Ep. 37 - The Truth About the Bill of Rights

As most of you probably remember from your middle school civics' class, the first ten amendments of the United States Constitution are known as the Bill of Rights. What you probably do NOT know is those amendments only apply to the federal government. They were included in the Constitution as a way to insure the states that this newly created federal government would be limited in power. They would not be able to infringe upon the people's freedom of speech or their right to bear arms; they would not be able to quarter their soldiers in our homes, perform unreasonable search and seizures without probable cause, prosecute us without a speedy jury trial or impose excessive fines. But most importantly, the Tenth Amendment specifically states that any powers not granted to the federal government (mostly in Article I, Section 8) is left to the states.
Fast-forward a few decades later as the Civil War ended and the slaves were freed. Congress passed and the states ratified the Fourteenth Amendment in order to permanently codify the Civil Rights Act of 1866, which essentially insured that the newly freed slaves were treated equally under the law. It contained a few familiar phrases like, "privileges or immunities", "due process", and "equal protection". 
Unfortunately for all of us, over the ensuing 150 years the Supreme Court, as it is apt to do, has perverted the Constitution (rather than protect and defend it) and found ways to apply the Bill of Rights to the states. This is known as the Incorporation Doctrine.
Show Notes:
The American Ideology, Brian Vanyo
Power Divided is Power Checked, Jason Lewis
Government by Judiciary: the Transformation of the Fourteenth Amendment, Raoul Berger
Founders Constitution - University of Chicago
What is Incorporation? Brion McClanahan Show - Episode #247
The Tenth Amendment Center                                                                   
Incorporation Doctrine: A Fools Game
Charlottesville: Blame the Incorporation Doctrine
Privileges and Immunities: An Overview of the Fourteenth Amendment
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Ep. 28 - The Truth About the Federal Reserve - The Results

In the previous episode, #27 The Truth About the Federal Reserve – An Introduction, I laid the groundwork for this episode. So now that you know what the Fed is, why it was created and how it creates money, let’s look at the results of the last 100+ years since this monstrosity was created.
We will discuss the constitutionality of the Fed, how it creates inflation, its impact on savers and people on fixed incomes, malinvestment, bailouts, how it funds the welfare and warfare state, the gold standard, and I conclude the episode with a side-by-side comparison of the current monetary system dominated by the Fed with one without it.
Show Notes:
Creature from Jekyll Island, Edward Griffin
Numerous writings and podcast from the likes of Ron Paul, John Tamny, Tom Woods, Fee.org and Mises.org.
ContraKrugman Episode 185 - Economist's Love Letter to the Fed
A Century of Failure: Why It's Time to Consider Replacing the Fed - Mises
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Ep. 25 - The Truth About the Government Shutdown

Another fiscal year has come and gone and another spending resolution deadline is looming. It seems like every year we go through the same exercise with the political class arguing and casting blame on each other over who is going to cause the latest, pending government shutdown.
Well guess what? It is largely inconsequential. The amount of federal spending that Congress actually controls is around 14% of the budget. So we are supposed to tie ourselves in knots over a minuscule part of the budget while the federal government continues its ever-expanding march into unconstitutional areas of American's lives. It's all an unnecessary distraction from the real problems that plague our nation and it is a distraction from Congress' abdication of most of their constitutional duties.
Show Notes:
Shock Report: 86% Of Government Spending Is Now On Autopilot - IBD
Report: 86 Percent of Federal Spending Now on Autopilot - NewsMax
GAO - Government-Wide Inventory of Accounts with Spending Authority and Permanent Appropriations, Fiscal Years 1995 to 2015
“No Deal” – Government Shutdown Inevitable, Blamescaping Begins
Everything you need to know about a government shutdown
What closes when the government shuts down
Government shutdown spreading pain as it takes hold in Minnesota
Federal Government Shutdown: Impact on Food Safety May Compound Over Time
Dana Carvey - Church Lady - "Isn't that special?"
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Ep. 23 - The Truth About Nullification

