Trump: A blessing in disguise for conservatives
It is easy to imagine that the publishers of National Review, the Weekly Standard and the Wall Street Journal – bastions of conservativism, all – must have been in a dark mood early in the morning of November 9. Two things had happened that seemed to diminish the influence of conservatism in American political discourse: a man whom conservatives saw as unelectable was in fact elected, and that very same man had won office without regard to the most basic tenets of the philosophy for which conservatives stand.
As things are turning out, however, Trump's election might well be a blessing in disguise for conservatives. This is not to say that Trump will soon adopt the conservative agenda. He still obsesses over trade with China. His defenders still point to his "pragmatism" (which could easily be translated as "isolationism") in matters of foreign policy. He remains enamored of raising the minimum wage and instituting paid family leave.
