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Liberty’s Nemesis: The Unchecked Expansion of the State
Law Talk fans rejoice! Richard Epstein and I finally agree on something: the dangers of the over-expansion of the welfare state. Liberty’s Nemesis, which I edited with Dean Reuter of the Federalist Society, brings together more than 30 contributors who chart and critique the untrammeled growth of the federal government during the Obama years. We include chapters on the environment, financial markets, taxes, guns, and on and on and on.
Richard’s chapter is titled “The Freddie and Fannie Fiasco: Executive Overreach in the Regulation of Financial Markets.” In my concluding chapter, I argue that the growth of the state has arisen from the cooperation of both political parties in all branches of government: Congress delegates vast power to bureaucracies insulated from politics; Presidents welcome the power and at the same time press their powers to control the state; under the Chevron doctrine, courts defer to the decisions of the agencies on their policy choices and interpretation of the law. I call for conservatives not to rely on doctrines of judicial restraint or executive centralization over domestic policy, but to develop a theory of natural rights to contain the government.
There will also be an event at the Heritage Foundation on Thursday to discuss the book.
Published in Law, Literature
The black cover and red “Nemesis” are appropriate.
“…but to develop a theory of natural rights to contain the government.”
Isn’t that what the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution were supposed to do? Sadly, I don’t think there’s a market for that any more, to judge from the results in NH and the polls.
RIP Liberty.
Congress giveth and POTUS taketh away. Only the people are left with sops of bread and circuses for diversion–diverting them from the promises broken in past election cycles and from focusing on the folly of current promises for future action. But how can they call on freedom and liberty unless they believe in it? And how can they believe in it if they have never heard about it? And how can they hear about it unless someone tells them?
Those seeking political revolution whether they are following Sanders or Trump are following feelings of frustration not facts, not ideas. They have no idea of the what The Founders left us, and even less understanding of how those “Founding Principles” have been distorted and disregarded in favor of the presence of bread and circuses.
Let’s hope Liberty does NOT rest in peace but rather rises up and demands a re-hearing.
Thanks John. I plan on purchasing the book later today.
It does sound good.
Do you think you could add an epilogue discussing the NSA’s (and others agencies) untrammeled growth in power to surveil Americans and undermine the 4th Amendment?
Touche!