Introduction

Abstract

Abstract This Iameditation on the ascendance of conservatism as public philosophy and its impact on social policy-an inquest, if you will, into social epistemology. An open society is subject to alterations in how public affairs are conducted, as well as the ends to which they are put. It follows that a nation’s so cial infrastructure evolves over decades, its irregularities a product of changes in public philosophy. This has certainly been the case for the American welfare state, which has been ongoing for almost a century. Sustained by liberalism and the Democratic Party, federal social programs have been so enduring that they have come to consume over half of the federal budget, 61 percent in 20 0 2. Yet, a conspiracy of circumstance suggests that this legacy will not be sustained. This re flects a wholesale revision in public philosophy, a remarkable transformation that has occurred during the past three decades. Essentially, Americans have become receptive to a different understanding of social policy than one dominant only a generation ago. The evidence of philosophical realignment is obvious: Conservatism is ascendant while liberalism has faltered; the Republican Party is trumphant while Democrats founder. On May 14, 2003, that bastion of progressive preferences, the New York Times, reported that more Americans (53 percent) perceive the Republican Party as offering “a clear vision for the country” compared to Democrats (40 percent). Conceding the Right’s influence in public affairs, the following year the liberal New York Times appointed a journalist to cover the conservative beat.