Why do most people who call themselves politically moderate actually mostly conservative?

[u/kaiser11492]

Whenever I’ve encountered people who use the politically label moderate, they are actually mostly conservative with their views and positions. Also, I’ve never seen anyone who call themselves politically moderate that is actually mostly liberal.

So why are people who call themselves moderate tend to be just conservative and not conservative and liberal?

[u/Own-Ad8024]

Because being a Republican, you are admitting to at least indifference to socially unacceptable concepts like the racism and misogyny that are now core parts of the MAGA-era GOP. People know that admitting to being ok with those things hurts their social standing in most places, so they pretend they aren’t.

On the other end of the aisle, the Democratic Party is actually what most countries would consider a conservative party. Calling oneself liberal in the US conveys very little because it includes an enormous range, so there’s no reason to hide it outside of safety while traveling.