, compared to 33 percent who said the same in 2022 and 30 percent who said the same in 2021.

Meanwhile, the portion of Americans saying their social views are “liberal” or “very liberal” dipped to 29 percent this year from 34 percent last year, while the number of Americans identifying as moderate remained relatively unchanged at 31 percent.

To be sure, there are still some concerning social trends for conservatives. Just one quarter of Americans now say they value Biblical morality, while just one third of Evangelicals, even fewer mainline Protestants, and one quarter of Catholics say they believe in absolute moral truths, and that defining truth is not up to each individual. Clearly, the left’s moral relativism has taken hold in the culture.

This development runs counter to what George Washington emphasized in his farewell address, namely that political prosperity depended on religious morality forming “the dispositions and habits” of American citizens. Similarly, French philosopher Alexis de Tocqueville held that Christianity should be considered “a first of American institutions that must be maintained at all costs.”

Nonetheless, even as the percentage of Americans who identified as Christian fell from 72 percent in 2020 to 63 percent this year, half of Americans who do not identify with any religion still say they cherish traditional moral values, according to a survey from the Cultural Research Center at Arizona Christian University. That same poll found that 71 percent of Americans overall say they support traditional moral values, regardless of religious belief.

Although these figures are undoubtedly far from what they were 40 or 50 years ago, they also hardly reflect the epic collapse of Judeo-Christian values so often broadcast by the mainstream media today.

On certain LGBTQ+ issues, the Biden administration’s radicalism (and a concerted messaging effort by conservatives) also seems to be pushing Americans in a more conservative direction. For instance, even as the Biden administration violated the U.S. Flag Code by flying a “pride progress” flag from the Truman Balcony during a White House event and relentless push far-left talking points on transgenderism, 71 percent of likely voters agree with the statement, “There are only two genders, male and female.”

In a particularly telling sign of how much the Biden administration’s radicalism on gender issues has shifted public opinion toward the conservative position, 69 percent of Americans now say that people should only be allowed to compete on sports teams that correspond with the sex they were assigned at birth. In 2021, that number was 62 percent, indicating that all of Biden’s messaging and policies on the issue have had the opposite of their intended effect.

55 percent of Americans now also say that a person attempting to change their gender is “morally wrong,” a 4 percent increase from two years ago.

On other issues as well, the efforts on the part of the Biden administration and the left more broadly to sway public opinion have clearly failed.

As has been evidenced by the public backlash to perceived “woke” initiatives by companies like Bud Light and Target, Americans are rejecting woke corporatism like never before. According to a June survey from Issues and Insights, a plurality of Americans (46 percent) oppose corporate social activism, while just 17 percent support it and 29 percent express indifference.

Support for far-left groups like the Black Lives Matter organization also dropped to 51 percent this year from a high of 67 percent in 2020. A majority of Americans now say that the liberal obsession with race hasn’t improved the lives of Black Americans.

Meanwhile, the thing that Americans value the most highly – family – has remained unchanged even with all the other social upheaval. 80 percent of Americans still say that “family” is one of their core values, while 61 percent declare they would fight for their family.

70 percent of Americans also say “personal independence” and “justice” are among their core values. The same percentage also identified “happiness” as critically important to them.

Crucially, more than two thirds of Americans identify “character,” “integrity,” “kindness,” “property ownership,” “trustworthiness,” and “individual growth” as part of the “American ethos.” While the left would like to suggest that these virtues are “old fashioned,” and therefore squarely in the realm of conservatism, most Americans still believe that these concepts are an important part of their identity.

Perhaps more importantly, Americans seem to understand that their values are not being reflected in the culture or the country writ large. 54 percent of Americans rated the state of morals in the U.S. as “poor” this year, the first time that number has topped 50 percent since Gallup began tracking it in 2002.

So why is it that Biden and his Democrat allies have failed so spectacularly to sway the country toward their positions, and in fact seem to have caused Americans to become more conservative in some cases?

One possible answer might come from a 2010 book entitled The Ruling Class: How They Corrupted America and What We Can Do About It by the late Angelo Codevilla, who was then professor at Boston University.

In his work, Codevilla argues that less than 15 percent of Americans actually support the ideas and goals of the elites – a group he refers to as “the ruling class.”

The ruling class “sets itself apart from the rest of us by its connection with the ever-bigger government,” Codevilla writes. “They think, look, and act as a class.”

Meanwhile, the vast majority of Americans have diametrically opposed views to the ruling class. Codevilla terms them “the country class.” They are the men and women who revere the American flag, adhere to traditional moral values, and sing “God Bless America” at sporting events.

