My Remarks Today at Philadelphia Society's Spring 2025 Meeting in Dallas, Texas

These remarks were written for my opening remarks on a panel about the "America's New Revolutionary Moment" at the Philadelphia Society meetings in Dallas, Texas on March 23, 2025. I also posted this as an article on X.

It’s fantastic to be here with you all in Dallas, Texas—though I live just north of the People’s Republic of Austin. 

As a native Texan, let me warmly welcome you to the home of delicious Mexican food, refreshing craft beer, futuristic SpaceX launches, and the rallying cry “Remember the Alamo!”

Texas, thankfully, has no personal income tax, a thriving entrepreneurial spirit, and a profound commitment to individual liberty. 

But let’s be clear—we Texans still have work to do. 

Texas must lead in spending less, eliminating property taxes, adopting universal ESAs, and scaling back governments that have grown alarmingly close to mimicking Washington, D.C.

America wasn’t founded because our ancestors wanted annual fireworks. This country was born out of revolutionary ideas—radical at the time—such as individual liberty, limited government, and free enterprise. 

Jefferson embodied the spirit behind the quote often attributed to him: “That government is best which governs least.” At the time of our nation’s birth, the founders clearly understood that decentralized governance—federalism—was essential to liberty and prosperity.

Today, we face another revolutionary moment, but one that does not require a new set of principles. Instead, our revolution demands a radical recommitment to those timeless founding principles. Unfortunately, modern conservatism sometimes drifts dangerously toward big-government solutions disguised as populism or nationalism. 

I saw this firsthand as chief economist in the first Trump White House Office of Management and Budget from June 2019 to May 2020, right during the heat of COVID-19. Many “conservatives” in Washington struggled to restrain spending, reject lockdowns, resist cronyism, and champion liberty.

That’s why I returned home and resumed work with the Texas Public Policy Foundation, where I worked for about a decade. I then launched my business, Ginn Economic Consulting, and the “Let People Prosper” podcast to provide sound research on policy tradeoffs grounded in classical liberalism. 

In recent writings, I’ve outlined how the Trump administration can learn from past missteps and more freedom-oriented states like Texas and Florida. The better path forward is constitutional, entrepreneurial, and fundamentally free-market—not nationalist or technocratic. We must confront today’s troubling trends directly. 

Take trade policy, for example. National conservatives often favor tariffs and industrial planning. But as Milton Friedman wisely cautioned, we shouldn’t blame foreign nations for our own policy failures. Tariffs simply raise costs by hiking taxes on American families' purchases of imported goods, hurting exporters and consumers. 

I posit that our real challenge isn’t China—it’s our bloated federal government in Washington.

Consider government spending. Our national debt now surpasses $36 trillion, equating to over $280,000 per household. This reckless fiscal path isn’t merely irresponsible accounting—it’s an outright war against our children’s economic future. 

They must also do better at the state level. My “Sustainable Budgeting” initiative advocates capping government spending growth at the rate of population growth plus inflation. This is a simple yet powerful way to align government size with taxpayers’ ability to pay. Excellent resources are also available at Americans for Tax Reform, Club for Growth Foundation, and many state think tanks. 

Yet, instead of prudent reforms, we increasingly hear calls for new entitlements, family subsidies, and industrial policy.

These approaches ignore critical lessons of the 20th century and fail the test of judging policies by outcomes, not intentions. Russell Kirk spoke eloquently of “ordered liberty,” which some interpret today as requiring greater state control to preserve moral or social order. 

Yet, who decides what is “orderly”? Too frequently, the answer becomes unelected bureaucrats. 

Friedrich Hayek warned that central planners, convinced they know better than individuals, pave the dangerous road to serfdom. I’d rather trust markets than mandates, and families than federal agencies.

These debates are clearly evident in healthcare policy. My forthcoming “Empower Patients Initiative” proposes giving healthcare dollars directly to patients through no-limit health savings accounts, reducing regulatory red tape, deregulating healthcare providers, and letting states tailor their safety nets. This model champions choice, competition, and cost transparency—the very essence of liberty in healthcare. 

Let’s look to our states for inspiration. Texas and Florida thrive precisely because they embrace freedom—no personal income taxes, booming job markets, and rising migration. In contrast, states like California and New York lose people and opportunities due to heavy taxes and excessive regulation. 

Federalism, a brilliant innovation from America’s original revolutionary moment, still offers the best pathway forward. As we conclude today, I urge us to resist the tempting calls for central planning, even under conservative labels. 

Let’s choose Friedman over favors, Hayek over hubris, and Jefferson over justifications for more government control.

America’s revolutionary spirit can guide us forward again—this time, starting in the states. Let’s recommit passionately to freedom, limited government, and personal responsibility, ensuring our children inherit a nation as vibrant and prosperous as ever.

For more on these ideas and solutions, please visit me at VanceGinn.com. Let’s make this revolutionary moment count—not by creating new bureaucracies, but by dismantling those standing in the way of freedom and prosperity.

​Let’s truly let people prosper. Thank you.