The False Stereotype of Republicans as Mean-Spirited and Hard-Hearted

The stereotype of Republicans as mean-spirited and hard-hearted better fits Democrats.

In a recent piece on the appropriate treatment of young, illegal immigrants, The Sensible Conservative noted the need for Republicans to be leery of opposing help for Dreamers and feeding negative stereotypes so eagerly promoted by the left and the general media. 

The reality is actually quite the opposite.  According to a compilation of IRS statistics and various polling data by the Almanac of American Philanthropy, generosity towards one’s fellow man is more likely to be found among Republicans and conservatives than Democrats and liberals. 

Interestingly, after adjusting for income, the most generous citizens by state correlated very closely with the support received by the Republican candidate in the 2012 presidential election.  Of the top ten most generous states, nine voted for Mitt Romney.  Of the least generous state populations, the list was headed by the staunchly Democratic-voting New England states. 

[Among the fifty largest U.S. cities rated similarly, liberal strongholds San Francisco and Boston were on the bottom.]

On a personal level, among Americans making charitable donations, 31% of Republicans gave $1000 or more whereas only 17% of Democratic givers did the same.

Further, among self-described conservatives and liberals, those on the right, on an individual basis, made contributions that were 30% higher than those on the left. 

Plainly, there is much truth in the following:  conservatives and Republicans are generous with their own money.  Democrats and liberals would rather spend someone else’s “to do good”.

What Should Be the Fate of DACA?

The simple answer is that President Obama acted unconstitutionally when he issued an executive order refusing to enforce sections of America’s immigration law. 

That order, entitled “Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals” (DACA) forbade, “temporarily”, deportation of individuals who were brought into this country by parents who were themselves illegal immigrants. 

The policy was in direct violation of the Constitutional mandate that the President of the United States “take care that the laws be faithfully executed…”.

Would that a simple answer suffices.  The illegal DACA order was the basis of federal immigration policy for the past four years.  Expecting its revocation to return the immigration situation to the way it was prior to President Obama’s unconstitutional action is akin to trying to stuff the genie back into the bottle.

The beneficiaries of Obama’s actions – 800,000 dreamers – were told they could stay.  Now, however, they are again at risk of being forced to leave.

Their ages and circumstances (they did not enter the U.S. illegally on their own) make for an awkward situation for the DACA opponent relying on constitutional grounds.

Of course, Obama’s fiat should be voided, but we as a nation have an obligation to not merely right a wrong but to make amends to those mislead by the DACA order.

Of course, the mess is Obama’s doing.  But it’s not fair to punish the  Dreamers for his misconduct.

And there is also the obvious political reality.  Bluntly put, the otherwise law-abiding Dreamers are a sympathetic lot.  Their plight, in the public’s mind, demands a compassionate resolution and a path to legal residency, if not citizenship. 

The Sensible Conservative is a firm Constitutionalist who does not hesitate to condemn DACA, but the general public is usually not concerned with legal niceties:  their focus is far more likely to be on the emotional aspects of the issue. 

Politically, to oppose relief for the Dreamers is to be on the unpopular side.

For Republicans who are so often depicted by the left as mean-spirited and heartless, that would be a particularly bad place to be.  The left would be gleeful if the GOP would aid its efforts to promulgate that negative and very false stereotype.

The Rarely Noted Affinity on the Left for Bigotry

Here’s a thought:  The Left’s allegiance to identity politics is akin to racial and ethnic loyalty spouted by bigots.

That may sound incredible at first.  But consider:  undeniably, the Left characterizes people by characteristics and circumstances.  White society, oppressed minorities, “tax the rich”, Black Lives Matter (don’t say “all”), and so forth.

It used to be a tenant of good liberal thought that Martin Luther King, Jr. spoke for a better America when he hoped for a future in which a person’s character, not his skin color, was what mattered.  No longer.  Now the targets are structural (white) racism and white privilege.  Calls for reparations are next.

[Why shouldn’t today’s Americans, still predominately white, pay for the sins of Southern slave owners more than 150 years ago?

Should the sins be borne by generations?  And what about the millions and millions of immigrants who came to America after the Civil War?  Is their skin color a reason for assigning culpability?]

Look around.  Doesn’t it seem as if segments on the Left are hostile to whites because of their race?  Bigotry, racism are not the exclusive preserve of one group of the other.  Viewing people as members of a favored or unfavored group – not as individuals with distinct characteristics, good and bad – is the common denominator of the bigot.

Bigotry and hatred are anathema to conservatives.  Group categorization is the unalterable enemy of conservative principles of individual rights and responsibilities and the freedom in which they function.

Americans Rise to the Occasion

The damage, destruction and loss of life delivered by Mother Nature to Houston is appalling – not even that word is sufficient as Americans “revisit” the memories of Hurricane Katrina hitting New Orleans only a decade ago.

Yet amidst the devastation were abundant sights of people helping people – Americans helping fellow Americans.  States across the land have sent materiel and emergency personnel.  Private citizens, as volunteers, are arriving in ravaged areas to help.  Of course, locals have launched a small flotilla of pleasure boats to rescue water-stranded neighbors.  And not the least, Donald Trump has made trips and statements which have lifted spirits and displayed much appreciated presidential demeanor.

Simply put, Americans are coming through, as we always do.  But, perhaps there is surprise in some quarters that this remains so.  Our politics these days are so bitter, partisan divisions are so deep that they can appear unbridgeable, making it seem as though cooperative action is impossible.  Plainly, and blessedly, this is not true.

We Americans are a parochial people.  That’s not a criticism, simply an observation.  Our nation is large, mostly self-sufficient and has had little need during our nearly 250 year history (yes, 2026 is rapidly approaching) to be concerned or care about foreign affairs.  [Twentieth century wars being an exception.]

As a consequence, when we observe deficiencies within our society, we turn inward and are inclined to be very critical of our shortcomings.  We need to be reminded during such times of negative introspection that America remains a pretty special place in the world.

There are very good reasons why our border concerns focus on immigration not emigration.  Yes, America is still a land of freedom and opportunity and her citizens are a particularly good and generous people.

The response to Houston is but an example.  For all our parochialism, we care about fellow human beings outside as well as inside our shores.

As private citizens, Americans donate to foreigners in need (earthquakes and flood relief, for instance) far more proportionally than any other nation.  For example.  Relating the percentage of giving to a country’s economic production, we give ten times more than the Japanese, two and a half times more than the British, seven times above the French rate and twenty one times more than the Germans!

When thinking of the United States of American, and noting these facts, does not the word “exceptional" come to mind?