--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Conservatives get trapped in this gambit…" description: "\"“Conservatives get trapped in this gambit routinely, because they figure that the enemy of their enemy is their friend: if the left is attacking someon..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/841/ben-shapiro-2718_conservatives_conservatives-get-trapped-in-this-gambit_1599426.png" --- # Conservatives get trapped in this gambit routinely… ![“Conservatives get trapped in this gambit routinely, because they figure that the enemy of their enemy is their friend: if the left is attacking someone, he must be worth defending. But that’s not true.” quote by Ben Shapiro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/841/ben-shapiro-2718_conservatives_conservatives-get-trapped-in-this-gambit_1599426.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/841/ben-shapiro-2718_conservatives_conservatives-get-trapped-in-this-gambit_1599426.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/841/ben-shapiro-2718_conservatives_conservatives-get-trapped-in-this-gambit_1599426.png) > ““Conservatives get trapped in this gambit routinely, because they figure that the enemy of their enemy is their friend: if the left is attacking someone, he must be worth defending. But that’s not true.”” [Ben Shapiro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-shapiro/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. People often ally with opponents of their opponents, assuming shared values, but this logic is flawed and can lead to misguided alliances. **In simple terms:** Allies based on shared enemies are unreliable. Key Takeaway Question alliances carefully. Themes politics logic alliances Mood cautious critical Type analytical advisory When to use this quote - campaign strategy - activism - community organizing Key Concepts strategic thinking cognitive bias Questions to Reflect On - What evidence supports your alliance? - How might this logic harm your cause? A Different Perspective Assuming shared enemies are friends can backfire. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Conservatives](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/conservatives/) [Europe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/europe/) [Friendship](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/friendship/) ## Related quotes > [I've taken it from feminist friends, and I've taken it from lefty friends too. But that reassures me. If the right is attacking us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abigail-disney/i-ve-taken-it-from-feminist-friends-and-i-ve-taken-it-from-lefty/) [Abigail Disney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abigail-disney/) > [Liberals in Hollywood can't stand when Americans resonate to conservatives on television.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-shapiro/liberals-in-hollywood-can-t-stand-when-americans-resonate-to/) [Ben Shapiro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-shapiro/) > [“Conservatives have allowed liberals to win the culture war because we’re generally civil people. When the left says we’re uncivil, we tend to shy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-shapiro/conservatives-have-allowed-liberals-to-win-the-culture-war-because-we/) [Ben Shapiro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-shapiro/) > [For the second time in history the Conservatives will have a female prime minster, proving that we are not just the greatest but the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrea-leadsom/for-the-second-time-in-history-the-conservatives-will-have-a-female/) [Andrea Leadsom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrea-leadsom/) > [Most people who call themselves conservatives can't explain the American value system.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-prager/most-people-who-call-themselves-conservatives-can-t-explain-the/) [Dennis Prager](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-prager/) > [“Liberals are more likely to see people as victims of circumstance and oppression, and doubt whether individuals can climb without governmental help. My own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-c-brooks/liberals-are-more-likely-to-see-people-as-victims-of-circumstance-and/) [Arthur C. Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-c-brooks/) > [Conservatives hold on to things not only because they are attached to them, but also because they do not see the sense in radical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-scruton/conservatives-hold-on-to-things-not-only-because-they-are-attached-to/) [Roger Scruton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-scruton/) > [All conservatives are such from personal defects. They have been effiminated by position of nature, born halt and blind, through luxury of their parents,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/all-conservatives-are-such-from-personal-defects-they-have-been/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Conservatives are tougher. 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The truth is that conservatives do have the cool message.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-gutfeld/separately-the-truth-is-that-conservatives-do-have-the-cool-message/) [Greg Gutfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-gutfeld/) > [“Liberal” in the nineteenth-century United States and Europe designated people who in many, but not all, respects would be called conservatives in the twenty-first…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-white/liberal-in-the-nineteenth-century-united-states-and-europe-designated/) [Richard White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-white/) > [If conservatives don't want to be seen as bitter people who cling to their guns and religion and anti-immigrant sentiments, they should stop being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-maher/if-conservatives-don-t-want-to-be-seen-as-bitter-people-who-cling-to/) [Bill Maher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-maher/) > [Conservatives are people who look at a tree and feel instinctively that it is more beautiful than anything they can name. But when it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-mailer/conservatives-are-people-who-look-at-a-tree-and-feel-instinctively/) [Norman Mailer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-mailer/) > [If you treat people with dignity, respect and friendliness, you can turn enemies into friends. An enemy is nothing but a friend in disguise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-turner/if-you-treat-people-with-dignity-respect-and-friendliness-you-can/) [Ted Turner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-turner/) > [While it is often true that the enemy of my enemy is my friend, it seems like Yahoo's almost obsessive focus on Google is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kara-swisher/while-it-is-often-true-that-the-enemy-of-my-enemy-is-my-friend-it/) [Kara Swisher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kara-swisher/) ## More by Ben Shapiro > [Musicians are, by and large, not the most politically savvy crew.