The
Republican Party in the
United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
includes several
factions
Faction or factionalism may refer to:
* Political faction, a group of people with a common political purpose
* The Faction, an American punk rock band
* Faction (''Planescape''), a political faction in the game ''Planescape''
* Faction (literatu ...
, or wings. During the 19th century, Republican factions included the
Half-Breeds, who supported civil service reform; the
Radical Republicans
The Radical Republicans were a political faction within the Republican Party originating from the party's founding in 1854—some six years before the Civil War—until the Compromise of 1877, which effectively ended Reconstruction. They ca ...
, who advocated the immediate and total abolition of slavery, and later advocated civil rights for freed slaves during the
Reconstruction era
The Reconstruction era was a period in History of the United States, US history that followed the American Civil War (1861-65) and was dominated by the legal, social, and political challenges of the Abolitionism in the United States, abol ...
; and the
Stalwarts, who supported machine politics.
In the 20th century, Republican factions included the Progressive Republicans, the
Reagan coalition, and the liberal
Rockefeller Republicans.
In the 21st century, Republican factions include conservatives (represented in the House by the
Republican Study Committee
The Republican Study Committee (RSC) is a congressional caucus of conservative members of the Republican Party in the United States House of Representatives. In November 2024, Representative August Pfluger was elected as the chair of the RSC, ...
and the
Freedom Caucus
The Freedom Caucus, also known as the House Freedom Caucus, is a congressional caucus consisting of Republican Party (United States), Republican members of the United States House of Representatives. It is generally considered to be the most Cons ...
), moderates (represented in the House by the
Republican Governance Group,
Republican Main Street Caucus, and the Republican members of the
Problem Solvers Caucus), and libertarians (represented in Congress by the
Republican Liberty Caucus
The Republican Liberty Caucus (RLC) is a political action organization dedicated to promoting the ideals of Individual freedom, individual liberty, limited government and free market economics within the Republican Party (United States), Republi ...
). During the first presidency of
Donald Trump
Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...
,
Trumpist and
anti-Trumpist factions arose within the Republican Party.
21st century factions

During the presidency of
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...
, the Republican Party experienced internal conflict between its governing class (known as the Republican establishment) and the anti-establishment, small-government
Tea Party movement
The Tea Party movement was an American fiscally conservative political movement within the Republican Party that began in 2007, catapulted into the mainstream by Congressman Ron Paul's presidential campaign. The movement expanded in resp ...
. In 2019, during the presidency of
Donald Trump
Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...
, Perry Bacon Jr. of FiveThirtyEight.com asserted that there were five groups of Republicans: Trumpists, Pro-Trumpers, Trump-Skeptical Conservatives, Trump-Skeptical Moderates, and Anti-Trumpers.
In February 2021, following Trump's 2020 loss to Democrat
Joe Biden
Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...
and the
2021 United States Capitol attack
On January 6, 2021, the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C., was attacked by a mob of supporters of Donald Trump, President Donald Trump in an attempted self-coup,Multiple sources:
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
* two months afte ...
, Philip Bump of ''
The Washington Post
''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...
'' posited that the Republican Party in the U.S. House of Representatives consisted of three factions: the Trumpists (who voted against the
second impeachment of Donald Trump
Donald Trump, serving as the 45th president of the United States, was impeached for the second time on January 13, 2021, one week before his term expired. On that date, the House of Representatives adopted one article of impeachment again ...
in 2021, voted against stripping
Marjorie Taylor Greene
Marjorie Taylor Greene ( Taylor; born May 27, 1974), sometimes referred to by her initials MTG, is an American far-rightSources describing Greene as "far-right" include:
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
politician, businesswoman, and cons ...
of her committee assignments, and supported
), the accountability caucus (who supported either the Trump impeachment, the effort to discipline Greene, or both), and the pro-democracy Republicans (who opposed the Trump impeachment and the effort to discipline Greene but also opposed efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election results). Also in February 2021, Carl Leubsdorf of the ''
Dallas Morning News
''The Dallas Morning News'' is a daily newspaper serving the Dallas–Fort Worth area of Texas, with an average print circulation in 2022 of 65,369. It was founded on October 1, 1885, by Alfred Horatio Belo as a satellite publication of the ' ...
'' asserted that there were three groups of Republicans: Never Trumpers (including
Bill Kristol
William Kristol (; born December 23, 1952) is an American neoconservative writer. A frequent commentator on several networks including CNN, he was the founder and editor-at-large of the political magazine ''The Weekly Standard''. Kristol is edi ...
, Sen.
Mitt Romney
Willard Mitt Romney (born March 12, 1947) is an American businessman and retired politician. He served as a United States Senate, United States senator from Utah from 2019 to 2025 and as the 70th governor of Massachusetts from 2003 to 2007 ...
, and governors
Charlie Baker
Charles Duane Baker Jr. (born November 13, 1956) is an American politician serving as the sixth president of the National Collegiate Athletic Association, since 2023. A member of the Republican Party, he served as the 72nd governor of Massa ...
and
Larry Hogan
Lawrence Joseph Hogan Jr. (born May 25, 1956) is an American politician who served as the 62nd governor of Maryland from 2015 to 2023. A member of the Republican Party and son of three-term U.S. representative Lawrence Hogan, he served as co-ch ...
), Sometimes Trumpers (including Senate Minority Leader
Mitch McConnell
Addison Mitchell McConnell III (; born February 20, 1942) is an American politician and attorney serving as the senior United States senator from Kentucky, a seat he has held since 1985. McConnell is in his seventh Senate term and is the long ...
and former U.N. Ambassador
Nikki Haley
Nimarata Nikki Randhawa Haley (''née'' Randhawa; born January 20, 1972) is an American politician and diplomat who served as the 116th governor of South Carolina from 2011 to 2017 and as the 29th U.S. ambassador to the United Nations from Ja ...
), and Always Trumpers (including Sens.
Ted Cruz
Rafael Edward Cruz (; born December 22, 1970) is an American politician and attorney serving as the junior United States senator from Texas since 2013. A member of the Republican Party, Cruz was the solicitor general of Texas from 2003 ...
and
Josh Hawley
Joshua David Hawley (born December 31, 1979) is an American politician and attorney serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, senior United States Senate, United States senator from Missouri, a seat he has held since 2019. A member ...
).
In March 2021, one survey indicated that five factions of Republican voters had emerged following Trump's presidency: Never Trump, Post-Trump G.O.P. (voters who liked Trump but did not want him to run for president again), Trump Boosters (voters who approved of Trump, but identified more closely with the Republican Party than with Trump), Die-hard Trumpers, and ''Infowars'' G.O.P. (voters who subscribe to conspiracy theories).
In November 2021,
Pew Research Center
The Pew Research Center (also simply known as Pew) is a nonpartisan American think tank based in Washington, D.C. It provides information on social issues, public opinion, and demographic trends shaping the United States and the world. It ...
identified four Republican-aligned groups of Americans: Faith and Flag Conservatives, Committed Conservatives, the Populist Right, and the Ambivalent Right.
As of 2023, congressional Republicans refer to the various House Republican factions as the Five Families.
Derived from ''
The Godfather
''The Godfather'' is a 1972 American Epic film, epic crime film directed by Francis Ford Coppola, who co-wrote the screenplay with Mario Puzo, based on Puzo's best-selling The Godfather (novel), 1969 novel. The film stars an ensemble cast inc ...
'', the term refers to Mafia crime families.
The Five Families consist of "the right-wing House
Freedom Caucus
The Freedom Caucus, also known as the House Freedom Caucus, is a congressional caucus consisting of Republican Party (United States), Republican members of the United States House of Representatives. It is generally considered to be the most Cons ...
, the conservative
Republican Study Committee
The Republican Study Committee (RSC) is a congressional caucus of conservative members of the Republican Party in the United States House of Representatives. In November 2024, Representative August Pfluger was elected as the chair of the RSC, ...
, the business-minded
Main Street Caucus, the mainstream
Republican Governance Group", and the Republican members of the bipartisan
Problem Solvers Caucus. The House Republican factions overlap with one another, and some members belong to no caucus.
Conservatives
The
conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...
wing grew out of the 1950s and 1960s, with its initial leaders being Senator
Robert A. Taft
Robert Alphonso Taft Sr. (September 8, 1889 – July 31, 1953) was an American politician, lawyer, and scion of the Republican Party's Taft family. Taft represented Ohio in the United States Senate, briefly served as Senate majority le ...
,
Russell Kirk
Russell Amos Kirk (October 19, 1918 – April 29, 1994) was an American political philosopher, moralist, historian, social critic, literary critic, author, and novelist who influenced 20th century American conservatism. In 1953, he authored '' T ...
, and
William F. Buckley Jr.
