There are societal problems the progressive establishment doesn’t even recognize, such as the breakup of the American family and casual attitudes toward human life

Progressivism Throws Money at Problems. Conservatism Solves Them.


by Jim DeMint


To “throw money at the problem” is usually understood as a bad thing everywhere but in progressive circles. And for all intents and purposes, the Washington Beltway is one of them.

Recognizing the underlying pathology of a problem, or debating whether it is best addressed at a federal, state, or local level—even asking whether it is an issue best left to private citizens—is entirely the domain of conservative policymaking.

This is a far cry from so-called progressive policy, which tends to shoot both spending and decision-making straight to the top of the ladder, no questions asked. Simply judging both schools by their problem-solving capabilities, one would assume that the mostly empty toolbox of progressivism isn’t nearly as versatile.

But we don’t have to rely on speculation. We have hard evidence: 50 years of President Lyndon Johnson’s “Great Society” social programs hasn’t worked. Trillion-dollar stimulus packages haven’t worked. Takeover of the nation’s health care and insurance industries hasn’t worked. Centrally controlling education and spending over $100,000 per student hasn’t worked.

Winston Churchill once said, “You can always count on Americans to do the right thing—after they’ve tried everything else.” Maybe it’s time we listened to the old prime minister, because we’ve been trying the “everything else” for decades.

Fortunately, the world just got the right thing in writing. The Heritage Foundation has released “Solutions 2016,” a compendium of more than 275 conservative policy recommendations for political candidates.

We want not just freedom from tyranny; we want every family in America free to pursue whatever dreams they’ve planted for themselves.

The core idea motivating these policies is that the federal government’s first job is to protect America from external threats, and its second is to manage only those issues the states are incapable of or forbidden from doing themselves, in accordance with limits of the Constitution.

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