I agree with you, and I actually think that Edsall probably does too. I think he's using some creative arguments that, while perhaps unconvincing, are his attempt to try to lure conservative into the debate. From what I know of his writing, of which I am normally a fan, he is a center left thinker who doesn't normally shy away from telling conservatives how wrong they are on the issue of inequality.

I think he's using flattery for their 'ideas' to try to convince them that we need them to help to rectify the centuries of wrongs in this country. The mainstream conservative movement seems intransigent on the issue of poor people, but at some point they need to be engaged to be won over (or maybe they'll all die; I suspect, however, that's too hopeful, as young liberals will grow up to be conservative replacements for the deceased as soon as they inherit mommy and daddy's estate). The other alternative, of course, is that low income people can be both educated and convinced to vote in numbers that actually make a difference.