What Kind of Conservative Are You?

A short while back one of the blog authors that I follow, David Bahnsen, wrote a post entitled, "What Kind of Conservative Are You?". Read it here.

I read the post and considered it briefly and then moved on with my busy law school driven life not really thinking about my own personal answer to that question. Just yesterday however I was forced to confront this idea again and really give it serious thought as I filled out a job bank questionnaire for the Heritage Foundation. They asked you to select your political ideology from a group of choices, (traditional conservative, social conservative, fiscal conservative, moderate, liberal, libertarian) and then to explain your choice. I thought about the question and did some light wikipedia research so my definitions of each of the ideologies would be correct and then came up with the following answer:

Due to the limited categorical definitions presented I am constrained to choose traditional conservative as my overarching ideology. However, my ideology and belief structure is more of a combination incorporating aspects of fiscal, traditional, and social conservatism with a touch of libertarianism. Overall, I believe the following:

I believe the purpose of the federal government is limited and the Constitution lays out the enumerated purposes and powers and that the federal courts have wrongly broadened those powers through expansive interpretations of the Constitution. Ultimately the states and local governments should be the arbiters of most issues.

I believe the security and prosperity of the nation require a foundation of economic freedom and a sound fiscal policy that includes balanced budgets and paying off the national debt. Fostering this prosperity requires protecting property rights and limiting government regulation.

I believe in the rule of law and the importance of teaching personal responsibility and a responsibility to your fellow man and country. This includes the promotion of patriotism and national service.

I believe there is a need to foster conservation and sound management of our natural resources and treasures while not succumbing to the wing of the environmental movement that values nature over human life and progress.

I believe in cultivating a culture that respects the sanctity of life.

Finally, I believe that traditional American ideals and policies of capitalism and individual liberty are the greatest sources of hope and opportunity in the world.

To quote David directly, "I am a conservative who sees the “life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness” portion of the Declaration of Independence as non-negotiable."

So now I pose the question to you, what kind of conservative are you?