Why Freedom Matters: Tom Palmer on Authoritarianism and January 6th

Send us Fan Mail Why does freedom matter? How can we defend it in an age of rising authoritarianism? In this episode, I sit down with Tom Palmer to explore the ideas, virtues, and strategies that keep liberty alive. We cover: · The rise of authoritarian movements and global threats to liberty · The morality of freedom: how to know what to fight for and when · January 6th as a failure of duty, and what true constitutional leadership requires · Trump, responsibility in office, and the role of virtue in political life · How persuasion, clarity, and even humor (à la Bastiat) can advance freedom Palmer draws on decades of experience—from supporting dissidents in the USSR before the Berlin Wall fell to working in Ukraine’s struggle against Russia today, and fighting for self-defense rights, marriage equality, and freedom from conscription in the U.S. The through line is clear: defending freedom takes more than theory—it requires virtue, duty, and clarity of purpose to make liberty resilient and worth fighting for. Support the show Never miss another AdamSmithWorks update.

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Why Freedom Matters: Tom Palmer on Authoritarianism and January 6th is an episode from The Great Antidote by Juliette Sellgren.

This episode is 51:10 long.

This episode was published on Sep 12, 2025.

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