Tim Stanley
Dr Tim Stanley is a historian of the United States. His biography of Pat Buchanan is out now. His personal website is www.timothystanley.co.ukand you can follow him on Twitter @timothy_stanley
Americans make natural conservatives, which is why Romney's doing better than the British think he should
The Tea Party reflects some of the anti-elite, culturally conservative instincts of Middle America
Barack Obama has got his post-convention poll bounce, giving him a fresh 4 point lead. But I still think Romney can win in November. Whenever I tell that to a British audience, they react with horror and surprise. Often all they get to see of American politics is the televised highlights of Obama’s best speeches, accompanied by footage of a Republican demanding the return of witch burning. In the British imagination, the 2012 fight is between a charismatic centrist and a wackadoodle Right-winger with more money than sense. Given how plain the choice is, Obama simply has to win.
And yet, Obama still has a fight on his hands. Part of the reason is the grim economic news that doesn't always make it across the Atlantic. Unemployment is high, incomes are stagnating and many live in fear of house foreclosure. But Obama faces a bigger existential problem. TheUSA does not have Britain’s social democratic consensus: 41 percent call themselves conservative, 36 percent moderate and only 21 percent liberal (and liberal shouldn’t be confused with socialist). The Republican Party enjoys a natural advantage in US politics, which is why the Democrats only won the White House twice from 1980 until 2008 .
Character is fate, and these are some of the things that make Americans more conservative than the British.
1. America is huge. It’s often claimed that the entire population of the world could fit in Texas, with enough room to fit a swimming pool in every backyard. If Americans seem more insular than Europeans, it’s because they inhabit such a beautiful and diverse continent: sunshine in Florida, ski in Colorado, fall in New England. Having so much space means they don’t share the British obsession with conservation of the natural habitat. Nor do they accept the notion of limits. Austerity is an alien idea in a land where natural wealth seems limitless and every man has a birthright to exploit it. Jimmy Carter style pessimism is a no-no.
2. Americans believe in God. According to Gallup, 92 percent of Americans trust in the Almighty and roughly 43 percent regularly attend a place of worship. On the origins of the species, 46 percent believe God created Adam and Eve and 32 percent think we evolved with God’s guidance. The influence of religion probably accounts for conservative attitudes towards abortion and homosexuality. Although the sincerity of Obama's personal faith can't be doubted, his social liberalism and the Democratic Party's obsessive secularism have coloured public perceptions. Incredibly, only 34 percent of the country identify the President as a Christian.
3. Americans like money. In the UK it’s considered gauche to want stuff. When we look at Mitt Romney on his jet ski we think, “How vulgar,” or “He should donate his jet ski to the poor.” When an American sees Romney having fun on the lake, they think, “Man, I’d love a jet ski.” For evidence, consider our very different attitudes towards inheritence/estate taxes. In the UK we regard them as a just way of redistributing money. In the US, a clear majority see them as legal theft. Even though few Americans make enough money to end up paying the estate tax, many hope that someday they will. Not only do Americans lack our jealously of other people’s jet skis, but they live in optimism that they will eventually own their own pair. It’s called the American Dream, and it's why the Left's message on taxes has never been wildly popular.
4. Americans dislike all monopolies of power and love to break them up. Like the British, Americans resent the growing influence of private sector interests like lobbyists, corporations and banks. But they distrust federal government and trades-unions almost as much. They loathe impersonal forces that undermine the freedom of the individual, even when those forces could be regarded as benign. One reason why there has been public opposition to Obamacare (a far less radical proposition than the NHS) is that it compels people to buy health insurance. Frankly, all Americans should own health insurance – and they know it. But try to force them to purchase it against their will and you’ve got another Tea Party on your hands.
5. Americans are suspicious of big government. Americans love Social Security and programmes that provide direct material benefits. But they doubt the abilities of the federal government to deliver services better than the beloved private sector. That stems from both a historical cult of self-reliance and a pattern of failure on the part of the state. In the UK, teachers are lionised and state schools treated as hallowed ground; private school attendance is usually associated with snobbery. In the US,state schools are so bad that only 29 percent of Americans approve of their performance. An estimated 1.5 million kids are home schooled, a classic example of the American DIY attitude towards social welfare. Ergo, any administration policy that promises to expand the state will face resistance.
The result of all this is that Americans and the British see Obama v Romney in very different ways. In terms of substance, Barack Obama’s presidency has been conventional. But his invocation of class war and his relentless cultural liberalism – both perfectly common in UK politics – make him a radical and polarising figure in Middle America. By contrast, Mitt Romney might seem too rich or too religious to an outsider, but for many Americans his success and faith legitimise him as a presidential candidate. Romney’s true weaknesses are the church he belongs to (which many probably harbour a prejudice towards) and his total absence of the common touch. Mitt Romney looks like he goes to bed in a jacket and tie.
For British journalists patiently making the case that Romney can win, writing about the election is more than just an exercise in psephology. It’s an opportunity to study and illustrate the profound differences between American British cultures. There is always a temptation to project – to presume that the Americans are basically like us and so will vote like us. But the differences are far bigger than the similarities. Some Brits look at those differences, including religiosity and self-reliance, and they recoil in horror. Others find them beguiling and even refreshing. After all, they are the qualities that turned a rebellious colony into the most powerful nation on Earth.
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