The platform of the Republican Party is set to change for the first time since 2016, setting up a major fight for the future of the conservative movement.
In a memo signed by lead advisers to former President Donald Trump, the campaign explained its goal to shorten the platform “to ensure our policy commitments to the American people are clear, concise and easily digestible.” It continued, “We will present a streamlined platform in line with President Trump’s principled and popular vision for America’s future.”
The current GOP platform is a behemoth of a document at more than 60 pages long. It includes niche topics such as “Protection Against an Electromagnetic Pulse,” which are important, but not necessarily critical to outline in a description of the party’s key policy proposals. While shortening the platform is a good idea, it comes with the risk of diluting core conservative positions.
The platform from 2016 and 2020 is considered one of the most conservative the party has ever put forward. It took an unambiguous pro-life stance, declared that marriage is “the union of one man and one woman,” promised “unequivocal support for Israel,” embraced “free trade with free nations,” and even explained the need for entitlement reform.
The biggest question is whether the new platform should outline Trump’s next four years in office or the future of the Republican Party for decades to come. Trump allies are pushing for it to primarily focus on contrasts between him and President Joe Biden and “provide voters with clarity on the binary choice” they face. Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich even said it “should be a Trump document.” In contrast, pro-life activist Kristan Hawkins said that it needs to be a “vision statement about where the party needs to go.”
The strongest ideological conflict is brewing over the position the party will take on abortion, as Trump’s promise to leave the matter to the states has drawn the ire of pro-lifers. A group of 10 pro-life leaders recently sent a letter to Trump urging him to “make clear that you do not intend to weaken the pro-life plank.” Kristi Hamrick, vice president of media and policy for Students for Life of America, said in an interview that “the goal should be a strong defense of life” and “to water it down or to insinuate that the goal is less than that, that would be the problem.”
Because the drafting of the platform is expected to result in some heated exchanges, the platform committee will be meeting behind closed doors for the first time since at least 1984. The lack of transparency around the process is very concerning.
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Party platforms generally do not carry much weight beyond a small group of dedicated activists, but taking more centrist positions will unnecessarily weaken the conservative wing of the party. While a short document is actually a good idea, the words in it cannot betray the conservative movement. This means the party needs to stand unapologetically for families, the free market, peace through strength, and life.
Republicans cannot roll over and move to the center while the Democratic Party embraces further left-wing positions every four years. The GOP needs to stay conservative.