More Words, Deeper Hole

I got what you were saying, but it structurally has too many ill-defined thingies in it. "reacting to the reaction to 9/11" is tricky because there were multiple reactions - in fact, I think the genre you're trying to define is part of the post-9/11 genre. It's the other side of the conversation.

Back to the rhetoric thing, I'd suggest a phrasing in which you first define the post-9/11 genre, and then describe the genre that reacts to that genre, and then ask for a name for genre #2. I.e. "'Post-9/11' is the genre that advocates hysterical jackassery and constitutional rapine. Recent work that argues against that, and in favor of restraint and good government--what genre would that be?"

I think to correctly name the second genre, you need a better name for the first one, though (not saying "post-9/11" as a genre name is your fault, just that it doesn't age well. Like modern/post-modern/now what?)