Chicago and ordoliberal positions on monopoly were initially similar, not opposed

Evidence

Given the limitations of space, it is not feasible here to cover both the German ordoliberals and Chicago neoliberals in their quest to redefine monopoly in the immediate postwar period. The primary focus here will be on the efforts of the Chicago group. But before charting the development of the Chicago neoliberals, this chapter compares Chicago’s position circa 1947 regarding monopoly and corporations with that of the German ordoliberals. At that juncture, these two groups had relatively similar attitudes toward monopoly and corporations. In order to demonstrate this similarity, I will turn to the first MPS meeting. Its participants included steadfast Chicago defenders of freedom, such as Director and Friedman, and staunch German ordoliberals, such as Walter Eucken and Wilhem Röpke. This turns out to have been the only meeting in the first two decades at which a representative of the Chicago School addressed the issues of monopoly and corporations. Specifically, Director delivered a lecture on the topic, “Free Enterprise or Competitive Order.” The aspect that is quite telling about this disquisition is that Eucken and other ordoliberals present voiced no substantial objections to Director’s claims. Because scholars typically portray the Chicago position on monopolies and corporations as inherently contrary to the ordoliberal position, this seems to be a surprising occurrence. I will explain the surprising reticence of the ordoliberals by arguing that in 1947 ordoliberalism and the incipient Chicago School shared an important common premise. Both schools of thought lauded and respected the work of the renowned classical liberal Henry Simons. — Philip Mirowski & Dieter Plehwe (eds.), The Road from Mont Pèlerin, 1078

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to the reader’s emerging picture of foundational neoliberalism historiography — the shared Henry Simons lineage challenges the standard Chicago-vs-ordo divide. — connects to: Chicago and LSE market advocates were rarely united and often opposed — Angus Burgin, The Great Persuasion: Reinventing Free…, 45; Ordoliberals and Chicagoans irreconcilably diverged on economic power and monopoly — Philip Mirowski & Dieter Plehwe (eds.), The Road from Mont Pèlerin: The Making…, 1154; Chicago and ordoliberal monopoly views converged in the immediate postwar period — Philip Mirowski & Dieter Plehwe (eds.), The Road from Mont Pèlerin: The Making…, 1085 (+1 more)

Broader Connections

• Ordoliberals and Chicagoans irreconcilably diverged on economic power and monopoly #contradicts (0.95) — Philip Mirowski & Dieter Plehwe (eds.), The Road from Mont Pèlerin, 1154
• Chicago and ordoliberal monopoly views converged in the immediate postwar period #corroborates (0.95) — Philip Mirowski & Dieter Plehwe (eds.), The Road from Mont Pèlerin, 1085