Constitutional conservatism

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Constitutional conservatism is a relatively new term in U.S. politics and constitutional law, going beyond strict constitutionalism to require that the Constitution is to be taken literally as supreme law. It generally does not include the previous strict rules of determining original intent and original understanding.

It is popular in the Tea Party movement. Tea Party affiliated political figures, such as Senator-Elect Rand Paul (R-Kentucky) often use it to describe themselves.

One constitutional conservative blog identifies its underlying precepts as:[1]

  1. Textual interpretation of the Constitution — The Constitution is not a “living document”.
  2. Fiscal responsibility — If you spend more than you take in, you’re in trouble. All levels of government must balance budgets each year.
  3. Charity — It is not the role of government to take care of people. Each citizen has a moral responsibility to help those less fortunate.
  4. Personal responsibility — It’s time society stops allowing “victims” to shift the blame somewhere else — it’s not the twinkie’s fault

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