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Hardkill

Have there been cases where the right-wing coalition fractured and destroyed itself?

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Leo, in your post about how right-wing media dominates social media, you argued that the left often turns into a circular firing squad, whereas the right is usually much better at rallying around one leader, one message, or one coalition.

That got me wondering: have there been important examples where the right-wing coalition did fracture badly enough to cannibalize itself?

I do not just mean ordinary disagreements or factional tensions. I mean situations where the right became so divided internally that it seriously weakened its own political power, media ecosystem, electoral performance, or ability to govern.

A few possible examples that came to mind:

  • 1912 Republicans splitting between Taft and Roosevelt
  • Hitler turned Fascist Italy into a German-controlled puppet zone after Italy broke with Germany in 1943
  • The far-right ruling bloc turning on itself during the Nazi regime’s end
  • 1976 Republicans with the Ford vs. Reagan divide
  • 1992 with Bush weakened on the right and Perot disrupting the broader anti-Democratic coalition
  • Tea Party vs. GOP establishment in the 2010s
  • Somewhat in 2020
  • What's going on now between the anti-war and pro-war MAGA Republicans

Never Trump conservatives vs. MAGA, although MAGA seems to have mostly won that fight

So my question is:

What are the best examples, historically or internationally, of the right actually behaving like a circular firing squad?
And in those cases, what caused the fracture?

Was it usually:

  • class/economic divisions?
  • establishment vs. populist conflict?
  • personality/ego clashes?
  • foreign policy splits?
  • religious vs. secular tensions?
  • regional divides?
  • media ecosystem fragmentation?

I am also curious whether people here think the right is inherently more coalition-disciplined than the left, or whether it only looks that way during certain periods because it has stronger hierarchy, clearer enemies, and a greater willingness to suppress internal dissent.

Would be interested in both US examples and examples from other countries.

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