Richard Armitage was the 13th United States Deputy Secretary of State, serving from 2001 to 2005. He served in the U.S. Navy during the Vietnam War and then after the[…]
Sign up for the Smarter Faster newsletter
A weekly newsletter featuring the biggest ideas from the smartest people
Armitage used to be a conservative Republican.
Question: Do you have a political philosophy?
Armitage: I’m what used to be called a Conservative Republican, when “conservative” meant you were a fiscal conservative. You wanted a strong national security and defense policy, and you wanted limited but meaningful government. After all, everybody wants government in their lives when you step on an airplane; but “Conservative Republican” now has come to mean something quite difference – talk about family conservatives, and social conservatives, and that’s certainly not me. In fact I’m defined by that set as a “rhino” – Republican in name only now.
▸
1 min
—
with