Bush is the person who has defined what a conservative is throughout the past decade. I, for one, could not be more displeased. To have a man who supports a Wilsonian view of foreign policy where spreading democracy trumps vital national interests and a domestic policy of vastly growing government and debt is not conservative. However, since he was the standard bearer for those eight years, those supporting lessening freedom and increasing reliance on government have become the “conservative” Republican Party.

From this arose a fracture in the conservative movement over what the party’s goal should be. Three thoughts prevail from this power struggle. One is the Bush Doctrine followers who believe national security should be the top priority, which means throwing the Constitution away with our individual freedoms attached for the sake of a false security. Then there is the religious right, which pushes for the party to use the pulpit to get social reforms like constitutional bans of gay marriage and abortion, which, to most Americans, are irrelevant issues. Then there is the fast growing limited government sect of the party that pushes for limited government, low taxes and individual freedom, resembling libertarian values. Although these are not the only sects of the party, they are the three most prevalent.

At the Conservative Political Action Conference, or CPAC, this past weekend, conservatives from around the country gathered in Washington, D.C., for their version of a giant pep talk. Besides the pointless dribble coming from Republican speakers pushing the party line and the occasional far right speaker who sets everyone off, there is a straw poll. Now, recognizing that a straw poll might be one of the least effective ways of judging a select group, they do give interesting insight on how some people think. The question asked, which in my own eyes tells the most about the group, is the question of ideology. The question simply asks which description most represents your core beliefs. The three choices are as I listed above, but obviously much more neutral.

At this CPAC, the result was much more concrete than in other years, with 80 percent stating their ideology was to promote individual freedom by lessening the size and scope of government. The religious right and Patriot Act conservatives each came in with single-digit results. This poll also covers the top issues for those in attendance by asking for the voters’ top two issues from a list of 15. The total percentages of the first and second choices are combined to see where people’s priorities reside. The top two issues at CPAC were reducing the size and spending of government.

These poll results — while not quite Zogby or Rasmussen worthy — tell an underlying story. It yells to the Republican establishment that Sarah Palin, Mitt Romney and other pre-molded candidates are not going to fly. This was reiterated in the presidential poll, which Texas Rep. Ron Paul ran away with by nearly double-digits over runner-up Romney. Most claim the Paul machine was at work and rigged the poll. However I am not convinced this wasn’t a sign that conservatives are displeased with the selection of candidates. After all, the next question asked if they were satisfied with the current field, and a majority were not. To me this screams that conservatives want a better candidate, not someone who will harp the same old issues trying to balance the three branches of conservatism; rather, one who, like Paul, is dedicated to the one that stresses individual freedom and small, limited government like the supporters are. Conservatives will have to find that candidate and not be satisfied with the field of amateur politicians if they really want to bring down the president.

Eric Thieleman is a State News guest columnist and political science and history senior. Reach him at thielem4@msu.edu.