2016 elections - because it's never too early

[Tonitrus]

I dunno...I think Hillary might have the skill/guile to play Trump and dodge the blast zone...Bernie might get in too close and absorb the blast and wilt away.

[Jacob]

Uhm, free trade is classic liberalism. 

In fact, liberalism has been so absolutely triumphant on economy issues, nobody in America even realises there used to be a conservative economic doctrine (which survives, very stunted, in Europe), and its (liberalism's) tenets have been accepted wholesale by both right and left (with the right adopting a more laissez faire version of it, and the left the so-called socliberalism of early 20th century).

BB: "Conservatism totally won! Once Conservatives adopted liberal ideology and grafted on social democrat welfare policies and called it a Conservative agenda, Conservatism has been accepted by pretty much EVERYONE!"

... of course, the Conservative agenda usually contains bits about dialing down parts of the social democrat welfare schemes and attaching severe moral judgements to it, but the point that the rest of it is mostly classic liberalism is well taken.

[Admiral Yi]

You guys are being silly.  Classical liberal essentially means free market.  Which end of the political spectrum currently supports the free market more?

[MadImmortalMan]

You guys are being silly.  Classical liberal essentially means free market.  Which end of the political spectrum currently supports the free market more?

Neither. They both oppose it but in different ways.

[Jacob]

You guys are being silly.  Classical liberal essentially means free market.  Which end of the political spectrum currently supports the free market more?

The middle.

[Zanza]

You guys are being silly.  Classical liberal essentially means free market.  Which end of the political spectrum currently supports the free market more?

It's clearly a centrist position. It's only cranks or radicals that oppose it.

[DGuller]

You guys are being silly.  Classical liberal essentially means free market.  Which end of the political spectrum currently supports the free market more?

I know the answer you're fishing for is "Republicans", but that's not really the case.  Crony capitalism and oligarchy is not any more free market than regulated free market favored by the Democrats.

[Martinus]

You guys are being silly.  Classical liberal essentially means free market.  Which end of the political spectrum currently supports the free market more?

As MiM has said, both conservatives and socialists oppose different parts of it. For example, conservatives are not the biggest proponents of free and unrestricted market for abortion, sex services or cannabis.

[Razgovory]

You guys are being silly.  Classical liberal essentially means free market.  Which end of the political spectrum currently supports the free market more?

That's really only facet of the ideology.  Pacifism was also a major element which end of the political spectrum currently supports Pacifism more?

[Legbiter]

I dunno...I think Hillary might have the skill/guile to play Trump and dodge the blast zone...Bernie might get in too close and absorb the blast and wilt away.

It's conflict based marketing that Trump turns on and off as needed. In his latest performance he positioned himself for the general and riled Jeb! up so much he'll stay in the contest and split the establishment vote.

Also: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aP-ryuJn4FE   

[celedhring]

Wait? Free market is a conservative issue now? Since when? If anything it speaks of conservatism's inability to actually be "conservative" and how it has adopted social-liberal values in order to stay with the times (so have the social-democrats).
Conservatism in Spain, for example, has historically been all about protectionism and maintaining outdated economic structures - which benefited the establishment - and didn't start to be permeable to liberal ideas until the second half of this century. And there's still a struggle between traditional conservatives and actual liberals within the party (so much, that the newly-created liberal party has been able to steal vote from them and be reasonably successful).

[alfred russel]

It is complicated in the American context. What has been consistent since the foundation of the party, is that while so much has changed, Republicans have been the party of big business. Up until the great depression that meant being in favor of high tariffs, to protect American business, while Democrats tended to not be in favor of them due to the impact on consumer prices. After WWII, the dynamic shifted, with the academic consensus being that free trade would be good for business, republicans became in favor of free trade and union aligned democrats opposed due to the impact it could have on existing jobs.

It has never been a clean division, but if you look at NAFTA as an example, even though it was signed into law by a democrat, the republicans generally supported it while most democrats in congress did not. So in that sense, if the republicans are the conservative party and democrats the liberal party, then free trade could be viewed as the conservative position (even if that is backwards in a historical context).

These days, I'm not so sure it is still that way, as a strong nativist current is running through the republicans.

[Phillip V]

Clinton lowers expectations on Nevada vote this week because the state has lots of white people.

http://www.politico.com/story/2016/02/clinton-hillary-nevada-blowback-219295

[Eddie Teach]

It also has lots of Latinos.

[Admiral Yi]

I know the answer you're fishing for is "Republicans", but that's not really the case.  Crony capitalism and oligarchy is not any more free market than regulated free market favored by the Democrats.

What are you talking about when you say crony capitalism and oligarchy?