David Brooks: Trump Gutted Conservatism and Christianity

David Brooks argues that modern conservatism has been replaced by reactionary politics centered on domination, resentment, and power, which he says has also damaged Christianity’s emphasis on humility and service. He draws a sharp line between the conservative tradition he admires, rooted in Edmund Burke and Alexander Hamilton, and the Trump-era right, which he says is more anti-left than pro-conservative.

The conversation also argues that American life has become overpoliticized and under-moralized. Brooks says progressives helped create backlash by turning universities, media, and elite institutions into exclusionary spaces that purged working-class and conservative voices, while also building a caste system around education and status. He connects that to widening social distance, loneliness, and the collapse of shared moral formation.

Brooks and the host then move toward solutions: more access and intellectual diversity in higher education, a broader definition of merit, mandatory national service, and greater investment in rebuilding civic trust. Brooks says institutions should help form character, not just careers, and that young people need more chances to find purpose, practice service, and build emotional and spiritual lives.