Neoconservatism

Neoconservatism emerged in the 1960s and 1970s among intellectuals, many of them former liberals or socialists such as Irving Kristol and Norman Podhoretz, who felt the left had abandoned anti-communism and traditional values. They joined the conservative movement, bringing an emphasis on foreign policy and social-science argument.

In international affairs, neoconservatives tend to favor a robust American role, including military strength, support for democratic allies and sometimes the use of force to spread or defend democracy, themes of american exceptionalism. They influenced the Reagan administration and, later, the debates leading to the 2003 invasion of Iraq under President George W. Bush. At home, many accepted a limited welfare state while criticizing its unintended effects.

The label is contested. Supporters see it as a defense of free societies; critics, including paleoconservatives, libertarians and the anti-interventionist wing of the national-conservative movement, argue that it led to costly wars, and "neocon" is sometimes used as a pejorative, occasionally with antisemitic overtones that many have condemned. Others reject the term as a caricature. Its influence within the right has declined since the Iraq War, though debates continue over foreign policy.