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A new school year is underway in the United States, highlighted by dueling images of students heading to class in masks and angry parents debating whether those face coverings are necessary.

The latest fights over masks, but also critical race theory and transgender rights are raging in part because they touch on differing views of social values and what it means to be an American, experts say. Such disputes are also driven by a desire to win local victories and to change national narratives. Yet despite the long history of culture wars in U.S. education, the question of whether these wars are really winnable is one thats rarely asked, says Adam Laats, a historian at Binghamton University in New York who studies cultural battles in education. If there is a winner, he says, whoever that is will try and rally the troops under the threat of whatever it is next.

Schools have long been a battle ground for contentious societal ideas. But what does a win look like in todays polarized debates over masks, critical race theory, and gender identity?

In Williamson County, Tennessee, parent and activist Revida Rahman says a win would be coming together to do the work of addressing racism. This is a long process, she says.

Brett Craig, a parent in the same county and a Moms for Liberty volunteer, says,A win to me would be to live and let live. Thats the American bargain.

In a typical back-to-school season, markers and poster board might be on a classroom supply list. This year, theyre also hot items for protesters attending their local school board meetings.

Mask mandates, critical race theory, you name the issue and people want to speak out, says Heath Miller, a high school band directorin Tulsa, Oklahoma, who considers this the most stressful period of his 20 years teaching.

In recent weeks, individuals in Fort Lauderdale, Florida,lit masks on fire outside a school board meeting. Pro-mask protesters in Fort Worth, Texas, staged a mock funeral outside the school board presidents home in August.The critical race theory debate continues to burn after erupting last spring, withnew laws passed ineightstatesbanning teachers from covering divisive topics and multiple other states considering restrictive measures.Loudoun County, Virginia, saw contentious clashes over the districts expansion of transgender student rights.

Schools have long been a battle ground for contentious societal ideas. But what does a win look like in todays polarized debates over masks, critical race theory, and gender identity?

The latest fights are raging in part because they touch on differing views of social values and what it means to be an American, experts say, and are driven by desires to win local victories and to change national narratives. Yet despite the long history of culture wars in education in the United States, the question of whether these wars are really winnable is one thats rarely asked, says Adam Laats, a historian at Binghamton University in New York who studies cultural battles in education.

I think theres a bunch of seeming paradoxes when it comes to winnability, Dr. Laats says. If there is a winner, whoever the winner is will not claim it as a victory but instead try and rally the troops under the threat of whatever it is next.

Conflict over the idea of what America stands for often intensifies during periods of change, says Andrew Hartman, an Illinois State University professor of history who studies culture wars.

It does seem that were in another period of mass reflection on this larger question of what it means to be an American. This stems from the rapid changes in how we think about gender identity, certainly the rise of the Black Lives Matter movement, he says. The current culture wars in schools, particularly with regards to race, critical race theory, sex education, and gender, are stemming from these changes that are taking place not just politically, but in peoples consciousness.

Demonstrators gather outside a Williamson County Schools school board meeting in Franklin, Tennessee, to show support for the district's diversity and equity initiatives on May 17, 2021. The event was organized by One WillCo, a racial equity group co-founded by Revida Rahman.

Polling shows some of the divides. In August, a survey by The Associated Press and NORC Center for Public Affairs Research found that 58% of American adults favor mask mandates for students attending K-12 schools in person, with about 30% of Republicans supporting mask mandates compared with about 80% of Democrats. (Support rose to 65% of Americans supporting mask mandates for students in an early Septemberpoll by USA Today/Ipsos; results were not broken down by political party.)

A Morning Consult-Politico survey in June found that less than a majority of Americans knew about critical race theory,a decades-old idea targeted by conservative activists that considers the ways race and racism influence American politics, culture, and law.Among those Americans who are aware of it, Republicans are more likely to view it unfavorably.

Cultural wars around education happen in part because of the role schools play in the parent-child relationship, says Dr. Hartman. By sending your kid to a public school youre conceding in part the raising of your kid to the state, at least in theory or principle. You can see why conflicts would develop over schools for that reason.

