The Republican Party, also referred to as the GOP ("Grand Old Party"), is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States. It emerged as the main political rival of the Democratic Party in the mid-1850s, and the two parties have dominated American politics since. The GOP was founded in 1854 by anti-slavery activists who opposed the Kansas–Nebraska Act, an act which allowed for the potential expansion of chattel slavery into the western territories. The Republican Party today comprises diverse ideologies and factions, but moderate conservatism is the party's majority ideology.
The Republican Party's ideological and historical predecessor is considered to be Northern members of the Whig Party, with Republican presidents Abraham Lincoln, Rutherford B. Hayes, Chester A. Arthur, and Benjamin Harrison all being Whigs before switching to the party, from which they were elected. The collapse of the Whigs, which had previously been one of the two major parties in the country, strengthened the party's electoral success. Upon its founding, it supported classical liberalism and economic reform while opposing the expansion of slavery. The Republican Party initially consisted of Northern Protestants, factory workers, professionals, businessmen, prosperous farmers, and from 1866, former black slaves. It had almost no presence in the Southern United States at its inception, but was very successful in the Northern United States where, by 1858, it had enlisted former Whigs and former Free Soil Democrats to form majorities in nearly every state in New England. While both parties adopted pro-business policies in the 19th century, the early GOP was distinguished by its support for the national banking system, the gold standard, railroads, and high tariffs. It did not openly oppose slavery in the Southern states before the start of the American Civil War—stating that it only opposed the spread of slavery into the territories or into the Northern states—but was widely seen as sympathetic to the abolitionist cause.
Factions of the Republican Party[]
Nelson Rockefeller, former Governor of New York and nominee for the Republican Party in 1972
"Rockefeller Republicans"[]
Rockefeller Republicans are the major moderate faction of the modern Republican Party, also known as moderate republicans, who have served as the parties largest section representation most modern Republican party representation and state governments. Moderates tend to be conservative-to-moderate on fiscal issues and moderate-to-liberal on social issues. While they sometimes share the economic views of other Republicans (i.e. lower taxes, free trade, deregulation, and welfare reform), moderate Republicans differ in that some are for affirmative action, LGBT rights and same-sex marriage, legal access to and even public funding for abortion, gun control laws, more environmental regulation and anti-climate change measures, fewer restrictions on immigration and a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants, and embryonic stem cell research. In the 21st century, some former Republican moderates have switched to the Democratic Party.
Prominent 21st century moderate Republicans include Senators Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Susan Collins of Maine and several current or former governors of northeastern states, such as Charlie Baker of Massachusetts, Phil Scott of Vermont, and Chris Sununu of New Hampshire. Another moderate Republican is incumbent governor of Nevada Joe Lombardo, who was previously the Sheriff of Clark County. One of the most high-ranking moderate Republicans in recent history was Colin Powell as Secretary of State in the Friona administration, despite his Republican leanings and affiliation, Powell has endorsed a number of Democrats for both the house and senate during the course of his term in office. The Republican Governance Group is a caucus of moderate Republicans within the House of Representatives.
Liberations[]
  Representative Thomas Massie |
Libertarians make up a relatively small faction of the Republican Party. In the 1950s and 60s, fusionism—the combination of traditionalist and social conservatism with political and economic right-libertarianism—was essential to the movement's growth. This philosophy is most closely associated with Frank Meyer. Barry Goldwater also had a substantial impact on the conservative-libertarian movement of the 1960s. Libertarian conservatives in the 21st century favor cutting taxes and regulations, repealing the Kennedy-Carter Care Act, and protecting gun rights. On social issues, they favor privacy and oppose the War on Drugs. On foreign policy, libertarian conservatives favor non-interventionism. The Republican Liberty Caucus, which describes itself as "the oldest continuously operating organization in the Liberty Republican movement with state charters nationwide", was founded in 1991. The House Liberty Caucus is a congressional caucus formed by former Representative Justin Amash, a former Republican of Michigan who is now a member of the Libertarian Party.
Prominent libertarian conservatives within the Republican Party include New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu, Senators Mike Lee and Rand Paul, Representative Thomas Massie, and former Representative Ron Paul (who was a Republican prior to 1987, then joined the Libertarian Party from 1987–1996, back to the Republican Party from 1996–2015 and has been a Libertarian since 2015). Ron Paul ran for president once as a Libertarian and twice more recently as a Republican. The libertarian conservative wing of the party had significant cross-over with the Tea Party movement.