The federal government is not supposed to be this gargantuan entity that is involved in virtually every aspect of our lives. The states created the federal government via the Constitution. They granted the federal government a few powers while all others were left to the states. Unfortunately, modern America's political system is a far cry from the Founder's vision of limited power at the federal level. Fortunately there is a method whereby the power that the federal government tries to wield can be checked. That method is called nullification.
Nullification is the practice whereby states resist federal actions that they deem unconstitutional. In this episode, I introduce you to the concept, dispel quite a few inaccurate assumptions made by mainstream news outlets and so-called historians and provide you with several examples of nullification efforts currently going on today.
I owe a debt of gratitude to Tom Woods and The Tenth Amendment Center who have written extensively on this subject.
Show Notes:
Nullification - Tom Woods
Tenth Amendment Center - Nullification Overview
Tenth Amendment Center 2018 State of the Nullification Movement Report
Nullification: The Rightful Remedy - Documentary
Nullification: Thomas Jefferson's Kentucky Resolutions of 1798
NullificationFAQ.com
Tenth Amendment Center Publishes Episode #23
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Ep. 19 - The Truth About Elections and Washington D.C.

Do you ever question the amount of time and energy spent fretting about the politics coming out of Washington D.C.? The Founding Fathers never thought that the average American would spend much time pondering the goings-on in D.C. After all, the federal government's power was constitutionally restricted. In this brief episode, I suggest an alternative to our seemingly unending focus on all things D.C.
Show Notes:
Washington D.C. is Beyond Reform, Focus on Your State
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Ep. 16 - The Truth About the Supreme Court

Every year the country waits with bated breath over the latest Supreme Court opinions. If we were living true to the Constitution, this would never happen because the Supreme Court is not supreme when it comes to deciding the constitutionality of a law! Think you disagree? Listen to learn the truth about the Supreme Court.
Show Notes:
Tenth Amendment Center published Episode #16
Books:
Men in Black, Mark Levin
Origin Intent, David Barton
The Naked Constitution, Adam Freedman
The Tenth Amendment Center:
Who Made the Supreme Court King?
No, Enforcing Unconstitutional Acts Will Not Save the System
Vetting Kavanaugh According to the Constitution
The Supreme Court's Job is to Protect Americans from Democracy
Thomas Sowell Explains Wickard v. Filburn
Mises.org:
The Supreme Court is Much Too Powerful
The Supreme Court: Why the Stakes are So High
Why We're Losing Freedom - Prager University
Kris Anne Hall
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Ep. 13 - The Truth About the Truth

In this episode I recount a conversation I had a few months ago with someone in my family. It was a short but wide-ranging discussion mostly about national politics but the actual content is less important than the lessons I drew from it.
Show Notes:
Americans Grapple Recognizing Facts In News Stories
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Ep. 3 - The Truth About the Constitution - Where in the Constitution

In America we are living through a perpetual constitutional crisis. The heavy restrictions placed on the federal government by the United States Constitution have been largely ignored for most of the country's history. We have experienced both small and incremental steps in the power and growth of the federal government (federal agencies, bureaucracies and regulations) as well as large and unprecedented leaps (the Alien and Sedition Acts, the internment of Japanese, The Patriot Act, and NSA spying).
In this episode I hope to influence the way you look at the federal government going forward - through the eyes of the Founding Fathers.
As mentioned in previous episodes, questions are powerful methods of persuasion especially when you require skeptics to answer them. In Episode 2, I posed the question "WHAT ABOUT THE BABY?" Today I will pose the question, "WHERE IN THE CONSTITUTION?" This is a question I hope you ask every time you evaluate the actions of our elected and unelected officials in Washington, D.C.
Show Notes:
Founders Constitution - University of Chicago
WhereintheConstitution.org
Bridge of Spies Movie Clip - What makes us American?
The Perversion of the Presidency - Tenth Amendment Center blog post
Tenth Amendment Center Publishes Episode #3
Economic Liberty and the Constitution - Daniel J. Mitchell
The First Question We Should Always Ask - Is this authorized by the constitution?
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We hope you take the challenge of wearing these shirts in public and to family gatherings. Don't worry! You will be equipped with the rhetorical tools to engage in conversation and/or debate. 
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Check out the "Few and defined; Numerous and indefinite" shirt inspired by this episode.
-----------------------------------------
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The video of this episode is available on Thinkspot, Rumble, Brighteon and on BitChute. Check out short highlight videos of each episode on Instagram.