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Consequential Actions Podcast: Daily Summaries Delivered
by Jeff Kellick
Our standard is simple: we evaluate every policy, every leader, every turning point by asking the founders’ question updated for our time—Did this leave people more free or more governed?
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- 2 days ago52 min
The Loyal Opposition: The Anti-Federalists and the Ratification of the Constitution
The Loyal Opposition: The Anti-Federalists and the Ratification of the ConstitutionRichmond, June 1788. Patrick Henry asks who authorized the men at Philadelphia to write "We, the people" instead of "We, the states" — and warns the convention to "guard with jealous attention the public liberty."The Constitution's critics lost, and the votes were close: a margin of ten in Virginia, three in New York. They were wrong about monarchy and wrong about how fast power would gather. They were right about where it would go, and right that a government left to read its own powers would read them generously.Companion to Article 20, published November 1.From George Mason's objections to the newspaper essays of Centinel, Cato, the Federal Farmer, and Brutus, the opposition's case turned on two words in Mason's warning: "their own Construction." James Wilson answered that under the Constitution "every thing which is not given, is reserved." Brutus warned that federal judges would be "independent of the people, of the legislature, and of every power under heaven."The ratification ran from Delaware's unanimous vote through Massachusetts, where John Hancock proposed ratifying and recommending amendments in the same act, to Richmond and Poughkeepsie. Henry promised to be "a peaceable citizen" if he lost. Melancton Smith, who led New York's opposition, concluded that "a conditional adoption is a rejection" and voted to ratify. Less than three years later, the fight over a national bank tested the promise of "few and defined" powers.The question underneath all of it: did this leave Americans more free, or more governed?⏱️ CHAPTERS0:00 — Patrick Henry in Richmond, June 17881:31 — The question and the short answer3:41 — We, the people, or we, the states?6:30 — George Mason: "There is no Declaration of Rights"9:45 — Pen names and Centinel11:22 — Cato on the presidency11:56 — The Federal Farmer and the size of the House14:01 — Brutus on consolidation, taxes and armies15:28 — Brutus on the federal courts16:46 — Where the opposition's ideas came from18:05 — "Every thing which is not given, is reserved"20:07 — "Their own Construction"21:59 — The first five states23:25 — Massachusetts and recommended amendments24:49 — The ninth state25:36 — Richmond: Henry's June 5 speech26:50 — Randolph's reply29:08 — Amendments first? Richmond decides30:59 — Poughkeepsie and Melancton Smith35:41 — North Carolina and Rhode Island36:23 — Were they right?37:10 — The bank and "their own Construction"39:00 — Warnings that did not come true41:38 — The Skeptic's Case45:47 — The Liberty Test46:53 — A peaceable citizen and a loyal opposition48:48 — What the opposition left behind📚 Article 20: https://www.consequentialactions.com/post/the-loyal-opposition-the-critics-of-the-constitution-1787-1788📚 Subscribe free: https://www.consequentialactions.com/subscribe🎙️ Self-Evident: The Road to 1776 — Episode 20: "The Loyal Opposition"Next: Episode 20B — Tuesday, November 10. Episode 21, "The Bill of Rights" — Saturday, November 14.—Consequential Actions is a libertarian, non-interventionist analysis of American constitutional and foreign policy. New episodes weekly.🌐 https://www.consequentialactions.com#antifederalists #constitution #ratification #patrickhenry #brutus #georgemason #federalism #billofrights #americanhistory #selfevident
- 4 days ago1h 6m
Kevin Gutzman on James Madison and the Constitution
