Map My Politics

MINARCHISM – The Minimal State Ideology

Minarchism is one of the seven semi-mainstream political ideologies on the Map My Politics ideology chart, occupying the area to the bottom right of the libertarian zone. Minarchists believe in a maximum of economic and personal freedom and a minimum of government presence, to the point of calling for a minarchy or “night-watchman state.” Because little separates minarchists from libertarians and neoliberals, the ideology doesn't occupy much space on the Map My Politics grid. The differences are important, however, enough to warrant an ideology all its own.

On the x-axis of economic liberty, minarchists fully embrace the virtues of the free enterprise system as much as neoliberals do. They are total champions for free markets, predisposed to unregulated trade, and are even more laissez-faire than libertarians, their ideological cousins and Map My Politics chart neighbors. Minarchism takes it as an article of faith that pure, unrestricted capitalism creates more individual wealth than any other economic system, and that a global free flow of goods, capital and labor will prove vastly superior for the general commonwealth as well. Taxes, needless to say, are anathema to a minarchist. So the only taxation justified is the minimum amount necessary to fund the night-watchman state of police and fire protection, courts and national defense. Anything else, like transportation infrastructure, utilities, healthcare and even education, should be operated privately, not publicly, according to a dedicated minarchist.

Regarding the y-axis of social liberty, minarchists are even more supportive of the classical liberal freedoms of speech, press and religion that mainstream ideologies like conservatism, centrism and liberalism favor. It’s fair to say, when it comes to civil liberties, minarchists are basically staunch libertarians, believing that a government that intrudes the least in personal matters governs the best. Because minarchists support having a justice system, they believe in some limits on personal freedom, such as civil and criminal penalties for libel and fraud. But for the most part, minarchists are minimalists in the realm of government authority over individual action.

As with libertarianism, the roots of minarchism can be traced to Enlightenment philosophers such as John Locke and Adam Smith. Minarchism is essentially a modern refinement of libertarianism into a purer, more minimal form - hence the "min" prefix. The late Harvard philosophy professor, Robert Nozick, advocated for a minarchist night-watchman state in his landmark book, Anarchy, State, and Utopia, and Nozick is therefore generally credited as the “father” of minarchism.

Because the United States is – for the most part – a two-party system, minarchists are most often found in the Republican Party, the traditional party of smaller government. As with certain dissatisfied libertarians, however, some minarchsts have made the leap and abandoned the GOP in favor of the Libertarian Party. But whether a minarchist chooses to associate with an established political party or votes independently, a strong tendency to support laissez-faire economic policies will predominate. As we stress repeatedly on the Map My Politics site, politics at its most fundamental level is about ideology.

There are no prominent minarchists in mainstream American politics, mostly because minarchism is not a mainstream ideology. Some libertarian Republicans such as Paul Ryan, Ron Paul and Mike Lee have expressed minarchist leanings, but they and other elected members of Congress have not, as yet, openly advocated for a night-watchman form of government. Unelected political activists, however, such as Grover Norquist, have been highly influential in advocating for a minarchist tax agenda. Apart from Robert Nozick, who wrote from an academic perspective, the American science-fiction writer Robert Heinlein helped to popularize minarchism culturally.

For further reading about the minarchist ideology, click here.

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