Introduction

Abstract

This chapter provides a broad overview of pragmatic conservatism, an underappreciated tradition in modern American political thought, whose origins can be located in the ideas of Edmund Burke. In the USA, where conservatism has struck an especially radical tone, Walter Lippmann, Reinhold Niebuhr, and Peter Viereck stand out as the true heirs of Burke. Pragmatic conservatives believe that because of the waywardness of human nature, people require guidance from traditions that embody enduring truths wrought from experience. Yet they also welcome incremental reform driven by established elites, departing from precedent if the evidence suggests it is necessary. Mindful that truth is never absolute or certain, they steer clear of ideology and caution against both bold political enterprises and stubborn apologies for the status quo.