Since Reagan, conservatives have also been impotent to prevent the counterculture from becoming the mainstream culture. And with the fall of the Soviet Union, conservatives even began to split over national defense. Islamic fundamentalism poses a grave threat to the West; I would argue, as great a threat as communism. But conservatives differ not only over how best to counter it but whether Islamism can or should be defeated.
So what are the pillars of conservatism today? Clearly, a commitment to individual rights, limited government, and free enterprise has historically had the broadest appeal within the conservative movement. But where does that leave social and religious conservatives? Will the new conservatism provide a place at the table to those who are more motivated by moral than by economic issues? And while all conservatives would say they believe in a strong national defense, there remain irreconcilable disagreements among the different factions of the conservative movement on how to keep America strong.
Perhaps adversity will prove to unite conservatives. If, as many of us fear, an Obama administration and an expanded Democratic congressional majority move the United States closer to European-style social democracy, conservatives will coalesce to resist it. But, to be successful, we must offer an alternative vision -- one that appeals beyond movement circles to the general public.
Americans intuitively know that free market capitalism creates wealth that benefits more people than government redistribution, but their faith has been tested in recent weeks. And with an Obama administration promising an ever-expanding welfare state -- and more importantly, one that provides benefits to the middle class, much as European social democracies have for decades -- Americans will be tempted to think they will be better off if government decides to "spread the wealth around."
Conservatism rose phoenix-like out of the ashes of the Goldwater defeat. It will take a similar feat to rescue the movement now. No less than the future of the United States depends on it.