Episode 4: National Conservative Political Positions (Part 1)

Episode 5: National Conservative Political Positions Part 2

Join Jackson and Muhammad as they explore national conservative foreign policy positions and their view on governance, especially liberal democracy. They end with a discussion analysis of national conservatism's break with American pluralism and focus on limiting government power, and what national conservatism's tendency towards illiberal democracy and democratic backsliding means for America. TIMESTAMPS: Introduction (00:00) National Conservative Foreign Policy (01:00) National Conservative Governance and Illiberal Democracy (10:36) Discussion of National Conservatism's Statism (16:02) Discussion of whether Nat Con's Nativism & Identitarianism is compatible with American Pluralism (21:30) Discussion of what Nat Con's Democratic Backsliding portends for Liberal Democracy (27:30) Sources: National Conservative "Civilizational" Foreign Policy: https://www.politico.eu/article/melonis-western-nationalism/ https://www.governo.it/en/articolo/president-meloni-s-speech-atlantic-council-global-citizen-awards/26632 2025 National Security Strategy speaks of concern for "civilizational erasure" in Europe and sees reversing that as a priority (25-27). Nationalist Internationalist Foreign Policy: https://www.theamericanconservative.com/the-dawn-of-international-nationalism/ https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/2025-National-Security-Strategy.pdf?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email https://securityconference.org/assets/user_upload/MSC_Speeches_2025_Vol2_Ansicht.pdf (Vance speech at 2025 Munich Security Conference) https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/2025-National-Security-Strategy.pdf?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email (2025 National Security Strategy) Administration calls for "Cultivating resistance to Europe’s current trajectory within European nations" (27). National Conservative Transactional, Realist, and/or Isolationist/Western Hemisphere-focused Foreign Policy: https://rollcall.com/2024/07/17/vances-ascension-solidifies-isolationist-faction-of-gop/ https://ethz.ch/content/dam/ethz/special-interest/gess/cis/center-for-securities-studies/pdfs/CSSAnalyse369-EN.pdf 2025 National Security Strategy: Its renewed focus on the Western Hemisphere, its emphasis on non-intervention, the balance of power, and burden sharing, and the minimal attention given to great power competition with Russia and China

Episode 4: National Conservative Political Positions (Part 1)

Join Jackson and Muhammad as they explore National Conservative political positions! In this episode, they will explore national conservative positions on trade, industry, labor, immigration, antitrust, culture, the family, and natalism. TIMESTAMPS: Introduction (00:00) Trade (02:27) Industry/Manufacturing (05:35) Labor (09:22) Immigration (12:26) Antitrust (19:35) Culture and Culture War (23:20) Family and Natalism (27:15) Sources: Nat Cons on labor unions: https://www.wsj.com/politics/policy/trumps-labor-pick-signals-potential-opening-to-unions-5cea1de8 https://www.wsj.com/politics/elections/trump-labor-policy-working-class-voters-923e8861?mod=article_inline https://www.hawley.senate.gov/hawley-introduces-bipartisan-bicameral-know-your-labor-rights-act/ Vance Childless Cat Ladies (he was not referencing Taylor Swift, Muhammad mispoke) https://www.cbsnews.com/news/jd-vance-childless-cat-ladies-comment-backlash/ Hungary spending 5% of GDP on pro-family policies: https://www.pop.org/hungary-doubles-down-on-pro-family-policy/ Pro-antitrust: https://www.hawley.senate.gov/senator-hawleys-trust-busting-agenda/ https://www.legaldive.com/news/jd-vances-regulatory-romance-with-the-biden-ftc/723236/ Trump Immigration Crackdown: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cp8wd8938e8o https://www.cato.org/blog/trump-has-cut-legal-immigration-more-illegal-immigration

Episode 3: What is National Conservatism? The Ideology Behind MAGA

Join Jackson and Muhammad as they begin their dive into National Conservatism! In this episode, they will explore the ideology and worldview of national conservatism and end with a discussion of national conservatism’s practicality in a liberal age and its compatibility with liberal democracy. TIMESTAMPS: Introduction (00:00) Worldview and Ideology of National Conservatism (03:06) Good Life Conception of Politics (13:24) Liberal Conception of Politics (21:52) Nat Con Critique of Liberal Conception of Politics (26:46) Discussion of Liberal Democracy and Nat Con Compatibility (37:52) Practicality of National Conservatism Today (43:32) Sources: Yoram Hazony, The Virtues of Nationalism Trump doll quote: https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/columnist/2025/05/06/trump-dolls-pencils-tariffs-kids/83460867007/

Bonus Episode: What Happened to the Tea Party? Interviewing a Libertarian Populist

Join Muhammad and Jackson as they interview a libertarian conservative populist and Tea Party supporter, Sam. In this interview they discuss what happened to the Tea Party, the future of libertarian populism, and the view from within the movement. Sam is a libertarian conservative populist and political science graduate from the University of Washington.

