摘要：自由主义是美国政治国家的基石和信仰，在其政治制度中，法治的价值就在于保障个人的自由和权利，以对抗政府和公权力的侵害。“9.11”事件成为美国自由主义发展的转折点。观察美国宪法第四修正案的隐私权抗辩诉讼可以发现，“9.11”事件之后，“安全价值”在美国政治国家和民众群体层面逐渐取得绝对优势，司法理性也谨慎地回应着安全主义浪潮，自由主义在现代美国政治领域呈现趋势性回撤状态。

The Retreat of Liberalism in the United States:

An Analysis Based on the Data of Defense Litigations

on the Fourth Amendment to the United States Constitution                                     Wang Fang

Liberalism is the foundation and belief of the United States. In its political system, the value of rule of law lies in protecting individual freedom and rights to confronting the infringement from government and public power. Yet the 911 Incident acted as a turning point of the development of liberalism. Through the defense cases on the Fourth Amendment to the Constitution, it can be observed that, the “security value” gradually obtained an absolute advantage on the levels of both the country and the public after 911, and judicial rationality also responded cautiouly to the wave of security. Liberalism presents a tendency of retreat in the political area of the United States today.