The Future of Liberty with Mitch Daniels

Lamar Alexander on the Filibuster, the Founders, and Civility in Crisis

Tocqueville warned that one of the greatest dangers to American democracy was the tyranny of the majority. Few have taken that warning more seriously than Lamar Alexander. Governor Mitch Daniels sits down with the former Senator, Governor, and Secretary of Education on what it takes to keep a republic free. * The Portrait Test: What Makes a Consequential President (0:58) * The Filibuster & Tyranny of the Majority (8:20) * Civic Decorum & the Standards We've Lost (17:38) * Civics Education & What Americans Don't Know (21:25) * The Federal Debt & the Reforms Nobody Wants (33:00) The Future of Liberty — Former Indiana governor and Purdue University president Mitch Daniels investigates the prospects for liberty and more through conversations with prominent thinkers and leaders across diverse fields. New episodes are available wherever you listen, including Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-future-of-liberty/id1754223048], Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/1MEIj8ghWDbmjxX86xPfd0?si=xBSpjr7OSs6AsuPpJ-S9JA], and YouTube [https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLUf77X1sckHBIflWhRiCMZwXwccD8u_Le&feature=shared]. Visit thefutureofliberty.org [https://thefutureofliberty.org/] to learn more.   Stay connected with Liberty Fund on Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/LibertyFundInc/], Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/libertyfund/], LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/libertyfundinc/], and X [https://x.com/liberty_fund].

Michael Auslin on the Declaration of Independence and the Spirit of 1776

Dr. Michael Auslin joins Mitch Daniels to discuss his new book National Treasure and the remarkable story behind the Declaration of Independence as it turns 250. They explore the document's improbable physical survival, myths about July 4th, Jefferson's lost "fair copy," and the passages Congress removed. The conversation moves to the Declaration's enduring power as a statement of natural rights, its role in debates over slavery, equality, and liberty from the Civil War through the civil rights movement, and how movements around the world have claimed its language for vastly different purposes. Auslin and Daniels reflect on the founders' spirit of compromise, civic friendship, and what the Declaration still has to teach Americans in 2026. * The Declaration's Wild Survival Story (01:12) * Why We Celebrate July 4th & Not July 2nd (09:16) * All Men Are Created Equal, What Did They Mean? (20:26) * The Confederates Loved the Declaration (29:12) * Compromise Made the Country (42:59) The Future of Liberty — Former Indiana governor and Purdue University president Mitch Daniels investigates the prospects for liberty and more through conversations with prominent thinkers and leaders across diverse fields. New episodes are available wherever you listen, including Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-future-of-liberty/id1754223048], Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/1MEIj8ghWDbmjxX86xPfd0?si=xBSpjr7OSs6AsuPpJ-S9JA], and YouTube [https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLUf77X1sckHBIflWhRiCMZwXwccD8u_Le&feature=shared]. Visit thefutureofliberty.org [https://thefutureofliberty.org/] to learn more.   Stay connected with Liberty Fund on Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/LibertyFundInc/], Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/libertyfund/], LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/libertyfundinc/], and X [https://x.com/liberty_fund].

Lord Andrew Roberts on King George III and the Making of a Revolutionary Narrative

Historian Lord Andrew Roberts joins Mitch Daniels to challenge one of America’s most enduring narratives: that King George III was a tyrant. Drawing on his book The Last King of America, Roberts argues for a more complex (and surprising) view of the monarch at the center of the Revolution. The discussion explores constitutional government, the power of political myth, and the lasting significance of the American founding for liberty today. * Common Law Tradition & the Foundations of Liberty (02:50) * The Declaration of Independence: Ideals vs. Political Rhetoric (11:20) * Westward Expansion, Empire, and the Roots of Revolution (20:30) * Constitutional Monarchy and the Limits of Political Power (31:50) * NATO, Burden Sharing, and the Future of the West (42:00) The Future of Liberty — Former Indiana governor and Purdue University president Mitch Daniels investigates the prospects for liberty and more through conversations with prominent thinkers and leaders across diverse fields. New episodes are available wherever you listen, including Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-future-of-liberty/id1754223048], Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/1MEIj8ghWDbmjxX86xPfd0?si=xBSpjr7OSs6AsuPpJ-S9JA], and YouTube [https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLUf77X1sckHBIflWhRiCMZwXwccD8u_Le&feature=shared]. Visit thefutureofliberty.org [https://thefutureofliberty.org/] to learn more.   Stay connected with Liberty Fund on Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/LibertyFundInc/], Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/libertyfund/], LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/libertyfundinc/], and X [https://x.com/liberty_fund].

