Ordoliberalism, Authoritarianism, and Democracy

Ordoliberalism is an often-neglected sub-current of neoliberalism, which has been influential in moulding the agenda of economic policy in Germany – and also Europe. This chapter examines the ordoliberal critique of democracy and the corresponding remedies, inquiring whether the latter exhibit authoritarian leanings. In a second step, two lines of argument are considered that question the interpretation of ordoliberalism as being sceptical of democracy and gravitating towards authoritarian elements as either inaccurate or no longer pertinent. The chapter concludes that while the arguments must not be abandoned lightly, they do not provide sufficient grounds to categorically exonerate ordoliberalism from the critique developed here.