[4] Fauzi Abdul Hamid of the Middle East Institute[13] wrote that "contrary in a way to the stereotypical picture of traditionalists, who cling to the ''closing of the gates of Ijtihad (opining)'', neo-traditionalists do not deny the need for and wisdom of dispensing with Taqlid (following a school of law) when conditions beckon and are ripe for it.
Neo-traditionalists accept the shortcomings of traditionalism that have led to passivity and stagnation, and admit that latter-day Sufis suffer from a perception deficit among the larger Muslim populace as not being down-to-earth enough to problematise the inner malaise of the Ummah.
[5]: 215 Neo-traditionalists argue against the position that following a school of law (Taqlid) is unnecessary, claiming that it implies previous generations of Sunni Muslims were mistaken in their understanding of Islam, that it is impossible to derive correct rulings without relying on a school's legal principles, and that it will lead to laypeople making Ijtihad, thereby irreversibly disrupting Sunni legal unity and introducing new practices to the religion.
[6]: 230–234 Their subsequent alliance with the governments of the United Arab Emirates and Egypt, and their silence towards or outright approval of their actions, attracted criticism, particularly the conduct of Ali Gomaa and Hamza Yusuf after the August 2013 Rabaa massacre.
[6] : 230–231, 235 Neo-traditionalist Islamic scholar Ramadan al-Bouti was a supporter of the Assad regime, and criticized anti-government protests and urged demonstrators not to follow "calls of unknown sources that want to exploit mosques to incite seditions and chaos in Syria.