Disputes over education in America are as common as reading, writing, and arithmetic from the 1920s Scopes Monkey Trial that dealt with the teaching of evolution to the 1962 Engel v. Vitale Supreme Court case that ruled school prayer unconstitutional, to 1990s battles over proposed national history standards.

Long-term trends in culture wars tend to favor progressive causes, says Dr. Laats of Binghamton University. But conservatives can claim victory over the fact that education still follows a traditional format in most places and that local activists have succeeded at changing curricula, he says.

The sense I get is its more about exerting political influence and illustrating or demonstrating that your group is highly motivated on this issue and therefore a force to be reckoned with, rather than changing others minds, saysNeal McCluskey, director of the Center for Educational Freedom at the libertarian Cato Institute in Washington.

The system is working the way its supposed to, with local control of education and mechanisms to voice concerns through school board meetings and elections,says Robert Pondiscio, a senior fellow who studies K-12 education at the American Enterprise Institute, a right-of-center think tank in Washington.Education is not above the fray, it is the fray, he says. It should surprise no one that in a diverse and divided country, people are going to bring those divisions to their schools in the forms of these heated debates.

Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel/AP

Deputies remove Chris Mink from an emergency meeting of the School Board for Seminole County Public Schools in Sanford, Florida, Sept. 2, 2021. Mr. Mink, the parent of a Bear Lake Elementary School student, opposes a call for mask mandates and was escorted out for shouting.

When Revida Rahman attends school board meetings in Williamson County, Tennessee, shes on the side with people holding posters reading Racism hurts us all. Brett Craig typically sits with people holding up signs like My Child. My Choice.

Both local parents say theyre turning out to urge school leaders to do whats best for kids, but they differ in their ideas about what it means to win.

Winning for us isnt like a football game win, where you make the play and its over. This is a long process, says Ms. Rahman, co-founder of One WillCo, a group that advocates for racial equity in schools.

A win to me would be to live and let live. Thats the American bargain. Youre free to have absolute convictions about whatever you want, but youre not free to impose convictions on me, says Mr. Craig, a public relations volunteer with the local chapter of the conservative group Moms for Liberty. He favors parent choice on masks and removing curricula he sees as politically motivated.

A recent NBC News analysis of school districts where disputes are flaring over critical race theory found that many of the districts are in locations where demographics are diversifying. In Loudoun County, Virginia, the share of students of color in the average white students school has increased by 29.5 percentage points since 1994, above the overall national rise of 11.2 percentage points.

Patti Hidalgo Menders, president of the Loudoun County Republican Womens Club and mother of a high school junior, pushes back on the implication that disputes stem from changing demographics. Shes a daughter of immigrants from Cuba, and she says her parents taught her to assimilate and be proud Americans.

Ms. Mendersorganized recent Education, Not Indoctrination rallies and is involved with an effort to recall six members of the Loudoun County school board. Among other things, shes upset the district has limited what she calls the freedoms of parents and students, such as choices around masks and vaccinations. She feels like her side has not won anything.

Many grassroots activists hope they will win policies advancing their causes, at least on the local level, by attending school board meetings and organizing to elect school board members that represent their values, says Dr. Hartman, the education historian. Some politicians, lobbyists, and members of the media intentionally stir up cultural battles to gain votes, fundraising, or ratings, he says.

Some people profit and benefit and enjoy fighting these culture wars and some see it as more existential and think they can win, says Dr. Hartman.

Ms. Rahman in Tennessee started working to improve her childrens schools after she and her husband chaperoned their sons on field trips to a plantation about five years ago and were dismayed by the lack of information about slavery and the lack of compassion shown by others on the trip.

They were showing empathy for the 12-, 13-year-old [Confederate] soldiers who were fighting, but the same empathy wasnt shown to the slaves that were on the plantation, says Ms. Rahman, who identifies as Black. Ms. Rahman says her two sons and their classmates of color continue to face incidents such as white children using racial slurs on the school bus.

