Posted on July 20, 2018

Ryan Says Conservatives Must ‘Fight Back’ Against the Alt-Right

Stephanie Murray, Politico, July 19, 2018

Conservatives should “fight back” against the alt-right and white nationalists, and do a better job reclaiming classic terms to stamp out identity politics, House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) said on Thursday.

“We have to go back and fight for our ground and re-win these ideas and marginalize these guys the best we can to the corners,” Ryan said. “Do everything you can to defeat it.”

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“That is not conservatism. That is racism. That is nationalism. That is not what we believe in. That is not the founding vision, that is not the founders’ creed,” Ryan said.

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Ryan said 21st century technology, which allows individuals to make money off pushing divisive messaging, makes the task of pushing out the alt-right particularly difficult. He said the faction “hijacked” conservative terms like “western civilization” and distorted the conservative message.

“It is identity politics. It’s antithetical to what we believe and it’s a hijacking of our terms,” Ryan said. “How do we get the core back? How do we get back classic liberalism properly understood in the 21st century?”

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