Republican debate: There is a difference between real and performative conservatism
Zachary Faria
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The pre-debate hype for Vivek Ramaswamy while people prepared their obituaries for Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) was always disconnected from a central fact: Having a conservative record and real principles matters more than showmanship.
Ramaswamy spent the debate getting smacked around by former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, former Vice President Mike Pence, and former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley. Christie in particular landed a hit when he pointed out that Ramaswamy’s opening line was nearly exactly the same as Barack Obama’s line from the 2004 Democratic National Convention.
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Ramaswamy was also booed for accusing all his GOP opponents of being bought and paid for (not for saying climate change is a hoax, though that is a prime example of his purposefully inflammatory record designed to show conservatives that he is their culture warrior).
Ramaswamy’s performative antics, including his canned line about other candidates’ canned lines, were designed to overcompensate for the fact that he has no conservative record and has regularly flip-flopped on every other issue that has come before his campaign. He made himself a target by trying to tear down other Republicans because he had no record to stand on, and it made him the chief target of everyone onstage.
DeSantis, meanwhile, highlighted his record at every opportunity. He has no shortage of examples to cite with Florida’s success, from COVID to pro-life legislation to removing Soros-funded prosecutors and everything in between. He rejected the poor framing of questions about climate change and the Jan 6. riot because he didn’t need to pander to conservatives on those questions or any others.
DeSantis didn’t go out hunting for fights because he didn’t have to. He doesn’t have to be flashy or performative. He just needs to point to the scoreboard and remind everyone about his wins, both politically and legislatively. He’s the best-performing challenger to former President Donald Trump for a reason, and he didn’t have to pick obnoxious fights with Pence or Haley to get there.
That is the difference between being principled and having a record of success compared to relying on talking points and showmanship. Ramaswamy made himself a target and walked into the attacks of his competitors. DeSantis skated through the debate with little issue. Republicans can lose with performative conservatism (a category that includes Trump) or win by following a proven winning formula. GOP voters still have nearly five months before they have to decide what path they want to take.