Neoliberalism is activist constructivism, not laissez-faire passivity.

Evidence

The starting point of neoliberalism is the admission, contrary to classical liberal doctrine, that their vision of the good society will triumph only if it becomes reconciled to the fact that the conditions for its existence must be constructed and will not come about “naturally” in the absence of concerted political effort and organization. As Foucault presciently observed in 1978 (2004, 137), “Neoliberalism should not be confused with the slogan ‘laissez-faire,’ but on the contrary, should be regarded as a call to vigilance, to activism, to perpetual interventions” [our translation]. The injunction to act in the face of inadequate epistemic warrant is the very soul of “constructivism,” an orientation shared (curiously enough) with the field of science studies. Classical liberalism and Burkean conservatism, by contrast, disavowed this precept. The fact that during one phase of his career Hayek railed against something he called “constructivism” should not obscure this important fact. — Philip Mirowski & Dieter Plehwe (eds.), The Road from Mont Pèlerin, 2125

Categorization

• DEFINE: This corrects a standard misreading by defining neoliberalism as constructivist activism against classical liberalism’s naturalism.
• XREF: Connects to Foucault’s 1978 Birth of Biopolitics lectures and to Hayek’s own ‘anti-constructivism’ polemic — a tension worth resolving. — connects to: Neoliberalism emerged from practical business advocacy, not abstract theory — Quinn Slobodian, Globalists: The End of Empire and the…, 119; Neoliberals do not practice the laissez-faire they preach to the public.; Neoliberalism rejects laissez-faire in favor of perpetual constructionist state intervention — Philip Mirowski, Never Let a Serious Crisis Go to Waste, 148 (+13 more)
• QUESTION: How does Hayek’s attack on ‘constructivism’ square with this portrait of the Mont Pèlerin project as constructivist? Worth chasing.
• CANDY: The Foucault quote — ‘perpetual interventions’ — is a compact refutation of the laissez-faire cliché.

Broader Connections

• Neoliberalism is internally plural yet not formless #corroborates (0.82) — Philip Mirowski & Dieter Plehwe (eds.), The Road from Mont Pèlerin, 10
• Neoliberalism lacks a stable meaning or historically specific constituency #contradicts (0.75) — Philip Mirowski & Dieter Plehwe (eds.), The Road from Mont Pèlerin, 17