The End of the Neoliberal Consensus

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  Politics and Government on Thu, Aug 06th, 2026 by Los Angeles Daily News
      Locale: UNITED STATES

The Collapse of the Neoliberal Consensus

The shift represents the final expiration of the neoliberal consensus that dominated global politics from the 1980s until the early 2020s. The belief that globalized trade and the unfettered movement of capital would inevitably lead to prosperity for all has been replaced by a stark realization of the vulnerabilities inherent in such a system.

Right-wing movements have increasingly viewed the "free market" not as a neutral mechanism of efficiency, but as a tool of globalist elites that hollows out national industries and erodes the social fabric. Consequently, the move toward state-led economic planning is not seen by these factions as a surrender to the Left, but as a necessary reclamation of power. By adopting the tools of state intervention, the Right seeks to insulate the nation-state from the volatility of global markets.

Industrial Policy as National Defense

Central to this transition is the adoption of aggressive industrial policy. Where the traditional Right once viewed government subsidies and tariffs as market distortions, the modern Right views them as essential instruments of national security.

This "Right-wing Socialism" manifests in the systematic nationalization of critical infrastructure and the use of state capital to force the repatriation of manufacturing. The objective is no longer the optimization of price for the consumer, but the optimization of resilience for the citizen. The state is now tasked with directing investment into strategic sectors—semiconductors, energy, and pharmaceuticals—effectively planning the economy to ensure that the nation is not dependent on geopolitical rivals. This is state-dirigisme rebranded as economic patriotism.

The Selective Welfare State

Perhaps the most striking extrapolation of this trend is the emergence of a targeted social safety net. The Right has moved away from the goal of shrinking the welfare state and toward the goal of redefining who the state serves.

Rather than universalist social programs, the current trend emphasizes "pro-worker" policies that are explicitly tied to national identity and social contribution. This includes expanded child allowances to combat demographic decline and subsidies for traditional families, alongside robust protections for domestic laborers against the encroachment of automation and foreign outsourcing. By framing social spending as a reward for loyalty and a tool for demographic survival, the Right has successfully co-opted the populist appeal of socialism while stripping away its internationalist and egalitarian foundations.

Ideological Distinction: Sovereignty over Equality

While the mechanisms—tariffs, subsidies, and social spending—mirror socialist policy, the underlying philosophy remains fundamentally different. Left-wing socialism is traditionally rooted in the pursuit of classless equality and the dismantling of hierarchies. In contrast, Right-wing interventionism is rooted in the pursuit of sovereignty and the reinforcement of national hierarchy.

The goal is not to eliminate the capitalist class, but to subordinate the capitalist class to the interests of the State. In this model, the private sector is permitted to exist and profit, provided its goals align with the strategic directives of the government. It is a transition from a market-led economy to a state-steered economy.

Conclusion

The emergence of socialism on the Right signals a profound shift in the global political order. The battle is no longer between the "state" and the "market," but between different visions of how the state should wield its power. As the Right continues to move into the open with its embrace of interventionism, the traditional political spectrum is being redrawn, leaving the neoliberal ideal of a borderless, free-market world as a relic of a previous era.