Another defining feature of the country class was their belief in God, who they believe made them in His image. Meanwhile, the ruling class “prayed to themselves as saviors of the planet.”

Codevilla was writing during the Obama era, with the president and his allies representing the interests of the ruling class. In 2008, presidential hopeful Barack Obama infamously characterized conservatives in an openly disdainful manner as those who “cling to guns or religion or anti-trade sentiment as a way to explain their frustrations.” For him, the concerns of the country class were not even worth consideration.

But six years later, Codevilla’s country class would rise up and reject the values of the ruling class by electing Donald Trump president.

Now, the Biden administration once again represents the interests of the ruling class, with the country class again relegated to the status of second-class citizens. If anyone had any doubts of this, look no further than Vice President Kamala Harris’s remark earlier this month that the U.S. must “reduce population” in order to fight climate change.

Although the White House later attempted to explain away the comment, Harris’s meaning was clear – the lives of ordinary Americans are far less important than the left’s ideological climate agenda. This general contempt for the country class has been evinced time and again by Obama, Biden, Harris, and their elitist allies.

Now, public polling and a general feeling within American culture suggests that the country class may be rising up once again, bringing with it a new rebirth of conservatism in the United States.

Ben Solis is the pen name of an international affairs journalist, historian, and researcher.

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Rik
Rik
1 year ago

You can fool the people only for so long before they eventually smarten up. I say it’s about time!

John Bass
John Bass
1 year ago

Let’s hope America is finally waking up. It’s hard for me to believe so many people continue to drink the Kool-Aid and can’t think for themselves.

Rob citizenship
Rob citizenship
1 year ago

” Are Americans Becoming More Conservative ? ” I am thinking about an old Irish saying about Irish people tending to answer a question — with another question. Example, an American news reporter asking an Irish news reporter ” Why is it that many Irish people like to answer questions with another question ? “And the Irish reporter responds by saying — ” Well, where did you hear that?” I am going to answer the question ” Are Americans Becoming More Conservative ? ” with the question — Is there anything else that makes better sense to do than to become more Conservative ?
..

Stephen Russell
Stephen Russell
1 year ago

Only Boomers & MAGA voters
Gen Z is Lost to Indoc

Mario Capparuccini
Mario Capparuccini
1 year ago

Everyone believes in absolute truth. When the left says truth is relative, what they mean is they want their banker, portfolio manager, doctor, and pharmacist to act like there is absolute truth. But, when they want to indulge their sexual perversions, then suddenly truth becomes relative.

Wayne Curtis
Wayne Curtis
1 year ago

“…sex they were assigned at birth.” This is an erroneous term that we must get rid of. Sex is determined at conception and recognized at birth (sometimes sooner). I fear the left is going to recognize this as a terminology they can make use of and soon parents will be allowed to assign the sex of their choosing to their children at birth,

Joanne 4 justice
Joanne 4 justice
1 year ago

Growth of conservative party is good.!! I support Republicans and constutionalists as well!!!!
I do not support. Dumbocrap party and their unscrupulous Comrades!!!!!! This party is way too focused on POWER TOTAL CONTROL AND SPENDING $$$$$$$$

Jackie
Jackie
1 year ago

I feel that Americans are waking up to the Democrats and their insanity!! The fact that politicians have been lying to us for so many years and the lies keep getting bigger and the corruption even more blatant and flagrant with their arrogant attitude of, “I’m invincible, I won’t get caught and even if I do nothing will happen to me.”!! Even with the media being on the side of the Democrats and not reporting certain pertinent facts, many Americans are learning just how corrupt politicians are and just how political everything has become!!

El Viejo
El Viejo
1 year ago

The nation was better off when the LGBTQs were still in the closet. They were too.

Robert Zuccaro
Robert Zuccaro
1 year ago

Perhaps Americans are but who will they vote for when the media tells them a Him is a Her and 2 + 2 really does equal 5? Look at what happened just from suppression of Hunters computer in 2020.

MBlanc46
MBlanc46
1 year ago

Perhaps Americans are more conservative. But they still vote Dem. Of course. a lot of the Dem voters aren’t Americans, at all. They, or maybe their parents, strolled across our southern border to feast on the corpse of the Republic that our ancestors built. Not that becoming more conservative would matter much. The Left control all the levers of power in the nation; they are not going to allow the rabble to derail the unstoppable journey to the multicultural, multiracial paradise.

George Washington's Admirer
George Washington's Admirer
1 year ago

With every lie on ‘Main Stream Media’; thousands convert to conservatism. Main Stream Media is ‘Wall to Wall Street Lies’… Bold Outright Lies!.. Whether its about the economy; or what is going on with politics; its embarrassing and bold lies! Where will they hide? God Help The USA!

