There are many complaints and enemies of a conservative liberal political world view. Trump, Putin, Duterte, Xi Jinping, Nigel Farage, and Viktor Orban can all be mentioned as belonging on this list.
What can be seen straight away is that three types of people are on this list:
1. Politicians who are invested in business and military affairs, and want to challenge the dominance of Western countries. Especially in the case of China and Russia it is obvious that they perceive the dominance of the US and the EU not only an issue of economic and military competition, but also an ideological threat that might undermine their authoritarian rule.
2. Minor politicians who are trying to ride the waves and make some short term political (and probably monetary) profit from aligning with radicals and subversives who are disillusioned with the ruling parties. Farage in the UK and Orban in Hungary are typical examples of this. While Orban's government channels all EU funds directed at the development of Hungarian agriculture, business, and infrastructure into their own businesses and family properties, he is a devoted fan and ally of Putin. (Farage and Orban are obviously not interested in democracy. When they talk about national self-determination they are talking about the ability of local politicians and businessmen running the place. That's why both of them are afraid of the EU.)
3. Public figures who are nuts (like Trump), and people who see an obstacle in democratic processes to their own power (like Peter Thiel).
What should true liberals, who are conservative in the sense of sticking to the core ideas of liberalism (with a social stint) say? Well, what we need is a positive and forceful narrative. That is what liberalism is lacking at the moment. So much has been achieved in the last 60 years in Europe and the US: wealth, improvements in legal transparency, freedom of press, rights for everyone. The problem is that we don't have a good, politically charged story to move us forward.
Most of the mainstream liberal stories at the moment are extremely individualistic, and focus on improving the lived experiences of individuals in difficult positions in society (minorities, woman, homosexuals, and so on). This is perfectly fine, but it is also perfectly silent on how to relate to governments and corporations that are not afraid to use corrupting means and military threat to get their way, and which are or are becoming extremely powerful.
The key thing we need to keep in mind is that liberalism (a socially sensitive version keeping equality and individual freedom in focus) has to stand up for its values. One cannot support religious freedom, the freedom and equality of woman at the same time as recognizing the right to practice a religion that bans the freedom and equality of woman on the personal level. These are issues of core values and democratic, liberal societies need to step up and be on their guard not to get overwhelmed by nationalist right wing crazies, apostles of capitalism without boundaries, or authoritarian pumpkins like Trump or Putin.
Liberalist societies have plenty to defend. What we need is not nationalism reloaded, but a union of all those communities that are committed to freedom, electing our own leaders without corporate and military interference, to expressing our views and opinions freely, and to stick to the truth that countries which don't treat people right are wrong in their ways and need to change. This should apply to any country, no matter how mighty or economically powerful they are, be that Russia, China, Saudi Arabia, Iran, or Turkey.
Recognizing that there is something to lose, and there is something we need to defend is one of the key steps to relaunch a constructive liberalism that can also foster income equality, transparency, and equality among citizens, regardless of gender, race, sexuality, and so on.
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