(Question for Democrats) Democrats vs Classical Liberals?
Democrats mostly, I would like to know what differences you see between your 'liberal' views, and the views of a classical liberal. And, when did that change?
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They would not know the real answer since they try to compare themselves to classical liberalists but they fail to do so.
Republicans are classical liberalists. They have the values closest to the founding fathers.
Republicans will claim that they are the classical liberals. The Democrats will too. I would say neither embraces it all. That is why I am a Democrat this time. I think that the optimum place for regulation is a bell curve. With too much regulation you get Jimmy Carter Stagflation because business is stifled. When you have too little regulation you get something similar to the mortgage meltdown and this would progress to Mexico's economy. Currently we have George Bush stagflation. The Republicans do not care about individual freedoms at all. They are willing to trade in all of their freedom for some false security.
The Democrat party is unlike classical liberalism because they would believe in having a bit too much regulation of business for Adam Smith. The constant railing against social programs is a myth based on past practices and not based on the positions of the actual candidates.
Where the Democrat party is the clear leader is on individual freedoms.
Republicans like to say they are classical liberals. This is not true, because Republicans do not believe in the individual freedom part of classical liberalism. They would go to great lengths to ensure that businesses have not restrictions whatsoever. Leading most infamously to the mortgage melt down.
My belief is that at both ends of the political spectrum the result a bad economy with individual freedoms abridged. With a highly regulated government businesses environment businesses whither. With an unregulated environment you get Mexico.
Liberalism turned into progressivism and more socialistic during the 20th century. Modern day liberalism is a far cry from classical liberalism which emphasizes limited government, free markets, individual liberty, and negative rights.
Modern day liberals see the government necessary to solve people's problems and to allow for a more equal playing field via regulations, taxes, and wealth distribution and this goes against classical liberalism's intimate relationship with private property since they see a clear connection between private property and individual liberty. Modern day liberals think property rights lead to a growing divide in power, especially between the working class and the capitalists.
Today most classical liberals will be fiscally responsible conservatives and socially leaning liberals.