Phillip Blond preaches ‘Red Republicanism'

Phillip Blond, the celebrated policy adviser to British Prime Minister David Cameron, visited Washington this week to test the American reception to the “Red Tory” approach that helped sell Cameron and his party to the British public.

Blond shaped Cameron’s argument that conservatism should focus not just on free-market liberty but on building a stronger society and that “Big Society” has become Cameron’s version of George W. Bush’s “compassionate conservatism” or Tony Blair’s “Third Way.”

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Blond made his case to legislators on Capitol Hill Tuesday and to Grover Norquist’s private Wednesday Meeting of conservative leaders, and made the rounds of conservative activists and think tanks.

“I talked about how the model of capitalism that we’ve run with for the last 30 years is broken,” he told POLITICO Thursday. “We spoke in the language of free markets, we spoke in the language of economic liberty, but what we’ve actually done is produced serfdom for the many and oligopolies and cartels for the few.

“I was very surprised by the widespread level of agreement that that got,” he said.

Blond’s surprise seems justified. After an obscure career as a Catholic theologian, he distinguished himself as a sharp critic of both big government and of the free market, about which American conservatives have notably fewer qualms than do Cameron and other Europeans. His repudiation of elements of Margaret Thatcher’s legacy helped Cameron move to the center; but American Republicans aren’t about to repudiate her American counterpart, Ronald Reagan.

But Blond said he incorporated an American arm of his think tank, ResPublica, this week, and that he hopes to formally launch it this fall or winter. And he said he sees a parallel between the politics of the U.K. – where he said he fears Cameron’s “Big Society” message has been drowned out by the talk of fiscal austerity – and the current American situation.

“Republicans are right about the deficit, but unless you have a positive vision you’re not going to win the post-deficit scenario,” he said. “The failure to develop that or to wait until the presidential race, is a political mistake.”

Blond’s case to American conservatives differs dramatically from what they’re used to hearing. For one thing, he argues that the free market orthodoxies embraced in the U.S. and Britain since the eras of Reagan and Thatcher have actually stamped out the sense of opportunity and entrepreneurship on which Americans pride themselves.

He said he told the Wednesday meeting that Florida Senator Marco Rubio’s line that his story of immigrant opportunity was only possible in America was “a brilliant speech and the right vision — but it’s wrong.”

We had an unprecedented explosion of innovation and entrepreneurship under Reagan/Thatcher policies in the US/UK, and their intentional efforts to bust up powerful interests (via privatization, the break-up of conglomerates and more) empowered people and increased social mobility by every measure. Yet we have seen nothing but 'Big Society' intervention (somehow blamed on Reagan/Thatcher - which is nonsense) since their departures from the scene. And that has done nothing but restore a sclerotic, top-down order that they sought to destroy. Inequality is not solved by capitalism - but opportunity is fostered. Red Capitalism would require someone 'smart' to decide what is fair and equal - and that is called tyranny.

He's right that there needs to be a social dimension to conservatism. How about trying out Liberty and Self Reliance as our core values? How about support for family, faith and personal dignity centered in our own communities, and not in our American Rome? Our efforts to equalize the wealth these last decades and to create 'fairness for all' have stifled job creation, foisted huge bureaucracies onto every aspect of our personal and commercial lives, and have pushed much of our industry to friendlier shores . Regulation in the name of 'fairness' and 'justice' is strangling us - and Red Conservatism is just a code word for more central control.

Humbug.

As to going to France or Germany, it's not so good if you didn't go to the right Lycee, or aren't of Franco-German heritage. Unemployment among the young in France has been hovering the mid-20s for decades, and Germany has a very tiered/rigid society. And ask a Turkish immigrant how fun it is, or a muslim how fair it is to be in Paris. American's are brusk - but we're not stupid, and this is fact-free snake oil.

Indeed, this guy is selling the Wisdom of the Elite when he offers utopian dreams about some new novation that he would impose on human nature. We had Revolutionary Theology, then Social Justice, and now this Red nonsense from the fringes of the Roman Catholic church. The Popes haven't liked it and largely pushed it out of favor - our politicians now need to do the same.

Get the government out of protecting GE, the TBTF banks, Wall Street, King Corn, and the Health Care industry (etc.) and perhaps we'll get out of this mess. But this is not the answer to anything but a desire for a soft dictatorship (which inevitably turns into a hard one when people disagree).