She and other parents went to the district with their concerns and have succeeded in some of their goals, such as having the district start a cultural competency council. She views the latest disputes in Williamson County as less about culture wars and more about long-standing racism in America. She thinks it would be a win for people to continue the reckoning with racism that was started after the death of George Floyd rather than everyone retreating to their corners, as shes seeing now.

Ms. Menders is also trying to get people to come together. She recently gathered friends and acquaintances from a range of political and racial backgrounds to discuss their different positions.

I would love to have more dialogue like that, she says, even though one person in the group decided they didnt want to participate in the future. Our goal was to help each other understand the other peoples point of view.

More:
Can there be a winner in the school culture wars? - The Christian Science Monitor

Populism is never quite as popular as it looks. Or at least, people can only take so much of it before needing a break.

Thats one lesson to draw from the slow-motion car crash of GB News, which had lost much of its audience long before losing its star presenter, Andrew Neil. Being angry round the clock is exhausting, to the point where even the most committed cultural warrior sometimes just wants to relax with a nice episode of Countdown. GB News seemingly failed to recognise that in time. But the Conservative party, judging by the last few weeks, is more alert to the problem.

Remember Chesham and Amersham that brief flicker of hope for progressives back in June, after the Tories lost the byelection to the Liberal Democrats right in their Buckinghamshire heartlands? All the talk of a liberal-left alliance smashing through a blue wall of seats where soft Tory voters had started to feel taken for granted seems a long time ago now. Boris Johnson, however, hasnt forgotten. The Lib Dems are at best stagnating in national polling. But they remain a potential threat to him in relatively prosperous commuter towns whose resident Tories voted remain, dont like picking fights with Marcus Rashford over free school meals, and worry that culture wars are making their party look toxic.

This breed of Tory wouldnt take the knee but rather warmed to Gareth Southgate, especially when England started winning. They grumble about the BBC or political correctness gone mad but theyre not on Twitter (too shouty), they diligently wear their masks in Waitrose, and theyre at least trying to understand why their teenage children think theyre wrong about everything.

On holiday in Cornwall they always buy something from the RNLI shop to support those volunteer crews going out in all weathers, so whatever their views on immigration they thought Nigel Farage was wrong to attack lifeboat crews for rescuing drowning refugees from the Channel.

Their views on the big issues can seem hopelessly inconsistent, even incoherent by standard party measures. They want more money for public services but not the tax rises to pay for it; they worry about their children being unable to get on the property ladder but ferociously resist housebuilding in their own backyards; and they combine surprisingly radical views on some social issues (recent polling shows older people are just as worried as Generation Z about the climate crisis) with conservative views on others. But, over the summer, Downing Street has been fine-tuning its approach towards what are sometimes described as cross-pressured voters, hard to pigeonhole ideologically. And this reshuffle was, at least in part, about delivering for them.

On education, Tory voters biggest worry now is their children and grandchildren missing school again because of Covid; fighting about cancel culture in universities can wait. So Gavin Williamsons replacement as education secretary isnt Kemi Badenoch, the pugnacious equalities minister heavily backed by Downing Streets culture-warrior faction, but Nadhim Zahawi, the former vaccines minister, with a soothing radio manner and reputation for getting things done.

Even the new culture secretary, Nadine Dorries, is a more complex proposition than her views on tearing down statues (which she doesnt like) and bashing the BBC (which she does) suggest. She made unexpected friends in her old Department of Health job by focusing on neglected womens health issues, including menopause. Now she must deal with the planned privatisation of Channel 4, which, instead of delighting the kind of Tory who hates the news presenter Jon Snow, seems to be alarming the kind who loves Kirstie Allsopp, the Location Location Location presenter campaigning vigorously to save the channel. (Three-quarters of Tory voters oppose privatisation, according to a survey commissioned by Channel 4, with many worrying about it falling into foreign hands.) Dorriess predecessor, Oliver Dowden, in turn, becomes chief fixer at the Cabinet Office, with a brief not to pick fights but to make them go away.

