Ep 405 | The Iran War Is a PR Disaster for Republicans | Guest: Joe Kent

The mass school closings as a result of the COVID-19 lockdowns gave many parents a window into just how badly government schools were failing their children, and when they tried to do anything about it, they were demonized as "domestic terrorists." Matt Kibbe is joined by Paul Martino, education activist and subject of the PBS docuseries "Bucks County, USA" to discuss how parents are able to have a substantial impact on school board elections by demanding transparency and accountability from the institutions that are supposed to put children first, but which more often cater to the interests of teachers' unions and administrator salaries.

As the November elections approach, the GOP is going to have to reckon with the protracted war that continues to drag on in Iran, in defiance of the president’s “no new wars” campaign promise. Matt Kibbe is joined by Joe Kent, former counterterrorism adviser to the Trump administration, to discuss the state of the Iranian conflict, the resulting high gas prices that Americans are expected to endure, and the increasing discomfort younger voters have with Israel’s connection to American foreign policy.

How do we teach people about the importance of personal freedom? Politicians give stump speeches; think tanks write white papers, but do any of these methods really reach people? Matt Kibbe sits down with Daniel O'Connell, who goes by the stage name Free, to discuss using storytelling, pop culture, and even game shows to promote libertarian ideas. Free is the host of "Are You Smarter Than a Politician?" This game pushes guests to think about civics, ethics, and political science in a way that is all too uncommon among the political class or in schools and universities.

When the Trump administration decided to take down Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) over his opposition to deficit spending, war, and protecting Jeffrey Epstein's clients, many Americans were outraged that one of the only constitutional conservatives in Congress could be unseated by a dishonest smear campaign and an empty suit like his primary opponent, Ed Gallrein. Because Kentucky's 4th district is deep red, Gallrein believes that he can walk into the seat while barely even campaigning. However, the Libertarian Party has other ideas. Matt Kibbe sits down with Jeremy Todd, the Libertarian candidate for Massie's soon-to-be-vacant seat, to discuss how his platform and values are similar to those of Thomas Massie, while being distinct from the rest of the Republican Party.

One of the things we learned from Republican Rep. Thomas Massie’s primary election loss in Kentucky’s 4th District was that older Americans are consuming a fundamentally different stream of information than the rest of us. Legacy media outlets like Fox News are essentially bought and paid for and will push any kind of propaganda that their overlords demand of them, presenting viewers with a fundamentally distorted vision of reality. Fortunately, the old media will probably not be around for much longer. Matt Kibbe sits down with comedian and commentator Bobby Sauce to discuss why new media, podcasts, Substack, and independent creators are taking the mantle from the old networks by offering audiences something they’re not used to seeing: authenticity and integrity.

For decades, California has been pouring government money into the homelessness problem, insisting that the issue can be solved by simply giving people free housing. Today, the situation is worse than ever, because the housing-first approach neglects the full picture of what causes someone to become homeless in the first place, which is often related to drug addiction or mental illness. Matt Kibbe speaks with Mary Theroux, CEO of the Independent Institute, about the film “Building Home,” a collaborative effort between her organization and Free the People, which uses one man’s story of redemption to highlight the policy failures of cities like San Francisco and Los Angeles, while proposing an alternative approach that actually works. Watch the full "Building Home" documentary here: https://freethepeople.org/films/building-home/

For the 400th episode of “Kibbe on Liberty,” Matt Kibbe takes a look back at the history of the show, which had its humble beginnings a decade ago. Those earliest videos were largely focused on debunking the folksy populism of Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), pointing out that his socialist ideology is rooted in a brutal history that rests on countless piles of corpses. Today though, it seems like it’s déjà vu, as the Democratic Socialists of America are winning elections by appealing to a new generation frustrated by the failures of the political elites.

In the first few years of the 2020s, the United States engaged in unprecedented breaches of American civil liberties under the pretense of protecting public health and safety. Yet compared to Australia, we got off light. Matt Kibbe is joined by author and filmmaker Topher Field, who personally documented the way the Australian government cracked down on speech, assembly, and the right to protest in the city of Melbourne, Victoria. And unfortunately, while we may think that the worst is behind us, there's reason to believe that COVID was simply a blueprint for greater power-grabs to come.

Flock cameras are popping up all over the country, and their defenders say they prevent crime and keep Americans safe. Glenn Jacobs, mayor of Knox County, Tennessee, and former professional wrestler, disagrees. In his conversation with Matt Kibbe, he explains how these cameras will place us all under constant surveillance, opening the door to a whole host of civil liberties abuses. If you thought government was dangerous before, just wait till the government has a complete record of every citizen’s movements.

While the government school system does everything in its power to paint the United States as a uniquely evil country that should inspire shame and guilt in students, there are still those who find inspiration in America's founding as a nation conceived in liberty — a land of opportunity for all. Matt Kibbe is joined by Kelley Paul, wife of Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) and the author of a new series of children's books designed to teach kids about what makes America special. "Goodnight, Young American" and "Goodnight, Little American" present the stories of American history to different age groups in a way that highlights the founders' vision of freedom from tyranny, self-governance, and the protection of basic human rights, all of which were absent from the European nations the colonists left behind.