Social conservatism

Social conservatism is a political or moral ideology that believes that government has a role in encouraging or enforcing what they consider traditional values or behaviors. A second meaning of the term social conservatism developed in the Nordic countries and continental Europe. There it refers to liberal conservatives supporting modern European welfare states. Social conservatism is distinct from cultural conservatism which focuses on cultural aspects of the issues, such as protecting one's culture, although there are some overlaps.

The accepted meaning of traditional morality often differs from group to group within social conservatism. Thus, there are really no policies or positions that could be considered universal among social conservatives. There are, however, a number of principles to which at least a majority of social conservatives adhere. Social conservatives in many countries generally: favor the pro-life position in the abortion controversy; oppose all forms of and wish to ban embryonic stem cell research ; oppose both eugenics (inheritable genetic modification) and human enhancement (transhumanism) while supporting bioconservatism ^[1]; support a traditional definition of marriage as being one man and one woman; view the nuclear family model as society's foundational unit; oppose expansion of civil marriage and child adoption rights to couples in same-sex relationships; promote public morality and traditional family values; oppose secularism and privatization of religious belief; support the prohibition of drugs, prostitution, premarital sex, non-marital sex and euthanasia; and support the censorship of pornography and what they consider to be obscenity or indecency.

Social conservatism and other ideological views

There is no necessary link between social and fiscal conservatism; some social conservatives such as Mike Huckabee^[2], George W. Bush^[3], and Michael Gerson^[4] are otherwise apolitical, centrist or left-wing on economic and fiscal issues. Social conservatives support economic intervention where the intervention serves moral or cultural aims. Many Social Conservatives support the so-called fair market i.e. a free market with labour, social and environmental considerations. This concern for material welfare, like advocacy of traditional mores, will often have a basis in religion. Examples include the Christian Social Union of Bavaria, the Family First Party and National Party of Australia, and the communitarian movement in the United States.

There is overlap between social conservatism and paleoconservatism, in that they both have respect for traditional social forms. However, paleoconservatism bears a closer resemblance to New Deal Democrats in domestic policies and is isolationist in foreign policy.

Social conservatism and American political parties

In American politics, the Republican Party (United States) is the largest political party with some socially conservative ideals incorporated into its platform. Voters who are concerned with socially conservative issues often support the Republican Party, although there are also socially-Conservative Democrats who break ranks with the party platform. Despite this, there have been instances where the Republican Party's Nominee has been considered too socially progressive by social conservatives. This has led to the support of third party candidates whose philosophies more closely parallel that of Social Conservatism.^[5] While many social conservatives see third parties as a viable option in such a situation, some high-profile social conservatives see the excessive support of them as dangerous. This fear arises from the possibility of vote splitting.^[6] An example of this would be if a Republican who is moderately socially-conservative is considered too progressive on social issues to be supported. A third party candidate (such as Constitution Party), who is more socially conservative, would then be backed by a faction of the social conservatives. In the resulting general election, the social-conservatives split the conservative voting bloc between the center-right Republican and third-party candidate, thus allowing the socially progressive Democrat to attain the relative majority (plurality) of the popular vote. Social Conservatives, like any other interest-group, usually must find a balance between pragmatic electability and ideological principles when supporting candidates.^[7]

Commentator Randall Hoven of The American Thinker has remarked, "Using the National Journals ratings of Senators in 2007, the correlation coefficient between "economic" scores and "social" scores is 90%. That means they almost always go together; financial conservatives are social conservatives and vice versa".^[8]

The American Tea Party movement is officially economically conservative, but neutral^[9] on social conservative issues. Some branches of the Tea Party movement are opposed^[10] to social conservatism. While social conservatism emphasizes faith and family as core values, the Tea Party Patriots, the largest and most influential Tea Party organization, identifies the "Core Values" of the Tea Party as "Fiscal Responsibility, Constitutionally Limited Government, Free Markets."^[11] While independent polls have shown that Tea Party supporters are nearly indistinguishable in their views from traditional Republican social conservatives,^[12] there is evidence that an overwhelming majority in the movement have no commitment to the success of the social conservative agenda.^[13] Less than half of the Tea Party identifies with the Christian conservative movement.^[14] The Tea Party more strongly overlaps with the Republican Party than the Democratic Party.^[15]

Historically, free market and social conservative elements were politically separate in the United States. An alliance of convenience was generated between them in the last half of the twentieth century under the doctrine of Fusionism, created by the ex-communist Frank Meyer, editor of the National Review. The current unravelling of the alliance is attributable to the two movements' fundamentally incompatible views concerning the basis of capitalism and the proper role of government.^[16]

List of social conservative political parties

Australia

National Party of Australia
Democratic Labor Party
Australia First Party
A large number of Liberal Party of Australia, Family First Party and to a lesser extent Australian Labor Party members in Australia are also considered socially conservative.

Austria

Belgium

Brazil

Brazilian Social Democratic Party

Croatia

Canada

Chile

Independent Democrat Union

Czech Republic

Christian and Democratic Union – Czechoslovak People's Party

France

A number of Union for a Popular Movement members in France as considered socially conservative.
- including the Christian Democratic Party, UMP affiliate

and, including far right and nationalist ideas

India

Iran

Ireland

Israel

Italy

and, with nationalist and separatist ideas

Lega Nord

Japan

Netherlands

New Zealand

Nigeria

Norway

Christian Democratic Party

Poland

Slovakia

Christian Democratic Movement

Spain

People's Party

Serbia

Party of Serbian Unity

Sweden

Sweden Democrats

Switzerland

Turkey

United Kingdom

Christian Party
The Cornerstone Group, a faction of the Conservative Party
Democratic Unionist Party
Ulster Unionist Party
UK Independence Party

United States

Social conservative factions of political parties

References

^ The Next Digital Divide (utne article)
^ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yNfOiseKnoA
^ http://www.cato.org/pub_display.php?pub_id=3184
^ http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/01/29/AR2008012902212.html
^ huffingtonpost news story on NY23
^ Romney tells Tea Party not to split vote
^ Third Party Alternative to McCain (Although no third party siphoned any significant percentage from McCain, such voter sentiment truly existed during the campaign)
^ http://www.americanthinker.com/2008/11/a_libertarian_defense_of_socia.html
^ http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/13/us/politics/13tea.html
^ http://www.goproud.org/tea-party-leaders-release-letter-urging-house-and-senate-gop-to-avoid-social-issues/
^ http://www.teapartypatriots.org/mission.aspx
^ http://www.pewforum.org/Politics-and-Elections/Tea-Party-and-Religion.aspx
^ http://hotair.com/archives/2010/11/17/in-tea-party-poll-fiscal-issues-beat-out-social-issues-by-a-lot/
^ http://www.publicreligion.org/research/?id=386
^ http://www.gallup.com/poll/141098/Tea-Party-Supporters-Overlap-Republican-Base.aspx
^ http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2008/03/the_end_of_republican_fusionis.html