The terms radical center (or radical centre), radical middle or radical centrism describe a philosophy as well as an associated political movement and position on the political spectrum. Adherents of this philosophy claim to improve policy and general politics by not harboring a bias toward the precedence of either markets or the state, as can be characterized of right-wing politics and left-wing politics respectively.
Various groups have adopted radical center as a term to describe a philosophy which includes their belief that, in affirming the core principles involved on both sides of a dilemma, the dilemma or disagreement can be rendered moot. The terms radical center and radical middle are often used interchangeably, although the former more often refers to a political movement or current and the latter to a political philosophy. The latter use reflects an emphasis on epistemic virtue, by resolving false dilemmas, finding the excluded middle.
As a relatively grassroots movement, especially in the United States, there is no definitive statement of radical middle politics. A primary recurring theme, however, might be the idea of "sustainably improving choices." As is often the case with centrism, it can be said that the radical middle or center is an ideology broadly analogous with the ideas, principles and values of progressivism.
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In 1955, Geoffrey Crowther, then editor of the UK publication The Economist, declared, "It is to the Radicals that The Economist still likes to think of itself as belonging. The extreme centre is the paper's historical position."[1] While the term radical center or similar expressions have been used in various ways since at least the 1970s (like "rigorously center" by the French Giscardian movement or the Portuguese Democratic and Social Centre – People's Party during its foundation[2]), its use became more common due to the Reform Party and Ross Perot, who were frequently described as representing the radical middle due to their attempts to partisanize those portions of the American electorate. Despite a strong showing in the 1996 U.S. presidential election, today the Reform Party is not generally perceived as a major player in national politics, though it has impacted state elections, notably with Jesse Ventura becoming Governor of Minnesota.
Today, the term radical center is most commonly associated with a movement that does not explicitly claim descent from the Reform Party or its ideas, but rather draws its inspiration from the book The Third Way by Anthony Giddens (1998) and Giddens' highly-regarded follow-up book The Third Way and Its Critics (2000). In the U.S., third way politics is most actively represented by the New America Foundation and its book by Ted Halstead and Michael Lind, The Radical Center (2001). Subsequent introductions to radical centrist politics include, most notably, Matthew Miller's book The Two Percent Solution (2003) and Mark Satin's book Radical Middle: The Politics We Need Now (2004). (Interestingly, Lind was once a conservative, Miller was once an aide in President Bill Clinton's White House, and Satin was a co-author of the U.S. Green Party's founding document from the 1980s, "Ten Key Values")
The term radical middle appears to have been spontaneously invented by several different communities around the turn of the millennium, apparently in response to frustration with both extremism and moderation. An early use appears to be from Gordon Fee's kingdom theology course at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary in the 1970s, which helped inspire the Vineyard Movement. He used the term "radical middle" to contrast the evangelical focus on the future kingdom of God with the Pentecostal emphasis on the present kingdom of God. But the first known use of the term "radical middle" was by Jules Feiffer in a comic strip that appears in Hold Me!, a collection published by Random House in 1962.
Radical centrists are related to what is sometimes called the Vital Center in American politics and similarly claim to be drawing on the best of both sides. However, they differ significantly from traditional centrism, which prides itself on moderation and seeking political consensus amongst the parties; radical centrists, for example, can be quite radical and populist in their stated policies. Radical centrists also can be divisive, as opposed to the non-partisan approach of traditional centrism. Radical centrists are quick to dissociate themselves from traditional moderates, whom they often contrast as the "sensible center" or deride as the "squishy center."
Radical centrists can be found in both left-wing and right-wing political parties, and often form what might be called separatist factions and run as independents. They claim these ideological moorings ("radix", the 'root' behind their sociological use of the term 'radical') provide the basis for their critique of society, government and other political movements.
Michael Lind, in his 1996 publication Up From Conservatism, writes that, though American radical centrism is today a minority political philosophy, it was, in fact, the dominant political philosophy within the United States from the time of Franklin Delano Roosevelt through Lyndon Johnson — a philosophy that was shared both by the presidents of that era and the majority of the American people. Therefore, Lind argues, the American "radical" centrism of today is simply the adamant pursuit for a return to the once-mainstream political principle of New Deal economic progressivism coupled with a moderate cultural conservatism. This modest cultural conservatism would be exemplified on the political stage simply by the "radical centrist" politician's refusal to politicize or advocate culturally-liberal issues like abortion or gay rights. However, the radical centrist politician might spurn any influence or pressure coming from the Religious Right and other socially conservative groups (pro-life advocates, school prayer advocates, etc.)
In March 2011 the leader of the Liberal Democrats, a social liberal and social democratic party, and Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Nick Clegg, stated that he believed that his party belonged to the radical center. Clegg also invoked the legacies of John Meynard Keynes, William Beveridge, Jo Grimond, David Lloyd George and John Stuart Mill, implying that they too were elements of the radical center. He pointed to liberalism as an ideology of people, and therefore, one of the radical center:
"For the left, an obsession with the state. For the right, a worship of the market. But as liberals, we place our faith in people. People with power and opportunity in their hands. Our opponents try to divide us with their outdated labels of left and right. But we are not on the left and we are not on the right. We have our own label: Liberal. We are liberals and we own the freehold to the centre ground of British politics. Our politics is the politics of the radical centre."[1]
The radical center is most often associated with ideologies such as social liberalism and progressivism. Policies from the radical center tend to be pro-civil liberties, progressive taxation and climate change tackling. Parties or institutions belonging to the radical center believe that there are more than two sides to an argument and that few people belong 'tribally' to either the left or the right. Often arguments from the radical center are that policy should be based around ordinary people, but that the political left bases policy around what is best for the state and that the political right bases its policy around what is best for the markets.
Notable organizations
Philosophical/ideological
Media coverage
Information from self-described radical middle/radical centrist sources