Set during the 2000 presidential campaign, THE CONFLICTED LIBERAL questions what constitutes proper moral action in the ambiguous and uncertain realms of contemporary politics and personal relations. Benjamin Branch, the possible son of the reclusive novelist Thomas Pynchon, is provoked by his Czech-born girlfriend to take up pie-throwing as a non-violent form of political activism. However, when events take an unexpected turn, Branch becomes torn by his love for her and his sense of moral responsibility. This rift becomes even more acute when his girlfriend joins a group of radicals seeking to wreck havoc on George W. Bush’s inauguration.