William Frank Buckley Jr. (born William Francis Buckley; November 24, 1925 – February 27, 2008) was an American conservative writer, public intellectual, political commentator and novelist.
Born in New York City, Buckley spoke Spanish as his ...
Its central tenets include the promotion of individual liberty and
free-market economics and opposition to
labor union
A trade union (British English) or labor union (American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers whose purpose is to maintain or improve the conditions of their employment, such as attaining better wages ...
s, high
taxes
A tax is a mandatory financial charge or levy imposed on an individual or legal entity by a governmental organization to support government spending and public expenditures collectively or to regulate and reduce negative externalities. Tax co ...
, and
government regulation
Regulation is the management of complex systems according to a set of rules and trends. In systems theory, these types of rules exist in various fields of biology and society, but the term has slightly different meanings according to context. F ...
.
The Republican Party has undergone a major decrease in the influence of its
establishment conservative faction since the election of Donald Trump in 2016.
In economic policy, conservatives call for a large reduction in
government spending
Government spending or expenditure includes all government consumption, investment, and transfer payments. In national income accounting, the acquisition by governments of goods and services for current use, to directly satisfy the individual or ...
, less regulation of the economy, and privatization or changes to
Social Security
Welfare spending is a type of government support intended to ensure that members of a society can meet basic human needs such as food and shelter. Social security may either be synonymous with welfare, or refer specifically to social insurance ...
. Supporters of
supply-side economics
Supply-side economics is a Macroeconomics, macroeconomic theory postulating that economic growth can be most effectively fostered by Tax cuts, lowering taxes, Deregulation, decreasing regulation, and allowing free trade. According to supply- ...
and
fiscal conservatives
In American political theory, fiscal conservatism or economic conservatism is a political and economic philosophy regarding fiscal policy and fiscal responsibility with an ideological basis in capitalism, individualism, limited government, ...
predominate, but there are
deficit hawk
Deficit hawk is a political slang term in the English speaking world for people who place great emphasis on keeping government budgets under control. 'Hawk' can be used to describe someone calling for harsh or pain-inducing measures (alluding to t ...
s and
protectionists within the party as well. Before 1930, the Northeastern industrialist faction of the GOP was strongly committed to
high tariffs, a political stance that returned to popularity in many conservative circles during the
Trump presidency.
The conservative wing typically supports
socially conservative
Social conservatism is a political philosophy and a variety of conservatism which places emphasis on traditional social structures over social pluralism. Social conservatives organize in favor of duty, traditional values and social institu ...
positions, such as supporting
gun rights
The right to keep and bear arms (often referred to as the right to bear arms) is a legal right for people to possess weapons (arms) for the preservation of life, liberty, and property. The purpose of gun rights is for self-defense, as well as ...
and
restrictions on abortion, though there is a wide range of views on such issues within the party.

Conservatives generally oppose
affirmative action
Affirmative action (also sometimes called reservations, alternative access, positive discrimination or positive action in various countries' laws and policies) refers to a set of policies and practices within a government or organization seeking ...
, support increased military spending, and are opposed to
gun control
Gun control, or firearms regulation, is the set of laws or policies that regulate the manufacture, sale, transfer, possession, modification, or use of firearms and ammunition by civilians.
Most countries allow civilians to own firearms, bu ...
. On the issue of
school voucher
A school voucher, also called an education voucher in a voucher system, is a certificate of government funding for students at schools chosen by themselves or their parents. Funding is usually for a particular year, term, or semester. In some cou ...
s, conservative Republicans split between supporters who believe that "
big government
Big government is a term that refers to a government or public sector that is considered excessively large or unconstitutionally involved in certain areas of public policy or the private sector.
The term may also be used specifically concerning ...
education" is a failure and opponents who fear greater government control over private and church schools. Parts of the conservative wing have been criticized for being
anti-environmentalist and promoting
climate change denial
Climate change denial (also global warming denial) is a form of science denial characterized by rejecting, refusing to acknowledge, disputing, or fighting the scientific consensus on climate change. Those promoting denial commonly use rhetor ...
in opposition to the general
scientific consensus
Scientific consensus is the generally held judgment, position, and opinion of the majority or the supermajority of scientists in a particular field of study at any particular time.
Consensus is achieved through scholarly communication at confer ...
, making them unique even among other worldwide conservative parties.
Long-term shifts in conservative thinking following the election of Trump have been described as a "new
fusionism
In American politics, fusionism is the philosophical and political combination or "fusion" of traditionalist and social conservatism with political and economic right-libertarianism. Fusionism combines "free markets, social conservatism, and a ...
" of traditional conservative ideology and right-wing populist themes.
These have resulted in shifts towards greater support of
national conservatism
National conservatism is a nationalist variant of conservatism that concentrates on upholding national and cultural identity, communitarianism and the public role of religion. It shares aspects of traditionalist conservatism and social conserv ...
, protectionism,
cultural conservatism
Cultural conservatism is described as the protection of the cultural heritage of a nation state, or of a culture not defined by state boundaries. It is sometimes associated with criticism of multiculturalism, and anti-immigration sentiment. B ...
, a more
realist foreign policy, skepticism of
neoconservatism
Neoconservatism (colloquially neocon) is a political movement which began in the United States during the 1960s among liberal hawks who became disenchanted with the increasingly pacifist Democratic Party along with the growing New Left and ...
, reduced efforts to roll back entitlement programs, and a disdain for traditional checks and balances.
Neoconservatives
Neoconservatives promote an
interventionist foreign policy
Interventionism, in international politics, is the interference of a state or group of states into the domestic affairs of another state for the purposes of coercing that state to do something or refrain from doing something. The intervention ca ...
and democracy or American interests abroad. Neoconservatives have been credited with importing into the Republican Party a more active international policy. They are amenable to
unilateral
__NOTOC__
Unilateralism is any doctrine or agenda that supports one-sided action. Such action may be in disregard for other parties, or as an expression of a commitment toward a direction which other parties may find disagreeable. As a word, ''un ...
military action when they believe it serves a morally valid purpose (such as the spread of democracy or deterrence of human rights abuses abroad). They grounded in a
realist philosophy of "
peace through strength
"Peace through strength" is a phrase that suggests that military power can help preserve peace. It has been used by many leaders from Roman Emperor Hadrian in the second century AD to former US President Ronald Reagan in the 1980s. The concept h ...
."
Many of its adherents became politically famous during the Republican presidential administrations of the late 20th century, and neoconservatism peaked in influence during the administration of
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...
and
Dick Cheney
Richard Bruce Cheney ( ; born January 30, 1941) is an American former politician and businessman who served as the 46th vice president of the United States from 2001 to 2009 under President George W. Bush. He has been called vice presidency o ...
during the 2000s, when they played a major role in promoting and planning the
2003 invasion of Iraq.
Prominent neoconservatives in the
Bush-Cheney administration included
John Bolton
John Robert Bolton (born November 20, 1948) is an American attorney, diplomat, Republican Party (United States), Republican consultant, and political commentator. He served as the 25th United States ambassador to the United Nations from 2005 to ...
,
Paul Wolfowitz
Paul Dundes Wolfowitz (born December 22, 1943) is an American political scientist and diplomat who served as the 10th President of the World Bank, U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defense, U.S. Ambassador to Indonesia, and dean of Paul H. Nitze Scho ...
,
Elliott Abrams
Elliott Abrams (born January 24, 1948) is an American politician and lawyer, who has served in foreign policy positions for President of the United States, presidents Ronald Reagan, George W. Bush, and Donald Trump. Abrams is considered to be a ...
,
Richard Perle
Richard Norman Perle (born September 16, 1941) is an American political advisor who served as the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Global Strategic Affairs under President Ronald Reagan. He began his political career as a senior staff member to ...
, and
Paul Bremer
Lewis Paul Bremer III (born September 30, 1941) is a retired American diplomat. He was the second ''de facto'' head of state of Iraq as leader of the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) following the 2003 invasion of Iraq by the United State ...
. During and after
Donald Trump's presidency, neoconservatism has declined and
non-interventionism
Non-interventionism or non-intervention is commonly understood as "a foreign policy of political or military non-involvement in foreign relations or in other countries' internal affairs". This is based on the grounds that a state should not inter ...
and
right-wing populism
Right-wing populism, also called national populism and right populism, is a political ideology that combines right-wing politics with populist rhetoric and themes. Its rhetoric employs anti- elitist sentiments, opposition to the Establis ...
has grown among elected federal Republican officeholders. However, after Trump took office, some neoconservatives joined his administration, such as
John Bolton
John Robert Bolton (born November 20, 1948) is an American attorney, diplomat, Republican Party (United States), Republican consultant, and political commentator. He served as the 25th United States ambassador to the United Nations from 2005 to ...
