"Is post-liberalism the future?": Paul Kelly in conversation with Alexis Papazoglou

Join Alexis Papazoglou every month for “The Philosopher and the News”!

Three months into the Trump 2.0 Presidency the world looks quite different than it did in 2024. Barriers to free trade are being erected, the separation of powers in the United States Government seems to have collapsed, and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion have become illegal. Trump is no intellectual, but J D Vance, his Vice-President, is deeply influenced by a set of ideas that are now defining much of America’s policy. An intellectual movement that previously felt quite fringe and weird suddenly has not only gained momentum, but it is now in power. At the core of much post-liberal thought is an old critique of liberalism: too much emphasis on the sovereignty of the individual at the expense of community and a lack of a moral conception of the good life. But what do post-liberals want to replace liberalism with? And with representatives from both the right and left of politics, will post-liberalism come to replace the old liberal order?

Paul Kelly is Professor of Political Theory at the London School of Economics and Head of the Department of Government. His interests range across political theory and philosophy and he history of thought. His most recent book is Political Thinkers (with David Boucher) Oxford 2017, and Conflict, War and Revolution, LSE Press 2021. His book Against Post Liberalism will be published by Polity Press later in 2025.

Alexis Papazoglou is Managing Editor of the LSE British Politics and Policy blog. He was previously senior editor for the Institute of Arts and Ideas, and a philosophy lecturer at Cambridge and Royal Holloway. He is also host of the podcast, “The Philosopher and the News”.

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