Final answer:
The conservative or Republican Party in the United States advocates for a small government, traditional social values, and increased economic freedoms. They seek to limit government's role in the economy and uphold moral standards while libertarians, often erroneously grouped with conservatives, call for even less government intervention in both personal and economic spheres, emphasizing personal responsibility and classical economic theories.
Step-by-step explanation:
The political party that believes the government should be small and refrain from interfering in people's lives, upholds traditional social values, such as two-gendered marriages, and champions economic freedoms is generally the conservative or Republican Party in the United States.
Modern conservatives endorse a limited government role in economic affairs, allowing market forces to guide prices, wages, and supply. They also support traditional moral values based on natural law or longstanding community traditions. While advocating for personal liberty, they make a distinction between liberty and license, preferring that freedom does not equate to immoral behavior. Moderate social conservatives may support certain expansions of personal autonomy rights like civil unions for same-sex couples but seek to restrict governmental promotion of nontraditional values. Issues such as property rights, self-discipline, and preserving fundamental societal values are paramount to conservative thought. Furthermore, conservatives tend to favor action at the local level and may support character education in schools as a means to instill moral virtues in alignment with Aristotelian principles.
On the other hand, libertarians, often mistakingly referred to as conservatives, advocate for an even smaller government footprint, stressing personal responsibility and minimal state intervention in personal and economic matters. They promote low taxes, support gun ownership rights, and oppose dependency on government assistance programs. Libertarians adhere to classical economic theories emphasizing minimal regulation on private enterprise and property.