Final answer:
Sandel's argument that civic identity should not be divorced from moral convictions in public discourse is false. He believes in incorporating moral and religious convictions into discussions about justice and rights, contrary to a strictly liberal public reason approach. This discourse aligns with the broader liberal objective of expanding individual opportunities to realize potential.
Step-by-step explanation:
The statement that Sandel argues that the demand that we separate our identity as citizens from our moral and religious convictions means that, when engaging in public discourse about justice and rights, we must abide by the limits of liberal public reason is false. Sandel challenges this liberal notion and argues that it is neither possible nor desirable to separate our civic identity from our moral convictions. He suggests that public discourse about justice and rights should be open to different forms of reasoning, which may include moral and religious convictions. This stands in contrast with thinkers like John Rawls, who seeks a notion of justice that can be universally agreed upon without such convictions. Sandel's stance also discusses communicative action, a term by Habermas, which implies that society's emancipation comes from open debate where ideas can be freely challenged.
According to thinkers like Fishkin, engaging a broader number of citizens in political debate helps advance the public good and allows citizens to realize their full potential, while the idea of truth is considered vital for the concept of fundamental rights. The US perspective on individual freedom and social welfare often clashes, with the government sometimes needing to restrict individual actions for societal good, underlining the balance that needs to be struck between individual rights and social responsibilities. Such conflicts and balances resonate with the ideas of modern liberalism, which shares the objective of enlarging individual opportunities to realize one's potential, a pillar also found in Rawls's liberalism.