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In American politics, fusionism is the philosophical and political combination or "fusion" of traditionalist and social conservatism 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 ...
. The philosophy is most closely associated with Frank Meyer.


Intellectual founding and positions

The philosophy of "fusionism" was developed at ''
National Review ''National Review'' is an American conservative editorial magazine, focusing on news and commentary pieces on political, social, and cultural affairs. The magazine was founded by the author William F. Buckley Jr. in 1955. Its editor-in-chief ...
'' magazine during the 1950s under the editorship of
William F. Buckley, Jr. William Frank Buckley Jr. (born William Francis Buckley; November 24, 1925 – February 27, 2008) was an American public intellectual, conservative author and political commentator. In 1955, he founded ''National Review'', the magazine that stim ...
and is most identified with his associate editor Frank Meyer. As Buckley recounted the founding, he "brokered" between "an extraordinary mix" of
libertarians Libertarianism (from french: libertaire, "libertarian"; from la, libertas, "freedom") is a political philosophy that upholds liberty as a core value. Libertarians seek to maximize autonomy and political freedom, and minimize the state's enc ...
, traditional conservatives,
anti-communists Anti-communism is political and ideological opposition to communism. Organized anti-communism developed after the 1917 October Revolution in the Russian Empire, and it reached global dimensions during the Cold War, when the United States and the ...
and even an anarchist to produce the ideas and writings that produced modern conservatism. He identified Meyer's synthesis as the most likely best solution of defining conservatism. In his most influential book, ''In Defense of Freedom'', Meyer defined freedom in what Isaiah Berlin would label "negative" terms as the minimization of the use of coercion by the state in its essential role of preventing one person's freedom from intruding upon another's. The state should protect freedom but otherwise leave virtue to individuals. The state has only three legitimate functions – police, military and operating a legal system, all necessary to control coercion, which is immoral if not restricted. Virtue is critical for society and freedom must be balanced by responsibility but both are inherently individual in form. Coerced values cannot be virtuous. Freedom by itself has no goal, no intrinsic end. Freedom is not abstract or utopian as with the utilitarians, who also make freedom an end rather than a means. In a real society traditional order and freedom can only exist together. The solution is a philosophical synthesis of both freedom and tradition, the solution to the dilemma is "grasping it by both horns" and accepting the tension between the two. Fusionism's most famous advocate was Ronald Reagan as an early admirer of National Review and associate of both editors. On assuming the presidency in 1981, he met with conservative leaders around the country in Washington and reminded them of their intellectual roots. After listing "intellectual leaders like Russell Kirk, Friedrich Hayek, Henry Hazlitt, Milton Friedman, James Burnham, ndLudwig von Mises" as the ones who "shaped so much of our thoughts," he discussed only one of these influences at length: As he recalled him, the new president outlined the ideas Meyer synthesized as the principles for this new conservative movement.


Political history

Fusionism saw its height during the
presidency A presidency is an administration or the executive, the collective administrative and governmental entity that exists around an office of president of a state or nation. Although often the executive branch of government, and often personified b ...
of Ronald Reagan, who had brought together the divided factions after Gerald Ford's loss in the 1976 election. In the immediate aftermath of the Republican takeover of Congress in 1994, fusionism was also at its height. The
social conservative Social conservatism is a political philosophy and variety of conservatism which places emphasis on traditional power structures over social pluralism. Social conservatives organize in favor of duty, traditional values and social instituti ...
element of the Republican Party was seen on the ascent (at least with respect to domestic politics) during the presidency of
George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...
. Increased spending angered traditional conservatives,
fiscal conservatives Fiscal conservatism is a political and economic philosophy regarding fiscal policy and fiscal responsibility with an ideological basis in capitalism, individualism, limited government, and ''laissez-faire'' economics.M. O. Dickerson et al., '' ...
, and libertarians.
/ref> In addition, the long-standing tensions between neoconservatism, neoconservatives and
paleoconservatives Paleoconservatism is a political philosophy and variety of conservatism in the United States stressing American nationalism, Christian ethics, regionalism, and traditionalist conservatism. Paleoconservatism's concerns overlap with those of the ...
bubbled over in the wake of the
Iraq War {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Iraq War {{Nobold, {{lang, ar, حرب العراق (Arabic) {{Nobold, {{lang, ku, شەڕی عێراق ( Kurdish) , partof = the Iraq conflict and the War on terror , image ...
. While both these principles are traditionally conservative, the equal emphasis of traditional morality and free markets is a characteristic of fusionism. Following the Republican Party's defeat in the
2006 midterm elections The 2006 United States elections were held on Tuesday, November 7, 2006, in the middle of Republican President George W. Bush's second term. Democrats won control of both houses of Congress, which was the first and only time either party did so ...
, some were calling for a new "fusionism" between libertarians and liberals in the
Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...
to address what is seen as increasing governmental interference in private activity. The results of the 2008 elections and the
financial crisis of 2007–2008 Finance is the study and discipline of money, currency and capital assets. It is related to, but not synonymous with economics, the study of production, distribution, and consumption of money, assets, goods and services (the discipline of fi ...
have brought renewed tension between the libertarians and the social conservatives with centrist economic views. Fusionists tend to see the unpopularity of George W. Bush's "
compassionate conservatism Compassionate conservatism is an American political philosophy that stresses using conservative techniques and concepts in order to improve the general welfare of society. The philosophy supports the implementation of policies designed to help the ...
," such as in his new entitlement prescription drug program, and his party's following defeat by President Barack Obama in 2008 and 2012, as reasons requiring a fusionist renewal if conservatism was ever to regain the presidency.


