Daily Archives: September 23, 2010

Is There a War Between Social and Economic Conservatives — The Family in America Editor to Speak at Family Research Council

WASHINGTON, Sept. 23, 2010 /Christian Newswire/ — Bob Patterson, research fellow and editor of The Howard Center’s quarterly journal The Family in America, will be one of the speakers at an important symposium on the relationship between economic and social conservatism sponsored by the Family Research Council on Friday, September 24, at 1 PM, “Is There a War Between Social and Economic Conservatives?”

Larry Jacobs, Vice President of The Howard Center for Family, Religion & Society, commented: “The so-called war between economic and social conservatives serves only the liberal objective to distract and divide potential allies against radical leftists. Diverse historical leaders such as Adam Smith, Benjamin Franklin, Alexis de Tocqueville, Abraham Lincoln and Theodore Roosevelt have all agreed on the uniqueness of the American identity — married, child-rich homes. The American ideals and values centering around marriage, children, and protection of human life continue to be on the hearts of the American people during the upcoming election. I can’t think of a better scholar and writer than Bob Patterson to express how social issues are inseparable from economic issues and hold the key to returning America to her greatness of married, child-rich families and economic prosperity.”

Many observers of the political scene have commented on the sometimes tenuous relationship between social and economic conservatives.

According to the political journalists Jonathan Martin and Ben Smith, “the battles over morality-based cultural issues such as gay rights, abortion and illegal drugs that did so much to drive the conservative movement and dominated the political conversation for more than 30 years have abated, giving way not just to broad economic anxiety but to a new set of emotionally charged issues” (Politico, August 20, 2010).

To discuss whether this is true or not, Family Research Council is hosting this symposium featuring three of the nation’s leading observers of the political scene. Joining Bob Patterson will be New York Times columnist Ross Douthat who has written extensively about religion, family, and the public life and Lawrence Reed, president of the Foundation for Economic Education and former president of the Mackinac Center for Public Policy.

Patterson, an adjunct research fellow at The Howard Center for Family, Religion & Society, recently wrote the important article, “Fiscal Conservatism is Not Enough: What Social Conservatives Offer the Party of Lincoln,” published in the Spring 2010 issue of The Family in America: A Journal of Public Policy. In it he states, “As much as the media like to portray the GOP as beholden to the Religious Right, the reality is that Republican elites, with rare exceptions, are more beholden to economic conservatives and foreign-policy hawks than to social conservatives” (p.116).

To join in on this important discussion, call Family Research Council at 800-225-4008 to register. If you can’t attend in person, you can still watch the live webcast by going to http://www.frc.org/eventregistration/is-there-a-war-between-social-and-economic-conservatives.

Go to http://www.profam.org/THC/thc_member.htm for more information on becoming a member of The Howard Center to receive a subscription to The Family in America. To schedule an interview with Larry Jacobs or Bob Patterson, call Don Feder at 508-405-1337 or dfeder@rcn.com.

The Howard Center for Family, Religion and Society (www.profam.org) located in Rockford, Illinois is an independent, non-profit research and education center that strives to be the leading source of fresh ideas and new strategies for affirmation and defense of the natural family, both nationally and globally. The Howard Center is also the organizer of the World Congress of Families project which unites people of goodwill who recognize that the family is the fundamental unit of society and coordinates the efforts of pro-family groups from more than 60 countries worldwide.