In the U.S., illiberalism is in power. I don’t think anybody really argues against that. But I’ve been surprised by how weak liberalism has felt in response.
Donald Trump isn’t a popular president; he isn’t making people want more of what he is. But if the forces of illiberalism are really going to be turned back in this country, I think more people need to be excited and inspired by liberalism itself. We need a liberalism that stands for more than “not Trump.”
So I’ve been on my own esoteric journey, reading a lot of books on the history of liberalism, trying to understand what excited and inspired people in the past, and how liberals overcame crises like the one we’re in. And reading one of those books, “<a href="https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691170701/the-lost-history-of-liberalism?srsltid=AfmBOooyZ1wCeaN4zx_icFkdKznb0g-WyqLxTSRcAkke5NyPE3eRY78q" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">The Lost History of Liberalism</a>” by Helena Rosenblatt, it felt like an epiphany — that this was a piece of the puzzle.
So I wanted to have Rosenblatt on the show to talk about it. Rosenblatt is a professor of history, political science and French at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York, and in this conversation, she walks me through the history of liberalism that she uncovered, and the values that once lived at its heart.
Mentioned:
<a href="https://www.gutenberg.org/files/815/815-h/815-h.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Democracy in America</a> by Alexis de Tocqueville
<a href="https://press.princeton.edu/books/paperback/9780691180380/liberalism?srsltid=AfmBOoqFWrqx9dX9GqQ0NqG1wDRe6D1Z1b8nxzqT2GPQo7ePcH7CkeJ2" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Liberalism</a> by Edmund Fawcett
Book Recommendations:
<a href="https://yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300280128/liberalism-against-itself/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Liberalism against Itself</a> by Samuel Moyn
<a href="https://press.princeton.edu/books/hardcover/9780691203744/liberalism-as-a-way-of-life?srsltid=AfmBOorT0PkGi41G3bDYYKAlnj2obgw6PAPg7Y0BiBcR65O2Jp9WRHsB" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Liberalism as a Way of Life</a> by Alexandre Lefebvre
<a href="https://www.wiley.com/en-ie/Thinking+With+Machines%3A+The+Brave+New+World+of+AI-p-9781394359066" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Thinking With Machines</a> by Vasant Dhar
Thoughts? Guest suggestions? Email us at ezrakleinshow@nytimes.com.
You can find transcripts (posted midday) and more episodes of “The Ezra Klein Show” at <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/column/ezra-klein-podcast" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">nytimes.com/ezra-klein-podcast</a>, and you can find Ezra on Twitter @ezraklein. Book recommendations from all our guests are listed at <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/article/ezra-klein-show-book-recs.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">https://www.nytimes.com/article/ezra-klein-show-book-recs</a>.
This episode of “The Ezra Klein Show” was produced by Jack McCordick. Fact-checking by Michelle Harris with Kate Sinclair and Julie Beer. Our senior engineer is Jeff Geld, with additional mixing by Johnny Simon. Our recording engineer is Aman Sahota. Our executive producer is Claire Gordon. The show’s production team also includes Marie Cascione, Annie Galvin, Rollin Hu, Kristin Lin, Emma Kehlbeck, Marina King and Jan Kobal. Original music by Pat McCusker. Audience strategy by Shannon Busta and Lauren Reddy. The director of New York Times Opinion Audio is Annie-Rose Strasser. Transcript editing by Filipa Pajevic and Marlaine Glicksman.
Subscribe today at <a href="http://nytimes.com/podcasts">nytimes.com/podcasts</a> or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher">https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher</a>. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See <a href="https://pcm.adswizz.com">pcm.adswizz.com</a> for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

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