Opinion | Oklahoma Breaches the Wall Between Church and State
The New York Times If I had to sum up the current debate within the American right, Id describe it as a contest between liberty and authority. To what extent should the political project of the conservative movement focus on the preservation of individual and institutional freedom versus expanding the power of the state to advance conservative ends? This was at the heart of my recent critique of Ron DeSantis when he officially entered the race for the Republican presidential nomination, and its at the heart of my larger breach (along, of course, with profound concerns about character) with the Trumpist, nationalist right.
The dispute between liberty and authority has become a subtext of the Republican presidential primary. You can see it when Nikki Haley challenges DeSantis for using state resources to punish Disney for opposing Florida laws that restrict instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity in public school classrooms. You can see it when Asa Hutchinson says its not the role of government to punish a business when you disagree with what theyre saying or a position that they take. Tim Scott has said much the same thing, agreeing that its improper to weaponize government against private corporate expression.
