The Kevin Roberts Show with Larry O’Connor Liberalism Can’t Save America, Only Destroy It
Apr 1, 2026
Dr. Kevin Roberts, president of The Heritage Foundation and conservative public intellectual, offers a sharp critique of modern American liberalism. He contrasts classical liberal roots with today’s radical left. He discusses family decline, welfare dependency, moral order erosion, miseducation, and centralization’s harm to local institutions.
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Modern Liberalism Has Shifted From Classical Roots
- Modern American liberalism has diverged from classical liberalism and now resembles ideological radicalism rather than Enlightenment limited-government thought.
- Kevin Roberts traces the shift across generations of leftist professors and contrasts figures like Daniel Patrick Moynihan with today's more radical leaders.
Moynihan As Example Of A Now Missing Liberal
- Kevin Roberts cites Daniel Patrick Moynihan as a liberal Democrat who prioritized national security and critiqued big-government impacts on families.
- Roberts says Moynihan would likely have civil conversations with conservatives and wouldn't embrace today's gender redefinitions.
State Replaced Civil Society And Eroded Moral Order
- Roberts argues modern liberalism has weakened an enduring moral order by replacing religion and civic institutions with state solutions.
- He cites welfare expansion, Obama-era religious-liberty conflicts, and FBI scrutiny of religious Catholics as evidence.