What Is Paleoconservatism?
Paleoconservatism is a strain of conservatism in the United States that stresses American nationalism, Christian ethics, traditionalist conservatism, localism and non-interventionism. Part of the Conservative family.
Definition
Paleoconservatism is a strain of conservatism in the United States that stresses American nationalism, Christian ethics, traditionalist conservatism, localism and non-interventionism.
Definition quoted from Wikipedia: Paleoconservatism (text available under CC BY-SA 4.0; checked October 20, 2026).
Core ideas
- Tradition and national identity.
- Protectionism and immigration restriction.
- Non-interventionist foreign policy.
Origins
United States, 1980s.
Associated thinkers and leaders
Pat Buchanan, Russell Kirk
Core ideas, origins and thinkers: Atlas summary.
Where Paleoconservatism sits on the Atlas maps
| Map dimension | Score (0–100) | Position | Reading |
|---|---|---|---|
| Economic Collective / planned ↔ Market | 63 | near the center | |
| Social Progressive ↔ Traditional | 90 | strongly toward traditional | |
| Authority Libertarian ↔ Authoritarian | 32 | toward libertarian | |
| National identity Cosmopolitan ↔ Nationalist | 89 | strongly toward nationalist | |
| Foreign policy Non-intervention ↔ Intervention | 11 | strongly toward non-intervention |
All nine underlying dimensions
| Dimension | Score | Reading |
|---|---|---|
| Economic ownership Collective ownership ↔ Private ownership | 73 | toward private ownership |
| Civil liberties Civil liberty ↔ State restrictions | 37 | near the center |
| National identity Cosmopolitan ↔ Nationalist | 89 | strongly toward nationalist |
| Social and cultural values Progressive ↔ Traditionalist | 98 | strongly toward traditionalist |
| Political governance Democratic ↔ Autocratic | 26 | toward democratic |
| Equality and hierarchy Egalitarian ↔ Hierarchical | 78 | toward hierarchical |
| Economic management Free market ↔ State planning | 53 | near the center |
| Military intervention Non-intervention ↔ Intervention | 11 | strongly toward non-intervention |
| Religion and government Secular state ↔ Religious authority | 70 | toward religious authority |
These positions are estimates on the Atlas’s nine-dimension scale, produced by running the tradition’s core principles through the same questions and scoring used for test-takers. They are interpretations for comparison, not objective measurements. How scores are made.
Estimated positions on key questions
| Statement | Position | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| Opposition parties should be free to compete in elections. | Strongly agrees | estimated from doctrine |
| The means of production should ultimately be owned collectively. | Strongly disagrees | estimated from doctrine |
| People should be free to criticize the government without fear of legal punishment. | Strongly agrees | estimated from doctrine |
| Central economic planning is preferable to decentralized market decisions. | Strongly disagrees | estimated from doctrine |
| A national religious authority should have the power to veto legislation. | Disagrees | estimated from doctrine |
| National borders should become less important over time. | Strongly disagrees | estimated from doctrine |
| Military power should be used proactively when serious external threats are emerging. | Strongly disagrees | estimated from doctrine |
| Traditional values should guide what society considers right and wrong. | Strongly agrees | estimated from doctrine |
| Class distinctions should gradually disappear. | Strongly disagrees | estimated from doctrine |
| During a pandemic, governments should be able to close businesses and places of worship. | Strongly disagrees | estimated from doctrine |
Related ideologies
Main differences from the closest ideologies
- Compared with Agrarian Conservatism, Paleoconservatism sits 6 points further toward nationalist on the national identity dimension.
- Compared with National Conservatism, Paleoconservatism sits 14 points further toward non-intervention on the foreign policy dimension.
- Compared with Political Catholicism, Paleoconservatism sits 14 points further toward nationalist on the national identity dimension.
Comparisons
Neoconservatism vs Paleoconservatism
Figures with the closest estimated positions
Closeness of estimated positions only; this does not mean these people identify with Paleoconservatism.
Sources
Position last reviewed: not yet reviewed individually.