,
Mike Pompeo
Michael Richard Pompeo (; born December 30, 1963) is an American retired politician who served in the First presidency of Donald Trump#Administration, first administration of Donald Trump as director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) fr ...
,
Elliott Abrams
Elliott Abrams (born January 24, 1948) is an American politician and lawyer, who has served in foreign policy positions for President of the United States, presidents Ronald Reagan, George W. Bush, and Donald Trump. Abrams is considered to be a ...
and
Nadia Schadlow.
Neoconservatives' role remains key in foreign policy issues. The
Hudson Institute
Hudson Institute is an American Conservatism in the United States, conservative think tank based in Washington, D.C. It was founded in 1961 in Croton-on-Hudson, New York, by futurist Herman Kahn and his colleagues at the RAND Corporation.
Kahn ...
has been described as neoconservative,
whose researchers and foreign policy experts have played a key role in
Republican administrations since the 2000s. Other organizations associated with this faction include the
American Enterprise Institute
The American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research, known simply as the American Enterprise Institute (AEI), is a center-right think tank based in Washington, D.C., that researches government, politics, economics, and social welfare ...
, the
Foundation for Defense of Democracies
The Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) is a Neoconservatism, neoconservative 501(c)(3) organization, 501(c)(3) non-profit think tank based in Washington, D.C., United States. It has also been described as a pro-Israel, anti-Iran lobby gr ...
,
the
Henry Jackson Society and the
Project for the New American Century
The Project for the New American Century (PNAC) was a neoconservative
*"The PNAC's 33 leaders were highly connected with the American state – displaying 115 such connections: 27 with the Department of Defense, 13 with State, 12 with the Whit ...
.
Christian right

The Christian right is a
conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...
Christian
A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...
political faction
A political faction is a group of people with a common political purpose, especially a subgroup of a political party that has interests or opinions different from the rest of the political party. Intragroup conflict between factions can lead to ...
characterized by strong support of
socially conservative
Social conservatism is a political philosophy and a variety of conservatism which places emphasis on traditional social structures over social pluralism. Social conservatives organize in favor of duty, traditional values and social institu ...
and
Christian nationalist policies.
Christian conservatives seek to use the teachings of
Christianity
Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...
to influence law and public policy.
In the United States, the Christian right is an informal coalition formed around a core of
evangelical Protestants
Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide, interdenominational movement within Protestant Christianity that emphasizes evangelism, or the preaching and spreading of the Christian g ...
and conservative
Roman Catholics
The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
, as well as a large number of
Latter-day Saints (Mormons).
The movement has its roots in
American politics
In the United States, politics functions within a framework of a constitutional federal republic, federal democratic republic with a presidential system. The three distinct branches Separation of powers, share powers: United States Congress, C ...
going back as far as the 1940s and has been especially influential since the 1970s.
In the late 20th century, the Christian right became strongly connected to the
Republican Party. Republican politicians associated with the Christian right in the 21st century include Tennessee Senator
Marsha Blackburn
Mary Marsha Blackburn (née Wedgeworth; born June 6, 1952) is an American politician and businesswoman serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, senior United States Senate, United States senator from Tennessee. Blackburn was first ...
, former Arkansas Governor
Mike Huckabee
Michael Dale Huckabee (, born August 24, 1955) is an American diplomat, political commentator, Baptist minister, and politician serving as the 29th United States Ambassador to Israel, United States ambassador to Israel since 2025. A member of ...
, and former Senator
Rick Santorum
Richard John Santorum Sr. ( ; born May 10, 1958) is an American politician, attorney, author, and political commentator who represented Pennsylvania in the United States Senate from 1995 to 2007. He was the Senate's Chairman of the United Sta ...
. Many within the Christian right have also identified as
social conservatives
Social conservatism is a political philosophy and a variety of conservatism which places emphasis on traditional social structures over social pluralism. Social conservatives organize in favor of duty, traditional values and social instit ...
, which sociologist
Harry F. Dahms has described as Christian doctrinal conservatives (
anti-abortion
Anti-abortion movements, also self-styled as pro-life movements, are involved in the abortion debate advocating against the practice of abortion and its Abortion by country, legality. Many anti-abortion movements began as countermovements in r ...
,
anti-LGBT rights
Opposition to legal rights for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) people exists worldwide. Opponents of LGBTQ rights may object to the decriminalization of homosexuality, laws permitting civil unions or partnerships, same ...
) and
gun-rights conservatives (pro-
NRA
NRA may refer to:
Organizations Asia and Oceania
* National Railway Administration, the national railway regulator of China
* National Recruitment Agency, Central Recruiting Agency of the Indian Government
* New Revolutionary Alternative, an anar ...
) as the two domains of ideology within social conservatism. Christian nationalists generally seek to declare the U.S. a Christian nation, enforce
Christian values
Christian values historically refers to values derived from the teachings of Jesus Christ. The term has various applications and meanings, and specific definitions can vary widely between denominations, geographical locations, historical context ...
, and overturn the
separation of church and state
The separation of church and state is a philosophical and Jurisprudence, jurisprudential concept for defining political distance in the relationship between religious organizations and the State (polity), state. Conceptually, the term refers to ...
.
Libertarians
Libertarian
Libertarianism (from ; or from ) is a political philosophy that holds freedom, personal sovereignty, and liberty as primary values. Many libertarians believe that the concept of freedom is in accord with the Non-Aggression Principle, according ...
s make up a relatively small faction of the Republican Party.
In the 1950s and 60s,
fusionism
In American politics, fusionism is the philosophical and political combination or "fusion" of traditionalist and social conservatism with political and economic right-libertarianism. Fusionism combines "free markets, social conservatism, and a ...
—the combination of
traditionalist and
social conservatism
Social conservatism is a political philosophy and a variety of conservatism which places emphasis on Tradition#In political and religious discourse, traditional social structures over Cultural pluralism, social pluralism. Social conservatives ...
with political and economic
right-libertarianism
Right-libertarianism,Rothbard, Murray (1 March 1971)"The Left and Right Within Libertarianism". ''WIN: Peace and Freedom Through Nonviolent Action''. 7 (4): 6–10. Retrieved 14 January 2020.Goodway, David (2006). '' Anarchist Seeds Beneath the ...
—was essential to the movement's growth. This philosophy is most closely associated with
Frank Meyer.
Barry Goldwater
Barry Morris Goldwater (January 2, 1909 – May 29, 1998) was an American politician and major general in the United States Air Force, Air Force Reserve who served as a United States senator from 1953 to 1965 and 1969 to 1987, and was the Re ...
also had a substantial impact on the conservative-libertarian movement of the 1960s.
Libertarian conservatives in the 21st century favor cutting taxes and regulations, repealing the
Affordable Care Act
The Affordable Care Act (ACA), formally known as the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) and informally as Obamacare, is a landmark U.S. federal statute enacted by the 111th United States Congress and signed into law by Presid ...
, and protecting
gun rights
The right to keep and bear arms (often referred to as the right to bear arms) is a legal right for people to possess weapons (arms) for the preservation of life, liberty, and property. The purpose of gun rights is for self-defense, as well as ...
.
On social issues, they favor
privacy
Privacy (, ) is the ability of an individual or group to seclude themselves or information about themselves, and thereby express themselves selectively.
The domain of privacy partially overlaps with security, which can include the concepts of a ...
, oppose the
USA Patriot Act, and oppose the
war on drugs.
On foreign policy, libertarian conservatives favor
non-interventionism
Non-interventionism or non-intervention is commonly understood as "a foreign policy of political or military non-involvement in foreign relations or in other countries' internal affairs". This is based on the grounds that a state should not inter ...
. The
Republican Liberty Caucus
The Republican Liberty Caucus (RLC) is a political action organization dedicated to promoting the ideals of Individual freedom, individual liberty, limited government and free market economics within the Republican Party (United States), Republi ...
, which describes itself as "the oldest continuously operating organization in the Liberty Republican movement with state charters nationwide", was founded in 1991.
[History of the RLC](_blank)
Republican Liberty Caucus (accessed August 19, 2016). The
House Liberty Caucus is a
congressional caucus formed by former Representative
Justin Amash, a former Republican of Michigan who joined the
Libertarian Party in 2020 before returning in 2024.
[Robert Draper]
Has the 'Libertarian Moment' Finally Arrived?
''New York Times Magazine'' (August 7, 2016).
Prominent libertarian conservatives within the Republican Party include New Hampshire Governor
Chris Sununu
Christopher Thomas Sununu ( ; born November 5, 1974) is an American politician and engineer who served as the 82nd governor of New Hampshire from 2017 to 2025.
A Republican Party (United States), Republican, Sununu is the son of former New Hamps ...
