Paleoconservatism

Paleoconservatism is a branch of American conservatism that sees itself as the older, more rooted form of the tradition. The prefix 'paleo' means old, and the name was chosen partly to contrast with neoconservatism. Paleoconservatives emphasize inherited culture, religion, the family, regional identity and the decentralized republic described in the American founding. They are skeptical of large federal government, of foreign wars and alliances, of free-trade agreements and of high levels of immigration.

Paleoconservatives trace their ideas to the American 'Old Right' of the 1930s and 1940s, which opposed the New Deal and entry into foreign wars. They also draw on the Southern Agrarian writers of the 1930s and on traditionalist thinkers such as Richard Weaver, author of Ideas Have Consequences (1948), and Russell Kirk. The term itself came into use in the 1980s, when traditionalist conservatives felt pushed aside by neoconservatives, who had become influential in the Republican Party and in government. Writers such as the literary scholar M. E. Bradford and the columnist Samuel Francis became associated with the movement. After the Cold War ended, paleoconservatives argued that the United States should withdraw from global commitments, and some ran insurgent campaigns in the 1990s on themes of trade protection and immigration restriction.

Some paleoconservatives are mainly religious traditionalists, often Catholic or conservative Protestant. Others focus on regional identity, especially in the American South. A related current, paleolibertarianism, shares the anti-interventionist and decentralist views but places more weight on free markets. In recent years, parts of the movement have overlapped with national conservatism and right populism, though paleoconservatives often remain more localist and more skeptical of strong central leadership.

Critics on the left argue that paleoconservative positions on immigration, race and culture exclude minorities and newcomers, and some scholars have linked parts of the movement to nativism. Mainstream conservatives and neoconservatives argue that its foreign policy would weaken alliances and leave the country less secure. Free-market economists argue that its protectionism would raise prices and reduce growth. Some liberals argue that its view of national identity based on shared ancestry or religion conflicts with equal citizenship.

Paleoconservatism has never been the governing philosophy of a major American party, but its themes have influenced debates on trade, immigration and foreign policy. Its opposition to the 2003 Iraq War, to free-trade agreements and to high immigration later moved closer to the center of right-of-center politics in the United States. It has also shaped a network of magazines, think tanks and writers outside the main party institutions.