Kibbe on Liberty

While Matt Kibbe and the Free the People team were trying to enjoy the company of their fellow libertarians at this year's Porcupine Freedom Festival, the Trump administration insisted on harshing the vibe by dropping bombs on Iran's nuclear facilities. Scott Horton, director of the Libertarian Institute, sat down for this episode of “Kibbe on Liberty” to debunk some of the neoconservative claims that are always trotted out to justify American intervention in the Middle East. The same propaganda strategy that was deployed to start the Iraq War is being used again, almost verbatim, to advocate for regime change in Iran. Despite what you may have heard, war is not in America's best interests and needlessly puts our troops in harm's way.

The government's response to the COVID-19 pandemic was such a naked power grab on such an unprecedented scale that, even five years later, we are still struggling to hold the responsible parties accountable and to even fully process what happened. One unintended consequence of lockdowns, however, was exposing some ugly truths about who is really in charge in America. Matt Kibbe sits down with Debbie Lerman, author of “The Deep State Goes Viral,” to talk about whether our elected officials actually have the power to change things or whether someone else is pulling the strings. The word democracy means rule by the people, and we like to tell ourselves that our politicians are bound by the consent of the governed. In a post-COVID world, however, it's becoming less and less apparent whether that remains the case in America.

As riots rage across Los Angeles and the conflicts between ICE officials and illegal immigrants escalate, why does it seem like nobody in Washington is actually interested in fixing America's broken immigration system? Matt Kibbe sits down with Steven Olikara, CEO of Bridge Entertainment Labs and former Democratic Senate candidate, to discuss how both Democrats and Republicans have an interest in exacerbating the problem in order to use it as a campaign issue in the next election. This is yet another example of what Olikara calls “the division industrial complex,” which seeks to keep Americans polarized and at each other's throats. Instead of falling into this trap, Olikara stresses the importance of sitting down for civil conversations with those who hold differing opinions and working to find common ground that can lead to real solutions. The political establishment wants to keep us divided because that's how it retains its power. It's important to understand the rules of their game.

The fight over President Trump's "big, beautiful bill" is boiling over, shattering the White House alliance with Elon Musk. Join host Matt Kibbe in an exclusive sit-down with Senator Rand Paul (R-Ky.) as they dissect the bill's massive new spending and skyrocketing debt — provisions Paul warns could bankrupt America and spark runaway inflation. Plus, Paul reveals his bold plan as chairman of the Committee on Homeland Security to wield new subpoena powers, targeting Anthony Fauci and others who lied to protect the pandemic industrial complex.

As the Republicans in Congress are poised to spend trillions more, while ignoring all of Elon Musk's DOGE recommendations, some members of the administration and Trump loyalists are running defense, attempting to convince voters that their gargantuan reconciliation bill actually puts America first. Matt Kibbe tears this narrative apart, pointing to the hypocrisy of neocons who claim to care about small government while repeatedly voting for more spending to fund endless wars. Drawing on his experience as a budget economist and a Tea Party organizer, he explains that Republicans are setting themselves up for a clobbering in the midterm elections if they fail to enact any of the changes voters demanded in 2024.

For libertarians in America, there are plenty of things to be depressed about as Congress fails to cut spending or implement the DOGE's recommendations. But one area where there is room for optimism is the school choice movement, particularly at the state level. Matt Kibbe talks to Corey DeAngelis, author of “The Parent Revolution,” about the great strides parents are making in taking control of their children's education. After the pandemic locked down schools, forced students onto Zoom calls, and exposed parents to what is actually happening in the classroom, parents are more energized than ever to break free from the government school system. They are working with their legislatures to keep more of their tax dollars, which can be used to opt for private schooling or homeschooling. Even Trump's “big, beautiful bill” contains some important school choice provisions that will bring more educational freedom to the country.

In the aftermath of most national disasters, such as 9/11, the Iraq War, and even January 6, the media typically spends years writing an endless series of think pieces, autopsies, and analyses of what went wrong and how to prevent it from ever happening again. In the case of the COVID-19 pandemic and the accompanying lockdowns, we're not seeing the same thing, and in fact most media outlets seem to want to forget the whole thing ever happened, even though it represented the most dramatic curtailing of American civil liberties in living memory. Matt Kibbe talks to David Zweig, author of “An Abundance of Caution: American Schools, the Virus, and a Story of Bad Decisions,” who argues that the media wants to hide its own culpability in pushing for lockdowns and censorship of dissenting ideas. Zweig, who considered himself broadly left-wing before the pandemic, was shocked at the persistent illogic of keeping schools closed in the face of evidence that children faced virtually no risk from the virus, and his ensuing investigation led him to question many of his preconceptions about the state of American journalism.

