<mediadc-video-embed data-state="{"cms.site.owner":{"_ref":"00000161-3486-d333-a9e9-76c6fbf30000","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b93390000"},"cms.content.publishDate":1655154285810,"cms.content.publishUser":{"_ref":"0000017a-8cb2-d416-ad7a-beb7278f0000","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b933a0007"},"cms.content.updateDate":1655154285810,"cms.content.updateUser":{"_ref":"0000017a-8cb2-d416-ad7a-beb7278f0000","_type":"00000161-3461-dd66-ab67-fd6b933a0007"},"rawHtml":"
var _bp = _bp||[]; _bp.push({ "div": "Brid_55138482", "obj": {"id":"27789","width":"16","height":"9","video":"1031741"} }); rn","_id":"00000181-5ee2-d590-a5f1-def310d00000","_type":"2f5a8339-a89a-3738-9cd2-3ddf0c8da574"}”>Video EmbedRep. Nancy Mace’s (R-SC) future in Congress will be decided Tuesday night in South Carolina’s Republican primary as she faces off against Katie Arrington. Mace’s opponent is endorsed by former President Donald Trump, but the roots of this challenge run far deeper than loyalty to Trump. Mace is targeted because she embodies a fusion of libertarian and conservative ideals that anger the emerging populist wing of the GOP.
Fusionism became the status quo of American conservatism when Ronald Reagan was elected president. His philosophy was influenced by the Sharon Statement, a founding document of Young Americans for Freedom that is notable for combining liberty-minded ideals with conservative principles. “Liberty is indivisible, and that political freedom cannot long exist without economic freedom,” the document proclaims.
Fusionism led to the rise of former Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX), the tea party movement, and politicians declaring themselves “fiscally conservative, socially liberal.” The status quo of conservatism was challenged in 2016 when Trump ran his presidential campaign against the establishment of the Republican Party. Activists are trying to mold and shape the GOP in their image as ideological turmoil runs rampant in conservative circles.
Mace entered this conflict shortly after taking office. She harnesses traditional conservative values such as law and order by co-sponsoring legislation to investigate the role of antifa during the 2020 summer riots. Her stance caused conflicts with fellow congressional Republicans after voting to certify the 2020 presidential election and to hold Steve Bannon in contempt of Congress.
Mace is aware that her conservative ideology deviates from the norm. She described herself as a “limited government fiscal conservative” in an interview with Brad Polumbo for the Washington Examiner. “She explained that former South Carolina congressman Mick Mulvaney and Sen. Tim Scott influenced her heavily when they rose to political prominence during the heyday of the tea party,” according to Polumbo.
Mace has taken a stance on social issues that draw the ire of socially conservative Republicans. While pro-life, the congresswoman supports exceptions to abortion restrictions for women who are victims of rape. “I was raped at the age of 16,” Mace told Brad Polumbo in an interview for the Washington Examiner. Her stance on abortion is a personal one, but it deviates from the abortion restrictions coming out of Florida and other Republican-controlled states.
When it comes to the LGBT community, Mace takes a libertarian position as well. She co-sponsored the Fairness For All Act, which sought to provide anti-discriminatory protections to LGBT people while giving exemptions to faith-based organizations. Her fusionist ideology influences her stance on the legalization of marijuana through her support for federal decriminalization. Mace introduced the States Reform Act, which would federally decriminalize marijuana and allow states to create their own legal frameworks.
The Fairness For All Act caused the most controversy for Mace — she was criticized by a wide variety of Republican activists, pundits, and politicians. Nate Hochman was one of the first to call out Mace and other Republicans’ support for the bill. He issued a scathing rebuke of the legislation and targeted the 21 Republicans supporting the bill, causing members of Congress such as Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) to drop their support for the legislation following the ensuing social conservative outcry. Mace, however, did not waver.
Mace will likely be the victor in Tuesday’s primary, as she is polling ahead of her Trump-endorsed opponent. Fusionism is not dead, but no one embodies it to a full and consistent extent like the incumbent congresswoman. The Republican Party will not be returning to the same mixture of fusionism and conservatism that she harnesses anytime soon. If Mace continues to serve in the halls of the House of Representatives for many more years to come, Republicans should expect the congresswoman to become the leader of a fusionist movement that yearns to regain its influence in the GOP.
James Sweet is a summer 2022 Washington Examiner fellow.