Kevin Gutzman on James Madison and the ConstitutionAt twenty-five, James Madison moved the Virginia Convention past mere toleration to "the free exercise of religion." Eleven years later, he went to Philadelphia to ask for a veto over every law of every state — and came home with a federal union instead.Historian Kevin Gutzman calls Madison not the father of the Constitution but its unhappy stepfather.Week 19 of Self-Evident: The Road to 1776 closes with a living voice. The companion piece is Article 19, "The Convention: From a League of Friendship to We the People."Kevin R. C. Gutzman is a New York Times best-selling author and professor of history at Western Connecticut State University. He holds a J.D. from the University of Texas School of Law and a Ph.D. in history from the University of Virginia. His books include James Madison and the Making of America, The Politically Incorrect Guide to the Constitution, Thomas Jefferson — Revolutionary, and The Jeffersonians.Professor Gutzman traces Madison from Witherspoon's Princeton to the research on past confederacies behind the Virginia Plan, and explains why Edmund Randolph presented it and how Madison brought George Washington to Philadelphia.Then comes the question Jeff has gone back and forth on for weeks: is the federal courts' use of the Bill of Rights against the states Madison's veto, delivered at last? Professor Gutzman calls that idea "an affront to Madison" and the incorporation doctrine "groundless." The question underneath all of it: did this leave Americans more free, or more governed?⏱️ CHAPTERS0:00:00 — Madison, free exercise and the veto he wanted0:02:22 — Kevin Gutzman on the Constitution's "unhappy stepfather"0:03:41 — Witherspoon's Princeton and the jailed Baptist preachers0:07:40 — From toleration to free exercise in Virginia, 17760:09:47 — Madison's research on past confederacies0:14:12 — The Virginia Plan and what Madison wanted0:15:43 — Roger Sherman and the Connecticut terms0:17:07 — Why Edmund Randolph presented Madison's plan0:17:50 — What if Madison's plan had passed?0:20:27 — A negative "in all cases whatsoever"0:23:08 — Mount Vernon, Annapolis and the call to Philadelphia0:24:58 — Getting Washington to the Convention0:27:11 — The Seventeenth Amendment and the states' voice0:28:49 — Partly national, partly federal0:31:24 — When a state abuses the individual0:35:00 — The Politically Incorrect Guide and how lawyers are trained0:36:18 — Revise the Articles, or replace them?0:38:27 — What the ratifiers were told0:40:23 — Inside the Virginia Ratifying Convention0:41:15 — Hamilton's bank and the enumerated powers0:42:15 — Georgia and the pressures inside each state0:44:10 — A Bill of Rights against every government?0:47:45 — Is incorporation Madison's negative at last?0:50:36 — Judges as policymakers0:55:21 — John Bingham and the Fourteenth Amendment0:56:45 — Where is individual liberty protected?0:59:12 — Gutzman's last word on Madison1:00:51 — Closing: the Liberty Test📚 Article 19: https://www.consequentialactions.com/post/the-convention-from-a-league-of-friendship-to-we-the-people📚 Subscribe free: https://www.consequentialactions.com/subscribe📚 Kevin Gutzman: https://kevingutzman.com/📚 Professor Gutzman at WCSU: https://www.wcsu.edu/history/faculty/kevin-gutzman/📚 Kevin Gutzman's books: https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B001JP0Z0A📚 Raoul Berger, Government by Judiciary: https://www.amazon.com/dp/0865971447🎙️ Self-Evident: The Road to 1776 — Episode 19iNext: Episode 20, "The Loyal Opposition" — Saturday, November 7.—Consequential Actions is a libertarian, non-interventionist analysis of American constitutional and foreign policy. New episodes weekly.🌐 https://www.consequentialactions.com#jamesmadison #kevingutzman #constitution #billofrights #fourteenthamendment #federalism #selfevident
- 6 days ago38 min
Not a Red Line but a Lever: Who Decides Who Governs Europe?