Donald Trump's Department of Government Efficiency, headed by Elon Musk, came storming in this January with a mission to expose government waste, fraud, and abuse and to highlight up to $2 trillion that could be cut from the federal budget. One hundred days in, the department has made some impressive progress, but government spending remains as high as ever. Matt Kibbe sits down with Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) to find out where we stand in the congressional budget process, as well as the progress of the Make America Healthy Again coalition and Trump's use of emergency powers to impose tariffs.

At the Young Americans for Liberty conference in Washington, D.C., Matt Kibbe sits down with legendary journalist and educator John Stossel to talk about his long career bringing libertarianism to the masses. Stossel reflects on how the media landscape has changed, with decentralized platforms offering more opportunities to communicate without the fear of editorial censorship, and explains how his recent projects are bringing liberty into the classroom. He also laments the fact that for as long as he has been pointing out the benefits of free markets and personal liberty, many Americans are still not receptive to the ideas of freedom. Can Kibbe cheer him up with a dose of optimism? Watch to find out!

The second Trump administration has awakened Democrats to the dangers of executive power, but they have no one to blame but themselves. Matt Kibbe goes through the history of the expansion of executive authority, in which the presidency becomes more and more dominant over the other two branches of government. A lot of what we are now seeing can be traced to Barack Obama, who boasted that he could do what he wanted without Congress because he had a pen and a phone. Since then, there has been an arms race between the two parties to see how much they can get done with the presidency alone. It's a strategy that only harms the American people and our freedoms and will almost certainly come back to bite the very people who started it.

In a recent debate on “The Joe Rogan Experience,” Douglas Murray chastised the host for platforming non-experts he claims are spreading dangerous misinformation. Matt Kibbe points out that not only has the expert class completely failed to earn the trust of the American people but that the democratization of knowledge is one of the best things about the internet and podcasting in general. The process of challenging established dogma is what leads to greater dialogue and the free exchange of ideas. This is not unlike the theories of the Austrian school of economics, which prioritizes the importance of individual action over mindless deference to so-called experts, who claim to know what's best for everyone else.

As the Trump Administration appears to double down on protectionist trade policies, many critics have taken a sneering, condescending attitude toward those who think that tariffs might just make America great again. Matt Kibbe sits down with economist Antony Davies to try to address these concerns with empathy and understanding, while at the same time demonstrating that high tariffs actually hurt American workers by making everything more expensive. There are good reasons to be dissatisfied with the state of America's economy, but raising taxes on consumers will only make things worse.

To celebrate the confirmation of Jay Bhattacharya as director of the NIH, this week's “Kibbe on Liberty” features unseen footage from Matt Kibbe's series “The Coverup,” in which Dr. Bhattacharya explains how he was demonized and attacked for his opposition to COVID lockdowns, as well as some greatest hits from Jay's previous appearances on the show.

At the Mont Pelerin Society meeting in Mexico City, Matt Kibbe caught up with the tremendously successful entrepreneur Ricardo Salinas to talk about the battle for hearts and minds being waged between the collectivists and individualists who believe in personal freedom and responsibility. Salinas explains how he is using his business empire to expand opportunities for the Mexican people, particularly in offering educational alternatives to the state-run schools. They also talk about the dangers of central banking and the potential for Bitcoin to do an end run around government control of currency.

Following the recent dust-up over the continuing resolution that maintained Biden-era levels of spending, it's fair to ask whether the Trump administration is serious about cutting spending, reducing the national debt, and balancing the budget. The Department of Government Efficiency has identified hundreds of billions of dollars in wasteful spending, but Congress still has to act in order to actually make those cuts. Matt Kibbe is joined by Virginia state Delegate Nick Freitas (R) to talk about the Trump administration's diverse coalition and whether it can hold together long enough to enact Trump's agenda.

In this special solo episode of “Kibbe on Liberty,” Matt Kibbe weighs in on Donald Trump's threat to primary Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) over his refusal to vote for the latest continuing resolution that maintains Biden-era levels of spending and funds all of the waste, fraud, and abuse that Elon Musk and the DOGE have uncovered. Kibbe recounts his time as a budget economist and explains why the budgeting process doesn't work as it's supposed to and how entrenched special interests are committed to keeping it that way. Massie is one of the few congressmen who understands that and who is willing to fight for the America First spending cuts that Trump campaigned on. He's absolutely the wrong target for the president's ire.

