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Journals / Öneri Dergisi / 2026 / Cilt: 21 Sayı: 66

THE DISCURSIVE ROOTS OF TRUMPISM IN AMERICAN CONSERVATISM: A STUDY ON PALEOCONSERVATISM

AMERİKAN MUHAFAZAKÂRLIĞINDA TRUMPİZMİN SÖYLEMSEL KÖKLERİ: PALEOMUHAFAZAKÂRLIK ÜZERİNE BİR İNCELEME

Selin M. Bölme(MARMARA ÜNİVERSİTESİ)0000-0002-8266-4323
Pages
696–722
Publication Date
2026-07-28
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AI Summary & Key Takeaways

AI Insight
⚡ TL;DR(Too Long; Didn't Read)

It argues that Paleoconservatism employs the distinction between “the people” and “the managerial elites” as its general framework and thus constitutes a populist form of conservatism.

📌 3 Key Takeaways

🎯
Objective & Hypothesis:Trump, reelected in 2024 for a second term as U.S.
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Key Findings & Data:President, has stood out for his nationalist, confrontational, and populist rhetoric since announcing his first presidential candidacy in 2015.
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Conclusion & Impact:It argues that Paleoconservatism employs the distinction between “the people” and “the managerial elites” as its general framework and thus constitutes a populist form of conservatism.
🔬Design:Araştırma Makalesi
📍Scope:2024 Verileri
⚙️Variables:Paleomuhafazakârlık · Amerikan siyasal düşünce tarihi · Amerikan muhafazakârlığı

Abstract

Donald J. Trump, reelected in 2024 for a second term as U.S. President, has stood out for his nationalist, confrontational, and populist rhetoric since announcing his first presidential candidacy in 2015. Yet beneath Trump’s distinctive style, the concepts he employs and the solutions he proposes have strong historical roots within the American conservative movement. Paleoconservatism, which emerged in the 1980s against Neoconservatism and positioned itself as the heir to the Old Right of the 1930s, is important as a source of Trump’s populist discourse. This study examines the systematic structure, principal objections, and discourse of Paleoconservative thought thematically and reveals the intellectual foundations underlying its definition of conservatism, its conceptualizations of the managerial regime, managerial elites, and the forgotten middle class, and its objections to the expansive state, globalization, and immigration. Conceived as a study in the history of political thought, the article draws on primary texts and relevant academic literature. It argues that Paleoconservatism employs the distinction between “the people” and “the managerial elites” as its general framework and thus constitutes a populist form of conservatism.

Özet

2024 seçimlerini yeniden kazanan Donald J. Trump, 2015’te ilk başkan adaylığını açıkladığı günden itibaren milliyetçi, çatışmacı ve popülist söylemiyle öne çıkmıştır. Trump’ın kendine özgü üslubuna rağmen kullandığı kavramların ve sunduğu çözüm önerilerinin Amerikan muhafazakâr hareketi içinde güçlü tarihsel kökleri vardır. 1980’lerde Yeni Muhafazakârlık karşıtı bir hareket olarak doğan ve kendini 1930’ların muhafazakâr hareketi Eski Sağ’ın mirasçısı olarak konumlandıran Paleomuhafazakârlık, Trump’ın popülist söylemine kaynaklık etmesi bakımından önemlidir. Bu çalışmanın amacı, Paleomuhafazakâr düşüncenin sistematiğini, temel itirazlarını ve söylemlerini tematik olarak incelemek; hareketin muhafazakârlık tanımının, yönetsel rejim, yönetici elitler ve unutulan orta sınıf kavramsallaştırmalarının, büyük devlet, küreselleşme ve göç itirazlarının arkasındaki düşünsel dayanakları ortaya koymaktır. Çalışma, Paleomuhafazakârlığın “halk” ve “yönetici elitler” ayrımını genel çerçeve olarak kullanan popülist bir muhafazakârlık biçimi olduğunu ve refah politikaları, kamu eğitimi, çok kültürcülük, ekonomik küreselleşme, göç ve müdahaleci dış politika gibi konuları bu çerçevede birleştirdiğini tespit etmektedir.

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Cite This Article

Bölme, S. M. (2026). THE DISCURSIVE ROOTS OF TRUMPISM IN AMERICAN CONSERVATISM: A STUDY ON PALEOCONSERVATISM. Öneri Dergisi, Cilt: 21 Sayı: 66, 696–722. https://doi.org/10.14783/maruoneri.1897543

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