Meanwhile, its out with the unsubtle Robert Jenrick, whose plans for a housebuilding free-for-all were just what No 10 thought it wanted (and certainly what frustrated would-be first-time buyers did) until it cost the Tories council seats in Surrey, Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire. Michael Gove, who represents a Surrey seat, is now charged with finding some magic compromise that unites all these conflicting desires.

Its not by any stretch of the imagination a shift back to the centre not with Priti Patel still occupying the Home Office and its barely any clearer what the prime minister actually wants to do with his huge majority, except not lose it. This cabinet is ideologically difficult to read, a mishmash of those personally loyal to Johnson and those who know which side their bread is buttered on. But in that, it may mirror its target voters surprisingly closely.

The Conservative party exists to mutate and evolve, to be both intensely ideological and intensely pragmatic depending on what the situation requires, and shameless about ditching anything that isnt working. What Boris Johnson does unusually successfully and Keir Starmer does not unfortunately for everyone concerned, given its a good strategy for campaigning and a rotten one for governing in situations where real lives are at stake is focus on two or three things that stick in ordinary voters heads enough to blind them to the surrounding mess. More money for the NHS; vaccines will save us; life in commuter-belt England will continue much as it always has. The glaring inconsistencies in all this will start catching up with them eventually, which is why most Tory MPs now expect an early election. But for now, the left shouldnt underestimate how quickly the battleground is shifting beneath its feet.

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Johnson is reshuffling away from culture wars to firm up the commuter belt - The Guardian

We all know, far too well, the terrain of the culture wars, the places where the sides are deeply entrenched, where the pounding is heavy, where prisoners arent taken Brexit, face coverings and Covid restrictions, immigration, Harry and Meghan, ubiquitous union flags, trans rights, statues, BLM, taking the knee, institutional racism, woke values. But then there are the other, smaller, theatres of battle. At sea, Boris Johnson has deployed the idea of a new royal yacht (which has endured friendly fire from Buckingham Palace, whod rather it wasnt named after Prince Philip. On the airwaves theres the dogfight between GB News and the enlightenment. On land, the prime minister has embarked on what might be called culture skirmishes the return to imperial measures, the pledge to make television companies commission distinctively British programming, and the little crown emblem going back on the pint glasses.

And so the conflict goes on, distracting from the more traditional issues about living standards, jobs and the cost of living, what were called in Roman times bread and circuses, and which games are now conducted on social media. Like summoning up the ancient icons of the past, the initiative on imperial measures has recalled the metric martyrs of two decades ago, arguably the first casualties in what we came to know as the Battle for Britain, aka Brexit.

The issues are divisive, but mercifully minor. Even Nigel Farage couldnt start a riot just because someone doesnt want to sell cheese by the ounce or wheat by the bushel. The mile and the pint never disappeared anyway, and, besides, few people know what a quarter of toffees actually is. To understand how remote the return of widespread traditional measurements is, one only needs to try and answer the question: if a pound of Red Leicester sells for 5, how much is six ounces?

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Imperial measurements represent yet another battle in the culture wars - The Independent

Pope Francis walks with Slovak President Zuzana Caputov as he arrives at the international airport in Bratislava, Slovakia, Sept. 12, 2021. (CNS photo/Paul Haring)

Editor's note: This story has been updated with reporting from Pope Francis' visit to Rybn Square.

BRATISLAVA, SLOVAKIA Slovakia's fragile freedom will not be strengthened through isolationism or engaging in culture wars Pope Francis said on Sept. 13, but rather through authentic dialogue and openness.

The pope's remarks came during his first full day in the Slovakian capital, where he spent the morning meeting with the country's president and civil leaders, as well as its Catholic bishops, priests and religious. In back-to-back gatherings, the pope addressed similar themes, drawing on the country's rich Christian heritage to chart a path for the future.

"All of us are frail and in need of others. None can stand apart, either as individuals or as a nation," Francis said during his opening address at the presidential palace.

