“We use political beliefs to express loyalty...a common symptom of loyalty signaling is an unwillingness to compromise.” Kevin Simler and Robin Hanson/The Elephant in the Brain: Hidden Motives in Everyday Life
There is nothing natural about the clustering of US political opinion into left and right camps. For instance, support for strong border controls does not imply traditional marriage values, just as support for universal health care does not imply hostility to large corporations. That certain political opinions tend to go together is mostly a product of American history - an artifact of our two-party system and the dynamics of coalition politics. Just look at all the political parties in other countries and you’ll see what I mean. Take Britain, where the Conservatives are now being called an anti-business party.
Or take my own approach to governance:
Pro-business: promote capitalism as the engine of prosperity without being naive about its potential to do harm.
Regulatory Caution: accept the necessity of government regulations while mindful of trade-offs, costs, and the possibility of unintended consequences.
State Rights: embrace states as "laboratories of democracy" that enact and test experiments in policy without directly affecting the rest of the country.
Fiscal Responsibility: assume a "good householder" approach to government finances, with a focus on efficiency, accountability, and restraint.
Consequentialist: care more about outcomes than intentions; avoids speculation about the motives or character of opponents.
Liberty-loving: recognize that personal agency and freedom from coercion are essential to human thriving
So far, so Republican. But I also support:
Universal Health Care: healthcare is a universal right and nobody should become sick or poor out of an inability to access medical attention or treatment.
Environmental Stewardship: the environment and other species have value, separate from how they serve human desire
Effective Safety-Net: everyone has the right to shelter, food, and opportunity
Basic Income for Education and Training: a time-limited basic income for adults to acquire and update skills.
Relocation Stipend for Jobless: to help unemployed individuals move to areas with more jobs.
There is no contradiction here - just a lot of challenges. Governing is hard.