The Federalist Papers and the European Union: Who Decides Who Governs?On the night of October 30, riot police lined the street outside Poland's Constitutional Tribunal in Warsaw. One of the tribunal's own judges had suspended its president and his deputy, Poland's president had turned his plane around to confront the judges, and the government pointed to a ruling from the Court of Justice of the European Union that the tribunal is not an independent and impartial court. Both sides said they were defending the constitution.On Election Day, as Americans vote in a union of fifty states that has held for more than two centuries, the question is what that union's builders feared. In 1787 the answer was Europe: a continent of rival sovereignties, standing armies and endless war. Hamilton warned in Federalist No. 8 that a people made more safe "become willing to run the risk of being less free."The history behind it is in Saturday's Episode 19, "The Convention," and in Article 19 of the written series, free with every source in its endnotes.Since 1950, Europe has built its union by a road the Americans never had to take: coal and steel, a common market, a common court, a common currency, each step a treaty among sovereign governments. Voters did not always agree; much of the constitutional treaty France and the Netherlands rejected in 2005 returned in the Treaty of Lisbon, ratified by parliaments. Since 2020 the union has added powers over money, through joint borrowing and rule-of-law conditions on funds, and over elections and information, through the European Democracy Shield. The Commission's case begins with Russian interference. Its critics answer that more of the decision about who governs a nation is being made outside that nation's voting booths.Seven countries from an October 30 post on X are sorted by two questions: who decided who could govern, and was it the nation, the union, or both? Romania's constitutional court annulled an election on intelligence whose evidence was never tested in open court. Hungary's new two-thirds majority amended a constitution the old majority wrote in 2011, with a term limit counted back to 1990 that bars Viktor Orbán for life, and frozen EU funds followed the reforms. Poland's tribunal is contested by both sides. In Germany, France, Spain and Britain the decisions were national, and Marine Le Pen remains free to run in 2027 with one more appeal pending; Spain does not fit the pattern at all. Three objections follow at full strength, and so does the liberty movement's own failure.Did this leave us more free, or more governed?⏱️ CHAPTERS0:00 — Election Day, and riot police at Poland's Constitutional Tribunal6:12 — What the American union was for: Jay and Hamilton on a divided continent12:45 — A union built the other way: treaties, referendums and conditional money19:21 — Seven countries, sorted30:15 — Three objections and the Liberty Test📚 Article 19, "The Convention: From a League of Friendship to We the People": https://www.consequentialactions.com/post/the-convention-from-a-league-of-friendship-to-we-the-people📚 Subscribe free: https://www.consequentialactions.com/subscribe🎙️ Consequential Actions · Self-Evident: The Road to 1776 · Episode 19BNext: Saturday, November 7 — Episode 20, "The Loyal Opposition," and the Americans who warned that the Federalists' union would consolidate the states the way Europe's empires had.—Consequential Actions is a libertarian, non-interventionist analysis of American constitutional and foreign policy. New episodes weekly.🌐 https://www.consequentialactions.com#SelfEvident #FederalistPapers #EuropeanUnion #Constitution #Libertarian
- 1 weeks ago58 min
From a League of Friendship to We the People: The Constitutional Convention of 1787