,
Senators
Mike Lee
Michael Shumway Lee (born June 4, 1971) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the senior United States senator from Utah, a seat he has held since 2011. A member of the Republican Party, Lee became Utah's senior senator in 2019, whe ...
and
Rand Paul
Randal Howard Paul (born January 7, 1963) is an American politician serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, junior United States senator from Kentucky since 2011.
A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican ...
, Representative
Thomas Massie, former Representative and Governor of South Carolina
Mark Sanford
Marshall Clement "Mark" Sanford Jr. (born May 28, 1960) is an American politician and author who served as the U.S. representative for South Carolina's 1st congressional district from 1995 to 2001 and from 2013 to 2019, and as the 115th govern ...
, and former Representative
Ron Paul
Ronald Ernest Paul (born August 20, 1935) is an American author, activist, and politician who served as the U.S. representative for Texas's 22nd congressional district from 1976 to 1977, and again from 1979 to 1985, as well as for Texas' ...
(who was a Republican prior to 1987 and again from 1996 to 2015, and a Libertarian from 1987 to 1996 and since 2015). Ron Paul ran for president
once as a Libertarian and
twice more recently as a Republican.
The libertarian conservative wing of the party had significant cross-over with the
Tea Party movement
The Tea Party movement was an American fiscally conservative political movement within the Republican Party that began in 2007, catapulted into the mainstream by Congressman Ron Paul's presidential campaign. The movement expanded in resp ...
.
During the
2024 United States elections, the Republican Party adopted pro-
cryptocurrency
A cryptocurrency (colloquially crypto) is a digital currency designed to work through a computer network that is not reliant on any central authority, such as a government or bank, to uphold or maintain it.
Individual coin ownership record ...
policies, which were originally advocated by the libertarian wing of the party. As the Republican presidential nominee,
Donald Trump
Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...
addressed the
2024 Libertarian National Convention, pledging support for cryptocurrency, opposing
central bank digital currency
A central bank digital currency (CBDC; also called digital fiat currency or digital base money) is a digital currency issued by a central bank, rather than by a commercial bank. It is also a liability of the central bank, unless it is dividend-y ...
and expressing support for the commutation of
Ross Ulbricht
Ross William Ulbricht (; born March 27, 1984) is an American who created and operated the illegal darknet market Silk Road from 2011 until his arrest in 2013. Silk Road was an online marketplace that facilitated the trade in narcotics and othe ...
. Trump's 2024 campaign featured greater influence from
technolibertarian elements, particularly
Elon Musk
Elon Reeve Musk ( ; born June 28, 1971) is a businessman. He is known for his leadership of Tesla, SpaceX, X (formerly Twitter), and the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). Musk has been considered the wealthiest person in th ...
, who was subsequently nominated to lead the
Department of Government Efficiency
The Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) is an initiative by the second Trump administration within the federal government of the United States. Its stated objective is to modernize information technology, maximize productivity, and cut ...
(DOGE). 2024 Republican presidential candidate
Vivek Ramaswamy
Vivek Ganapathy Ramaswamy (born August 9, 1985) is an American entrepreneur and politician. He founded Roivant Sciences, a Biotechnology, biotech Pharmaceutical industry, pharmaceutical company in 2014 and was its Chief executive officer, CEO ...
, who was chosen to lead DOGE alongside Musk, has called for a synthesis between nationalism and libertarianism within the Republican Party, while opposing
protectionist
Protectionism, sometimes referred to as trade protectionism, is the economic policy of restricting imports from other countries through methods such as tariffs on imported goods, import quotas, and a variety of other government regulations. ...
elements. Musk and Ramaswamy have clashed with elements within the right-wing populist faction over high-skilled
legal immigration to the United States.
Moderates

Moderate Republicans tend to be conservative-to-moderate on fiscal issues and moderate-to-liberal on social issues, and usually represent
swing state
In United States politics, a swing state (also known as battleground state, toss-up state, or purple state) is any state that could reasonably be won by either the Democratic or Republican candidate in a statewide election, most often refe ...
s or
blue states. Moderate Republican voters are typically
highly educated,
affluent, socially moderate or liberal and often part of the
Never Trump
The Never Trump movement (also known as #nevertrump, Stop Trump, anti-Trump, or Dump Trump movement) is a conservative political movement that opposes Trumpism and U.S. president Donald Trump, and in general, supports a return to a more rule ...
movement. Ideologically, such Republicans resemble the
conservative liberals of Europe.
While they sometimes share the economic views of other Republicans (i.e.
lower taxes,
deregulation
Deregulation is the process of removing or reducing state regulations, typically in the economic sphere. It is the repeal of governmental regulation of the economy. It became common in advanced industrial economies in the 1970s and 1980s, as a ...
, and
welfare reform
Welfare reforms are changes in the operation of a given welfare system aimed at improving the efficiency, equity, and administration of government assistance programs. Reform programs may have a various aims; sometimes the focus is on reducing th ...
), moderate Republicans differ in that some support
affirmative action
Affirmative action (also sometimes called reservations, alternative access, positive discrimination or positive action in various countries' laws and policies) refers to a set of policies and practices within a government or organization seeking ...
,
LGBT rights and same-sex marriage, legal access to and even public funding for
abortion
Abortion is the early termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. Abortions that occur without intervention are known as miscarriages or "spontaneous abortions", and occur in roughly 30–40% of all pregnan ...
,
gun control
Gun control, or firearms regulation, is the set of laws or policies that regulate the manufacture, sale, transfer, possession, modification, or use of firearms and ammunition by civilians.
Most countries allow civilians to own firearms, bu ...
laws, more
environmental regulation
Environmental laws are laws that protect the environment. The term "environmental law" encompasses treaties, statutes, regulations, conventions, and policies designed to protect the natural environment and manage the impact of human activitie ...
and action on
climate change
Present-day climate change includes both global warming—the ongoing increase in Global surface temperature, global average temperature—and its wider effects on Earth's climate system. Climate variability and change, Climate change in ...
, fewer restrictions on
immigration
Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not usual residents or where they do not possess nationality in order to settle as Permanent residency, permanent residents. Commuting, Commuter ...
and a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants, and
embryonic stem cell research
Embryonic stem cells (ESCs) are pluripotent stem cells derived from the inner cell mass of a blastocyst, an early-stage pre- implantation embryo. Human embryos reach the blastocyst stage 4–5 days post fertilization, at which time they consist ...
. In the 21st century, some former Republican moderates have switched to the Democratic Party.
Prominent 21st century moderate Republicans include Senators
John McCain
John Sidney McCain III (August 29, 1936 – August 25, 2018) was an American statesman and United States Navy, naval officer who represented the Arizona, state of Arizona in United States Congress, Congress for over 35 years, first as ...
of Arizona,
Lisa Murkowski
Lisa Ann Murkowski ( ; born May 22, 1957) is an American attorney and politician serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, senior United States senator from the state of Alaska, having held the seat since 2002. She is the first woman ...
of Alaska and
Susan Collins
Susan Margaret Collins (born December 7, 1952) is an American politician serving as the senior United States senator from Maine. A member of the Republican Party, she has held her seat since 1997 and is Maine's longest-serving member of ...
of Maine and several current or former governors of northeastern states, such as
Charlie Baker
Charles Duane Baker Jr. (born November 13, 1956) is an American politician serving as the sixth president of the National Collegiate Athletic Association, since 2023. A member of the Republican Party, he served as the 72nd governor of Massa ...
of Massachusetts and
Phil Scott
Philip Brian Scott (born August 4, 1958) is an American politician, businessman, and Stock car racing, stock car racer who has been the List of governors of Vermont, 82nd governor of Vermont since 2017. A member of the Republican Party (United S ...
of Vermont. Another moderate Republican is incumbent governor of Nevada
Joe Lombardo, who was previously the
Sheriff of Clark County. Moderate Republican Representatives include
Brian Fitzpatrick,
Mike Lawler
Michael Vincent Lawler (born September 9, 1986) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for New York's 17th congressional district since 2023. From 2021 to 2022, he was a Republican member of the New York State Assembly fr ...
, and
David Valadao.
One of the most high-ranking moderate Republicans in recent history was
Colin Powell
Colin Luther Powell ( ; – ) was an Americans, American diplomat, and army officer who was the 65th United States secretary of state from 2001 to 2005. He was the first African-American to hold the office. He was the 15th National Security ...
as Secretary of State in the first term of the
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...
administration (Powell left the Republican Party in January 2021 following the
2021 storming of the United States Capitol
On January 6, 2021, the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C., was attacked by a mob of supporters of President Donald Trump in an attempted self-coup,Multiple sources:
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
* two months after his defea ...
