Liberty Expose: Winning Over Gen-Z To Conservatism

The GOP is facing a reckoning: despite winning control of the Executive Branch in 2016, the Republican Party is at risk of losing much of its base in the years to come. There is no question that age demographics are changing, thus, putting Republicans at a disadvantage. Polls have shown that Generation Z is more likely to identify as Democrat instead of Republican. The youngest generation also believes that action against climate change must be taken and the government needs to take more of an active role in solving problems ailing society. While the GOP should not abandon their belief in a limited, fiscally responsible government, it should take these issues seriously and propose policies that Gen-Zers can support.

Climate Change

The first major topic that the GOP must change its stance on to win over Gen Z is climate change. The United States has made significant progress in reducing its carbon emissions, but it must take further action to safeguard our environment. Even though Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s Green New Deal (or as Speaker Pelosi called it, the Green New Dream) is the most idealized resolution ever concocted and would ultimately kill the economy, the Democrats will receive more support from environmental voters because at least they are formulating policy. There are several ideas that conservatives can promote that can win over Gen-Z.

First and foremost is a carbon tax, an idea that is gaining some traction among moderate Republicans -- specifically the eco-right crowd. The best proposal comes from Reagan administration alumni, including James Baker and George P. Shultz. They propose a gradually increasing carbon tax that would ultimately go back to the taxpayers as a dividend. As the tax increases, so do the dividends. Consumers and businesses will be able to invest this money into alternative sources of energy to wean off of fossil fuels. Overall, Americans are warming up to the idea of a carbon tax and College Republican groups are also voicing their support for a policy measure akin to the one Baker and Schultz are suggested. While introducing new taxes on consumers may not be conservative, it is still the most capitalistic solution available. It provides incentives for people to adapt to a changing market and that is more reasonable than anything in the Green New Deal.  

The other major policy that the GOP must take to win over Gen Z in the climate change debate is promoting the development of greener sources of energy. Nuclear fission -- despite all the concern about causing meltdowns -- is the safest, greenest, and produces more energy than all the other alternatives, including fossil fuels. The main concern that Republicans have to alleviate is safety. Cases like Chernobyl, Three Mile Island, and Fukushima Daiichi all contributed to the population’s weariness to the power of the atom. To ensure that nuclear power remains a safe, viable option, the Department of Energy and EPA’s strict regulations on the energy source must be abolished. Not only would nuclear power be beneficial to the environment, but it would also create thousands of high-paying jobs that would be a significant boon to the economy. The GOP should argue that government excessive regulation is preventing the United States from harnessing sources of energy that would benefit both the environment and the economy.  

Minority Issues

The second area in which the GOP must change to win over Gen Zers is in improving its outreach to minorities. After Romney’s failed Presidential bid to oust President Obama in 2012, the GOP concocted a strategy to overhaul the party’s image as a kinder, gentler one. Unfortunately, Trump’s ascension to the Executive Office obliterated any prospects of being able to implement this much-needed reform to the party. Issues such as immigration, criminal justice, education, and discrimination, in general, are all issues that the GOP must improve upon if they have any hope of winning over minority Gen-Zers.

For the GOP and the United States as a whole, no issue has become more divisive than immigration. The 2016 Presidential Election and President Trump’s campaign brought the GOP’s policy on the matter to focus mostly on the border wall. While building a barrier on the southern border is popular with the Republican base, it does not enjoy the same support with Gen-Z. Instead of focusing the border wall, the GOP must support comprehensive immigration reform that it sought to implement before Trump came in. Reform should seek to protect those who were either born in the United States or brought by their parents when they were children. It would be inhumane to force people who have only known to live in the US to move to a country that they have never known. Defending the lives of migrant children should be of the highest concern for a party that brands itself as pro-life.

Another issue that continues to plague minorities in the US that the GOP should prioritize is the country’s broken criminal justice system. The government already achieved a significant victory with the passage of the bipartisan First Step Act (2018) that would reduce prison sentences in an effort to combat recidivism. It is undebatable that minorities face greater risk of being stopped by police and sent to jail than Caucasians. Families are unfairly broken up, robbing children of having a healthy childhood and leaving them at an economic disadvantage. There are many other areas in which the Republican Party must change on to win the support of Gen-Z, but more importantly, improve the lives of minorities in America.

International Affairs

The third and final area that the GOP must change is in foreign policy. As I discussed in my article on the US-Taliban peace deal, Millennials and Gen-Zers are less likely to support military engagements abroad -- particularly in the Middle East than the Silent Generation and Baby Boomers. However, the youngest generation still believes that the United States should remain active in international bodies such as the United Nations. While it is impractical for Republicans to reject using force to solve issues, especially in regards to terrorism or if Article 5 of NATO is invoked by a member of the alliance, we must seek to exhaust all diplomatic options before reverting to force. As a (very) watered-down neoconservative, the world is a better place when the United States is involved in world affairs, but it must be smarter and not rush headlong into the fray at the first sign of trouble.

Conclusion

In the end, the GOP must change in order to win over Gen Zers and remain a viable party at the national level. The Republican Party needs to once again become a party of ideas to tackle the many issues facing the country. Climate change, minority-centric issues, and developing a responsible foreign policy are all areas that conservatives can improve upon. There are other policies and movements that the GOP could push with a conservative argument to draw in Gen-Zers, such as paid maternity leave, health care reform, zoning reform, and LGBT rights.  Staying the course set by Trump, while advantageous in the short run, will lead to even worse defeats in the elections to come.