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 policy, but also on serious thinking and civil conversation.

In this conversation, Sean and Jay discuss the books and ideas that first changed Jay’s worldview, how liberty shaped the way he leads in business and life, and why his work with the Free Society Coalition is focused on helping Americans find common ground without surrendering principle.

Listen now on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Pandora, or YouTube, and learn more at YALiberty.org.

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 matters, why economic freedom creates opportunity, and why America cannot afford to lose confidence in the ideas that made it strong.

Listen now on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Pandora, or YouTube, and learn more at YALiberty.org.

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 Friedrich Hayek, he explains why individual freedom remains at the center of his public life.

The conversation explores why Senator Paul believes America’s greatest long term threat comes from debt, unchecked federal spending, and a growing loss of confidence in free market economics. He also explains why he continues to stand apart from both parties when constitutional limits, war powers, and balanced budgets are at stake, even when that independence comes with political cost.

It is a conversation about courage, consistency, free markets, and why liberty requires leaders willing to stand firm when party pressure pushes the other direction.

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 the Bill of Rights, and remind Americans that government power must always have limits.

Lyn shares the devastating story of Ross’s arrest, trial, and double life sentence plus forty years, the deep disillusionment she felt watching the justice system fail her son, and the nearly twelve year grassroots campaign that ultimately led to his freedom. She explains what it was like to keep going through crushing setbacks, how a movement formed around Ross, and why President Trump’s pardon was nothing short of life changing.

But this conversation goes far beyond one family’s story. Lyn makes the case that America’s prison and sentencing system has grown far too cruel, especially for nonviolent offenders. She speaks about the human cost of excessive punishment, the families destroyed by decades long sentences, the children left behind, and why life without parole and extreme federal sentencing should alarm anyone who cares about liberty.

This is a conversation about justice, mercy, perseverance, and the kind of courage it takes to keep fighting when the system tells you there is no hope.

If you care about the Bill of Rights, free speech, criminal justice reform, and protecting people from unchecked government cruelty, you will not want to miss this conversation with Lyn Ulbricht.

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 conversation, Glenn shares how he went from feeling politically homeless to discovering libertarian thought, why Ron Paul had such a profound influence on his thinking, and how reading Austrian economic thinkers helped him understand the deeper connection between freedom, human action, and responsibility.

Sean and Glenn also discuss what it looked like to govern during one of the most politically charged periods in recent American history, when many elected officials accepted sweeping government control during the pandemic. Glenn explains why he chose a different path, how liberty shaped his leadership decisions, and why local government still matters when defending freedom in everyday life.

The conversation also touches on Austrian economics, political courage, the long term impact of the liberty movement, and why principle matters most when pressure is highest.

If you care about limited government, strong leadership, and the future of freedom in America, this is a conversation worth hearing. 🎙️🇺🇸🔥

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 this conversation, Ty shares how his early search for meaning, purpose, and service led him to the ideas of liberty, why he ultimately embraced a radical belief in voluntary human cooperation, and how his time helping lead Young Americans for Liberty shaped his understanding of persuasion, leadership, and personal growth.

Sean and Ty also dive into a deeper question that does not get asked enough in politics or in life. What if the greatest barriers to freedom are not only external, but internal? What if the stakes holding people back are often the beliefs they have accepted about themselves?

Ty explains how leadership starts with compassion and standards, why persuasion is really about helping people see a better path for themselves, and how mental and emotional freedom unlocks the energy people need to make a real difference in the world. He also shares powerful stories from his work helping people overcome anxiety, depression, addiction, and self limiting beliefs, and why he believes the liberty movement needs more people who are willing to step up, choose their arena, and fight to raise the standard.

This is a conversation about freedom at every level, political, personal, and psychological. If you care about leadership, liberty, self mastery, and building a freer future, you will not want to miss it.

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 speaks from lived experience. From waiting an hour for heated water in Senegal to discovering instant hot showers in Europe, her question became an obsession: Why do some countries flourish while others struggle?

The answer she discovered changed her life — and could change the world.

In this deeply moving and intellectually sharp conversation, Magatte explains:

• Why Africa’s poverty is rooted in overregulation — not colonialism or culture
• How economic freedom restores human dignity
• Why aid often undermines the very people it claims to help
• How she went from self-described communist to classical liberal
• The dangerous ideological shift happening on American college campuses
• Why entrepreneurship — not government — is the true engine of prosperity
• How startup cities and economic freedom zones could transform nations

Magatte shares heartbreaking stories of migration, slavery, and systemic barriers — but also stories of awakening, empowerment, and hope.

This is not a debate about left vs. right. It’s a conversation about freedom vs. control — and what that means for billions of people.

If you care about human dignity, entrepreneurship, global prosperity, or the future of America and Africa, this is an episode you cannot miss.

🎙️ Subscribe to Voices of Liberty and find us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pandora, YouTube, and everywhere you get your podcasts.

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 political impact. Then he stepped into the arena himself and won election in a district that had not sent a Republican to the legislature in nearly fifty years.

In this conversation, State Representative Ron Ferguson shares how the attacks of September 11 first awakened his understanding of freedom, how his work in journalism and grassroots organizing deepened his commitment to limited government, and why he believes most people simply want to be left alone to live their lives.

Sean and Ron also dive into the real policy fights shaping Ohio today, including hospital price transparency, school choice, property tax abolition, and the battle against establishment politicians who put power ahead of principle. Ron explains what happened with the Blue 22, why grassroots pressure matters, and why the liberty movement can only grow if every person in it takes responsibility for bringing others in.

This is a conversation about conviction, service, and what it looks like when an elected official refuses to go along to get along.

If you care about defending constitutional rights, reducing the size and scope of government, and advancing liberty in our lifetime, you will not want to miss this conversation with Ohio State Representative Ron Ferguson.