Nearly a century after President Franklin Delano Roosevelt spearheaded a sweeping set of economic policies known as the New Deal, the debate still rages over whether he was a hero or a villain. Defenders of the New Deal credit it with ending the Great Depression and pioneering a number of important social programs. Detractors claim it prolonged the Depression due to the reckless government spending demanded by Keynesian economics. Matt Kibbe sits down with George Selgin, author of "False Dawn," who argues that both of these viewpoints miss important details about the New Deal and its impact on the economy. In the first place, it was not particularly Keynesian in its approach to spending. Instead, it was Roosevelt's hostility toward private industry that delayed America's recovery for so long.

One of the benefits of America's federalist system is that individual states can experiment with different policies, allowing the rest of the country to see what works and what doesn't. New Hampshire has taken that idea and run with it, attempting to gather as many libertarians as possible in one place to create the freest state in the country. Matt Kibbe sits down with Eric Brakey, executive director of the Free State Project, to discuss why this effort is so important, how effective it has been, and why every libertarian, regardless of where they live, should be invested in what happens in New Hampshire, as it reflects the health of the movement and the prospects for expanding freedom in our lifetime.

The first month of the new Trump administration has been a whirlwind of activity, some good and some not so good. The chaos is causing large-scale freak-outs among the legacy media and Washington insiders, who don't know how to deal with this level of disruption. Matt Kibbe sits down with John Papola, founder and CEO of Emergent Order Foundation, to discuss the potential good that can come out of shaking the establishment out of its comfort zone. With Trump's trans-partisan coalition of antiauthoritarian voices, including former left-wing figures like RFK Jr. and Tulsi Gabbard, the administration is in a position to effect change in a way the swamp has never seen before.

As Donald Trump and his Department of Government Efficiency ramp up their efforts to dismantle the federal Department of Education, its defenders are screaming that returning education to the states will destroy schooling in this country. Matt Kibbe is joined by pro wrestler and Knox County, Tennessee, Mayor Glenn Jacobs to debunk these nonsensical claims. From their shared love of the band Rush and the Austrian school of economics, Kibbe and Jacobs discuss the common-sense notions that underlie good economic and political thinking: the power of the individual, the virtue of not wasting taxpayer money on ineffective and corrupt programs, and the desperate need for reform in Washington's broken system. The only people who can oppose such obvious wisdom are the ones who have a financial stake in perpetuating institutions that serve legislators and bureaucrats rather than the people themselves.

Continuing revelations about the origins of COVID-19 woke America up to the dangers of bioweapons research. But if you thought viruses were scary, wait until you hear about directed-energy weapons. Matt Kibbe sits down with journalist Steve Baker to discuss his latest investigation into the military's use of sound and radio waves as weapons of war. It's bad enough to deploy such weapons against enemy combatants, but it's increasingly clear that the government has been illegally using this technology against American citizens, not just to harm them but to actually control their behavior and to provoke them into doing things they otherwise never would. It's the stuff of dystopian fiction, with one important difference: It actually exists.

Is populism a dirty word, the tool of strongmen and thugs to manipulate the public and amass unchecked power? Or is it simply a method of representing ideas in a way that appeals to the public? Matt Kibbe sits down with Gloria Alvarez, host of the “The Red Pill” radio program, to discuss whether the idea of libertarian populism is a contradiction in terms or the only way to advance freedom on a broad scale. The elections of Donald Trump in America and Javier Milei in Argentina show that there is a movement toward charismatic leaders promising lower taxes, less regulation, and smaller government. Does this mean that libertarian ideas are finally catching on, or is it just the rise of a right-wing backlash against the excesses of the political Left?

The ideas that underlie the libertarian philosophy are ancient, descending from Aristotle and other philosophers. Yet even today, we still have to defend them against those who prefer coercion to cooperation. It therefore takes great patience and vigilance to keep up the fight and to continue to make progress toward human flourishing. Ron Manners, author of “The Impatient Libertarian,” sits down with Matt Kibbe to talk about his long life fighting for liberty, the time he spent studying under Friedrich Hayek and other luminaries, and the prospects for human freedom in the future.

With his transition back to the White House well under way, President-elect Trump has had the courtesy to nominate several “Kibbe on Liberty” regulars to fill prominent positions in his administration. We are encouraged to see the likes of Jay Bhattacharya nominated to run the National Institutes of Health, Tulsi Gabbard selected for director of national intelligence, Paul Atkins chosen to lead the SEC, and Vivek Ramaswamy co-chairing the Department of Government Efficiency with Elon Musk. As we enter 2025, now is your chance to get to know these nominees, each of whom has taken a stand to push back on government authoritarianism and support American freedoms in the new year.