Episode 2: Taxed Enough Already! The Tea Party and Libertarian Populism

In this episode, Jackson and Muhammad explore our first major right-wing populist faction: the Tea Party and libertarian conservative populism. They discuss the rise of the Tea Party, its influence, and its eclipse by MAGA. TIMESTAMPS: Introduction (00:00) Defining libertarianism (04:21) Libertarian Narrative of US History (08:04) Important Libertarian Beliefs (14:00) Tea Party Contextual Background (19:50) Origins of the Tea Party (22:43) Characteristics of the Tea Party Movement (27:19) The Tea Party and the 2010 Midterms (39:06) The Tea Party in Power, 2011-2013 (44:05) The Tea Party and the 2012 Elections (46:49) The Late Tea Party, 2012-2016 (50:00) Discussion of why the Tea Party Failed (53:47) Tea Party Defeated by MAGA, 2016 Primary (01:00:49) Discussion on why MAGA conquers the Tea Party (01:04:36) Libertarian Conservatism Under the MAGA GOP (01:12:34) Modern Libertarian Populism Main Takeaways (01:21:05) Wrap Up (01:31:14) Rick Santelli's rant where he coins the term "Tea Party": ⁠https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zp-Jw-5Kx8k⁠ [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zp-Jw-5Kx8k] Tea Party Organizations: ⁠https://www.ebsco.com/research-starters/politics-and-government/tea-party-activism-overview⁠ [https://www.ebsco.com/research-starters/politics-and-government/tea-party-activism-overview] CBS Poll on Birtherist views among Tea Partiers & Americans: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/poll-birther-myth-persists-among-tea-partiers-all-americans/ [https://www.cbsnews.com/news/poll-birther-myth-persists-among-tea-partiers-all-americans/] Mad as Hell: How the Tea Party Movement is Fundamentally Remaking Our Two Party System, by Doug Shoen and Scott Rasmussen Chapter 2 & 5: Statistics on Tea Party popularity Statistics on Tea Party Demographics (226-228) “For the first time in recent history, the majority of Americans qualify as populists” (37) “80 percent of the electorate now believes that “nothing can be accomplished in Washington” (Chapter 1) All economic statistics (unemployment and deficits) from FRED Studies on voting behavior in 2010 midterms: https://sites.duke.edu/hillygus/files/2014/05/AldrichetalPB.pdf [https://sites.duke.edu/hillygus/files/2014/05/AldrichetalPB.pdf] https://www.brookings.edu/articles/did-the-tea-party-help-or-hurt-the-republicans/ [https://www.brookings.edu/articles/did-the-tea-party-help-or-hurt-the-republicans/] Debt Ceiling and Budget Showdown 2011: https://www.brookings.edu/articles/the-budget-crisis-of-2011-the-view-from-2021/ [https://www.brookings.edu/articles/the-budget-crisis-of-2011-the-view-from-2021/] Tea Party Favorability: https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2013/10/16/tea-partys-image-turns-more-negative/ [https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2013/10/16/tea-partys-image-turns-more-negative/] Newt Gingrich and the Tea Party: https://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Elections/Tea-Party-Tally/2011/1220/How-Newt-Gingrich-won-over-the-tea-party [https://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Elections/Tea-Party-Tally/2011/1220/How-Newt-Gingrich-won-over-the-tea-party] Tea Party in 2012 Elections: https://theconversation.com/tea-party-goes-cold-as-us-voters-reject-the-far-right-10621 [https://theconversation.com/tea-party-goes-cold-as-us-voters-reject-the-far-right-10621] Tea Party and PACS: https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2016/08/tea-party-pacs-ideas-death-214164/ [https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2016/08/tea-party-pacs-ideas-death-214164/] Tea Party and Betrayl: https://www.businessinsider.com/the-tea-party-betrayed-2012-5 [https://www.businessinsider.com/the-tea-party-betrayed-2012-5] Tea Party Support for Donald Trump: https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2019/05/16/trumps-staunch-gop-supporters-have-roots-in-the-tea-party [https://www.pewresearch.org/politics/2019/05/16/trumps-staunch-gop-supporters-have-roots-in-the-tea-party] Changing Republican Voters' Priorities: https://www.uakron.edu/bliss/docs/State-of-the-Parties-2021/rapoport-crossman-sop21-paper.pdf [https://www.uakron.edu/bliss/docs/State-of-the-Parties-2021/rapoport-crossman-sop21-paper.pdf] (19-26) Tea Party Similarities to Trump & MAGA: https://www.brookings.edu/articles/tea-party-and-trump-presidency [https://www.brookings.edu/articles/tea-party-and-trump-presidency/] Trump 2024 Election Night Speech on Not Starting Wars: https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/remarks-accepting-election-the-47th-president-the-united-states-palm-beach-florida [https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/documents/remarks-accepting-election-the-47th-president-the-united-states-palm-beach-florida] About the hosts: Muhammad is a recent graduate of American University where he received a BA in Economics and a minor in International Studies. He also interned at the Treasury Department during his undergraduate studies. Jackson is also a recent graduate of American University where he received a BA in International Studies and a minor in Political Science. He interned at the State Department and The Asia Group during his undergraduate studies. Disclaimer: the views expressed by Muhammad and Jackson are not reflective of the views of the organizations they have previously been employed at.