Carl Higbie did something too few on the right have the backbone to do: he refused to cancel a fellow conservative while still being honest about his own vote. On his Newsmax program he made clear he wouldn’t personally back Candace Owens for office, but he would gladly take her vote — an unapologetic recognition that conservatism is a coalition, not a purity cult. That kind of realpolitik matters in a movement built to win, not to pontificate from a high horse.
This moment didn’t happen in a vacuum — the conservative movement is wrestling with infighting over who gets to speak, who gets deplatformed, and who counts as acceptable. The fight around high-profile figures like Tucker Carlson and Candace Owens has spilled into public view, triggering condemnations, donor angst, and loud debates about accountability versus censorship. We should be clear-eyed: these skirmishes are dangerous when they turn into internecine warfare instead of a focus on policy wins for everyday Americans.
Higbie’s stance is the practical, patriotic answer: fight the ideas you oppose but don’t erase the people who hold them. A conservative movement that starts looking like the left’s cancel machine will hollow itself out, losing voters who resent being told to sit out because they don’t meet somebody’s taste test. We can — and must — argue vigorously, but we should prefer persuasion and ballots to bans and blacklists.
Make no mistake, principled criticism of bad actors matters; truth and character should be called out when necessary. But there is a difference between calling out harmful rhetoric and launching purges that drive people into the arms of the opposition or into political apathy. Conservatives who rush to ostracize instead of debating hand the narrative and the votes to a media complex that thrives on division. The goal must be to win the broad middle, not to cleanse the movement of every uncomfortable voice.
The stakes are not theoretical. Squabbles about who is “cancelable” have real consequences: lost donors, fractured coalitions, and a distracted movement while our opponents are busy passing weak bills and spending your tax dollars. Americans in the heartland want lower taxes, safe streets, secure borders, and schools that teach reading — not televised feuds about brand fealty. Higbie’s reminder to keep the big tent open is less about personality than it is about strategy: we win by gathering votes, not by purging them.
Patriots who love liberty should applaud a conservative willing to say “I disagree, but I’ll accept your support” and then move forward to build something bigger than a faction. If we care about restoring this country we will choose persuasion over purges, principles over performative purity, and results over rituals. Carl Higbie’s common-sense posture is exactly the sort of leadership this movement needs right now — tough, honest, and focused on victory for hardworking Americans.
