Senator-to-be
Roy Moore is what the real
alternative Right looks like. Anti-establishment, Christian, nationalist, and
populist.
Firebrand
jurist Roy Moore has won the Alabama Republican primary for U.S. Senate,
defeating an appointed incumbent backed by President Donald Trump and allies of
Sen. Mitch McConnell. In an upset likely to rock the party establishment, Moore
clinched victory Tuesday over Sen. Luther Strange to win the GOP nomination for
the Senate seat previously held by Attorney General Jeff Sessions. Moore will
face Democrat Doug Jones in a Dec. 12 special election.
Moore is the state's former chief justice who was twice removed from his duties for defying federal courts over same-sex marriage and the public display of the Ten Commandments. Propelled by evangelical voters, Moore consolidated support from a number of anti-establishment forces, including former White House strategist Steve Bannon.
Incumbent Sen. Luther Strange wished jurist Roy Moore well after losing the Alabama Republican primary for Senate. Strange told his supporters Tuesday night that "we wish (Moore) well going forward."
But he quickly shifted to his own bewilderment at the race he just finished. "We're dealing with a political environment that I've never had any experience with," he said. "I'm telling you, the political seas and winds in this country right now ... are very hard to navigate, very hard to understand."
Moore is the state's former chief justice who was twice removed from his duties for defying federal courts over same-sex marriage and the public display of the Ten Commandments. Propelled by evangelical voters, Moore consolidated support from a number of anti-establishment forces, including former White House strategist Steve Bannon.
Incumbent Sen. Luther Strange wished jurist Roy Moore well after losing the Alabama Republican primary for Senate. Strange told his supporters Tuesday night that "we wish (Moore) well going forward."
But he quickly shifted to his own bewilderment at the race he just finished. "We're dealing with a political environment that I've never had any experience with," he said. "I'm telling you, the political seas and winds in this country right now ... are very hard to navigate, very hard to understand."
And this is why it is a mistake for the Alt Lite
to fear accepting the Alt-Right label. The failed attempts of Richard Spencer,
Greg Johnson, and Andrew Anglin to "brand" it as their own preferred
ideology are no more significant than the attempts of the media to brand it as
National Socialism.
But it doesn't matter what it is called. You can't kill an inevitable philosophy with guilt-by-association. The conservative movement has failed. The libertarian movement has failed. The neo-liberal world order has failed. Multiculturalism has failed. Civic nationalism has failed.
An alternative Right is the only possible alternative to the failed right-wing ideologies and philosophies of the past. The label is irrelevant, what is clear is that whatever it is is an alternative, it is Right, and it is winning.
Notice that Roy Moore has seen considerably more setbacks than the average individual. He has seen far more pressure and opposition from the Republican and media establishments, and been literally discredited and disqualified. But now he is very likely to be the next Senator from Alabama, because the Alt-Right is inevitable.
But it doesn't matter what it is called. You can't kill an inevitable philosophy with guilt-by-association. The conservative movement has failed. The libertarian movement has failed. The neo-liberal world order has failed. Multiculturalism has failed. Civic nationalism has failed.
An alternative Right is the only possible alternative to the failed right-wing ideologies and philosophies of the past. The label is irrelevant, what is clear is that whatever it is is an alternative, it is Right, and it is winning.
Notice that Roy Moore has seen considerably more setbacks than the average individual. He has seen far more pressure and opposition from the Republican and media establishments, and been literally discredited and disqualified. But now he is very likely to be the next Senator from Alabama, because the Alt-Right is inevitable.
