Individual Sanctity vs. Government Control and the Billionaires Behind Energy Restrictions

On this Thursday, August 3, 2023 broadcast, Kim Monson explores the foundational American principle of individual sanctity with banker and Austrian economist Jay Davidson, then energy journalist Robert Bryce reveals the massive funding behind efforts to ban natural gas and restrict hydrocarbon use.

The Sanctity of the Individual in American Founding

Start listening at 25:01 – Hour 1

Jay Davidson, founder and CEO of First American State Bank, draws a clear distinction between the American founding principle of individual sanctity and modern egotism. Davidson explains that the Declaration of Independence established that our Creator bestowed certain rights on individuals, meaning no government can take those rights away. The Constitution and Bill of Rights were built to protect the individual by establishing boundaries for government, not for citizens.

Davidson addresses how both Republicans and Democrats constantly propose government solutions to problems, when many issues should be left to the private sector. He points to failed government programs like the war on poverty and war on drugs as examples of expensive, ineffective bureaucratic solutions. The conversation turns to homelessness, where Davidson contrasts Denver Mayor Mike Johnson’s “housing first” approach with Aurora Mayor Mike Kaufman’s “solution first” strategy. According to Common Sense Institute data, Colorado spends over $120,000 per homeless person annually, yet the problem grows.

The discussion expands to charitable giving versus government taxation. Davidson argues that private citizens making free choices to donate to charities represents true free market principles, while government programs use force and coercion to redistribute wealth. He warns that the political divide is less about Republican versus Democrat and more about those who believe in the Constitution versus the establishment deep state.

“Freedom always comes with responsibility. There’s no freedom without responsibility.”

Jay Davidson, Founder and CEO, First American State Bank

Billionaires Funding Energy Restrictions

Start listening at 72:50 – Hour 2

Robert Bryce, author and host of the Power Hungry podcast, exposes the massive funding behind efforts to ban natural gas. Bryce reveals that organizations like the Rocky Mountain Institute receive hundreds of millions of dollars from some of the world’s richest people, including Michael Bloomberg, Laurene Powell Jobs, and John Doerr. One group called Climate Imperative launched with a budget exceeding $200 million specifically to fund anti-hydrocarbon organizations.

Bryce points out the hypocrisy of these billionaires who fly private jets consuming tens of gallons of fuel per hour while funding groups that want to prohibit low and middle-income consumers from using even small amounts of natural gas. He calculates the anti-industry industry spends between $4.5 and $5 billion annually, four to five times what traditional energy associations spend on advocacy.

The Biden administration receives sharp criticism as the most anti-hydrocarbon administration in American history. Bryce cites the EPA’s proposed rule that would reduce available electricity by eight percent according to analysis by the Florida Municipal Power Agency. Despite the regulatory assault, global energy demand continues rising, with oil consumption setting new records at 102.5 million barrels per day. China alone permitted two new coal plants per week last year. Bryce concludes that expensive energy is the enemy of the poor, making these restrictions fundamentally regressive.

“Expensive energy is the enemy of the poor. Expensive energy is the enemy of the poor, full stop.”

Robert Bryce, Author and Energy Journalist