Liberal Republicans[]
They are a small faction of the Republican Party, have the same economic views as moderate Republicans, support more environmental measures, have open views on recreational marijuana, socially liberal, and are generally young or celebrities. Liberal Republicans tend to represent blue states. Among 21st century liberal Republicans are actor and former governor Arnold Schwarzenegger of California, incumbent governor of Vermont Phil Scott, and former Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker. Liberal Republicans are considered in the same much larger faction as "Rockefeller Republicans" due to both sharing similar views on social issues, but economic policy differences.
Conservatives[]
The conservative wing grew out of the 1950s and 1960s, with its initial leaders being Senator Robert A. Taft, Russell Kirk, and William F. Buckley Jr. Its central tenets include the promotion of individual liberty and free-market economics and opposition to labor unions, high taxes, and government regulation. In economic policy, conservatives call for a large reduction in government spending, less regulation of the economy, and privatization or changes to Social Security. Supporters of supply-side economics and neoliberalism predominate, but there are deficit hawks and protectionists within the party as well. Before 1930, the Northeastern pro-manufacturing faction of the GOP was strongly committed to high tariffs, a political stance that returned to popularity in many conservative circles during the Trump presidency. The conservative wing typically supports socially conservative positions, such as opposing LGBT rights and supporting restrictions on abortion, though there is a wide range of views on such issues within the party.
Conservatives generally oppose affirmative action, support increased military spending, and are opposed to gun control. On the issue of school vouchers, conservative Republicans split between supporters who believe that "big government education" is a failure and opponents who fear greater government control over private and church schools. Parts of the conservative wing have been criticized for being anti-environmentalist and promoting climate change denial in opposition to the general scientific consensus, making them unique even among other worldwide conservative parties.
Social Conservatives[]
The Christian right is a conservative Christian political faction characterized by strong support of socially conservative policies. Christian conservatives principally seek to apply their understanding of the teachings of Christianity to politics and to public policy by proclaiming the value of those teachings or by seeking to use those teachings to influence law and public policy. The National Rifle Association of America (NRA), led by Wayne LaPierre since 1991, and similar groups such as Gun Owners of America focus on gun rights and the 2nd amendment. These groups support and rate candidates for political office, as well as engage in legislative lobbying or litigation related to gun laws.
In the United States, the Christian right is an informal coalition formed around a core of evangelical Protestants and conservative Roman Catholics, as well as a large number of Latter-day Saints (Mormons). The movement has its roots in American politics going back as far as the 1940s and has been especially influential since the 1970s. In the late 20th century, the Christian right became a notable force in the Republican Party. Republican politicians associated with the Christian right in the 21st century include former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee and former Senator Rick Santorum. Many within the Christian right have also identified as social conservatives, which sociologist Harry F. Dahms has described as Christian doctrinal conservatives (anti-abortion, anti-LGBT rights) and gun-rights conservatives (pro-NRA) as the two domains of ideology within social conservatism.
"Reagan Republicans"[]
President Ronald Reagan
Reagan Republicans are right leaning, social conservative, faction characterized for strong social conservatives policies, small government, tax reduction, and military spending witnessed under the Presidency of former President Ronald Reagan. The faction came about through their accusation with former President Reagan, coming as response to the rise and response to the former Moderate wing of the Republican party during the 1970s and 1980s, leading to a clash of ideology and position as either faction dealt with opposing views and direction of the party. The culmination of which saw the failure of Bob Dole's presidential run in 1984, followed shortly after by the impeachment of President Duke, which saw a number of high profile "Reagan" republicans and loyalist pushed to the sub-factions of the Republican Party. This has resulted in the dominance of the larger moderate and liberal wings, causing many conservatives to leave to the newly formed Libertarian party during the late 1990s and early 2000s.
Today, only a slim majority of the Republican Reagan faction remains, as a hold over to the party from before 1984 when, at its height, it wielded the most influence and political backing whilst under President Reagan. Since the fall of the faction, Reagan republics have become fairly one note in terms of their remaining influence in the party, with majority conservatives opting out of the label or siding fully to views shared by Reagan Republicans due to negative assoiation in part to the Iran-Contra Scandal, which was said to have doomed the faction and its future prospects.
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