IN 1964, Richard Hofstadter wrote an essay called “The Paranoid Style in American Politics.” It traced the history of “angry minds” in our politics. Hofstadter meant “angry” in the strong sense. For him, the “paranoid style” is attained when a political movement posits the existence of a secret conspiracy to undermine our way of life. Hofstadter cited as examples: (1) the view that emerged shortly after the French revolution that America was being subverted by the Bavarian Illuminati; (2) the view in the 1820s and 1830s that Masonry constituted a standing conspiracy against Republican government; (3) the view during much of the nineteenth century that Catholic militants were plotting against American values; and (4) the view after World War II that top U.S. officials were conspiring to pave the way for Communism.

Mere partisanship does not constitute paranoia. It is normal for one side to believe that if the other side gains ascendancy things will go very badly. For example, Hofstadter clearly believed that the “extreme right-wingers” of his day constituted a danger. What distinguishes the political paranoid from the political partisan is the belief in a powerful conspiracy involving the infiltration of the government, often at the highest levels. Here is Hofstadter’s description of the political paranoid’s mentality: