Politics, Principle and Standing up to Donald Trump : Moral Courage in the Republican Party / Kristen Monroe.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Monroe, Kristen, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Trump, Donald, 1946-.

Trump, Donald.

Republican Party (U.S. : 1854- ).

Political culture--United States.

Political culture.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (460 pages)

Edition:

First edition.

Place of Publication:

[Place of publication not identified] : Ethics International Press Ltd, [2024]

Summary:

The Muslim ban. Immigrant children, caged, isolated from their families. Downplaying COVID-19. Infatuation with foreign dictators. Voter fraud. Election denial. Encouraging the January 6th 2021 Capital insurrection. Despite Donald Trump's many legal and moral abuses, most Republican Party leaders continue to support him. Why? How can we explain Republican complicity? True believers in the MAGA cult are rare. There are moderate Republican members of Congress - Kevin McCarthy, Lindsay Graham, and Mitch McConnell - who publicly rebuked Trump, only to later back down and support him and his version of the truth. The motivation driving these powerful political leaders - fear, self-interest, lack of moral fiber - is less interesting than is a related question: What propelled the moral courage of the few traditionally conservative Republicans who refused to go along with Trump and his obvious lies? The world saw great physical courage on January 6th, as members of the Capital police fought against overwhelming odds, risking their lives to protect members of Congress. Such physical courage is commendable and rare. Yet moral courage - the willingness to stand up and fight for what you believe is right, even when you know it will cost you - is even rarer. How can we explain why some Republicans followed their consciences, while many others did not? This is the topic of this book. Analyzing in-depth interviews, public speeches, journals, documents, and other data from dedicated Republicans -- Senators McCain, Romney, and Flake, Representatives Kinzinger and Cheney, committed Republican stalwarts Rick Wilson and Anthony Scaramucci, and dedicated Republican officeholders like Miles Taylor -- lends insight into both what drives moral courage, and the double-edged sword aspect of moral courage in politics, in which every act of moral courage is also a complex

act of betrayal.

Contents:

Intro

Preface Moral Courage, Complicity and the Resilience Of Democracy

References

Introduction Moral Courage and the Republicans: The Challenge

PART 1 Divisions within the Republican Party

Chapter 113F What Gives With the Republicans?

History and Research Design

HISTORICAL CONTEXT

Republican Values and American conservatism since Nixon

An increasingly polarized world: A personal view

Trump and Republican conservatism since Nixon

Trump's Takeover

Trump and Republican policies

Power Vacuum, Enter Trump

Challenging Trump: Personality factors and traditional Republican conservatism

ETHICAL CONTEXT: TRADITIONAL MORAL COURAGE

METHODOLOGY

People Interviewed

Data Sources

Narrative Interpretive-Analysis.39F

PART 2 Elected Officials Who Defied Trump

Chapter 244F John McCain

BIOGRAPHY

THE MORAL COURAGE OF JOHN MCCAIN

Traditional Views

Analytic Framework: Moral Courage

Core Values Lie at the Heart of Moral Courage

Values Reflect Human Flourishing

Identity Key

Little Agonistic Choice

Recognize but Disregard Negative Consequences of Acting

Agency

Modesty

Empathy

Sense of Human Connection

Core Values: McCain versus Trump

Key Values

Duty and Conscience

Moral Muscle

CONCLUSION

I am more energetic and more engaged as a result of this because I know that I've got to do everything I can to serve this country while I can.

Chapter 388F Jeff Flake

Life after the Senate

THE MORAL COURAGE OF JEFF FLAKE

Senate speech, October 24, 2017

Disregard Consequences Despite Awareness of Cost

Respect For Those One Opposes

Self-Esteem/Assertiveness

Chapter 493F Mitt Romney

Pre-Professional Life.

Private Sector Career

Early Political Career

Presidential Campaigns

MITT ROMNEY'S MORAL COURAGE

Impeachments 1 and 2

What Drove Romney's Votes on Impeachment?

