It seems to be a popular notion among the conservative right to think that hypocrisy is the exclusive domain of the liberal left. However, in recent years I have become increasingly aware of the presence of hypocrisy infecting the political right and I find it quite disturbing.
Hypocrisy is subtle and beguiling. Like the Pharisees of old, you can fall into hypocrisy without even realizing it – being blind to your own gradual departure from the righteous standard while still calling yourself an enlightened guide to the blind. I believe the Christian-conservative-right would do well to take a reality check and ask God to show us any places where we have let this insidious disease creep in and influence us to engage in practices that do not align with what we preach.
The Moral High Ground
An October 11 article by Jim Jamitis at RedState illustrates at least one manifestation of this malady and its debilitating effect. Jamitis describes the embarrassment one is inclined to feel for former Trump campaign manager turned Counselor to the President, Kellyanne Conway, when she criticizes Hillary Clinton for being too slow to respond to, and too tepid in her condemnation of, the sexual misdeeds of Harvey Weinstein. It wasn’t that long ago that Conway herself, “flippantly dismissed her boss’s accusers and his own sexually deviant braggadocio.” Jamitis went on to explain that he opposed Trump’s nomination because, “by supporting him, people were throwing away their future credibility when being critical of Democrats on character issues.” Continue reading “The Hypocrisy of the Right”