From a League of Friendship to We the People: The Constitutional Convention of 1787Philadelphia, Monday, July 2, 1787. The states answer one motion in turn, an equal vote for every state in the second branch of the new legislature, and the tally comes back five to five, with Georgia divided. Roger Sherman of Connecticut names what the vote has shown: "We are now at a full stop."James Madison went to Philadelphia asking for a national veto over every law of every state, "in all cases whatsoever," the same words Parliament had used to claim its power over the colonies. He came home with a federal union.The companion article is free, with every source in its endnotes, and a new one arrives every Sunday.Under the Articles of Confederation, Congress could make war and borrow money, but it could not lay a tax, and nothing in the Articles could change without every state's consent. After Shays's Rebellion, a convention met in May 1787 "for the sole and express purpose of revising the Articles of Confederation." What it proposed was a new government: a House apportioned mainly by population, a Senate in which the states were equal, a list of the powers Congress would have, ratification by conventions chosen by the people, and, in place of Madison's veto, federal law made supreme over conflicting state law, binding the state judges. The Great Compromise passed by the margin of a single state.The delegates' own words carry the story, from Washington's "Influence is no government" to Franklin's rising sun on September 17, when thirty-nine men signed and three refused, by way of the three clauses that accommodated and protected slaveholding interests. The Skeptic's Case takes up Charles Beard, the charge of usurpation, and the reliability of Madison's own notes.Companion to Article 19, published October 25, 2026.Was the Confederation's inability to tax a failure of government, or a protection of liberty? And did the Constitution leave Americans more free, or more governed?⏱️ CHAPTERS0:00 — Cold Open: A Full Stop, July 2, 17872:21 — How a League Became a Government5:10 — A Firm League of Friendship7:46 — A Congress That Could Not Tax8:41 — Was the Confederation a Failure?10:33 — Shays's Rebellion13:09 — Annapolis and the Call to Philadelphia13:51 — Madison's Remedy: A Veto Over the States16:01 — Behind Closed Doors18:49 — Enlarge the Sphere19:45 — Madison Tries for the Veto21:26 — Conclude Nothing, Propose Anything22:43 — Hamilton's British Model23:34 — The Great Compromise26:40 — The Bargain Stands27:41 — Federal Law Made Supreme28:27 — One Executive or Three30:39 — Consent Across a Continent32:27 — Limits That Hold Against a Majority34:11 — What Was on the Delegates' Bookshelf36:34 — The Honest Reckoning: Three-Fifths41:44 — The Slave Trade Bargain44:48 — The Fugitive Clause46:54 — The Skeptic's Case: Was It About Money?48:19 — The Skeptic's Case: A Usurpation?49:58 — The Skeptic's Case: Madison's Notes51:10 — The Liberty Test52:18 — September 17, 1787: The Signing55:10 — "A Republic, If You Can Keep It"55:47 — What Came Out of the Room📚 Article 19, "The Convention": https://www.consequentialactions.com/post/the-convention-from-a-league-of-friendship-to-we-the-people📚 Every article, free each Sunday: https://www.consequentialactions.com/subscribe🎙️ Self-Evident: The Road to 1776 — Episode 19: "The Convention" | Consequential Actions PodcastNext: Episode 19B, Tuesday, November 3, carries the Convention's argument into our own time. Episode 20, "The Loyal Opposition," Saturday, November 7.—Consequential Actions is a libertarian, non-interventionist analysis of American constitutional and foreign policy. New episodes weekly.🌐 https://www.consequentialactions.com#selfevident #constitutionalconvention #usconstitution #jamesmadison #articlesofconfederation #greatcompromise #foundingfathers #americanhistory #libertarian #consequentialactions
- 1 weeks ago1h 11m
Chris Gambino, Independent for PA House District 143 | Closed Primaries
Chris Gambino, Independent for PA House District 143 | Closed PrimariesIn some Bucks County homes, a husband and wife register in opposite parties before every primary. They do not disagree: in Pennsylvania only party members may vote in a party's primary, and where one party is sure to win, the primary decides the seat. More than one Pennsylvania voter in eight belongs to neither party.Chris Gambino, an independent candidate for the Pennsylvania House in the 143rd District, reached the November 3 ballot by petition. Five days out, Jeff Kellick asks what a citizen can ask of a system that also decides whether his name goes on the ballot.The interview episode for Week 18, closing the week of Saturday's Episode 18, "The Revolutionary