How Should the Unsettled Conservative Vote?
The ends don’t always justify the means.
Over the last few months, I’ve debated whether writing out thoughts on this election was worth it. After all, most people seem to have already made up their mind. But writing out my thoughts clarified my thinking, and perhaps taking others along on that journey may help them too.
Initially, I wrote a much longer post that laid out a right-leaning case against voting for President Trump. But, there’s already been a lot written about that, and I don’t want to just add to the noise. So, I stepped back to write something to a specific audience — the conservative voter who feels backed into a corner to vote for a president who you view as increasingly unfit to lead.
If that’s you, you’re probably pleased with some of the president’s accomplishments — judicial appointments, deregulation, Middle East peace talks, to name a few. But, maybe you’re disgusted by his petty insults, his aimless bravado, and scattershot governing style — the presidential debate being recent prime evidence. Or maybe you couldn’t stomach the child separations at the border. Or maybe you’re frustrated that he cozies up to dictators who destabilize the world but spurns allies who are essential for global stability. Or maybe you’re disturbed by his coddling of conspiracy theorists and white supremacists who support him while he has no trouble berating anyone disloyal to him. Or maybe you can’t stand his posturing as the savior of Christianity when he displays un-Christlike behavior and claims to never have repented in his life. Or maybe you’re dumbfounded by how a supposedly pro-life president could have such a casual approach to COVID-19, repeatedly disregarding medical professionals and claiming it would just go away, while the virus continued to spread, even to the White House. Or maybe you’re just tired of AK-47 toting political ads that talk about rounding up all “the illegals” or stopping “the socialists” as Republican candidates try to prove who can out-Trump each other.
Regardless of the source of your discomfort, you feel backed into a corner. From your vantage point, a Democratic victory would bring policies that would be bad for the country. Back in 2016, you recognized the president’s shortcomings but hoped that he would grow into the office, just as many presidents have. But after four years, that bargain doesn’t sit well with you anymore.
If you’re still tracking with me, the question I would ask you is this:
Do you want the Republican Party to be the party of Trump and his style for the years ahead, or do you want the Trump era to be a one-hit wonder?
Given that the election has become mostly a referendum on President Trump, a Biden victory will be more a rejection of President Trump than a clear mandate for Democratic policies, no matter what Democrats say after the election. If they overplay their hand, the great thing about our country is that we vote again in two years for all the House of Representatives and a third of the Senate. Yes, judges are lifetime appointments, and any laws passed might be expensive and hard to reverse. Sure, both sides claim this is the most important election ever, and “the other team” winning will cause irreversible damage. But, the reality is that a short-term setback that repudiates the Trumpian model of the Republican Party is worth the long-term reset of the party. That’s a main reason I’ll be voting for Joe Biden — it’s the first time I’ll vote for a Democratic presidential candidate (I voted for Evan McMullin in 2016). He will pursue some policies I won’t agree with, and I will oppose them when he does. That’s a price I’m willing to pay to provoke Republican soul searching, hopefully leading to a return to principles over personality, to ideas over insults, and to character over corruption.
Maybe you agree with this premise, but you still feel like you have to choose President Trump as “the lesser of two evils.” But remember this:
A begrudging Trump vote counts the same as a passionate MAGA one — it functions as a stamp of approval for his political and governing style.
So, if voting for Biden isn’t in the cards, leave the top of the ballot blank and vote for the state and local candidates that you can support. I used to think this was a copout, an abdication of responsibility, perhaps even sinful. But in the context of an election where you have no confidence in the leader who embraces policies that most align with your worldview, I’ve come to realize that it’s defensible. It’s certainly not a sin. Instead, it’s a vote of no confidence in a system that produced no options that you in good conscience can support. This way, if President Trump does win, you won’t have to cringe your way through the next four years knowing you helped get him elected.