Robin W Boyd
Robin W Boyd
1 year ago

Maybe not more conservative, but rather less extreme Leftist. Liberal minded American citizens seem to be “waking up” to “woke” misinformation and societal issues. Having so many Progressives in control of U.S. government has caused enough problems that otherwise reasonable liberal minded folk are resisting far Leftist attitudes.

Mark
Mark
1 year ago

One isn’t assigned their sex at birth. It’s determined at conception.

Jamey
Jamey
1 year ago

The sign wording could be better.
“Wake Up America”
“It is time to turn a deaf ear to the lies and propaganda of the Democrats and haters of the USA!”

Howard Madson
Howard Madson
1 year ago

Amen

Richard
Richard
1 year ago

Most of the votes cast for the Ruling Class are from the Country Class, misguided dupes who vote Democrat no matter what while holding traditional conservative values. The question is how to reach them and turn them around if ever possible.

I’m on Medicare
I’m on Medicare
1 year ago

What trending conservative can actually bring you – destitution. Especially if you’re a senior citizen. Let’s re-cap:
1935 – FDR creates the Social Security program. Republican response – it would prevent business recovery, enslave workers and reduce the chances of providing work for the American people. Corporate response – it would destroy initiative, discourage thrift and stifle individual responsibility.
1964 – Ronald Reagan leaves Democratic Party because of Social Security and Medicare, which he considers welfare.
1965 – LBJ creates the Medicare program. Republican response – it would deteriorate the quality of care, lead America down the road to socialism and leave the country in ruins.
Robert Dole, votes with pride, against Medicare.
Newt Gingrich objects to Medicare.
2005 – George W. Bush attempts to replace Social Security with ‘private investment accounts.’
Paul Ryan of Wisconsin proposed replacing Medicare with a voucher program. (Who pays for the voucher program?)
2017, Sen. Mitch McConnell – to curb the growing deficit, they would cut Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid. He added that the principal problem in the federal budget has been the steady, rapid growth over the years in spending on entitlement programs. 
Rick Scott proposes sundown system for SS and Medicare, to be reviewed, every 5 years.
Ron Johnson proposes discretionary spending for Social Security and Medicare.

I’m on Medicare
I’m on Medicare
1 year ago

AMAC – I remember it well. A ‘conservative alternative’ to AARP because ARRP supported healthcare reform. Nothing to see here. Another right wing propaganda organization. With that said, elderly Americans tend to trend more conservative due to crankiness and a feeling of uselessness. The way they cope is to punish people, which, has a benefit – it makes older people feel better about themselves when other people are miserable, also. Elderly Americans have absolutely no benefit from voting Republican. Quite the contrary. Republicans do ZERO for the elderly – unless you’re a millionaire.

chrisford
chrisford
1 year ago

There was a conservative wave ready to spread red Republican goodness all over America. in 2022. It got derailed by abortion extremism popular in the South was rejected in most States. And Trump was a nation-wide energize the Democrats, blacks, youth to come out and vote against anyone Trump wants to win. A drag on the ticket, again, outside his Southern MAGA enclave.
2024 will be the same. .

InsanitySquared
InsanitySquared
1 year ago

Of course I live in a big city but even as a right-leaning independent I can tell that from what I see, most people are becoming more liberal. They want more Government help. At the same time, abortion is a big issue with younger women – and they are heavily against the Republicans. I personally support women’s right to abortion even as a guy. That’s also because I don’t wanna father kids and so if I get somebody pregnant accidentally, I would like to have the freedom to abort the mission so to speak. Younger people also do more swinging for the fun of it, why not. Less people want marriage and kids. I guess we are the freaks, LOL.
Personally, I am against higher taxes and so I am willing to vote for reasonable Republicans but don’t care much for their social values. I am quite liberal socially and will most likely vote for Democrats for the forseeable future. I voted for Trump in 2020 but have been disgusted with his behavior as well as the Republican cowardice. Would be hilarious to see Trump win the Republican nomination only to lose big in the general election. I think the margin of his loss will be bigger than in 2020. Don’t be surprised and call fraud come next November. Y’all are here in your echo chambers but in the Real World MOST people cannot stand Trump. Now, feel free to give me 100 thumbs down, LOL!

virginia state flag and voter box
President Joe Biden delivers remarks on the economy at a roundtable with business and labor leaders, Friday, November 18, 2022, in the South Court Auditorium in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building at the White House. (Official White House Photo by Erin Scott)
jim nicholson and kamala harris with bible and rosary behind them about her anti-catholic acts
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