The libertarian Argument for Conservative Values

Introduction:

Libertarians and conservatives, although sometimes in conflict with one another regarding the role of government, have successfully worked together in defeating the radical left's attempts in transforming the government into a utilitarian nightmare.

To begin this article, I'm going to define the two ideologies. Conservatism means essentially to "conserve" or protect

something. In America, this looks like preserving traditional American values. These values include a strong traditional family, American exceptionalism, the American dream, *legal* immigration, and defending the right to life. American conservatives believe in the constitutional guarantees to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. American libertarianism is not much different from American conservatism. A libertarian believes that the role of government is to preserve liberty, and beyond that, the government should remain out of the way. American libertarians hold the strongest possible opposition to NSA surveillance, the war on drugs, qualified immunity, and any government measure that restricts freedom. Senator Rand Paul (R-KY), who often describes himself as libertarian-leaning, is not just well-known for his opposition to authoritarians like Dr. Fauci. Senator Paul held an over 10-hour filibuster of The Patriot Act in 2015, an authoritarian federal government program that authorizes warrantless mass surveillance in the name of "national security." (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ZLYwSPbNXo).

Where conservatives and libertarians conflict, and why it's interesting:

As someone who's admittedly libertarian-leaning, I can't help but notice the conflict I run into with the (supposedly) socially-conservative Republican Party. "Legalize Marijuana" is a campaign platform stance of mine as a State House candidate, and this is one of few stances of mine which upsets the "pro-family" lobbies within the Ohio GOP. My stance on leaving LGBTQ+ Americans alone places me in conflict with a group known as "Ohio Value Voters," an organization whose goal is to "preserve traditional family values." They do this by taking positions against marriage equality, criticizing pro-LGBTQ groups, and supporting the war on drugs. I recently criticized Florida's "Don't Say Gay" bill (yes, I realize that's not the actual name) due to 4th Amendment concerns I have with the legislation. This criticism has awarded me "RINO" or "Republican in Name Only." The conservative-libertarian conflict within the Republican Party makes for some pretty interesting and healthy debate. A particular incident of libertarian-conservative debate that comes to my mind is during a 2016 presidential debate; senator Paul criticized then-governor Christie's support of NSA surveillance, "I know you gave Obama a big hug, and if you wanna give him a big hug again go right ahead" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OKkJ-K8qPXo). To this day, I think that moment in the debate is beautiful. Christ Christie displayed drunkenness on authoritarian power, and senator Paul put Christie in check.

Where conservatives and libertarians agree:

It's no secret that libertarians and conservatives agree on fiscal policy. We both argue in favor of lower taxation, free markets, and we both are in stark opposition to the radical socialist wing of The Democratic Party. We often fail to realize, especially in the heat of debate, that we agree on more than we think we do. True American conservatives are a unique breed of conservatives in that they believe in preserving and protecting the Bill of Rights as it is written. The Bill of Rights is inherently a libertarian document; it acts as a muzzle to keep the government from overstepping its power and becoming tyrannical. The first 10 Amendments to the United States constitution have to act in unison with one another, and if just one is overstepped, the road to tyranny is already being paved. For example, if free speech in the 1st Amendment is rejected, we no longer have the ability to speak out against the government taking our guns. If the 2nd Amendment is denied, the government can shoot you for speaking out against tyranny, rendering the 1st completely useless. The founding fathers were not stupid men; they ensured the constitution and our founding documents could withstand the tests of time and protect liberty; both conservatives and libertarians respect that, and thus both fight for the Bill of Rights. Conservatives and libertarians both agree with medical freedom. Connecting back to the Bill of Rights, conservatives (rightfully so) recognize the constitutional violations of lockdowns, mask mandates, vaccine mandates, school closures, and other "covid measures." Libertarianism is rooted in something called "The Non-Aggression Principle," which means you may live your life as you see fit so as long you don't violate someone else's right to do that same. Covid mandates undoubtedly violate the NAP; no one has the right to coerce you into violating your bodily autonomy.

The libertarian defense of conservatism:

Many conservative values actually work to preserve liberty, and there are examples of this in action.

Regarding abortion, many libertarians will argue that it's simply not the government's job to "tell a woman what she does with her body." This argument is a failure to recognize there is a separate human being inside of her that is deserving of protection with incredibly-limited exceptions (ex. medical emergency, ectopic pregnancy). Abortion violates the NAP mentioned earlier because another individual's right to pursue happiness is being taken away. The constitutional promises to life and the pursuit of happiness become completely impossible when the right to life for anyone is rejected, born or unborn. You cannot enjoy the fruits of liberty without the breath of life.

On immigration, many libertarians argue that the border should be open even beyond what Democrats will suggest. Pure-libertarians argue any restriction on immigration is somehow a violation of free-market principles, and this is incorrect. Open borders = people from all over the planet pouring into the country in record numbers and with no insight. Anyone who understands free-market economic policy is aware of the concept of scarcity of resources. An open border policy would result in scarcity forcing the government to implement socialism in an attempt to mitigate this scarcity, thus destroying the original libertarian goal. Libertarians are also supposed to believe in individual sovereignty. If a nation is without borders, there is no sovereignty and thus no liberty.

Regarding the woke attacks from the far-left, conservatives are at the forefront of this issue, standing up to these attacks on American Values. American Marxists are having a collective temper tantrum at the idea that their opposition has the right to speak. If you are opposed to the myth of "white privilege," Critical Race Theory, or other hateful far-left ideals, the radical left will have you shunned from society and fired from your job. In connection to the libertarian core, "live your life so as long you don't violate someone else's right to do the same," it's actually conservatives who are defending this value when it concerns the woke left. We should all stand up to the idea that someone can be denied the right to participate in America based on opposing opinions by itself. America is a beautiful country; it is not racist. It is not sexist. As a bisexual man, I promise you that America is not homophobic, even if a few individuals happen to be that way.

We should protect and "conserve" the values that make America great. Conservatives and libertarians need to stand up to the Utilitarian-left, or liberty will no longer exist. President Ronald Reagan once famously said, "the very heart and soul of conservatism is libertarianism," Certainly, he was correct with this.