"Your mountains combine in one range a variety of peaks and landscapes, spilling over national borders in order to join together in beauty different peoples," he said. "Cultivate this beauty, the beauty of the whole."

The young democracy, where more than 60% of its citizens identify as Catholic, became sovereign in 1993 and entered the European Union and NATO in 2004. Francis encouraged the country to continue being "a message of peace in the heart of Europe" by pursuing just economic structures, generous migration policies and genuine religious freedom.

"It is my hope that you will never allow the rich flavors of your finest traditions to be spoiled by the superficiality of consumerism and material gain," Francis said. He went on to warn against the temptation of the "lure of profit" that "rather than bringing people together, proves only divisive."

"In these lands, until just a few decades ago, a single thought-system stifled freedom," the pope said in reference to the country's communist past. "Today another single thought-system is emptying freedom of meaning, reducing progress to profit and rights only to individual needs."

A just society, Francis said, is one that allows "each person to receive the bread of employment, so that none will feel marginalized or constrained to leave family and homeland in search of a better life."

Just one day after the popetoldchurch and civil leaders in neighboring Hungary, known for its hard-line immigration policies, that the cross of Christ requires being welcoming and hospitable, the pope urged Slovakia to remain open to those in need.

"Even as battles for supremacy are waged on various fronts, may this country reaffirm its message of integration and peace," Francis said. "And may Europe be distinguished by a solidarity that, by transcending borders, can bring it back to the center of history."

"No one should be stigmatized or suffer discrimination," he added. "Our Christian way of looking at others refuses to see them as a burden or a problem, but rather as brothers and sisters to be helped and protected."

Pope Francis speaks as he visits the "Bethlehem Center" in Bratislava, Slovakia, Sept. 13. (CNS/Paul Haring)

While the pope's seven-hour stay in Hungary on Sept. 12 was closely watched for his meeting with its ultranationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orban, Francis is expected to receive amore sympathetic welcomefrom Slovakian President Zuzana Caputov during his three-day stay in the country.

Caputov, who was elected in 2019 on an anti-corruption platform,met with Francisat the Vatican in Dec. 2020 and the two leaders are aligned on a number of signature issues, most notably on immigration and environmental concerns.

Despite the Vatican's disagreement with the Slovak government on certain social issues, including reproductive rights and LGBTQ policies, the pope emphasized the need for collaboration and dialogue rather than strict opposition.

"The salt of the faith acts not by reacting in worldly terms, by engaging in culture wars, but by quietly and humbly sowing the seeds of Gods kingdom, especially by the witness of charity," he said.

The pope reiterated that message when he met with the country's bishops, priests and religious in Bratislava's St. Martin's Cathedral.

"The church is not a fortress, a stronghold, a lofty castle, self-sufficient and looking out upon the world below," he said.

Instead, he told the historically traditionalist Catholic community to adopt a posture of humility and a readiness to engage the world around it, especially its young people and those on the margins.

"How great is the beauty of a humble church, a church that does not stand aloof from the world, viewing life with a detached gaze, but lives her life within the world," he said. "Living within the world means being willing to share and to understand peoples problems, hopes and expectations."

"This will help us to escape from our self-absorption, for the center of the church is not the church!," Francis continued. "We have to leave behind undue concern for ourselves, for our structures, for what society thinks about us."

The pope, who has made the themes of accompaniment and discernment touchstones of his papacy, told the country's religious leaders to "become immersed in the real lives of people."

While acknowledging that such an approach has some risks, and may be uncomfortable for many Catholics, the pope said the church must have room "for the adventure of freedom" that is diverse in its expression.

"Many others especially the younger generations are not attracted by a faith that leaves them no interior freedom, by a church in which all are supposed to think alike and blindly obey," he said.

"How great is the beauty of a humble church, a church that does not stand aloof from the world, viewing life with a detached gaze, but lives her life within the world."

