Voices of Liberty

Why do so many good people refuse to run for Congress—and what would it take to change that? In this episode of Voices of Liberty, host Sean Themea sits down with longtime libertarian leader and U.S. Term Limits Chairman Howie Rich to discuss why he believes term limits are the key to restoring representative government. Drawing from decades of experience in the liberty movement, Howie explains ho...

Is your data really yours? New Hampshire State Representative James Spillane joins Sean Themea to explain why one of the biggest threats to liberty today isn't happening in Washington—it's happening in the cloud. From the Fourth Amendment and digital property rights to the dangers of the third-party doctrine, Spillane breaks down how outdated laws are leaving Americans vulnerable to government ove...

What does it take to build a company from a small startup into a global technology leader with 14,000 employees? In this episode of Voices of Liberty, host Sean Themea sits down with entrepreneur, engineer, and philanthropist Jerry Rawls, founder of Finisar, to explore the journey behind one of America's greatest business success stories. Jerry shares how taking a risk, embracing innovation, build...

What happens when government regulators target a product that millions of people safely enjoy around the world? In this conversation, Sean Themea sits down with Douglas La Rose, Executive Director of the Kava Coalition, to explore the growing fight over kava—a traditional South Pacific beverage that many people use as an alternative to alcohol.  Douglas explains what kava is, why it has become a t...

What happens when government power goes unchecked? In this episode of Voices of Liberty, Sean Themea sits down with constitutional attorney and Cato Institute Senior Vice President Clark Neily to discuss the principles that first drew him to the liberty movement, his role in the landmark D.C. v. Heller Supreme Court case, and why he believes protecting individual rights starts with limiting govern...

What happens when ordinary people stand up to government overreach? In this episode of Voices of Liberty, Sean Themea sits down with Spike Cohen to discuss his journey from entrepreneur to liberty activist and the mission behind You Are The Power. Spike shares how a health crisis changed the direction of his life, why he believes liberty starts with respecting individual rights, and how his organi...

What happens when an award-winning journalist starts questioning everything he was taught about government? In this episode of Voices of Liberty, host Sean Themea sits down with legendary journalist and 19-time Emmy Award winner John Stossel. Stossel shares how his career as a consumer reporter transformed him from a self-described leftist into one of America’s most influential advocates for free...

In this episode of Voices of Liberty, host Sean Themea sits down with Serena Barker, a Young Americans for Liberty activist whose journey into the liberty movement began during the COVID era while attending Florida State University. What started as frustration with government mandates quickly evolved into a mission to defend individual freedom and challenge restrictions on campus and beyond. Seren...

Artificial intelligence is advancing faster than almost anyone imagined. But what does that mean for freedom, innovation, and the future of humanity? In this episode of Voices of Liberty, Sean Themea sits down with Brendan Steinhauser, CEO of the Alliance for Secure AI, for a wide-ranging conversation about the opportunities and risks created by rapidly evolving AI technology. Brendan discusses th...

In this episode of Voices of Liberty, Sean Themea sits down with Lawrence W. “Larry” Reed — President Emeritus of the Foundation for Economic Education — to discuss the real-world consequences of unchecked government power. From hearing about the Soviet invasion of Czechoslovakia at age 13 to traveling to 96 countries, Larry shares firsthand stories of underground resistance in communist Poland, b...

Welcome back to Voices of Liberty, powered by Young Americans for Liberty, with host Sean Themea. Allen Gilmer has spent his life creating things—from building one of the largest software platforms in the energy industry to producing films that explore freedom, government power, and the human desire for self-determination. In this episode, Sean and Allen discuss entrepreneurship, free markets, the...

  Welcome back to Voices of Liberty with host Sean Themea, powered by Young Americans for Liberty. Nathan Fatal believes liberty does not advance when people simply notice problems. It advances when ordinary people decide to lead, organize, and act. In this conversation, Sean Themea talks with Nathan about why awareness without action leads to apathy, how leadership begins long before anyone has a...

Welcome back to Voices of Liberty with host Sean Themea, powered by Young Americans for Liberty. Jake Bequette has lived several lives, and each one reflects the same pattern, choosing the hard road when easier paths were available. From playing football at the highest level, to serving as an Army Ranger, to stepping into the political arena in Arkansas, Jake has consistently pursued challenge, di...

