It’s hard to pinpoint when America passed the peak of the mommy wars. Back in the early 2000s, it seemed as if you couldn’t open the morning paper, stop at a newsstand, or turn on the evening news without hearing about the conflict between working moms and their stay-at-home peers.

To readers across the pond, who are accustomed to benefits like lengthy paid parental leave, the United States’ contentious fights over even the most modest pro-family policies probably seem quite strange. In general, Democrats would be happy to emulate the United Kingdom’s social programs, from paid family leave to government-funded childcare. Republicans, though, are more wary. Their resistance stems from a variety of causes, from a libertarian-tinged commitment to small government to concerns about the encroachment of increasingly ideological government bureaucracies into the sacred realm of family life. In recent years, however, the American right has undergone a significant evolution. Although many admire Hungary more than Britain, today, an increasing number of conservative politicians and commentators are talking about pro-family and pro-natal policy.