Pope Francis

During his remarks, a lively and engaged pope frequently spoke unscripted, telling the cathedral full of young priests and seminarians to shorten their homilies and not to focus on themes or arguments that few understand.

"Everyone should discover the freedom of the Gospel by gradually entering into a relationship with God, confident that they can bring their history and personal hurts into his presence without fear or pretense, without feeling the need to protect their own image," he continued.

"May the proclamation of the Gospel be liberating, never oppressive," said Francis. "And may the church be a sign of freedom and welcome!"

After a morning of calling Catholics to engage the world around it, the pope put his own words into action, first visiting a center for the homeless and marginalized on the outskirts of the city run by the Missionaries of Charity, followed by a visit to Rybn Square in the former Jewish quarter.

There, the pope paid tribute to the 105,000 Slovak Jews killed during the Holocaust, and as he did theday before in Hungary, Francis again reiterated his condemnation of anti-Semitism.

"Let us unite in condemning all violence and every form of anti-Semitism, and in working to ensure that Gods image, present in the humanity he created, will never be profaned," he pleaded.

On the very grounds of a former synagogue that was demolished during the communist rule, the pope reminded those present that "darkness is dispelled by the message that destruction and death do not have the last word, but rather renewal and life."

"Our world needs open doors," Francis said, as he lauded the interfaith efforts between Christians and Jews in recent years and urged continued collaboration.

"The blessing of the Most High is poured out upon us, whenever he sees a family of brothers and sisters who respect and love each other and work together," he concluded.

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Pope Francis to Slovakia: Culture wars and isolationism won't strengthen freedom - National Catholic Reporter

It's hardly debatable anymore that the Left is out of control, increasingly influenced and even governed by a radical authoritarian culture that brooks no dissent and over-corrects on all fronts it sets its sights on. You would think this would present a perfect opportunity for Republicans to seize the moment and capture the confidence of moderates and even liberals deeply alienated by this woke authoritarian culture.

You would be wrong.

Through sheer stupidity, the GOP has repeatedly squandered opportunities to fight the righteous cause of left-wing overreach with sensible and popular counterproposals. Instead, Republicans have doubled down on culture war issues and their own extremism, mirroring rather than fighting the Left's overreach. In case after case, Republicans seem to be working overtime to alienate potential constituencies in the service of their most aggrieved and even unhinged base.

The most glaring example comes from the heart of Republican power: Texas. The state passed an abortion law so extreme it effectively bans all abortions while relying on private citizens to enforce it; the law deputizes individuals to bring civil lawsuits against their neighbors should they learn that they have performed or assisted in an abortion. The law bans abortions at six weeks and anyone who assists or performs an abortion can be sued.

The new law is so extreme it has the local business community "scratching their heads," as one Republican operative put it; business leaders were shocked to see Texas Governor Greg Abbot, a sometimes moderate, adopt such a far right stance. Like other far right pieces of legislation on things like the open carry of guns, the new law could become a barrier to attracting more companies to the Lone Star State; it's already generated a strong set of counter-measures among tech firms. Some have been kicking pro-life activist websites off their serves and offering protections to their own employees, including Uber and Lyft drivers who might be liable for transporting people to abortions.

And it's not just business leaders who are alienated. The abortion ban will not play well in in the suburban communities that are the state's prime political battlegrounds. As Gallup has consistently found, barely one in five Americans support a total ban on abortion, while fully one-third favor no restrictions at all.

The abortion law reminded voters how extreme large sections of the GOP have become, particularly in red states like Texas. But perhaps more critically, the abortion law and the way it deputizes vigilante justice undermines what was becoming a compelling case against progressive authoritarianism as it's being carried out in universities, on social media, and on major internet platforms.

After all, it's difficult to campaign against campus thought policing and the blatant politicization of information by Google and Facebook while urging citizens to spy on each other. And the fight against encroaching left-wing authoritarianism and censorship is popular according to recent surveys, not only among Boomers but the vast majority of millennials and Gen Zers, too.

