John Tillman’s Effective Conservative Activism

You know you have made it in the world of conservative activism when the Washington Post decides to run a hit piece on you — and you’ve really made it when the Post can hardly even find much to complain about except to call your efforts “a stealth persuasion machine,” quote some grumpy left-wing gadflies, and fret that your arguments might persuade people to your point of view.

That’s where John Tillman is now. A businessman by background, Tillman sold off his primary business in the mid 2000s and decided to bring his experience in the competitive world of commerce into the political space of defending free markets. He set up shop in Illinois — not easy ground for a conservative — for the most conservative reason of all: It was home. His philosophy was simple: “If the policy empowers people, I’m for it. If the policy empowers government beyond its constitutional limit, I’m generally against it.” This is not, to put it mildly, the governing philosophy of Illinois or of the city of Chicago. But every David needs a Goliath.

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Dan McLaughlin

Dan McLaughlin is a senior writer at National Review Online and a fellow at National Review Institute.

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You know you have made it in the world of conservative activism when the Washington Post decides to run a hit piece on you — and you’ve really made it when the Post can hardly even find much to complain about except to call your efforts “a stealth persuasion machine,” quote some grumpy left-wing gadflies, and fret that your arguments might persuade people to your point of view.

That’s where John Tillman is now. A businessman by background, Tillman sold off his primary business in the mid 2000s and decided to bring his experience in the competitive world of commerce into the political space of defending free markets. He set up shop in Illinois — not easy ground for a conservative — for the most conservative reason of all: It was home. His philosophy was simple: “If the policy empowers people, I’m for it. If the policy empowers government beyond its constitutional limit, I’m generally against it.” This is not, to put it mildly, the governing philosophy of Illinois or of the city of Chicago. But every David needs a Goliath.