Argument," and Article 18, published October 18. In 1765 the ministry told the colonists that a man without a vote could still be virtually represented.Chris Gambino is a scientist with a doctorate in animal sciences and a former professor, and works as a senior monitoring, evaluation and learning officer at a national foundation. His nomination papers were challenged, and the Commonwealth Court and then the Pennsylvania Supreme Court kept him on the ballot.They cover the challenge to his petitions, open primaries and who pays for closed ones, redistricting, an independent in a closely divided House, and pricing crop insurance to a farm's risk.Afterward, Jeff weighs California Democratic Party v. Jones (2000) against Tashjian v. Republican Party of Connecticut (1986) and House Bill 280, which passed the state House on September 29.The question underneath all of it: did this leave Americans more free, or more governed?⏱️ CHAPTERS0:00:00 — The split household0:01:15 — Week 18: from asking to stopping asking0:03:34 — Petitions, 1765 to 2026, and introducing Chris Gambino0:05:38 — Reaching the ballot by petition0:08:52 — The challenge to his nomination papers0:12:40 — A list of grievances for Harrisburg0:13:55 — Who pays for the primary0:14:50 — Ballot access and the signature gap0:15:44 — Gerrymandering and independent districts0:18:02 — Party loyalty and accountability0:23:13 — Virtual representation in 17650:25:21 — Is a voter with no party represented?0:29:18 — Splitting registrations across the kitchen table0:32:02 — Closed and open primaries explained0:34:22 — The club-membership argument0:35:00 — Who does a party legislator owe?0:38:38 — An independent in a divided House0:41:05 — Committee seats and Pennsylvania agriculture0:42:14 — Two of everything in Harrisburg0:43:20 — Aligning farm production with environmental outcomes0:47:17 — Pricing crop insurance to risk0:49:47 — Working lands and food security0:51:18 — A Speaker vote that comes down to one member0:54:20 — Education, outcomes and humility0:56:43 — Lessons from the wrestling mat1:02:00 — Where to find the campaign1:04:47 — Voting as an affirmative act1:05:25 — Dulany's test, turned around1:06:29 — Crop insurance and the subsidy1:07:18 — The Liberty Test: who pays for a closed primary?1:10:22 — Next: Episode 19, "The Convention"📚 Article 18, "The Revolutionary Argument," free with every source in its endnotes:https://www.consequentialactions.com/post/the-revolutionary-argument-from-the-rights-of-englishmen-to-the-laws-of-nature🗳️ Chris Gambino's campaign, with his policies: https://gambinoforpa.comThe wrestling ad he mentions is on his About page: https://gambinoforpa.com/about-chris🎙️ Self-Evident: The Road to 1776 — Episode 18i: Chris GambinoNext: Episode 19, "The Convention," Saturday, October 31.—Consequential Actions is a libertarian, non-interventionist analysis of American constitutional and foreign policy. New episodes weekly.🌐 https://www.consequentialactions.com#pennsylvania #openprimaries #closedprimaries #independent #ballotaccess #buckscounty #statehouse #libertarian #selfevident #consequentialactions
- 1 weeks ago46 min
In All Cases Whatsoever: The Case Against Nationalizing SpaceX
Starlink, Ukraine and the Call to Nationalize SpaceX | Youngstown v. SawyerIn October, the satellite link guiding Ukraine's drones began dropping out above about 100 miles per hour, and no one would own the decision. Elon Musk wrote that the U.S. military and ultimately the President decide the limits on Starshield; Secretary of State Marco Rubio said no one at the White House ordered a slowdown. After service returned on October 24, Musk wrote that SpaceX had enforced Starlink's terms of service.Then former Labor Secretary Robert Reich called for nationalizing Starlink and SpaceX. When a government claims a private man's property for a war, whose consent does it need, and who answers for what is done with it?Companion to Saturday's Episode 18 and Article 18, "The Revolutionary Argument," published October 18. In 1766 Parliament declared its power to bind the colonies "in all cases whatsoever," and the colonists objected before anything had been seized.Jeff Kellick sets the competing accounts side by side, then follows the line between private firms and the government through Intel, U.S. Steel, MP Materials, Microsoft, and years of requests to switch Starlink on and off.He makes the owner's case for SpaceX and names its limit, Starshield, then turns to Montgomery Ward in 1944 and Youngstown Sheet & Tube Co. v. Sawyer (1952), where the Supreme Court struck down Truman's steel seizure 6–3. Three objections follow: one man's control, the taxpayers' claim, and the cost in lives.The question underneath all of it: did this leave Americans more free, or more governed?