American conservatives are once again debating the fundamentals of politics. On one side, national conservatives argue the state should make us good. On the other side, a new coalition of Freedom Conservatives argues the state should make us free. Both sides can claim a rich intellectual heritage…
made a splash when it launched in July. Now with over 200 signatories, it boldly proclaims the necessity of liberty for the common good. Americans have a basic right “to be free from the restrictions of arbitrary force,” founded upon “the inseparability of free will from what it means to be human.” This hearkens back to the mid- to late-20th century’s.
Liberty is the first principle of American politics. But it is not the only principle. Freedom Conservatives do not believe any and all values beyond freedom must be banished from the public square. Far from it: They acknowledge that human nature requires communally secured virtue. But politics, especially national politics, is not the first place we should look for help in living the good life. Civil society is.
Affirming liberty does not mean ideologically fixing an unmovable boundary between the private and public spheres. Freedom Conservatives understand that government has a positive role to play in securing the common good. While national conservatives look to a muscular administrative state in Washington to promote virtue, Freedom Conservatives instead champion the cause of state and local government.
Local government is better situated to promote the good than national government for two reasons. First, citizens can reasonably disagree about what ends they wish public power to promote. Allowing significant policy variation at the municipal, county, and state levels can help members of the public find the arrangement that helps them flourish. Second, we often don’t know which policies are best. Empowering local governments permits democratic experimentation.
Alexander William Salter is the Georgie G. Snyder associate professor of economics in the Rawls College of Business at Texas Tech University, a research fellow with TTU’s Free Market Institute, and a Young Voices senior contributor. He is a signatory of the Freedom Conservative statement of principles.
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