If this is what PM Cameron is offering, he's going to fail. It smacks of Edward Heath's efforts to put a better face on the failing British welfare state in the 70's. If that's what Britain wants, go find another Harold Wilson - at least he had a sense of humor. But leave us alone.

"I talked about how the model of capitalism that we’ve run with for the last 30 years is broken. We spoke in the language of free markets, we spoke in the language of economic liberty, but what we’ve actually done is produced serfdom for the many and oligopolies and cartels for the few."

True, but it wasn't FREE MARKET CAPITALISM that generated the serfdom or the oligopolies. In fact, it was government support of a CRONY CAPITALISM model that generated serfdom.

There could be no clearer example than mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Both were well-intentioned institutions. Their goal was to make quality housing more affordable to lower-income individuals. Instead, DUE TO LACK OF PROPER GOVERNMENT OVERSIGHT, both became a conduit to fleece taxpayers, impoverish banks and the government, and ultimately injure the very same people that they were designed to help. Ironically, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac actually drove UP the cost of housing and destroying the savings of many Black, Hispanic, and Asian families.

We need the government to liberate the free market but police and punish bad or fraudulent actors. When the government has the power to pick winners and loser, that power ends up corrupting the free market and government.

You can read more of the sad history of Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, and the U.S. Government's complete failure of leadership here.

The republicans are in a enough trouble without another whacko ********ter on the card. He's never a tory guru. We hear on the back channels that he's only seen Cameron once in the last two years and it's hot air from Mr Blond about how close he is to Government leadership. Besides his think tank in Britland is on the rocks.

. Blond: We [republicants] spoke in the language of free markets, we spoke in the language of economic liberty, but what we’ve actually done is produced serfdom [people in servitude, i.e., middleclass] for the many and oligopolies [economy controlled by the few, i.e., Wall St.] and cartels for the few.

Blond should be very careful lest he be deported back to England. What he is criticizing here is exactly the republicant plan for America.

I disagree .. the funny part is you say "and have pushed much of our industry to friendlier shores" . by frendlier shores are you implying the communist state of china ? I dont understand how the business community is so against liberalism here at home but they send their jobs and infrastructure to countries with planned economies and goverments farther to the left than american liberalism (communism). so its seems that it isnt liberalism thats sending jobs away as evident by where the jobs are going .. something more sinister is transpiring. right ?

does the inequity of resourses from rich to poor bother you ? lets say the world can be summed up into 100 people, whats sense is there having 1 person holding 99% of the wealth and 99 people holding 1%? I mean the way i see it if more people have resources everybody does better. more people buy cars, homes and retail goods. so why would a more even distribution of wealth offend conservative people so much? i dont get it ? there is soo much money on the sidelines ... imagine if the middle class had some of thes resources, there wouldnt be a resession. its not like their not wrking because they are ... but they work to enrich the executives and ceo's ..

We need the government to liberate the free market but police and punish bad or fraudulent actors. When the government has the power to pick winners and loser, that power ends up corrupting the free market and government.

This sentence should be inscribed on every law-making edifice in the country and at all levels of government.

Frankly, Mr Blond is using his name to Play out the "Bad Blond" jokes of years past. If we were handcrafting a new society it woukld look very much like Karl Marxs version. THAT IS WHAT THE PROBLEM IS NOW.

Here's the best idea I've had ever. cut the taxes down to what the government needs to run, allow the businesses and the people pay their s without selling little "Billy".or "Mandy."

Allow the people to reclaim their Constitution and have the Congress people to mandate a watchdog be installed to keep an eye on the Constitution for legitimacy. Frankly congress people who don't keep bills constitutiom=nal need a heavy personel fine.

All Laws deemed unConstitutional of the past needs to be eliminated.

The parts of the 14th that were hacksawed into the Constitution needs to be declared Unconstitutional (I do not remember any debate or even discussion ) and removed. Thiose who created this ability for the President to trump the other two branches of Government made America into a Banana Republic right at that moment. I'm sure the Democrats are laughing in their enclaves Their Marxist Plans have just about been completely come to fruition. A lot of HATE ORG.s have worked hard on this. I would most like to see a couple of Dozen TREASON charges levied and as the trials go along the Hangings be carried out with celebration. with all the proven charges and how much eas=ch cost and the number of people killed.