In fact the ambition of 'political liberalism' is to formulate a definitive
list of rights, principles and institutional arrangements that are
unassailable and will create the basis of a consensus that is both moral
and neutral. To that effect, these liberal thinkers propose to leave aside
'disputed' religious, philosophical and metaphysical issues and limit
themselves to a strictly 'political' understanding of liberalism. This,
they believe, could constitute the common ground that can still be
obtained when there is no more possibility of a common good. One of
their main tenets is that in a liberal society, people should not be made
to accept institutions and arrangements on grounds that they could
reasonably reject. Political discussion needs therefore to be con-
strained by rules that determine the type of convictions that can be
appealed to in argumentation. Their enterprise consists in defining
such a framework and hoping that it will create the conditions
necessary to deliver indisputable results.