Jeffrey Rosen on the Hamilton–Jefferson Debate at America’s 250th

As America approaches its 250th anniversary, Mitch Daniels sits down with legal scholar and author Dr. Jeffrey Rosen to explore the enduring constitutional debate that has shaped the nation from its founding to today. Drawing from his new book The Pursuit of Liberty, Rosen traces the long-running clash between Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson over national power and states’ rights, executive authority and congressional restraint, liberal and strict constitutional interpretation, and shows how that debate continues to define the Supreme Court’s most consequential cases. * Hamilton vs. Jefferson & America’s Founding Debate (01:17) * Faith, Reason, & Freedom of Conscience (08:23) * Immigration, Birthright Citizenship, & the Fourteenth Amendment (11:27) * Polarization, Insurrection, & Historical Perspective (17:59) * Progressivism, Executive Power, & the Administrative State (24:47) The Future of Liberty — Former Indiana governor and Purdue University president Mitch Daniels investigates the prospects for liberty and more through conversations with prominent thinkers and leaders across diverse fields. New episodes are available wherever you listen, including Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-future-of-liberty/id1754223048], Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/1MEIj8ghWDbmjxX86xPfd0?si=xBSpjr7OSs6AsuPpJ-S9JA], and YouTube [https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLUf77X1sckHBIflWhRiCMZwXwccD8u_Le&feature=shared]. Visit thefutureofliberty.org [https://thefutureofliberty.org/] to learn more.   Stay connected with Liberty Fund on Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/LibertyFundInc/], Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/libertyfund/], LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/libertyfundinc/], and X [https://x.com/liberty_fund].

Matthew Yglesias on Affordability, the Social Safety Net, and Economic Dynamism

In this episode of The Future of Liberty, Mitch Daniels speaks with journalist and author Matthew Yglesias about affordability, the social safety net, and the conditions required for economic dynamism in a free society. Their wide-ranging conversation examines housing, energy, transportation, education, and entitlement policy, with attention to the “sacred cows” that often shape political debate and influence approaches to reform. * Civil Discourse & the Search for Truth (02:31) * Energy Policy, Environmental Tradeoffs, & Reality (13:25) * Artificial Intelligence & the Future of Learning (26:24) * Work, Human Dignity, & Universal Basic Income (28:27) * Liberty, Rule of Law, & National Prosperity (41:40) The Future of Liberty — Former Indiana governor and Purdue University president Mitch Daniels investigates the prospects for liberty and more through conversations with prominent thinkers and leaders across diverse fields. New episodes are available wherever you listen, including Apple Podcasts [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-future-of-liberty/id1754223048], Spotify [https://open.spotify.com/show/1MEIj8ghWDbmjxX86xPfd0?si=xBSpjr7OSs6AsuPpJ-S9JA], and YouTube [https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLUf77X1sckHBIflWhRiCMZwXwccD8u_Le&feature=shared]. Visit thefutureofliberty.org [https://thefutureofliberty.org/] to learn more.   Stay connected with Liberty Fund on Facebook [https://www.facebook.com/LibertyFundInc/], Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/libertyfund/], LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/company/libertyfundinc/], and X [https://x.com/liberty_fund].