This Christmas, if you've had enough of family, gift giving, and day drinking, “Kibbe on Liberty” invites you to take a look back at some of our most engaging and provocative guests, giving their perspectives on everything from COVID authoritarianism and the resurgence of parental control over education, to foreign policy and Ukraine, to what really happened on January 6. Revisit some of the most articulate and insightful voices in the liberty movement as we prepare for a new year that promises to bring both new opportunities and new challenges to advance freedom in America and around the world.

The Make America Healthy Again movement is seeing a renewed interest in addressing chronic disease, obesity, and other health problems that plague Americans. But at the same time, the incompetence and dishonesty of the public health establishment during the COVID-19 pandemic have left people more skeptical of medical experts than ever. Matt Kibbe sits down with Dr. Joseph Marine, Professor of Medicine at Johns Hopkins University, to talk about what needs to be done to restore the country's faith in good science as well as what we can expect from Trump nominees like Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Jay Bhattacharya as they take the reins of dysfunctional and corrupt agencies like the NIH and HHS.

Rampant inflation is making it harder for Americans to put food on the table and is one of the main drivers of the political dissatisfaction that led to Donald Trump's reelection. Yet, many economists remain bemused by the average worker's concern over rising prices. This is because many ivory tower academics are narrowly focused on their areas of study and have lost touch with the concerns of ordinary people. Matt Kibbe sits down with Lydia Mashburn Newman, managing director of monetary economics at the American Institute for Economic Research. to discuss how the Federal Reserve, coupled with reckless government spending, is the main contributor to inflation, and the need for someone like Ron Paul to go in and clean house.

The mismanagement and subsequent cover-up of the COVID-19 pandemic is one of the greatest scandals in American history, and it's crucial that those responsible are held accountable for their lies and deceptions. It's also imperative that we put safeguards in place to prevent such a thing from ever happening again. That is the task of the House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic, chaired by Rep. Brad Wenstrup (R-Ohio). The subcommittee has just released a 500-page report detailing its findings, and Rep. Wenstrup sits down with Matt Kibbe to go through those results and talks about criminal referrals for the culpable parties.

Donald Trump has signaled that the foreign policy of his second administration will put America first and avoid foreign entanglements. However, he has also leaned into his persona of international tough guy, ready to limit foreign trade with tariffs and quotas. Matt Kibbe sits down with Magatte Wade, director of the Center for African Prosperity, to discuss the need for the United States to work together with other nations to help create a wealthier, more prosperous future. This is not about handing out foreign aid or funding other countries' wars but about supporting the institutions that empower entrepreneurs and innovators to bring opportunity to the whole world.

Donald Trump won re-election in large part due to his promises to end the war in Ukraine and pursue an “America First” foreign policy. At the same time, some of his Cabinet picks have been troublingly hawkish. Matt Kibbe is joined by Dan Caldwell, senior adviser at Defense Priorities, and Reid Smith, vice president of foreign policy at Stand Together, to discuss what we can expect from the incoming Trump administration, how to correct some of Joe Biden's previous mistakes, and the importance of encouraging the president-elect in the right direction when it comes to war and military adventurism.

As the Cabinet appointees within the incoming Trump administration take shape, there is cause for hope among libertarians, as well as some cause for concern. Matt Kibbe is joined by Keith Knight, managing editor at the Libertarian Institute and author of the book "Domestic Imperialism: Nine Reasons I Left Progressivism," to talk about why progressives and neoconservatives alike are so quick to agitate for foreign wars and why it's so important to keep hawks like Nikki Haley and Mike Pompeo far from the levers of power.

For the last four years, the media has persisted in characterizing January 6 protesters as a violent mob intent on overthrowing a legitimately elected government. However, many of the people now being prosecuted were innocent bystanders or journalists simply trying to cover the event. One such man is investigative journalist and BlazeTV contributor Steve Baker, who comes straight from the courthouse to talk to Matt Kibbe about how he was forced to enter a guilty plea for a crime he didn't commit and how his life has been turned upside down by a twisted justice system bent on locking him away. With the re-election of President Trump, there is now some hope that he and his fellow journalists can finally be liberated from these politically motivated prosecutions.