, and had endorsed every Democrat for president in the general election since 2008).
The
Republican Governance Group is a caucus of moderate Republicans within the House of Representatives.
Trumpists
Sometimes referred to as the MAGA or "America First" movement,
Trumpists are the dominant faction in the Republican Party as of 2024.
It has been described as consisting of a range of right-wing ideologies including but not limited to
right-wing populism
Right-wing populism, also called national populism and right populism, is a political ideology that combines right-wing politics with populist rhetoric and themes. Its rhetoric employs anti- elitist sentiments, opposition to the Establis ...
,
national conservatism
National conservatism is a nationalist variant of conservatism that concentrates on upholding national and cultural identity, communitarianism and the public role of religion. It shares aspects of traditionalist conservatism and social conserv ...
,
neo-nationalism
Neo-nationalism, or new nationalism, is an ideology and political movement built on the basic characteristics of classical nationalism. It developed to its final form by applying elements with reactionary character generated as a reaction to t ...
, and
Trumpism
Trumpism, also referred to as the Make America Great Again (MAGA) movement, is the political movement and ideology behind U.S. president Donald Trump and his political base. It comprises ideologies such as right-wing populism, right-wing ...
, the political movement associated with
Donald Trump
Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...
and his base.
They have been described by some commentators, including Joseph Lowndes, James A. Gardner, and Guy-Uriel Charles, as the American political variant of the
far-right
Far-right politics, often termed right-wing extremism, encompasses a range of ideologies that are marked by ultraconservatism, authoritarianism, ultranationalism, and nativism. This political spectrum situates itself on the far end of the ...
.
Rachel Kleinfeld, senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, characterizes Trumpism as an authoritarian, antidemocratic movement which has successfully weaponized cultural issues, and that cultivates a narrative placing white people, Christians, and men at the top of a status hierarchy as its response to the so-called "
Great Replacement
The Great Replacement (), also known as replacement theory or great replacement theory, is a debunked white nationalist far-right conspiracy theoryPT71. espoused by French author Renaud Camus. The original theory states that, with the complicit ...
" theory, a claim that minorities, immigrants, and women, enabled by Democrats, Jews, and elites, are displacing white people, Christians, and men from their "rightful" positions in American society.
In international relations, Trumpists support
U.S. aid to Israel but not to Ukraine,
are generally supportive towards
Russia
Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...
, yet claim to favor an
isolationist "
America First" foreign policy agenda.
They generally reject compromise within the party and with
Democrats,
and are willing to oust fellow Republican office holders they deem to be too moderate.
Compared to other Republicans, the Trumpist faction is more likely to be immigration restrictionists,
and to be against
free trade
Free trade is a trade policy that does not restrict imports or exports. In government, free trade is predominantly advocated by political parties that hold Economic liberalism, economically liberal positions, while economic nationalist politica ...
,
neoconservatism
Neoconservatism (colloquially neocon) is a political movement which began in the United States during the 1960s among liberal hawks who became disenchanted with the increasingly pacifist Democratic Party along with the growing New Left and ...
, and
environmental protection laws.
The Republican Party's Trumpist and far-right movements emerged in occurrence with a global increase in such movements in the 2010s and 2020s,
coupled with entrenchment and increased partisanship within the party since 2010, fueled by the rise of the
Tea Party movement
The Tea Party movement was an American fiscally conservative political movement within the Republican Party that began in 2007, catapulted into the mainstream by Congressman Ron Paul's presidential campaign. The movement expanded in resp ...
which has also been described as far-right.
The election of Trump in 2016 split the party into pro-Trump and
anti-Trump factions.
When conservative columnist
George Will
George Frederick Will (born May 4, 1941) is an American libertarian conservative writer and political commentator. He writes columns for ''The Washington Post'' on a regular basis and provides commentary for '' NewsNation''. In 1986, ''The Wall ...
advised voters of all ideologies to vote for Democratic candidates in the Senate and House elections of November 2018,
political writer Dan McLaughlin at the ''National Review'' responded that doing so would make the Trumpist faction even more powerful within the Republican party.
Anticipating Trump's defeat in the U.S. presidential election held on November 3, 2020,
Peter Feaver
Peter Douglas Feaver (born December 17, 1961) is an American political scientist. He is currently a professor of political science and public policy at Duke University and a civil-military relations scholar.
Feaver has served as director of t ...
wrote in ''
Foreign Policy
Foreign policy, also known as external policy, is the set of strategies and actions a State (polity), state employs in its interactions with other states, unions, and international entities. It encompasses a wide range of objectives, includ ...
'' magazine: "With victory having been so close, the Trumpist faction in the party will be empowered and in no mood to compromise or reform."
A poll conducted in February 2021 indicated that a plurality of Republicans (46% versus 27%) would leave the Republican Party to join a new party if Trump chose to create it. Nick Beauchamp, assistant professor of political science at
Northeastern University
Northeastern University (NU or NEU) is a private university, private research university with its main campus in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. It was founded by the Boston Young Men's Christian Association in 1898 as an all-male instit ...
, says he sees the country as divided into four parties, with two factions representing each of the Democratic and Republican parties: "For the GOP, there's the Trump faction—which is the larger group—and the non-Trump faction".
Lilliana Mason, associate professor of political science at
Johns Hopkins University
The Johns Hopkins University (often abbreviated as Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1876 based on the European research institution model, J ...
, states that Donald Trump solidified the trend among
Southern white conservative Democrat
In American politics, a conservative Democrat is a member of the Democratic Party with more conservative views than most Democrats. Traditionally, conservative Democrats have been elected to office from the Southern states, rural areas, and t ...
s since the 1960s of
leaving the Democratic Party and joining the Republican Party: "Trump basically worked as a lightning rod to finalize that process of creating the Republican Party as a single entity for defending the high status of white, Christian, rural Americans. It's not a huge percentage of Americans that holds these beliefs, and it's not even the entire Republican Party; it's just about half of it. But the party itself is controlled by this intolerant, very strongly pro-Trump faction."
Julia Azari, an associate professor of political science at
Marquette University
Marquette University () is a Private university, private Jesuit research university in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States. It was established as Marquette College on August 28, 1881, by John Henni, the first Archbishop of the Roman Catholic Ar ...
, noted that not all Trumpist Republicans are public supporters of Donald Trump, and that some Republicans endorse Trump policies while distancing themselves from Trump as a person.
In a speech he gave on November 2, 2022, at Washington's Union Station near the U.S. Capitol, President Biden asserted that "the pro-Trump faction" of the Republican Party is trying to undermine the U.S. electoral system and suppress voting rights.
Anti-Trump faction
A divide has formed in the party between those who remain loyal to Donald Trump and those who oppose him.
A recent survey concluded that the Republican Party was divided between pro-Trump (the "Trump Boosters," "Die-hard Trumpers," and "''
Infowars'' G.O.P." wings) and anti-Trump factions (the "
Never Trump
The Never Trump movement (also known as #nevertrump, Stop Trump, anti-Trump, or Dump Trump movement) is a conservative political movement that opposes Trumpism and U.S. president Donald Trump, and in general, supports a return to a more rule ...
" and "Post-Trump G.O.P." wings).
Senator
John McCain
John Sidney McCain III (August 29, 1936 – August 25, 2018) was an American statesman and United States Navy, naval officer who represented the Arizona, state of Arizona in United States Congress, Congress for over 35 years, first as ...
was an early leading critic of Trumpism within the Republican Party,
refusing to support the then-Republican presidential nominee in the
2016 presidential election.
[Dumcius, Gintautas]
"Sen. John McCain backs up Mitt Romney, says Donald Trump's comments 'uninformed and indeed dangerous'"
'' The Republican'' (March 3, 2016). Retrieved January 27, 2022.
Several critics of the Trump faction have faced various forms of retaliation. Representative
Liz Cheney
Elizabeth Lynne Cheney (; born July 28, 1966) is an American attorney and politician. She represented in the U.S. House of Representatives from 2017 to 2023, and served as chair of the House Republican Conference from 2019 to 2021. Cheney i ...
was removed from her position as Republican conference chair in the
House of Representatives
House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...
, which was perceived as retaliation for her criticism of Trump; in 2022, she was defeated by a pro-Trump primary challenger. Representative
Adam Kinzinger decided to retire at the end of his term, while Murkowski faced a pro-Trump primary challenge in
2022
The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...
against
Kelly Tshibaka whom she defeated. A primary challenge to Romney had been suggested by
Jason Chaffetz, who has criticized his opponents within the Republican Party as "Trump haters". Romney chose not to run for re-election in
2024
The year saw the list of ongoing armed conflicts, continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Myanmar civil war (2021–present), Myanmar civil war, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudane ...
.
