Mike Pompeo is a former United States Secretary of State and former Director of the Central Intelligence Agency.
President Joe Biden’s announcement that he is seeking re-election is a wake-up call for conservatives. 70% of Americans say Biden should not run again. If we can’t beat him in 2024, what does that say about us?
Take a good look in the mirror. If you haven’t noticed, the conservative movement is in crisis. We are on a losing streak.
The Republicans could have won the 2020 election, and we certainly should have done a lot better in the 2022 midterms. But we didn’t. The urgent question that must be answered is: why?
I think conservatives have lost confidence in their ideas.
We’ve been led to believe principles don’t matter, but performance does; that celebrity is more important than substance; That beating is more important than articulating a compelling vision for America.
And look where that got us.
Since Biden’s inauguration, hardworking Americans have grown poorer, our citizens more polarized, and our enemies emboldened.
The challenge the conservatives will face in trying to defeat Biden is not a challenge of ideas — we know what we believe. The challenge is to nominate a candidate who credibly communicates these ideas to the country.
The right cannot simply attack the other side to achieve victory. We need to provide solutions, not sound bites.
Biden’s policies of high taxes, government grants and tough regulations have resulted in the weakest economy since Jimmy Carter was in office.
Since Biden’s inauguration, hardworking Americans have grown poorer, our citizens more polarized, and our enemies emboldened.
Take a good look in the mirror. If you haven’t noticed, the conservative movement is in crisis. We are on a losing streak.
We started our country on the path of failed socialist states. Biden has already tried to “cancel” student debt as well as mortgage payments for his own political gain — and in just a few days, a new administrative rule will go into effect that will force homebuyers with good credit to pay higher interest rates in order to make it happen. Support for those with poor credit scores.
In addition to being illegal, these are all efforts to redistribute wealth.
Meanwhile, American families are struggling to make ends meet due to the highest levels of inflation in four decades. And Biden’s so-called “low inflation bill” made it worse, by channeling massive government spending into green energy projects that would do nothing to lower the cost of living or lower energy prices.
America must return to the free market policies that put the economy back on track during the Ronald Reagan administration.
Reagan’s order to remove price controls on oil and gas production and distribution almost immediately lowered energy prices for all Americans.
Demonstrating the same commitment to free market policies in the energy industry today, such as approving drilling leases and removing onerous regulations, can bring energy prices down again so our families can thrive.
More freedom and less government will not only right the ship, but provide America with another 250 years of greatness.
We must also incorporate the conservative ideals of deterrence and peace by restoring strength to our foreign policy.
Biden’s tenure has led to a more dangerous and unstable world. His failed withdrawal from Afghanistan left 13 American soldiers dead and the country once again became a safe haven for terrorists.
Biden’s failure to deter Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine and to hold the Chinese Communist Party accountable for unleashing and then covering up COVID-19 is clear evidence that he lacks the ability to defend America’s vital national interests or lead the free world.
Biden’s policies of high taxes, government grants and tough regulations have resulted in the weakest economy since Jimmy Carter was in office.
Biden’s failure to deter Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine and to hold the Chinese Communist Party accountable for unleashing and then covering up COVID-19 is clear evidence that he lacks the ability to defend America’s vital national interests or lead the free world.
The next Republican nominee must demonstrate true leadership by making clear that the security and prosperity of our country — and that of our allies — depend on our shared ability to project strength and deter our common adversaries.
Therefore, we must craft a foreign policy that serves the interests of the American people first while not resorting to austerity or isolationism.
This means providing Ukraine with the assistance it needs to win its battle against Russian aggression, standing by our ally Israel against Iranian aggression throughout the Middle East, and denying the Chinese Communist Party’s efforts to expand its military presence in its quest for regional hegemony.
It also means speaking a simple truth: Our borders are as sovereign as any nation and every tool of American power must be used to maintain them.
Reagan won the Cold War without firing a shot, and we can win peace again by clinging to his wisdom today: Weakness invites aggression, only strength deters it.
If in this election all conservatives make the claim to victimhood, if we only seek to stoke resentment against our political opponents, we will lose.
Instead, we must offer a truly unified vision. We must make it clear that any ideology that bestows guilt or privilege on the basis of race or gender is evil and un-American. We must take back what America has always stood for—the proposition that all people are created equal, and that true success is achieved through virtue and hard work.
America’s greatness is founded on the character, merit, and excellence of its people. Her future will be secured by the same.
These are the principles that all true conservatives believe in, and they should be the basis for the vision that the Republican candidate presents.
If we can do it right, I know the American people will make the right decision.