Criticism

In a polemic, the
traditional A tradition is a belief or behavior (folk custom) passed down within a group or society with symbolic meaning or special significance with origins in the past. A component of cultural expressions and folklore, common examples include holidays or ...
conservative philosopher
Russell Kirk Russell Amos Kirk (October 19, 1918 – April 29, 1994) was an American political theorist, moralist, historian, social critic, and literary critic, known for his influence on 20th-century American conservatism. His 1953 book ''The Conservativ ...
, quoting T. S. Eliot's expression, called libertarians ''"chirping sectaries".'' He added that although conservatives and libertarians share opposition to collectivism, the totalist state and bureaucracy, they have otherwise nothing in common. He called the libertarian movement "an ideological clique forever splitting into sects still smaller and odder, but rarely conjugating". Asserting a division between believers in "some sort of transcendent moral order" and "utilitarians admitting no transcendent sanctions for conduct", he included libertarians in the latter category. Kirk had questioned fusionism between libertarians and traditional conservatives that marked much of post-World War II conservatism in the United States. Kirk also berated libertarians for holding up capitalism as an absolute good, arguing that economic self-interest was inadequate to hold an economic system together, and even less adequate to preserve order. He said that by glorifying the individual, the free market, and the dog-eat-dog struggle for material success, libertarianism weakened community, promoted materialism, and undermined appreciation of tradition, love, learning, and aesthetics, all of which he believed were essential components of true community. Author Carl Bogus stated that there were fundamental differences between libertarians and traditional conservatives: Libertarians wanted the market to be unregulated as possible while traditional conservatives believed that big business, if unconstrained, could impoverish national life and threaten freedom. He said libertarians also believed that a strong state would threaten freedom, while traditional conservatives believed that a strong state, properly constructed to ensure that not too much power accumulated in any one branch, was necessary to ensure freedom. Fusionism has come under significant attack since 2014, especially by Catholic integralists. In 2018, these critiques have also been taken up by mainstream conservative commentators.


List of critics

*
L. Brent Bozell Jr. Leo Brent Bozell Jr. (; January 15, 1926 – April 15, 1997) was an American conservative activist and Roman Catholic writer, and former US Merchant Marine. He was a conservative Catholic, and a strong supporter of the anti-abortion movement. ...
traditionalist
Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
political author; Young Americans for Freedom (YAF) Alum * Ayn Rand – novelist and founder of
Objectivism Objectivism is a philosophical system developed by Russian-American writer and philosopher Ayn Rand. She described it as "the concept of man as a heroic being, with his own happiness as the moral purpose of his life, with productive achievemen ...
, who clashed with traditional conservatives and with libertarians *
Murray Rothbard Murray Newton Rothbard (; March 2, 1926 – January 7, 1995) was an American economist of the Austrian School, economic historian, political theorist, and activist. Rothbard was a central figure in the 20th-century American libertarian ...
– libertarian author and economist; Young Americans for Freedom (YAF) Alum *
Patrick Buchanan Patrick Joseph Buchanan (; born November 2, 1938) is an American paleoconservative political commentator, columnist, politician, and broadcaster. Buchanan was an assistant and special consultant to U.S. Presidents Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, a ...
– political commentator and prominent paleoconservative; Young Americans for Freedom (YAF) Alum *
Sohrab Ahmari Sohrab Ahmari ( fa, سهراب احمری, translit=Sohrāb Aḥmarī, translit-std=ALA-LC; born February 1, 1985) is an Iranian American columnist, editor, and author of nonfiction books. He is a founding editor of the online magazine ''Compact ...
– opinion editor of ''
The New York Post The ''New York Post'' (''NY Post'') is a conservative daily tabloid newspaper published in New York City. The ''Post'' also operates NYPost.com, the celebrity gossip site PageSix.com, and the entertainment site Decider.com. It was established ...
''


See also

*
Big tent A big tent party, or catch-all party, is a term used in reference to a political party's policy of permitting or encouraging a broad spectrum of views among its members. This is in contrast to other kinds of parties, which defend a determined i ...
*
Fusion Party Fusion Party is a name for multiple political parties in United States history and more recently a Federal political party established in Australia. The different parties that used the name don't share any particular political positions; instead ...
*
Libertarian conservatism Libertarian conservatism, also referred to as conservative libertarianism and conservatarianism, is a political and social philosophy that combines conservatism and libertarianism, representing the libertarian wing of conservatism and vice ve ...
* Neoconservatism and paleoconservatism *
Neo-libertarianism Neo-libertarianism is a political and social philosophy that combines "the libertarian's moral commitment to negative liberty with a procedure that selects principles for restricting liberty on the basis of a unanimous agreement in which everyone ...
* Outline of libertarianism


Notes


References

* * * Feser, Edward
"Hayek and Fusionism"
* Kling, Arnold.
"Why Be a Conservative Libertarian?"
* Lindsey, Brink
"Liberaltarians"
* Sager, Ryan (2006). ''The Elephant in the Room: Evangelicals, Libertarians and the Battle to Control the Republican Party'', Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley, ,


External links

*
Jonah Goldberg Jonah Jacob Goldberg (born March 21, 1969) is an American conservative syndicated columnist, author, political analyst, and commentator. The founding editor of ''National Review Online'', from 1998 until 2019 he was an editor at '' National Revie ...
(November 5, 2015)
"Fusionism, 60 Years Later"
– ''
National Review ''National Review'' is an American conservative editorial magazine, focusing on news and commentary pieces on political, social, and cultural affairs. The magazine was founded by the author William F. Buckley Jr. in 1955. Its editor-in-chief ...
'' {{Conservatism navbox American political philosophy Economic ideologies Libertarian terms Libertarianism in the United States Paleolibertarianism Political theories Right-wing politics Right-libertarianism