Representative
Anthony Gonzalez, one of 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach Trump over the
Capitol riot, called him "a cancer" while announcing his retirement. Former Governor of New Jersey
Chris Christie
Christopher James Christie (born September 6, 1962) is an American politician and former United States Attorney, federal prosecutor who served as the 55th governor of New Jersey from 2010 to 2018. A member of the Republican Party (United States) ...
, who was
running against Trump in the
2024 Republican primaries, called him "a lonely, self-consumed, self-serving, mirror hog" in
his presidential announcement. Indiana senator
Todd Young
Todd Christopher Young (born August 24, 1972) is an American politician, attorney, and Marine Corps veteran serving as the senior United States senator from Indiana, a seat he has held since 2017. A member of the Republican Party, Young previou ...
is one of few elected Republican senators that
did not support Trump's 2024 campaign.
Organizations associated with this faction include
The Lincoln Project
The Lincoln Project is an American political action committee (PAC) founded in December 2019 by moderate conservatives and former Republican Party members who oppose U.S. President Donald Trump and Trumpism. During the 2020 presidential e ...
,
Republican Accountability Project
Republican Accountability (RA), formerly Republican Accountability Project (RAP) and, for 2024 United States presidential election, the 2024 presidential election, Republican Voters Against Trump (RVAT), is a political initiative launched in May ...
and
Republicans for the Rule of Law.
Political caucuses
Historical factions
*
Black-and-tan faction
The black-and-tan faction was an American biracial faction in the Republican Party in the Southern United States from the 1870s to the 1960s. It replaced the Negro Republican Party faction's name after the 1890s.
Southern Republicans were divi ...
*
Lily-white movement
The Lily-White Movement was an anti-black political movement within the Republican Party in the United States in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It was a response to the political and socioeconomic gains made by African-Americans follo ...
*
Negro Republican Party
Stalwarts
The
Stalwarts were a traditionalist faction that existed from the 1860s through the 1880s. They represented "traditional" Republicans who favored
machine politics
In the politics of Representative democracy, representative democracies, a political machine is a party organization that recruits its members by the use of tangible incentives (such as money or political jobs) and that is characterized by a hi ...
and opposed the
civil service
The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil service personnel hired rather than elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leadership. A civil service offic ...
reforms of
Rutherford B. Hayes
Rutherford Birchard Hayes (; October 4, 1822 – January 17, 1893) was the 19th president of the United States, serving from 1877 to 1881.
Hayes served as Cincinnati's city solicitor from 1858 to 1861. He was a staunch Abolitionism in the Un ...
and the more progressive
Half-Breeds. They declined following the elections of Hayes and
James A. Garfield. After Garfield's assassination by
Charles J. Guiteau, his Stalwart Vice President
Chester A. Arthur
Chester Alan Arthur (October 5, 1829 – November 18, 1886) was the 21st president of the United States, serving from 1881 to 1885. He was a Republican from New York who previously served as the 20th vice president under President James A. ...
assumed the presidency. However, rather than pursuing Stalwart goals he took up the reformist cause, which curbed the faction's influence.
Half-Breeds
The
Half-Breeds were a reformist faction of the 1870s and 1880s. The name, which originated with rivals claiming they were only "half" Republicans, came to encompass a wide array of figures who did not all get along with each other. Generally speaking, politicians labeled Half-Breeds were moderates or progressives who opposed the machine politics of the Stalwarts and advanced civil service reforms.
Radical Republicans

The
Radical Republicans
The Radical Republicans were a political faction within the Republican Party originating from the party's founding in 1854—some six years before the Civil War—until the Compromise of 1877, which effectively ended Reconstruction. They ca ...
were a major factor of the party from its inception in 1854 until the end of the
Reconstruction Era
The Reconstruction era was a period in History of the United States, US history that followed the American Civil War (1861-65) and was dominated by the legal, social, and political challenges of the Abolitionism in the United States, abol ...
in 1877. The Radicals strongly opposed
slavery
Slavery is the ownership of a person as property, especially in regards to their labour. Slavery typically involves compulsory work, with the slave's location of work and residence dictated by the party that holds them in bondage. Enslavemen ...
, were hard-line
abolitionists
Abolitionism, or the abolitionist movement, is the political movement to end slavery and liberate enslaved individuals around the world.
The first country to fully outlaw slavery was France in 1315, but it was later used in its colonies. T ...
, and later advocated equal rights for the
freedmen
A freedman or freedwoman is a person who has been released from slavery, usually by legal means. Historically, slaves were freed by manumission (granted freedom by their owners), emancipation (granted freedom as part of a larger group), or self- ...
and women. They were often at odds with the moderate and conservative factions of the party. During the
American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...
, Radical Republicans pressed for abolition as a major war aim and they opposed the moderate Reconstruction plans of
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln (February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was the 16th president of the United States, serving from 1861 until Assassination of Abraham Lincoln, his assassination in 1865. He led the United States through the American Civil War ...
as too lenient on the
Confederates. After the war's end and Lincoln's assassination, the Radicals clashed with
Andrew Johnson
Andrew Johnson (December 29, 1808July 31, 1875) was the 17th president of the United States, serving from 1865 to 1869. The 16th vice president, he assumed the presidency following the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. Johnson was a South ...
over Reconstruction policy.
After winning major victories in the
1866 congressional elections, the Radicals took over Reconstruction, pushing through new legislation protecting the civil rights of African Americans.
John C. Frémont
Major general (United States), Major-General John Charles Frémont (January 21, 1813July 13, 1890) was a United States Army officer, explorer, and politician. He was a United States senator from California and was the first History of the Repub ...
of Michigan, the party's first nominee for president in 1856, was a Radical Republican. Upset with Lincoln's politics, the faction split from the Republican Party to form the short-lived
Radical Democratic Party in 1864 and again nominated
Frémont for president. They supported
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant; April 27, 1822July 23, 1885) was the 18th president of the United States, serving from 1869 to 1877. In 1865, as Commanding General of the United States Army, commanding general, Grant led the Uni ...
for president in 1868 and 1872, who worked closely with them to protect African Americans during Reconstruction. As
Southern Democrats
Southern Democrats are members of the U.S. Democratic Party who reside in the Southern United States.
Before the American Civil War, Southern Democrats mostly believed in Jacksonian democracy. In the 19th century, they defended slavery in the ...
retook control in the South and enthusiasm for continued Reconstruction declined in the North, their influence within the GOP waned.
Progressive Republicans

Historically, the Republican Party included a
progressive wing that advocated using government to improve the problems of modern society.
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt Jr. (October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), also known as Teddy or T.R., was the 26th president of the United States, serving from 1901 to 1909. Roosevelt previously was involved in New York (state), New York politics, incl ...
, an early leader of the
progressive movement
Progressivism is a left-leaning political philosophy and reform movement that seeks to advance the human condition through social reform. Adherents hold that progressivism has universal application and endeavor to spread this idea to huma ...
, advanced a "
Square Deal" domestic program as president (1901–09) that was built on the goals of controlling corporations, protecting consumers, and conserving natural resources. After splitting with his successor,
William Howard Taft
William Howard Taft (September 15, 1857March 8, 1930) served as the 27th president of the United States from 1909 to 1913 and the tenth chief justice of the United States from 1921 to 1930. He is the only person to have held both offices. ...
, in the aftermath of the
Pinchot–Ballinger controversy
The Pinchot–Ballinger controversy, also known as the "Ballinger Affair", was a dispute between high level officials in the U.S. government regarding whether or not the federal government should allow private corporations to control water rights, ...
, Roosevelt sought to block Taft's re-election, first by challenging him for the
1912 Republican presidential nomination, and then when that failed, by entering the
1912 presidential contest as a
third party
Third party may refer to:
Business
* Third-party source, a supplier company not owned by the buyer or seller
* Third-party beneficiary, a person who could sue on a contract, despite not being an active party
* Third-party insurance, such as a veh ...
candidate, running on the
Progressive ticket. He succeeded in depriving Taft of a second term, but came in second behind
Democrat Woodrow Wilson
Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856February 3, 1924) was the 28th president of the United States, serving from 1913 to 1921. He was the only History of the Democratic Party (United States), Democrat to serve as president during the Prog ...
.
After Roosevelt's 1912 defeat, the progressive wing of the party went into decline. Progressive Republicans in the
U.S. House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...
held a "
last stand
A last stand, or final stand, is a military situation in which a body of troops holds a defensive position in the face of overwhelming and virtually insurmountable odds. Troops may make a last stand due to a sense of duty; because they are d ...
" protest in December 1923, at the start of the
68th Congress, when they refused to support the
Republican Conference nominee for
Speaker of the House
The speaker of a deliberative assembly, especially a legislative body, is its presiding officer, or the chair. The title was first used in 1377 in England.
