Neoliberalism seeks to transform and take over the state, not shrink it

Evidence

Strident demonization of some bugbear entity called “the government” is not at all the same as rejecting “The State” tout court. That is because mature neoliberalism is not at all enamored of the minimalist night-watchman state of the classical liberal tradition: its major distinguishing characteristic is instead a set of proposals and programs to infuse, take over, and transform the strong state, in order to impose the ideal form of society, which they conceive to be in pursuit of their very curious icon of pure freedom. I agree with Wendy Brown that neoliberalism became a “constructivist” project, no matter how much it was a term against which Hayek often railed. That neoliberalism turned out to be very nearly the polar opposite of libertarian anarchism is something that has taken a long while to sink in, but is now becoming widely accepted in circles concerned with political economy. — Philip Mirowski, Never Let a Serious Crisis Go to Waste, 117

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to the running theme of how the thought collective read itself; pairs with Wendy Brown’s constructivist thesis on neoliberalism. — connects to: Neoliberalism seeks to strengthen rather than shrink the state — Philip Mirowski & Dieter Plehwe (eds.), The Road from Mont Pèlerin: The Making…, 2128; Neoliberalism strengthens repressive state apparatuses rather than shrinking government — David Theo Goldberg, The Threat of Race: Reflections on…, 1748; Neoliberalism seeks a strong state that thwarts democracy, not a weak one — Philip Mirowski, Never Let a Serious Crisis Go to Waste, 155 (+18 more)

Broader Connections

• Neoliberalism seeks to strengthen rather than shrink the state #corroborates (0.95) — Philip Mirowski & Dieter Plehwe (eds.), The Road from Mont Pèlerin, 2128
• Neoliberalism’s purported state-skepticism actually mandates a strong state #corroborates (0.95) — Philip Mirowski, Never Let a Serious Crisis Go to Waste, 238
• Neoliberalism activates the state for the economy rather than withdrawing it. #corroborates (0.93) — Wendy Brown, Undoing the Demos, 106
• Neoliberalism strengthens repressive state apparatuses rather than shrinking government #corroborates (0.92) — David Theo Goldberg, The Threat of Race, 1748
• Neoliberalism centered on a strong state, not the classical night-watchman state #corroborates (0.92) — Philip Mirowski & Dieter Plehwe (eds.), The Road from Mont Pèlerin, 2145
• Neoliberalism seeks a strong state that thwarts democracy, not a weak one #corroborates (0.90) — Philip Mirowski, Never Let a Serious Crisis Go to Waste, 155
• Neoliberalism endorses wide state action to construct markets, not laissez-faire. #corroborates (0.90) — Jessica Whyte, The Morals of the Market, 431
• Neoliberalism’s core break with classical liberalism is its constructivist view of the state #expands (0.85) — Philip Mirowski & Dieter Plehwe (eds.), The Road from Mont Pèlerin, 776
• Neoliberal crisis response expanded rather than shrank state power #corroborates (0.85) — Philip Mirowski, Never Let a Serious Crisis Go to Waste, 288
• Neoliberal governance fuses state and capital aims, swapping their traditional roles #expands (0.82) — Wendy Brown, Undoing the Demos, 294