Conservative Republicans are inconsistent in their rhetoric on Europe. Usually they complain about European socialism, but they frequently express appreciation for European austerity programs and nuclear energy. So what's going on? In the end, it all comes down to Christian morality: conservative Republicans don't dislike European politics for political reasons, but rather because they regard Europe as a symbol of secularism and thus a product of immoral, anti-Christian forces.
In the end, it all comes down to morality -- specifically, traditional, conservative Christian morality. Doesn't it always? Even issues that seem to be economic and political are really moral and religious. There is no clear separation between them for conservative Republicans. The so-called "Culture Wars" inform every issue, not merely those that seem to be social.
Andrew Sabl writes:
It's not just abortion, though. Europe is seen as a bullying promoter of gay rights across the world, against which less-developed countries are, fortunately from this point of view, pushing back. It's seen as insufficiently muscular in its defense of Christianity as the basis of its values, though the recent progress of Christian chauvinism and anti-Islamic sentiments is seen as a positive sign. Even belief in global warming is sometimes portrayed as a substitute environmentalist religion that fills the gap left by Christianity's decline. (I'm not making this up.)
Above all, the welfare state is widely seen as a moral issue, not an economic one. While progressives often see the U.S. as odd and morally lacking because it doesn't have a proper welfare state, social conservatives not uncommonly see Europe as depraved because it does have one. The welfare state demonstrates that Europe has abandoned God and Church and placed its faith in the State.
In the alternative, the welfare state is unaffordable because Europeans, being secular, have too few children. That the U.S. would also face population decline were it not for immigration is less commonly mentioned or else regarded as irrelevant, since the most numerous immigrants to Europe believe in the wrong religion.
Sabl notes that not every conservative is like this. Not every conservative experiences a reflexive opposition to everything secular, either. This is primarily a feature of the Christian Right and those conservatives most heavily influenced by the Christian Right. Unfortunately, that's the dominant form of conservatism in America today and it's certainly the dominant form of conservative politics in the GOP today.
"The issue is not the issue." Whatever issue conservatives look like they are talking about, in reality they are almost certainly talking about another issue entirely: Christian morality, and specifically sexual morality most of the time. When they look like they are talking about economics, money is probably the last thing on their minds.
Conservative Christians in America don't criticize European economic policies because of any actual results but rather because of how they imagine those policies affect moral values generally and sexual mores specifically. They don't criticize European educational policies because they produce worse results but rather because of how those policies affect sexual morality in children. In the end, it's almost always about sex.
When people are that obsessed about sex -- and specifically the sexual behavior, activity, attitudes, and orientation of others -- you really have to wonder about them. It's not healthy for anyone.
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