What exactly is a conservative anymore? When I was 18 years old, Ronald Reagan was President of the United States, and I made the decision to register as a Republican as a freshman at Oklahoma City University. Having been raised by two “dyed in the wool” Oklahoma Democrats, this was no small thing, but I admired Reagan’s leadership and what he stood for. Being a conservative back then seemed pretty straightforward: limited government, fiscal responsibility, personal accountability, free markets, respect for the Constitution and skepticism of politicians spending tax dollars.That was conservatism then, but what is it now? Maybe we need to go back to the manual.Is it conservative for a POTUS to promise every adult American $5,000 if his party wins? The estimated price tag for paying 270 million eligible Americans is $1.35 trillion, OF NEW DEBT. This is socialism, not conservatism. Remember when Republicans cared about the national debt? Was waging war without congressional approval conservative? What happened to conservative skepticism of endless foreign wars? Is banning journalists you don’t agree with conservative? I thought conservatives held First Amendment rights so near and dear? I would say at least we have law and order, if not for pardons being granted for very recently convicted felons, seemingly just because they supported the President or are Republicans.Now we have to also reconcile the increasingly blurry line between serving in a public office and private business. We have seen this play out on Oklahoma’s main stage, as the Inola smelter involves a UAE sheikh who invested $500 million into Trump’s cryptocurrency business right before he took office in 2025. This same sheikh (Tahnoon) then used Trump’s USD1 cryptocurrency to settle a $2 billion transaction, thus legitimizing USD1 in the crypto sphere and helping the Trump family make billions. In return, Tahnoon will own 60% of the Inola smelter via Emirates Global Aluminum, which he effectively controls.Is this conservatism or crony capitalism? Is it conservative for a state Republican party chairperson to intervene in a Republican primary and effectively tell Republican voters which Republican is sufficiently Republican? Charity Linch and the Oklahoma State GOP Committee endorsed Mike Mazzei and other candidates immediately before the August runoff and maintain they have the authority to do so. To shroud such behavior under a 66-page OK GOP Certified checklist is not conservative, it’s patently absurd. Who certified the certifiers? Is conservatism about trusting voters, or managing their choices for them? Mike Mazzei, OK GOP’s “certified” candidate, has borrowed over $10 million (reportedly) from an Oklahoma bank to finance his campaign, mortgaging his business as collateral. Is this conservative or crazy? Many wonder how he will pay this back without being corrupt.Maybe we are now confusing being a Republican with being a conservative. Conservatism was once a philosophy based on the principles mentioned earlier. These principles don’t change because someone has a D or an R behind their name. They don’t change just because Charity Linch hands out a certificate, or because Donald Trump says you are or are not a conservative. Conservatism shows in actions, not words or being a member of a party. If not, conservatism isn’t a philosophy at all. It’s just a jersey … Drew Williamson is a Partner with Red Center Media-Oklahoma Gazette and served as Trustee of Teachers Retirement System-Oklahoma from 2019-2023. The post What Is a Conservative? appeared first on Oklahoma Gazette. ...read more read less