Path to Liberty

When left and right take steps to nullify the feds - what strategies do they each use to get the job done? Can newcomers learn what has proven most effective - even if it comes from the “other” side?

While some people may believe that Thomas Jefferson invented the doctrine of nullification - because he called it the “rightful remedy” for acts outside the Constitution - he was merely reiterating long-held views on the limits of government power, and strategies to resist them when he drafted the Kentucky Resolutions of 1798.

On Feb 3, 1913, the 16th Amendment was ratified, setting the foundation for the income tax and the monster state we live under today. Learn some of the essential backstory - and 5 big lessons for the future of liberty.

Published in response to the hated Townshend Acts of 1767, Letters from a Farmer in Pennsylvania were more popular in the colonies than any other publication until Thomas Paine’s Common Sense in 1776. They asserted the colonial cause against imperial British overreach and helped to lay the groundwork for the U.S. Constitution drafted two decades later. The letters also presented important ideas about resisting usurpation.

Thomas Paine's radical vision and plainspoken style helped inspire the American Revolution, supported individual rights and more. His experience as a privateer and a government tax collector - likely informed his views later in life, which included vehement opposition to war and slavery, and in support of natural rights and the sovereignty of the people.

The number of federal gun control measures that are authorized under the Constitution - is zero. But relying on the feds to limit their own power is a bad strategy. That’s why it’s up to the states to get the job done. On this episode, get an update from 9 states - where there are efforts to protect the 2nd Amendment from federal infringements.

In what is likely the worst humanitarian disaster in the world right now, the U.S.-backed war on Yemen has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths. Get an introduction to the history of that horrible civil war, the U.S. involvement, and some timeless advice warnings on entangling alliances from Thomas Jefferson, James Madison and George Washington.

Following the wisdom and advice of the Founders and Old Revolutionaries, we recognize that the federal government is one of limited, delegated powers. When it exceeds those limits, it commits an act of usurpation - which must be rendered “void.” Establishment left and right want us to rely on the federal government to somehow fix itself - they all despise nullification. But that won’t stop supporters of the Constitution and liberty from using it anyway.

How did the Founders treat an inaugural address? We can get a pretty good idea from their own words: Adherence to the Constitution, peace, principles - and more. An overview of the first addresses of 4 leading founders - who were also the first four presidents under the Constitution for the United States.

As Thomas Jefferson warned us, to take a “single step” beyond the limits of the constitution is to take a “boundless field of power.” He was far from alone. As students of history, leading Founders like John Dickinson and George Washington also recognized that any precedent for more power represented a dangerous expansion. But that’s far from how precedents are treated today.

Path to Liberty: January 18, 2021