Welcome back to Voices of Liberty with host Sean Themea, powered by Young Americans for Liberty. In this episode, Sean sits down with South Dakota State Representative Dylan Jordan, a young lawmaker who went from grassroots activism to elected office after deciding that if government was going to keep expanding, someone needed to step in and fight back directly. Representative Jordan shares how th...

Welcome back to Voices of Liberty with host Sean Themea, powered by Young Americans for Liberty. Today’s guest is Lou Perez, comedian, writer, and cultural commentator, whose work has shown that humor can do far more than entertain. It can challenge bad ideas, expose political absurdity, and defend the principles of a free society in ways that straight argument often cannot. Known for his appearan...

Welcome back to Voices of Liberty, powered by Young Americans for Liberty, with host Sean Themea. Jay Lapeyre has spent decades building in business while also helping shape some of the most important liberty institutions in the country. As a business leader in New Orleans and board chair of both the Cato Institute and the Atlas Society, he has long believed that freedom depends not only on sound...

Welcome back to Voices of Liberty with host Sean Themea, powered by Young Americans for Liberty. Vance Ginn joins Sean Themea to talk about how hardship, economics, and conviction shaped his belief in liberty. From South Houston to the White House, Vance has built his life around one mission, helping people prosper through free markets and personal responsibility. They discuss why capitalism still...

Welcome back to Voices of Liberty with host Sean Themea, powered by Young Americans for Liberty. In this conversation, Rand Paul reflects on the ideas that first shaped his belief in liberty, growing up in a household where free markets, limited government, and constitutional thinking were part of everyday life. From the influence of Former Congressman Ron Paul to the writings of Adam Smith and Fr...

Welcome back to Voices of Liberty with host Sean Themea, powered by Young Americans for Liberty. Today’s guest is Lyn Ulbricht, the mother of Ross Ulbricht and one of the most determined advocates for mercy, justice, and human dignity in the liberty movement. What began as a mother’s fight to save her son from dying in federal prison became a much larger mission to expose cruel sentencing, defend...

Welcome back to Voices of Liberty, hosted by Sean Themea and powered by Young Americans for Liberty. Today’s guest is Glenn Jacobs, mayor of Knox County, known to millions around the world for his legendary career in professional wrestling as Kane. Behind the public persona is a leader whose convictions were shaped through years of studying liberty, economics, and the role of government. In this c...

Welcome back to Voices of Liberty with host Sean Themea, powered by Young Americans for Liberty. Today’s guest is Ty Hicks, founder and chief executive officer of mentalhealthcoaching.com and former executive vice president of Young Americans for Liberty. For years, Ty has helped people break through the invisible barriers that keep them stuck, whether in leadership, activism, or life itself. In t...

What if your first lesson in economics wasn’t a textbook — but a shower? In this powerful episode of Voices of Liberty, host Sean Themea sits down with entrepreneur and global freedom advocate Magatte Wade to explore how her childhood journey from Senegal to Germany sparked a lifelong mission to understand why some nations are rich while others remain poor. Magatte doesn’t speak in theory — she sp...

Welcome back to Voices of Liberty with host Sean Themea, powered by Young Americans for Liberty. Today’s guest is Ohio State Representative Ron Ferguson, a leader who has taken the fight for liberty from the grassroots to the Ohio Statehouse. Before serving in office, Ron worked as a television news reporter and later as a grassroots trainer, helping everyday Americans learn how to make a politica...

Building Liberty Through Business: Alexander McCobin on Capitalism, Entrepreneurship, and the Future of Freedom In this episode of Voices of Liberty, host Sean Themea sits down with Alexander McCobin, CEO and founder of Liberty Ventures Network, former CEO of Conscious Capitalism, and founder of Students for Liberty. Alexander shares the story of his “liberty light bulb” moment, sparked at age 14...

In this episode, Sean sits down with former Indiana State Representative Curt Nisly, a man who learned firsthand what happens when you refuse to bend, even when leadership, lobbyists, and your own party push back. Curt did not grow up in politics. Raised Mennonite and discouraged from civic involvement, he didn’t even vote until he was nearly 30. But the Tea Party movement awakened something in hi...