Usage
The title was first recorded in 1377 to describe the role of Thomas de Hung ...
,
Frederick H. Gillett, voting instead for two other candidates. After eight ballots spanning two days, they agreed to support Gillett in exchange for a seat on the
House Rules Committee and pledges that subsequent rules changes would be considered. On the ninth ballot, Gillett received 215 votes, a majority of the 414 votes cast, to win the election.
In addition to Theodore Roosevelt, leading early progressive Republicans included
Robert M. La Follette
Robert Marion La Follette Sr. (June 14, 1855June 18, 1925), nicknamed "Fighting Bob," was an American lawyer and politician. He represented Wisconsin in both chambers of Congress and served as the 20th governor of Wisconsin from 1901 to 1906. ...
,
Charles Evans Hughes
Charles Evans Hughes (April 11, 1862 – August 27, 1948) was an American politician, academic, and jurist who served as the 11th chief justice of the United States from 1930 to 1941. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican ...
,
Hiram Johnson
Hiram Warren Johnson (September 2, 1866August 6, 1945) was an American attorney and politician who served as the 23rd governor of California from 1911 to 1917 and represented California in the U.S. Senate for five terms from 1917 to 1945. Johns ...
,
William Borah,
George W. Norris,
William Allen White
William Allen White (February 10, 1868 – January 29, 1944) was an American newspaper editor, politician, author, and leader of the Progressive movement. Between 1896 and his death, White became a spokesman for Middle America (United States), ...
,
Victor Murdock,
Clyde M. Reed and
Fiorello La Guardia
Fiorello Henry La Guardia (born Fiorello Raffaele Enrico La Guardia; December 11, 1882September 20, 1947) was an American attorney and politician who represented New York in the U.S. House of Representatives and served as the 99th mayor of New Yo ...
.
Old Guard
The Old Guard was the conservative faction of the Republican Party between 1945 and 1964. They coalesced around their opposition to the shifts in traditional economic and foreign policy under the presidency of
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt (January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), also known as FDR, was the 32nd president of the United States, serving from 1933 until his death in 1945. He is the longest-serving U.S. president, and the only one to have served ...
. This opposition most noticeably directed to the
New Deal
The New Deal was a series of wide-reaching economic, social, and political reforms enacted by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in the United States between 1933 and 1938, in response to the Great Depression in the United States, Great Depressi ...
, which was variously derided by Old Guard lawmakers as communist, socialist, or overreaching, seeing its programs as unwanted, unconstitutional, unwise, and politically unprofitable.
To counter the New Deal, Republicans of the Old Guard espoused
Americanism, which entailed a
strict construction of the
Constitution
A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organization or other type of entity, and commonly determines how that entity is to be governed.
When these pri ...
,
fiscal responsibility, and state and local over federal regulation. Politically, they opposed federal regulation of state, local, or business interests. They viewed “
big government
Big government is a term that refers to a government or public sector that is considered excessively large or unconstitutionally involved in certain areas of public policy or the private sector.
The term may also be used specifically concerning ...
” as a threat to liberty, which they interpreted as
economic freedom, which they saw as critical to incentivizing individuals to improve their material welfare and develop the pioneer virtues of
individualism
Individualism is the moral stance, political philosophy, ideology, and social outlook that emphasizes the intrinsic worth of the individual. Individualists promote realizing one's goals and desires, valuing independence and self-reliance, and a ...
and self-reliance. The Old Guard also espoused a
unilateralist foreign policy, eschewing alliances that entailed advance military commitments while “go
ngit alone” in foreign engagements. This also entailed
economic self-sufficiency, prioritizing American financial interests, and thus partially informed the Old Guard’s support for tariffs on imports and opposition to foreign aid.
While sharing the above overarching goals, figures affiliated with this movement varied in their policy stances. These included
Bruce Fairchild Barton
Bruce Fairchild Barton (August 5, 1886 – July 5, 1967) was an American author, advertising executive, and Republican politician. He represented Manhattan in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1937 to 1941. In 1940, he ran for election to t ...
,
John W. Bricker,
Styles Bridges
Henry Styles Bridges (September 9, 1898November 26, 1961) was an American teacher, editor, and Republican Party politician from Concord, New Hampshire. He served one term as the 63rd governor of New Hampshire before a twenty-four-year career ...
,
Joseph McCarthy
Joseph Raymond McCarthy (November 14, 1908 – May 2, 1957) was an American politician who served as a Republican Party (United States), Republican United States Senate, U.S. Senator from the state of Wisconsin from 1947 until his death at age ...
,
Everett Dirksen
Everett McKinley Dirksen (January 4, 1896 – September 7, 1969) was an American politician. A Republican Party (United States), Republican, he represented Illinois in the United States House of Representatives and the United States Senate. As P ...
,
Walter Judd, and
Robert A. Taft
Robert Alphonso Taft Sr. (September 8, 1889 – July 31, 1953) was an American politician, lawyer, and scion of the Republican Party's Taft family. Taft represented Ohio in the United States Senate, briefly served as Senate majority le ...
.
Birchers
In the 1964 Republican primaries, the John Birch Society (JBS) helped to secure
Barry Goldwater
Barry Morris Goldwater (January 2, 1909 – May 29, 1998) was an American politician and major general in the United States Air Force, Air Force Reserve who served as a United States senator from 1953 to 1965 and 1969 to 1987, and was the Re ...
’s Republican presidential nomination, defeating Nelson Rockefeller. Original members believed the Republican party was in danger of becoming too moderate. Members of the John Birch Society, known as Birchers, were associated with the
radical right,
anti-communism
Anti-communism is Political movement, political and Ideology, ideological opposition to communism, communist beliefs, groups, and individuals. Organized anti-communism developed after the 1917 October Revolution in Russia, and it reached global ...
, and
ultraconservatism
Ultraconservatism refers to extreme conservative views in politics or religious practice. In modern politics, ''ultraconservative'' usually refers to conservatives of the far-right on the political spectrum, comprising groups or individuals who a ...
. The John Birch Society was founded in 1958 by businessman
Robert W. Welch Jr.
Robert Henry Winborne Welch Jr. (December 1, 1899 – January 6, 1985) was an American businessman, political organizer, and conspiracy theorist. He was wealthy following his retirement from the candy business and used his wealth to sponsor ...
, and is controversial for its promotion of
conspiracy theories
A conspiracy theory is an explanation for an event or situation that asserts the existence of a conspiracy (generally by powerful sinister groups, often political in motivation), when other explanations are more probable.Additional sources:
*
...
.
Rockefeller Republicans

Moderate or liberal Republicans in the 20th century, particularly those from the Northeast and West Coast, were referred to as "The Eastern Establishment" or "Rockefeller Republicans", after
Nelson Rockefeller
Nelson Aldrich "Rocky" Rockefeller (July 8, 1908 – January 26, 1979) was the 41st vice president of the United States, serving from 1974 to 1977 under President Gerald Ford. He was also the 49th governor of New York, serving from 1959 to 197 ...
, Vice President during the
Gerald Ford
Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr. (born Leslie Lynch King Jr.; July 14, 1913December 26, 2006) was the 38th president of the United States, serving from 1974 to 1977. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, Ford assumed the p ...
administration.
With their power decreasing in the final decades of the 20th century, many Rockefeller-style Republicans were replaced by conservative and moderate Democrats, such as those from the
Blue Dog or
New Democrat
New Democrats may refer to:
* New Democratic Party, a social democratic party in Canada
* New Democrats (United States), the ideological centrist faction of the Democratic Party
** New Democrat Coalition, the related caucus in the United States H ...
coalitions. Massachusetts Republican
Elliot Richardson
Elliot Lee Richardson (July 20, 1920December 31, 1999) was an American lawyer and Republican politician. As a member of the cabinets of Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford between 1970 and 1977, Richardson is one of two men in United States history ...
(who served in several cabinet positions during the
Richard Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 until Resignation of Richard Nixon, his resignation in 1974. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican ...
administration) and writer and academic
Michael Lind
Michael Lind (born April 23, 1962) is an American writer and academic. He has explained and defended the tradition of American democratic nationalism in a number of books, beginning with ''The Next American Nation: The New Nationalism and the Fou ...
argued that the liberalism of Democratic President
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician and lawyer who was the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, ...
and the rest of the
New Democrat
New Democrats may refer to:
* New Democratic Party, a social democratic party in Canada
* New Democrats (United States), the ideological centrist faction of the Democratic Party
** New Democrat Coalition, the related caucus in the United States H ...
movement were in many ways to the right of
Dwight Eisenhower
Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was the 34th president of the United States, serving from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, he was Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionar ...
