"10 Minutes Closer to Freedom" In this episode of Thoughts from Maharrey Head, I talk about a recently published academic paper that obliterates conventional thinking about nullification and interposition. In 1798, Thomas Jefferson and James Madison penned the Kentucky and Virginia Resolutions in response to the Alien and Sedition Acts. These documents, approved by the..
Read moreAmerica: Untethered from Its Constitutional Moorings
Americans have untethered their government from its moorings. The colonists fought a war to tie government down. Under British rule, government had become more and more arbitrary. Parliament and the King could issue edicts and pass laws detached from any absolute guiding principles. Americans called it tyranny. In the British system, the constitution evolved. Government..
Read moreThoughts from Maharrey Head #35: Donald Trump
"10 Minutes Closer to Freedom" In this episode of Thoughts from Maharrey Head, I share my thoughts on the Trump phenomenon. As a general rule, I don't care much about national politics. I'm particularly apathetic about who inhabits the White House. But the Donald Trump phenomenon is pretty hard to ignore, and I couldn't resist..
Read moreLegislative Testimony: “Right to Try” Bill would Nullify in Practice Some FDA Restrictions on Terminal Patients
Following is testimony I offered before the Alaska Senate Health and Social Services Committee in support of "Right to Try" legislation. SB113 would bypass the FDA expanded access program and allow terminally ill patients to obtain experimental drugs from manufacturers without first obtaining FDA approval. This procedure directly conflicts with the federal expanded access program..
Read moreThoughts from Maharrey Head #34: The Constitution and Federal Lands
"10 Minutes Closer to Freedom" In this episode of Thoughts from Maharrey Head, I talk about what the Constitution has to say about federal land ownership and management. The recent standoff between the feds and ranchers at the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in Oregon thrust the issue of federal land ownership and control into the..
Read moreMonopoly Government? No Thanks!
In this short video, I explain why I opposes centralizing government power in D.C. (Or anywhere else) Hint: it's not because I think state and local governments are great. https://youtu.be/T0I3Uoh7Flg
Read moreNullification: The Path to Liberty – Burns, Oregon, 2016 (Speech)
The federal government was conceived as an institution with limited, enumerated powers. As James Madison put it in Federalist #45, "The powers delegated by the proposed constitution to the federal government are few and defined." Today we have a system that bears no resemblance to the founders' vision. This supposedly limited government claims the authority..
Read moreRefusal to Cooperate: The Moderate Middle Road Between Revolution and Unlimited Submission
Ammon Bundy and the other ranchers arrested after taking over the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge outside Burns, Oregon,tried to go toe-to-toe with the federal government using raw force and power. They failed. The feds killed one man, and the rest of the ranchers now sit in jail, facing charges under a law passed during the..
Read moreThoughts from Maharrey Head #33: Things I learned in Burns, Oregon
"10 Minutes Closer to Freedom" In this episode of Thoughts from Maharrey Head, I share some of the things I learned during my recent trip to Burns, Oregon, along with some personal thoughts and insights. Earlier this week, I had the opportunity to speak in Burns, Oregon. I talked about unconstitutional federal actions and how..
Read moreSupreme Court Hysteria
In the wake of Justice Antonin Scalia’s sudden and unexpected death, many on the right have gone into an absolute panic. There seems to be this sense that the very fabric of American constitutionalism could tear in half depending on whom Obama nominates to fill the newly created vacancy on the Court. It’s the “we..
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