Political opportunism Political opportunism Political opportunism refers to the attempt to maintain political support, or increase political influence, in a way which disregards relevant ethical or political principles. The political philosophy of Niccolò Machiavelli as described in "The Prince" is often regarded as a classic manual of opportunist scheming, and indeed a "Machiavellian" is nowadays defined as "a cunning, amoral, and opportunist person, especially a politician". Political opportunism is interpreted in different ways, but usually refers to one or more of the following: Typically, opportunist political behavior is criticized for being short-sighted or narrow-minded. That is, in the urge to make short-term
The Machiavellian Moment like "The Prince" and those of some pre-English Civil War thinkers and a group of American Revolutionary personalities all faced similar such moments and offered related sets of answers. "The Machiavellian Moment" has come to represent the so-called republican synthesis, which holds that America was born with a fear of corruption and a desire to promote classical virtue. The Machiavellian Moment The Machiavellian Moment is a work of intellectual history by J. G. A. Pocock (Princeton University Press, 1975). It posits a connection between republican thought in early 16th century Florence, English-Civil War Britain, and the American Revolution. A "Machiavellian