⏱️ CHAPTERS0:00 — Drones dropping out of the sky2:43 — Whose consent does a government need?4:15 — Private power and military reach5:39 — Starlink in Ukraine since 20227:37 — Russian drones and the February whitelist8:24 — October: the restrictions and the first accounts9:34 — Service restored, and Musk's terms-of-service account10:38 — Ukraine's answer: Starlink or Starshield?11:41 — Every account comes from someone with a stake12:36 — The timing: refineries, fuel prices and the midterms13:41 — Senator Blumenthal's inquiry14:25 — The Sugar Act and the Declaratory Act15:19 — Robert Reich: "Nationalize it"16:53 — Trump, Bannon, and the government as shareholder18:39 — SpaceX's public shareholders and Musk's voting control19:44 — The colonists of 176520:14 — The Pentagon's cloud and a handful of owners20:40 — Years of requests to switch Starlink on and off21:32 — Amazon moves Ukraine's data22:27 — Microsoft and Unit 820023:30 — The principle has to work both ways24:23 — The owner's case for SpaceX25:58 — Jeff's own reading26:55 — The limit of the owner's case: Starshield28:51 — Seizing a company for a war: Montgomery Ward, 194430:11 — Truman's steel seizure and Youngstown v. Sawyer31:09 — Justice Jackson's three categories32:09 — The Defense Production Act and the Takings Clause33:34 — The Honest Reckoning35:35 — Objection one: one man's network37:27 — Objection two: the taxpayers' claim38:39 — Objection three: the cost in lives41:39 — The Liberty Test: the man with the truck43:18 — November 3 and the power of Congress44:43 — Next: Episode 19, "The Convention"📚 Article 18, "The Revolutionary Argument," free with every source in its endnotes:https://www.consequentialactions.com/post/the-revolutionary-argument-from-the-rights-of-englishmen-to-the-laws-of-nature🎙️ Self-Evident: The Road to 1776 — Episode 18B: "In All Cases Whatsoever"Next: Episode 19, "The Convention," Saturday, October 31.—Consequential Actions is a libertarian, non-interventionist analysis of American constitutional and foreign policy. New episodes weekly.🌐 https://www.consequentialactions.com#starlink #spacex #ukraine #nationalization #privateproperty #youngstown #declaratoryact #constitution #libertarian #selfevident
- 2 weeks ago56 min
From the Rights of Englishmen to the Laws of Nature: The Road to the Declaration
From the Rights of Englishmen to the Laws of Nature: The Road to the DeclarationIn June 1776, Thomas Jefferson's draft of the Declaration called its truths "sacred and undeniable." Those two words were struck through, and a new one was written above them: self-evident. A self-evident truth needs no charter, no statute, and no ancient constitution.In 1765 the colonists stood on their charters as Englishmen. By 1776 they claimed rights from the laws of nature. That appeal was there from the start, in James Otis's 1764 pamphlet, beside his pledge to obey Parliament. What changed was its place.The record runs from the Proclamation of 1763 through the Stamp Act, virtual representation and Daniel Dulany's answer, the committees of correspondence, the Congress of 1774, Common Sense, and George Mason's draft set beside Jefferson's. Then the bookshelf, sorted three ways: what the founders named, what they owned, and what had passed into the language without citation.The Honest Reckoning takes up the slave-trade passage Congress struck, the Prince Hall petition of 1777, the frontier, and the loyalists. The Skeptic's Case puts three objections at full strength.Companion to Article 18, published Sunday, October 18. On Tuesday, Episode 18B carries the Declaration's argument into our own time.Did the Revolution leave Americans more free, or more governed? And does the answer depend on which Americans you count?