Gaullism
From Freepedia
Gaullism is a French political ideology based on the thought and action of Charles de Gaulle.
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Doctrine
The main doctrinal component of Gaullism is a desire for France's independence from foreign power, but there are also, in some interpretations of it, social and economic components.
Foreign policy
The main axis of de Gaulle's international policies was national independence, with, as some practical consequences, some reluctance for international organizations such as NATO or the European Economic Community. The basic tenets were that France should not have to rely on any foreign country for its survival (thus the creation of the French nuclear deterrent) and that France should refuse subservience to any foreign power, be it the United States or the Soviet Union. One can also cite the policies of grandeur — that is, the insistence that France is a major power in the world scene and the establishment of military and economic forces to back this claim. In that respect, Gaullism significantly influenced the Foreign policy of France in the following decades, even though Gaullists were no longer in power.
Critics of Charles de Gaulle outside France, particularly in the United Kingdom, United States and Israel ressented De Gaulle's policies of grandeur and independence. One point of friction was De Gaulle's decision to withdraw France from the integrated military command of NATO, and the refusal to have foreign troops on French soils if these troops were not under French command — a move that greatly angered the United States, which had troops in France at the time and considered that and expected French military and foreign policies to be aligned to those of the United States.
Home policies
One may also cite social conservatism, and economic dirigisme and volontarisme as parts of the Gaullist ideology, but these are not necessarily accepted by those who called themselves Gaullists. Gaullism is generally considered a right-wing ideology, but there have also been left-wing Gaullists — and the differences between the two lay in social and economic policies.
Gaullism has sometimes been characterized as a form of populism, since de Gaulle relied heavily on his personal charisma. That is, De Gaulle preferred a direct relationship with the people to parliamentary politics; to some extent, he was scornful of politicians and political games. He resigned after failing to obtain a majority in a referendum on a reform of the French Senate. De Gaulle believed that a political leader that failed to obtain the confidence of the majority of his people should resign. In that respect, it is argued that Jacques Chirac, in theory a Gaullist, is not a true Gaullist.
Political group
The "Gaullists" as a political group used to refer to the Union des Démocrates pour la République.
Since de Gaulle's death, and the break-up of the UDR, the exact meaning of Gaullism is somewhat unclear. In 1980s-1990s usage, "Gaullism" referred to the Rassemblement pour la République (now integrated into the Union pour un Mouvement Populaire), Jacques Chirac's center-right party. Chirac has, in the past, adopted both dirigiste and laissez-faire approaches to economics; he now has a pro-European (pro-European Union) stance after famously denouncing europeanism in the Call of Cochin. For these reasons, some on the right, such as Charles Pasqua, denounce Chirac and his party as not true Gaullists.
There are people on the left who also call themselves Gaullists. Even socialist president François Mitterrand, who denounced de Gaulle's way of ruling as a permanent coup d'état, was very intent on keeping the nuclear deterrent and asserting France's independence.
