Conor Friedersdorf is fed up with the ideological inconsistency within movement conservatism, describing the supposed animosity toward the New Deal and Great Society as "rhetorical lynchpins." Far better, he suggests, to just have the debate.
I suspect Republicans would advance more effective policies, on welfare and social insurance, if they acknowledged their theoretical legitimacy, and understood that to do so is no affront to liberty (don't take my word for it, take Hayek's). Similarly, they would have a better (if still miniscule) chance of returning to a pre-Great Society, pre-New Deal consensus, or its modern equivalent, if the small group of people who actually believe that to be desirable would start having the courage of their convictions, and stop being hackish sycophants for every GOP presidential ticket.
And no, Friedersdorf is not merely engaging in his own hackery. His latest post is a well written list of conservatives you should read on a daily basis.
