Question

- Differentiate between political
and economic liberalism
​

Answer 1

Economic liberalism is commonly known as neoliberalism today. It is essentially a rehashed version of supply-side, trickle down and free market capitalism with a strong emphasis on deregulation and multinationalism. Contrary to the arguments of its proponents it inevitably results in financial booms and busts that benefit only the wealthy elite and their acolytes. Since it has a decided emphasis on global markets it also tends to undermine national sovereignty. It is most often associated with right wing politics.

Political liberalism was originally associated with the labor movement in the U.S. and had a distinct left wing, environmental and pacifist association. It often was aligned with social movements i.e racial equality, women’s rights and LBGT emancipation. However, recently, since the Reagan revolution, unions lost much of their financial support when capital investment went overseas to take advantage of cheap labor. Environmental and peace advocates consequently lost much of their funding and deregulation laws reversed many of the gains achieved under the New Deal. The Democrats turned toward Silicon Valley moguls and High Tech for their funding but often joined with Republicans to undo the social safety net by amending previous laws( e.g. the Glass -Steagall Act) including those that curbed First Amendment rights(e.g. the Patriot Act and the Smith-Mundt Act). They effectively became more right wing and less liberal as they moved away from labor and more towards corporate funding. However, they continued to garner support from social liberals who identified with single issues.

Today neoliberalism has the connotation of being economically conservative and socially liberal and represents a significant portion of both major parties, although the populist Trump wing of the Republican Party, is significantly more reactionary on social issues. The term left in today’s politics is often used by both parties to refer to social liberals, a ludicrous distortion of its original meaning and the meaning it still retains in most developed countries.