Ross Douthat is excited by what he calls the “New Right”–a group of reactionary intellectuals concerned primarily with what they view as the moral decay of our country. Well, of course he is; they sound just like him. He views them as being new and refreshing. Is he correct?
The “New Right” is only “new” in that it is very, very old. It has its intellectual roots in medieval Europe. It rejects the Enlightenment in favor of canon law and scholastic philosophy–Thomas Aquinas, not Thomas Jefferson, if you like. As a result, it also rejects the ideas behind the foundation of this country. Its adherents sound more like 19th century French monarchists than Americans.
Naturally, this presents some towering practical political problems. How can the “New Right” possibly take power in the foreseeable future when their ideas are completely inconsistent with American institutions and legal thought, and are opposed even by a large majority of the mainstream, individualist right? There are only two possible answers. One is a violent counterrevolution, followed by the creation of a theocracy over the will of the vast majority of the American people; the other is to jump on the bandwagon of a more popular movement, such as Trumpism, and then move it stealthily in the correct direction.
The members of the “New Right” don’t talk about this implicit element of their program, because it wouldn’t exactly win them a lot of fans in the public. It should not be ignored, however. These people may have some cuddly ideas about the importance of the community, but only the unpopularity of their ideas keeps them from being very dangerous.