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-shapiro/musicians-are-by-and-large-not-the-most-politically-savvy-crew/) [Ben Shapiro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-shapiro/) > [No number of repairs will be able to fix Obamacare. The website is the least of Americans' worries.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-shapiro/no-number-of-repairs-will-be-able-to-fix-obamacare-the-website-is-the/) [Ben Shapiro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-shapiro/) > [Having children truly ends adolescence. We are all either parents or children: responsibility-takers or those who demand from others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-shapiro/having-children-truly-ends-adolescence-we-are-all-either-parents-or/) [Ben Shapiro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-shapiro/) > [Let's assume for the moment that the logic behind Presidents Day is actually sound for certain presidents. Why not have a separate holiday for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-shapiro/let-s-assume-for-the-moment-that-the-logic-behind-presidents-day-is/) [Ben Shapiro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-shapiro/) > [“No wonder the left seeks to avoid political debate at all costs. Why bother? 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They don't see them at the grocery store; they don't meet them at the bowling alley. They're…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-shapiro/few-americans-have-ever-met-their-congresspeople-they-don-t-see-them/) [Ben Shapiro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-shapiro/) > [If Republicans triumph in 2014, it will undoubtedly be as a result of Obamacare. 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Obama may be half-black, but he's still all-Western, according to them.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-shapiro/the-muslim-world-just-doesn-t-believe-that-skin-color-is-all-that/) [Ben Shapiro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-shapiro/) > [Voluntary exchange is more moral than forced redistribution.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-shapiro/voluntary-exchange-is-more-moral-than-forced-redistribution/) [Ben Shapiro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-shapiro/) > [“This is what makes leftists leftists: an unearned sense of moral superiority over you. And if they can instill that sense of moral superiority…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-shapiro/this-is-what-makes-leftists-leftists-an-unearned-sense-of-moral/) [Ben Shapiro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-shapiro/) > [Capitalism invariably boils down to barter between two willing parties, neither of whom uses force to work with the other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-shapiro/capitalism-invariably-boils-down-to-barter-between-two-willing/) [Ben Shapiro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-shapiro/) [Explore all 153 Ben Shapiro quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-shapiro/) ## More Conservatives quotes > [Conservatives, despite their increasingly powerful presence on cable TV and talk radio, feel excluded and disregarded by the longstanding preponderance of liberal voices on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-medved/conservatives-despite-their-increasingly-powerful-presence-on-cable/) [Michael Medved](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-medved/) > [Forgive me for noting that conservatives seem to believe that the rich will work harder if we give them more, and the poor will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-j-dionne/forgive-me-for-noting-that-conservatives-seem-to-believe-that-the/) [E. J. Dionne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-j-dionne/) > [Conservatives are people who look at a tree and feel instinctively that it is more beautiful than anything they can name. But when it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-mailer/conservatives-are-people-who-look-at-a-tree-and-feel-instinctively/) [Norman Mailer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-mailer/) > [Most conservatives - by which I mean normal people - have little conception of the aggressive and revolutionary force that confronts them. 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Conservatives by nature hate politics and politicians.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greg-gutfeld/politics-is-way-cool-as-long-as-it-s-progressive-conservatives-by/) [Greg Gutfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greg-gutfeld/) > [After eight years of Obama one thing is clear: Conservatives want a fighter.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-schlapp/after-eight-years-of-obama-one-thing-is-clear-conservatives-want-a/) [Matt Schlapp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-schlapp/) > [Fellow conservatives, particularly within the Republican Party, typically do a good job arguing against totalitarian, one-size-fits-all approaches to policy. What works for a family…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-grenell/fellow-conservatives-particularly-within-the-republican-party/) [Richard Grenell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-grenell/) > [Since Ronald Reagan's election in 1980, conservatives of various sorts, and conservatisms of various stripes, have generally been in the ascendancy. And a good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/since-ronald-reagan-s-election-in-1980-conservatives-of-various-sorts/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [How many people disapprove of the job the Conservatives are doing? Seventy percent. 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