⏱️ CHAPTERS0:00 — Jefferson's rough draft, June 17761:09 — "Sacred and undeniable" struck through2:18 — Introduction: The Revolutionary Argument4:43 — The Proclamation of 17635:33 — The Sugar Act and Boston's answer6:48 — James Otis, 17647:45 — "We must obey"8:26 — The writs of assistance, 17619:02 — Coke and Bonham's Case9:29 — Who said "taxation without representation"?10:20 — The Stamp Act11:14 — The third Virginia resolve11:43 — Patrick Henry and the French traveler12:58 — Hutchinson's house13:31 — The Stamp Act Congress14:29 — Virtual representation15:04 — Dulany: "a mere cobweb"15:35 — The Declaratory Act16:20 — Adams and the law of nature17:02 — Dickinson and the Townshend duties17:54 — The committees of correspondence18:34 — "Among the natural rights of the colonists"19:56 — The tea and the Coercive Acts20:20 — Jefferson's Summary View21:05 — James Wilson: "equal and free"22:25 — The Continental Congress, 177423:03 — Hamilton: "as with a sunbeam"23:36 — Novanglus names the bookshelf24:07 — How thirteen colonies became one cause25:52 — Common Sense28:07 — Adams and Inglis answer Paine28:43 — The spring of 177629:27 — Lee's resolution30:14 — Mason's draft and Jefferson's31:34 — July 1 and July 232:51 — Congress edits the draft33:04 — Where the second paragraph came from34:06 — The bookshelf: what they named35:57 — What they owned37:31 — What the language carried39:17 — The Levellers40:20 — The Scots: Wills and Hamowy41:57 — "The harmonizing sentiments of the day"43:35 — The struck passage on the slave trade45:35 — Johnson and the Prince Hall petition46:36 — The frontier and the loyalists48:16 — Skeptic's Case: a tool, or a belief?49:45 — Skeptic's Case: the loyalists' law51:29 — Skeptic's Case: the shelf itself52:50 — The Liberty Test53:49 — What changed was the order54:46 — Next: Episode 19, "The Convention"📚 Article 18, "The Revolutionary Argument," with full endnotes: https://www.consequentialactions.com/post/the-revolutionary-argument-from-the-rights-of-englishmen-to-the-laws-of-natureConsequential Actions Podcast · Self-Evident: The Road to 1776 · Episode 18: "The Revolutionary Argument"—Consequential Actions is a libertarian, non-interventionist analysis of American constitutional and foreign policy. New episodes weekly.🌐 https://www.consequentialactions.com#selfevident #consequentialactions #declarationofindependence #naturalrights #thomasjefferson #americanrevolution #stampact #johnlocke #americanhistory #libertarian
- 2 weeks ago1h 15m
Liberty by Default: Ken Krawchuk's Education Plan and the Governor's Veto
Ken Krawchuk Interview: The Libertarian Running for Pennsylvania GovernorTwelve days before Pennsylvania chooses a governor, Libertarian nominee Ken Krawchuk takes up the history of the week: New England towns that voted their own taxes and refused one laid by a governor they had not chosen.This is the interview episode for Week 17 of Self-Evident: The Road to 1776, "Self-Government Before Theory." Ken is on the ballot November 3 with his running mate, John Thomas, our Week 6 guest. He has spent a career as a computer programmer and business systems architect, and he is the author of Atlas Snubbed.We begin in Ipswich in 1687, with what a governor should do alone: the veto, a cabinet cut to six departments, and pardons through the Board of Pardons. Then the wasted-vote objection, ballot access, consent and the veto, who decides what a township allows, from data centers to the newcomer Ipswich turned away in 1639, school choice, the National Guard, where Ken and Jeff want the same thing and part on how to get it, the emergency clock, license-plate cameras, and incorporation.Did this leave us more free, or more governed? Jeff puts the question to Ken's "can't license": liberty as the default, restricted only after an abuse, by a sentence before a jury.