The Role of Right-Wing Think Tanks in Ideological Hybridizations. The Case of Burke Foundation

Abstract

This paper aims to investigate the role of right-wing think tanks in the ideological hybridization of the conservative field, with a particular focus on the Burke Foundation, an American think tank, in shaping a "national-conservative" project. Drawing on Michael Freeden's morphological approach, this paper assumes the hypothesis that ideologies are constantly evolving and argues that this is particularly true in the current context. The neo-conservatism of the Republican Party has been destabilized by the transformation of the American neo-liberal order following the 2007/2008 financial crisis. Gary Gerstle (2022) explicitly refers to this as a crisis of the American model of neo-liberalism. Meanwhile, the rise of the first Trump presidency laid the groundwork for Reagan-era neo-conservatism to be grafted onto an ethno-nationalist ideology. Secondly, it will be argued that the revival of ideologies brings to life a revival of intellectuals as "ideology-enablers". Finally, the strengthening of national-conservatism, meant as a bridge between the "old conservatism" and the new illiberal nationalism that emerged in the populist decade, will be discussed. For this purpose, an overview will be provided of the hybrid ideological Pantheon of a think tank like the Burke Foundation.