Radical centrist politics
The Radical Center is an emerging political movement that offers an activist alternative to the traditional extremism of the Left-Right politics. Radical centrists try to build majority consensus for radical reforms by sidestepping (or confronting) what they consider the obsolete, polarized and non-productive ideologies of Conservatism and Liberalism. The most prominent politicians sometimes associated with radical centrist politics are Tony Blair in the U.K. and John McCain in the U.S. Radical centrists take pains to distance themselves from traditional moderates, whom they sometimes deride as "the squishy center."
Radical centrists can often be found in both left-wing and right-wing political parties, but (like other centrists) are usually penalized for being out of step with that party's dominant ideology. This leads to tension between what might be called separatist factions, who want to shed an unhelpful party label in order to run as independents, and puritans who want to reform (or take over) the party from within. This tension is particular acute in countries with strong two-party traditions, since it is difficult for third-party candidates to create governable coalitions.
History
While the term radical center has been used in various ways since at least the 1970s, the modern movement by that name draws its inspiration from the book The Third Way by Anthony Giddens (1998) and Giddens's 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 promising young conservative, Miller was once an aide in President 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.") Radical centrist politics often makes use of a Radical middle approach to problems, and the two terms are often used interchangeably.
External links
Organizations concerned with Radical Centrist politics include:
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