Core Value Lies at the Heart of Moral Courage: Values Reflect Human Flourishing

Identity

And Key Values

Recognize but Disregard Risk and Consequences of Acting

Legacy

Empathy and a Sense of Human Connection

Chapter 5112F Congresswoman Liz Cheney

LIZ CHENEY'S MORAL COURAGE

Core value at the heart of moral courage

Values reflecting human flourishing

Core values means no agonistic choice, no assessment of consequences

Recognize but disregard the risks and consequences of acting

Agency accorded to others - convince opponents, not demonize them

Modesty, Empathy and a Sense of Human Connection

Core Values: Family and God

Chapter 6 Congressman Adam Kinzinger119F

ADAM KINZINGER'S MORAL COURAGE

Values Reflect Human Flourishing: Identity Key

Little Agonistic Choice, Recognize but Disregard Risks and Consequences of Acting

Identity and Core Values: Family

Key Values: Fairness, Justice, Equality, All Equal Worth

PART 3 Politicos and Appointed Officeholders

Chapter 7124F Rick Wilson

Identity key

Agonistic Choice

Not my Republican Party

Agency: No respect for the enemy, take no prisoners

Need for an all-out war to combat evil that attacks our civic culture

References.

Appendix. Full Transcript Of The Interview

Interview with Rick Wilson. Interviewer: Kristen Renwick Monroe. Transcriber: Brock Lichthardt. Date: 7/22/22

Chapter 8 Anthony Scaramucci127F

Interview With Anthony Scaramucci, August 7, 2023

Interviewer: Kristen Monroe, August 7, 2023.

Many of her co-authors sat in on the interview, which was transcribed by Max Razmjoo.

Analysis of Scaramucci Interview

Identity and Moral Muscle

Values Behind Decision to Promote Human Flourishing

PART 4 An Anonymous Someone in the Room

Chapter 9145F Miles Taylor

MILES TAYLOR'S MORAL COURAGE

Core Values

Human Flourishing

Recognize but Disregard the Risk

Origin of Core Values: Differences

PART 5 Moral Courage in Politics: What's At Stake?

Chapter 10 Moral Courage And The Republican Party

PRINCIPLE OR POLITICS?

A Skeptical Question and a Methodological Note

Consistency of Results: Personal Interviews Versus Secondary Sources

Was it Moral Courage?

Acts Driven By Identity and a Sense Of Self

Identity as Office Holders and Public Servants

Identity as Loyal Republicans

Identity as Family and a Concern For Legacy

Fidelity to God

Patriotism and Identity as Americans Who Respect the Law

No choice, no regrets

Concern With Fellow Citizens

Treat Even Opponents Fairly

Identity as Members of Civil Society. Reaction to Coarsening and Debasing of National Discourse

PART 6 A Warning And A Challenge

Conclusion "If You Can Keep It."

WHAT DROVE REPUBLICAN OPPOSITION TO TRUMP?

EARLY SIGNS OF DEMOCRACY IN DISTRESS

Deny the Legitimacy of Political Opponents.

Tolerate or Encourage Violence

Curtail Civil Liberties of Opponents, Media

Reject or Show a Weak Commitment To Democratic Rules of the Game

Public Paranoia and the Search For a Scapegoat

An Us-Versus-Them Mentality Focused on Group Divisions Such As Ethnicity or Religious Differences

Public Underestimating the Potential Threat

Hope, and a Desire To Be Protected

Standard Malaise and Economic Discontent Confounded By Hiding One's Head in the Sand

Truth a Victim, Self-Deception Key

Identity: Different Conceptualization of What It Means To Be a Citizen

THE TWILIGHT OF AMERICAN DEMOCRACY? ASSESSING THE EVIDENCE

Acknowledgments

Bibliography

Index.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on publisher supplied metadata and other sources.

Description based on print version record.

Other Format:

Print version: Monroe, Kristen Politics, Principle and Standing up to Donald Trump

ISBN:

9781804415252

OCLC:

1446804179