On Monday, former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom David Cameron announced his resignation as a member of Parliament for the Conservative Party, three months after the Brexit referendum. While he may be remembered for years to come as “the man who accidentally caused Britain to leave the European Union,” Cameron also leaves a powerful legacy behind — perhaps one that American Republicans can learn from.
Throughout his premiership, Cameron achieved important social reforms. Most notably, he supported the legalization of same-sex marriage in 2013, despite fierce opposition from his own Conservative Party. Additionally, he stood behind legislation curbing police “stop-and-search” powers and legislation forcing businesses to reveal gender pay gaps. Considering the centuries-old tradition of social conservatism in the party, Cameron achieved a significant feat: He showed the U.K. that the Conservative Party is ready to move on from archaic social issues and that there is more to the Conservative Party than homophobia andxenophobia.
As Alan Duncan noted in his recent Time magazine piece, after becoming prime minister in 2010, Cameron established a stable coalition government with the left-of-center Liberal Democrats. Although the coalition was expected to fail, he enabled a wide range of public sector reform, including the devolution of powers in health, education and local government. Duncan noted that Cameron knew when to compromise in the face of unpopular policies, but he also knew when to stand by principles. This was most evident in Cameron's introduction of same-sex marriage legislation despite backlash from his own Conservative members of Parliament.
Unfortunately, the state of conservatism in the U.S. is much bleaker. Mainstream Republicans stubbornly hold onto these outdated ideals and attempt to represent them as fundamental values of the party. In fact, the 2016 Republican platform considers traditional marriage as “the foundation for a free society” and pornography as a “public health crisis.” Not only are these stances deeply out of touch with cultural and social transformations, but as a result, they also alienate important demographics such as women, millennials, minorities and the LGBTQ+ community. Forty years ago, these communities were not politically organized and remained relatively left out in the political consciousness. Writing these communities off today would be absurd, given their increasing activism and mobilization. Yet even today, over a year after its legalization, only three out of 54 Republican senators have come out publically in support of same-sex marriage. Do Republicans truly think this number represents its base?
The same applies to the Hispanic constituency. The desire to stop illegal immigration, justified as it may be, should have never led to a situation of hysteria in which many Hispanics no longer feel comfortable with the Republican party. President George W. Bush's administration at least understood the importance of integrating the Hispanic constituency into the party. The failed Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2007 could have secured the loyalty of a substantial proportion of the Hispanic community for many years to come. Today, that seems unlikely.
What is most unfortunate in all of this is that the Republican Party has more to offer beyond cultural warfare. The party has a strong intellectual tradition that encourages productivity, thoughtful critique of the welfare state and excessive public spending. Likewise, the party has a tradition of strong foreign policy with a grand strategy aimed at protecting the country, its allies and ensuring world stability. For the past several decades, Republicans have been at the forefront of defending democracy, preventing genocide and assuming an international role based on morals.
Whether people agree with these policies, it is evident that nothing has hurt the Republican Party more than cultural wars and failure to adapt to social transformations. Hopefully the Republican Party can come out of its current identity crisis with a new social platform that can adapt to a changing social and political climate. Until then, Republican politicians can learn a thing or two from David Cameron.
Julian Fleischman is a UF political science and telecommunication senior. His column appears on Fridays.
