Liberalism-Conservatism Revisited: Foreign vs Domestic Federal Policies, 1937-1967

This article addresses itself to the following questions: To what extent have the policy preferences of American citizens in foreign affairs been projections of, or at least related to, their views on important issues closer to home? Have supporters of transfers of wealth from relative haves to have-nots in the United States been more inclined than opponents of such programs to favor federal assistance to less developed countries abroad? Have the former been more supportive of multilateral cooperation in other spheres as well? What connections, if any, have feelings about the civil rights movement in this country had with attitudes toward the communist world, arms control, and, especially, assistance to Asia and Africa? Can one delineate a syndrome of relatively liberal attitudes and another of more conservative ones applicable to both foreign and domestic issues among the general public, comparable to those apparent among a number of congressmen, political activists, and intellectuals?