Podcasts
Can America Still Govern Itself? With Lanhee Chen
Hoover Institution fellow Lanhee Chen on why good policy so often fails politically.
October 20, 2026
Published October 14, 2020
Though many believe that socialism would be good for America, restrictions in the Constitution make it difficult to enact socialist policy. The framers understood that centralizing power threatened individual liberty, so they designed the Constitution to prevent it from happening. Maintaining the balance between national and state governments ensures that our liberties will flourish and socialism will fail.
Discussion Questions:
- How is socialist policy at odds with the US Constitution?
- How does federalism protect individual liberties?
Additional Resources:
- To learn more, read “Socialism vs. the American Constitutional Structure: The Advantages of Decentralization and Federalism,” by John Yoo. Available here.
- Watch “The Supreme Court’s Role in Restoring Federalism,” with John Yoo. Available here.
- Watch “Executive Power in the Constitution,” with John Yoo via C-SPAN. Available here.
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