On this episode of “Kibbe on Liberty,” recorded the morning after Donald Trump's decisive victory, Matt Kibbe is joined by Jack Hunter, co-founder of BASEDPolitics, to analyze the election results. Both are cautiously optimistic about the prospects for important liberty-friendly policies, bolstered by the MAHA movement and an anti-authoritarian political realignment. Beginning with Trump's pledge to free Ross Ulbricht, Matt and Jack lay out a white-pilled wish list. Will a new Trump administration include Cabinet posts for Thomas Massie, RFK Jr., Tulsi Gabbard, Mike Lee, and Vivek Ramaswamy? What about the waste-slashing ideas of Elon Musk and Ron Paul?

In this special election edition of "Kibbe on Liberty," Matt goes solo, unleashing an epic ramble-rant about the big political realignment happening right before our eyes and the opportunities for libertarians working to free America from the tyranny of lockdown authoritarianism. While Donald Trump openly courts the libertarian vote, a New Resistance is forming, motivated by a reverence for free speech, skepticism of endless foreign wars, and a desire to make America healthy again. With old-school liberals like RFK Jr., Elon Musk, Tulsi Gabbard, Nicole Shanahan, and Bret Weinstein now joined together, what kinds of new coalitions and alliances might we help create or join — together? 

As trust in the government school system plummets, more and more parents are stepping up and taking a more active role in their children's educations. Now, those parents are representing a major voting bloc in the swing states, and they will have to decide which candidate will better support their rights. Matt Kibbe sits down with Corey DeAngelis, author of “The Parent Revolution,” to discuss how issues like school choice and parental rights will impact the election and whether the actions taken by administrators and teachers' unions during the pandemic will create blowback for Democrats.

Four years after the COVID-19 pandemic and the disastrous lockdowns that accompanied it, we're still looking for answers on who to blame for the millions of deaths as well as the countless livelihoods destroyed. Since the corporate press has failed to do its job in holding government officials accountable, independent journalists have had to pick up the slack. Matt Kibbe sits down with Christian Britschgi, associate editor at Reason magazine, to discuss the role that Dr. Anthony Fauci played in funding the gain-of-function research that likely led to the release of the virus and then covering up his involvement to protect himself and his allies. While most people only learned who Fauci was in 2020, he has been a major player in researching bioweapons for decades.

As Hurricane Helene brought devastation to Asheville, North Carolina, and surrounding communities, it's been remarkable how ineffective FEMA and other government agencies have been at helping victims. More galling, government bureaucrats are actually impeding private efforts to offer aid to those in need. Matt Kibbe sits down with Amy LePore, co-founder of Dissident Media, who explains how the centralization of emergency services after 9/11 has led to an obstructive bureaucracy incapable of responding to the needs of citizens.

The COVID-19 pandemic gave government authoritarians the opportunity to exploit the public's fear to seize power. It was shocking to see how quickly many people were willing to abandon their principles for the promise of protection, but it's hardly the first time this has happened. Matt Kibbe sits down with Logan Albright, head writer at Free the People and author of "Freedom over Fear," to discuss the history of the politicians and bureaucrats using the rhetoric of fear to consolidate their own power and strip the citizens of their civil liberties. From xenophobia during war, to FDR's economic fascism during the Great Depression, to surrendering privacy in the name of anti-terrorism, to moral panics about the corruption of children, both the political Left and Right will take any chance to scare us as long as we keep letting them. Pick up your copy of “Freedom Over Fear” here: https://a.co/d/6DrdFXX

The COVID-19 pandemic revealed a number of troubling truths about the role the pharmaceutical industry plays in shaping public policy and the financial incentives that politicians and bureaucrats have to push certain medical interventions onto unsuspecting citizens. Matt Kibbe sits down with Sharyl Attkisson, author of "Follow the Science," to discuss the hidden connections between the medical-industrial complex and the regulators who have the power to force you to take an experimental vaccine whether you want to or not. It's impossible to have trust in the public health establishment as long as these blatant conflicts of interests exist and as long as there is no civil or criminal accountability for companies delivering products that have a high risk of causing permanent harm to those who use them.

The emergence of the SARS-CoV-2 pathogen in late 2019, and the ensuing investigation into its origins, revealed a dangerous lack of concern among bureaucrats and elected officials for biosafety and biosecurity. Not only did our government fund research to make viruses more deadly to humans, but it continues to do so, refusing to back down or admit any wrongdoing, paving the way for a future pandemic that makes COVID-19 look like the common cold. In his research for "The Coverup" series, which examines the national security apparatus' involvement in the development of the COVID virus, Matt Kibbe speaks with Bryce Nickels, professor of genetics for Rutgers University and co-founder of Biosafety Now, to find out what we as a society should be doing to prevent the development and spread of future pathogens. Their conversation also serves as a preview of the upcoming episode of "The Coverup" featuring Dr. Richard Ebright.