This is a fight the GOP could winand win big. But to do so, it will need to stop focusing on the culture wars. Let the progressivesincreasingly the voice of the Democratskeep hammering away at the culture wars, embracing a repressive and widely unpopular agenda. Republicans should abandon these sorts of fights that appeal to the most extreme corners of their base, and should focus on moderating across the board.

They should start by ridding their party of the instinctive dislike of foreigners and the fear of cultural contamination, things which remain embedded in the party's core. The way to win a lasting victory is to realize the true nature of an increasingly diverse Texas; 95 percent of its growth this decade was among minorities. And yet, a dozen GOP county chairs were found tweeting conspiracy theories and openly racist memes, including from Harris County, where non-Hispanic whites are less than one-third of population.

This bigotry should be stamped out for its own sake. And failing to do so could staunch GOP progress among Hispanics who without this kind of racism would be a captive audience, alarmed as many are by the lack of border control and the Democrats' increasingly wacky cultural stance. Such Hispanics have been defecting to the GOP in surprising numbers; and yet Republicans are squandering this progress over conspiracy theories about George Soros.

Republicans also need to be smart about critical race theory, which has been widely adopted by the Biden Administration. It is awful pedagogy and not popular in the public, much like the entire PC agenda. But the battle needs to be carried out closer to the grassroots, at local school boards. Let common sense flow from below; blanket state bans also smack of right-wing version of authoritarianism from above.

As with the abortion law, the moral high ground of the fight against critical race theory is marred when attempts to stop it recapitulate the same authoritarian forces Republicans are trying to counteract.

The COVID-19 pandemic is another place where stupidity could undermine the GOP. Battles over vaccines may appeal to the GOP base, but the fact that several very red southern statesMississippi, Louisiana, Alabama and Arkansasnow have fatality rates close to those of New York and New Jersey is not a good advertisement for ultra-loose policies. The argument on masks and lockdowns is complex, but rather than attack the lockdowns as repressive, the Republicans would do better to push the case that generally lockdown states have fared worse economically, if perhaps better on infections.

Equally foolish have been the continued claims of election fraud, which makes some Republicans sound like arms-toting junior confederatesdangerous at a time when faith in most national institutions are fading. Trump's refusal to admit defeat has actually been a soft form of voter suppression in that it depresses Republican turnout by convincing people that elections are rigged; this stupidity likely cost the party two Senate seats in Georgia.

Trumpism may stir the base, but it leads to a nihilistic dark alley from which it is hard to escape. Instead of leaning into the culture wars, Republicans need a positive agenda focused on opportunity and everyday concerns, including jobs, schools, and public safety, particularly when even most Democrats worry about rising crime. On climate change, they would do best not to deny what is likely occurring but to propose measures to reduce emissions in ways that do not hurt working and middle class Americans.

Class issues, which are compelling with racial minorities, represent the only sustainable path to Republican resurgence. The old country club version has been demolished by the essential merger of corporate America and the Democratic Party and its agenda.

The Democrats have helpfully become the party of the rich; it would be a shame for Republicans to squander this opportunity to become the party of the crazy.

To beat the Democrats, Republicans need to connect not just with people's fears and rage at an increasingly arrogant upper class but also their aspirations. They need to be the party of small businesses, homeowners and aspiring homeowners, of artisans, and technicians; essentially, the party of anyone interested in supporting their family.

It is here, in the intersection of the economy and society, that future political winners will emergenot from the lunatic cultural agendas of the far left or far right. Being owned by the oligarchy with its image defined by the loony left makes Democrats unnatural instruments to address the needs of the middle class. It opens an opportunity so large that only a profoundly stupid party could miss it.

Joel Kotkin is the Presidential Fellow in Urban Futures at Chapman University and executive director of the Urban Reform Institute. His new book, The Coming of Neo-Feudalism, is now out from Encounter. You can follow him on Twitter: @joelkotkin.

The views expressed in this article are the author's own.

Read more:
GOP Stupidity Is Squandering the Opportunity Created by Woke Authoritarians | Opinion - Newsweek