, Rockefeller, and
John Lindsay
John Vliet Lindsay (; November 24, 1921 – December 19, 2000) was an American politician and lawyer. During his political career, Lindsay was a U.S. congressman, the mayor of New York City, and a candidate for U.S. president. He was also a regu ...
, Republican Congressman and Mayor of New York City in the late 1960s.
Reagan coalition

According to historian
George H. Nash, the Reagan coalition in the Republican Party, which centered around
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan (February 6, 1911 – June 5, 2004) was an American politician and actor who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He was a member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party a ...
and his administration throughout all of the 1980s (continuing in the late 1980s with the
George H. W. Bush
George Herbert Walker BushBefore the outcome of the 2000 United States presidential election, he was usually referred to simply as "George Bush" but became more commonly known as "George H. W. Bush", "Bush Senior," "Bush 41," and even "Bush th ...
administration), originally consisted of five factions: the libertarians, the traditionalists, the anti-communists, the neoconservatives, and the religious right (which consisted of Protestants, Catholics, and some Jewish Republicans).
Tea Party movement
The Tea Party movement was an American
fiscally conservative political movement
A political movement is a collective attempt by a group of people to change government policy or social values. Political movements are usually in opposition to an element of the status quo, and are often associated with a certain ideology. Some t ...
within the
Republican Party that began in 2009 following the election of Barack Obama as President of the United States. Members of the movement have called for lower
taxes
A tax is a mandatory financial charge or levy imposed on an individual or legal entity by a governmental organization to support government spending and public expenditures collectively or to regulate and reduce negative externalities. Tax co ...
, and for a reduction of the
national debt of the United States
The "national debt of the United States" is the total national debt owed by the federal government of the United States, federal government of the United States to United States Treasury security, treasury security holders. The national debt ...
and
federal budget deficit through decreased
government spending
Government spending or expenditure includes all government consumption, investment, and transfer payments. In national income accounting, the acquisition by governments of goods and services for current use, to directly satisfy the individual or ...
.
[Gallup: Tea Party's top concerns are debt, size of government](_blank)
''The Hill'', July 5, 2010[Somashekhar, Sandhya (September 12, 2010)]
''The Washington Post
''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...
''. Retrieved November 5, 2011. The movement supports small-government principles and opposes
government-sponsored universal healthcare. It has been described as a popular
constitutional
A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organization or other type of entity, and commonly determines how that entity is to be governed.
When these princ ...
movement.
On matters of foreign policy, the movement largely supports avoiding being drawn into unnecessary conflicts and opposes "liberal internationalism".
Its name refers to the
Boston Tea Party
The Boston Tea Party was a seminal American protest, political and Mercantilism, mercantile protest on December 16, 1773, during the American Revolution. Initiated by Sons of Liberty activists in Boston in Province of Massachusetts Bay, colo ...
of December 16, 1773, a watershed event in the launch of the
American Revolution
The American Revolution (1765–1783) was a colonial rebellion and war of independence in which the Thirteen Colonies broke from British America, British rule to form the United States of America. The revolution culminated in the American ...
.
[
] By 2016, ''
Politico
''Politico'' (stylized in all caps), known originally as ''The Politico'', is an American political digital newspaper company founded by American banker and media executive Robert Allbritton in 2007. It covers politics and policy in the Unit ...
'' said that the modern Tea Party movement was "pretty much dead now"; however, the article noted that it seemed to die in part because some of its ideas had been "co-opted" by the mainstream Republican Party.
Politicians associated with the Tea Party include former Representatives
Ron Paul
Ronald Ernest Paul (born August 20, 1935) is an American author, activist, and politician who served as the U.S. representative for Texas's 22nd congressional district from 1976 to 1977, and again from 1979 to 1985, as well as for Texas' ...
,
Michele Bachmann
Michele Marie Bachmann (; née Amble; born April 6, 1956) is an American politician who was the United States House of Representatives, U.S. representative for from 2007 until 2015. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican P ...
and
Allen West,
Senators
Ted Cruz
Rafael Edward Cruz (; born December 22, 1970) is an American politician and attorney serving as the junior United States senator from Texas since 2013. A member of the Republican Party, Cruz was the solicitor general of Texas from 2003 ...
,
Mike Lee
Michael Shumway Lee (born June 4, 1971) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the senior United States senator from Utah, a seat he has held since 2011. A member of the Republican Party, Lee became Utah's senior senator in 2019, whe ...
,
Rand Paul
Randal Howard Paul (born January 7, 1963) is an American politician serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, junior United States senator from Kentucky since 2011.
A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican ...
and
Tim Scott
Timothy Eugene Scott (born September 19, 1965) is an American businessman and politician serving since 2013 as the Seniority in the United States Senate, junior United States Senate, United States senator from South Carolina. A member of the Re ...
,
former Senator
Jim DeMint
James Warren DeMint (born September 2, 1951) is an American businessman, author, and retired politician who served as a United States Senate, United States Senator from South Carolina and as president of The Heritage Foundation. A leading figure ...
,
former acting White House Chief of Staff
Mick Mulvaney
John Michael “Mick” Mulvaney (born July 21, 1967) is an American politician who served as director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) from February 2017 until March 2020, and as acting White House chief of staff from January 2019 un ...
, and 2008 Republican vice presidential nominee and former Alaska Governor
Sarah Palin
Sarah Louise Palin (; Heath; born February 11, 1964) is an American politician, commentator, and author who served as the ninth governor of Alaska from 2006 until her resignation in 2009. She was the 2008 Republican vice presidential nomi ...
.
Although there has never been any one clear founder or leader of the movement, Palin scored highest in a 2010 ''
Washington Post
''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...
'' poll asking Tea Party organizers "which national figure best represents your groups?".
[Tea Party canvass results, "What They Believe" A Party Face](_blank)
''Washington Post'' October 24, 2010. Retrieved June 12, 2022. Ron Paul was described in a 2011 ''
Atlantic
The Atlantic Ocean is the second largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, with an area of about . It covers approximately 17% of Earth's surface and about 24% of its water surface area. During the Age of Discovery, it was known for se ...
'' article as its "intellectual godfather". Both Paul and Palin, although ideologically different in many ways, had a major influence on the emergence of the movement due to their separate 2008
presidential primary and
vice presidential general election runs respectively.
[
Several political organizations were created in response to the movement's growing popularity in the late 2000s and into the early 2010s, including the Tea Party Patriots, Tea Party Express and Tea Party Caucus.
]
See also
* Factions in the Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is an American political party that has significantly evolved and includes various factions throughout its history. Into the 21st century, the liberal faction represents the modern American liberalism that began with the N ...
* Factions in the Libertarian Party (United States)
The Libertarian Party in the United States is composed of various factions, sometimes described as left and right, although many libertarians reject use of these terms to describe the political philosophy.
As of 2024, notable caucuses within the ...
References
Further reading
* Barone, Michael and Richard E. Cohen. ''The Almanac of American Politics, 2010'' (2009). 1,900 pages of minute, nonpartisan detail on every state and district and member of Congress.
* Baker, Peter, and Susan Glasser. ''The Divider: Trump in the White House, 2017-2021'' (2022
excerpt
* Dyche, John David. ''Republican Leader: A Political Biography of Senator Mitch McConnell'' (2009).
* Edsall, Thomas Byrne. ''Building Red America: The New Conservative Coalition and the Drive For Permanent Power'' (2006). Sophisticated analysis by liberal.
* Crane, Michael. ''The Political Junkie Handbook: The Definitive Reference Book on Politics'' (2004). Nonpartisan.
* Frank, Thomas. ''What's the Matter with Kansas'' (2005). Attack by a liberal.
* Frohnen, Bruce, Beer, Jeremy and Nelson, Jeffery O., eds. ''American Conservatism: An Encyclopedia'' (2006). 980 pages of articles by 200 conservative scholars.
* Hamburger, Tom and Peter Wallsten. ''One Party Country: The Republican Plan for Dominance in the 21st Century'' (2006). Hostile.
* Hemmer, Nicole. ''Partisans: The Conservative Revolutionaries Who Remade American Politics in the 1990s'' (2022)
* Hewitt, Hugh. ''GOP 5.0: Republican Renewal Under President Obama'' (2009).
* Ross, Brian
"The Republican Un-Civil War – The Neocons and the Tea Party Fight for Control of the GOP"
(August 9, 2012). Truth-2-Power.
* Wooldridge, Adrian and John Micklethwait. ''The Right Nation: Conservative Power in America'' (2004). Sophisticated nonpartisan analysis.
(October 5, 2006). ''The New York Times''.
(October 4, 1998). ''The Washington Post''.
{{Republican Party (United States), state=collapsed
Factions in the Republican Party (United States)
Republican Party (United States)