⏱️ CHAPTERS0:00:00 — Cold open: the race by its numbers0:02:14 — Introduction: Week 17 and a candidate on the record0:04:04 — Three threads for the hour0:05:10 — Meet Ken Krawchuk0:06:40 — Ipswich, 1687: what should a governor do alone?0:09:24 — Cutting the cabinet to six0:11:04 — Drug policy and the Board of Pardons0:13:13 — The wasted-vote objection0:16:15 — Approve, approve, disapprove voting0:18:37 — "Free and equal" elections and ballot access0:21:46 — The Ballot Access Coalition0:23:09 — Consent and the veto0:24:56 — The Municipal Planning Code and data centers0:27:37 — Who speaks for the landowner?0:29:07 — Ipswich, 1639: "the town was full"0:31:20 — Fund the child, not the system0:38:04 — The National Guard and Defend the Guard0:41:53 — Statute or constitution? Where Ken differs0:42:30 — The 21-day limit on emergency declarations0:48:19 — License-plate cameras and Flock0:50:40 — "The Flocked Up Blues" and the campaign songs0:52:35 — Atlas Snubbed: the separation of society and state0:56:36 — The "can't license"0:58:07 — A court without coercive power1:00:42 — Incorporation: where does the line belong?1:02:46 — Ken's answer: the Supremacy Clause1:05:30 — A message to the voter on the fence1:07:27 — Where to find Atlas Snubbed1:08:34 — Closing: what came out of the hour1:09:27 — Where we part on the Guard1:11:09 — From Tuesday: Ken on incorporation1:11:44 — A correction: Heller and McDonald1:12:16 — The Liberty Test: the "can't license"1:14:44 — Next: Episode 18, "The Revolutionary Argument"📚 Article 17, "Self-Government Before Theory," with every source in its endnotes: https://www.consequentialactions.com/post/self-government-before-theory-a-hundred-and-fifty-years-of-practice🗳️ Ken Krawchuk for Governor: https://www.kenk4pa.com🎵 Ken's campaign songs, including "The Flocked Up Blues": https://www.kenk4pa.com/1726-2/📖 Atlas Snubbed: https://atlassnubbed.com/🎙️ Jamie Frost Remmey, our Week 7 guest, running for Pennsylvania's First Congressional District: https://www.jamiefrostremmey.com🎙️ Consequential Actions · Self-Evident: The Road to 1776 · Episode 17iNext: Episode 18, "The Revolutionary Argument," Saturday, October 24.—Consequential Actions is a libertarian, non-interventionist analysis of American constitutional and foreign policy. New episodes weekly.🌐 https://www.consequentialactions.com#kenkrawchuk #pennsylvania #pagovernor #libertarian #defendtheguard #ballotaccess #schoolchoice #propertytax #consequentialactions
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A podcast that explores foundational ideas and thinkers in political theory.
Executive Functions Chat
Bob Bauer and Jack Goldsmith discuss news about the presidency.
The Oath and The Office
A political science professor and a comedian analyze presidential power, constitutional threats, and democracy in American politics.
How To Citizen with Baratunde
Explores civic engagement as an active practice, offering tools and stories to help people collectively shape a better society.
Unintended Consequences
Examines unintended outcomes of government policies using in-depth analysis from Regulation magazine.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is Podzilla's Consequential Actions Podcast daily summary?
It's a free AI-powered email that summarizes new episodes of Consequential Actions Podcast as soon as they're published. You get the key takeaways, notable quotes, and links & mentions — all in a quick read.
How does the Consequential Actions Podcast podcast summary work?
When a new episode drops, our AI transcribes and analyzes it, then generates a personalized summary tailored to your interests and profession. It's delivered to your inbox every morning.
Is this an official Consequential Actions Podcast product?
No. Podzilla is an independent service that summarizes publicly available podcast content. We're not affiliated with or endorsed by Jeff Kellick.
Can I get summaries of other podcasts too?
Absolutely! The free plan covers up to 3 podcasts, any in the catalog. Basic raises that to 15, Pro to 40 and Max to 100. Browse our full catalog at /podcasts.
How often does Consequential Actions Podcast release new episodes?
Consequential Actions Podcast publishes every few days. Our AI generates a summary within hours of each new episode.
What topics does Consequential Actions Podcast cover?
Consequential Actions Podcast covers topics including News, History. Our AI identifies the specific themes in each episode and highlights what matters most to you.
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Free forever for up to 3 podcasts. No credit card required.