William Kristol, Paul Wolfowitz, Donald Rumsfeld, Condoleeza Rice, George F. Will, and Dick Cheney. These are today's neoconservatives--confident, clear-cut, and a political force to be reckoned with. But how should we define this new conservatism? What is new about it? In this volume, some of today's top political scholars take on the charge of explaining, defining, and confronting the new conservatism of the last twenty-five years. The authors examine the ideas, policies and roots of this ideological movement showing that contemporary neoconservatism has been able to blend many of the aspects of social conservatism--such as religious populism and nationalism--with economic liberalism and the rhetoric of equality of opportunity and individualism. With their emphasis on dismantling the welfare state and a rhetorical return to economic laissez faire and individual rights, neoconservatives have been able to harness populist sentiment in terms of both economics and cultural issues. And with their belief in moral and cultural "simplicity," their turn away from science, their conviction in American superiority on the global stage, and their embrace of "anti-government" rhetoric, they have effectively changed the nature of the American political landscape.The contributors to Confronting the New Conservatism offer a trenchant analysis and substantive critique of the neoconservative ethos, arguing that it is an ideology that needs to be better understood if change is to be had.Contributors: Stanley Aronowitz, Chip Berlet, Stephen Eric Bronner, Lawrence Davidson, Greg Grandin, Philip Green, Diana M. Judd, Thomas M. Keck, Charles Noble, R. Claire Snyder, Michael J. Thompson, and Nicholas Xenos.
Acknowledgments Introduction: Confronting the New ConservatismMichael J. ThompsonPart I What Is the New Conservatism?1 America's Conservative Landscape: The New Conservatism and the Reorientation of American Democracy Michael J. Thompson2 Cultural Rage and the Right-Wing Intellectuals Philip Green3 Considerations on the Origins of Neoconservatism: Looking Backward Stanley Aronowitz4 The New Political Right in the United States: Reaction, Rollback, and Resentment Chip BerletPart II The New Conservatism at Home5 From Neoconservative to New Right: American Conservatives and the Welfare StateCharles Noble6 Tearing Down the Wall: Conservative Use and Abuse of Religion in Politics Diana M. Judd7 Paradox or Contradiction: The Marriage Mythos in Neoconservative Ideology R. Claire Snyder8 The Neoconservative Assault on the Courts: How Worried Should We Be? Thomas M. KeckPart III The Global Reach of the New Conservative Ideology9 The Imperial Presidency: The Legacy of Reagan's Central America PolicyGreg Grandin10 The Neocon Con Game: Nihilism RevisitedNicholas Xenos11 One-Dimensional Men: Neoconservatives, Their Allies and Models Lawrence Davidson12 Resisting the Right: Challenging the Neoconservative Agenda Stephen Eric BronnerContributorsIndex
