National conservatism
National conservatism is a nationalist variant of conservatism that concentrates on upholding national, cultural identity, communitarianism, and the public role of religion (see religion in politics). It shares aspects of traditionalist conservatism and social conservatism, while departing from economic liberalism and libertarianism, as well as taking a more agnostic approach to regulatory economics and protectionism.[1][2][3][4][5][6] National conservatives usually combine conservatism with nationalist stances, emphasizing cultural conservatism, family values and opposition to illegal immigration or opposition to immigration per se.[5][6][7] National conservative parties often have roots in environments with a rural, traditionalist or peripheral basis, contrasting with the more urban support base of liberal conservative parties.[8]
In Europe, they usually embrace some form of Euroscepticism.[9][10] In post-communist central and eastern Europe specifically, most conservative parties since 1989 have followed a national conservative ideology.[11] Most notable is the government of Viktor Orbán in Hungary, who has explicitly described his party's ideology as being national conservative in character, and whose government is involved in the funding and spread of national conservative institutions across Europe and the United States, such as the Danube Institute, Mathias Corvinus Collegium, European Conservative magazine, and National Conservatism Conference.[12][13][14][15] In the United States, Trumpism can be considered a variety of national conservatism,[16][17][18] which also gives its name to the National Conservatism Conference, organised by the Edmund Burke Foundation.[19]
National conservatism was recently re-launched by Israeli-American political philosopher and Biblical scholar Yoram Hazony, with his 2022 book Conservatism: A Rediscovery.[20][21][22] Hazony has written that "In the political arena, conservatism refers to a standpoint that regards the recovery, restoration, elaboration, and repair of national and religious traditions as the key to maintaining a nation and strengthening it through time."[1]
Ideology[edit]
Social policies[edit]
Ideologically, national conservatism is not a uniform philosophy but adherents have broadly expressed support for nationalism, patriotism, assimilationism and monoculturalism. At the same time there is expressed opposition to internationalism, racial politics, multiculturalism and globalism.[23][24][25] National conservatives adhere to a form of cultural nationalism that emphasizes the preservation of national identity as well as cultural identity. As a result, many favor assimilation into the dominant culture, restrictions on immigration and strict law and order policies.[6][9][5]
National conservative parties are "socially traditional"[9] and support
traditional family values, gender roles and the public role of religion,[5][26] being sometimes critical of separation of church and state. According to the Austrian political scientist Sieglinde Rosenberger, "national conservatism praises the family as a home and a center of identity, solidarity, and tradition".[26] National conservatives are thus social conservatives.
Economic policies[edit]
National conservative parties in different countries do not necessarily share a common position on economic policy. Their views may range from support of corporatism and mixed economy to a more laissez-faire approach. In the first, more common case, national conservatives can be distinguished from liberal conservatives,[27] for whom free market economic policies, deregulation and tight spending are the main priorities. Some commentators have indeed identified a growing gap between national and economic liberal conservatism: "Most parties of the Right [today] are run by economically liberal conservatives who, in varying degrees, have marginalised social, cultural and national conservatives."[27]
Foreign policy[edit]
National conservatives usually support a foreign policy that upholds the interests of their nation. They lean towards militarism, unilateralism and isolationism. They reject the internationalism and multilateralism that has characterized the modern global age.[28][29] They often have a negative view of the United Nations, feeling that its globalist agenda erodes their unique national identity,[28][29] as well as the European Union and other international organizations.[16]