We welcome Philip Magness back again to close out our 2024 programs. He will be joined by Brad DeVos, Chief Operating Officer of the Independent Institute.
The recent election signals a dramatic shift in national priorities. In addition to President Trump winning a second term, the balance of power has shifted dramatically – down to the city level in many places. This potentially offers many opportunities to those advocating for economic freedom and personal liberty. However, it likely presents new and unique challenges as well.
What can we expect in the years to come? Is this a rebuke of wokism and hyper-liberal policies? Could conservatism be making a comeback?
This discussion will cover the major issues at hand, including: immigration, tariffs and trade, national debt, executive power, national defense, COVID policy repercussions, and more. We hope participants will leave with a better understanding of how principled conservatives and classical liberals can advocate for their values in the coming years.
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Phillip W. Magness is a Senior Fellow at the Independent Institute and the David J. Theroux Chair in Political Economy. He has served as Senior Research Fellow at the American Institute for Economic Research, and as Academic Program Director at the Institute for Humane Studies and Adjunct Professor of Public Policy in the School of Public Policy and Government at George Mason University. He received his Ph.D. from George Mason University’s School of Public Policy.
His books include The 1619 Project: A Critique, Colonization after Emancipation: Lincoln and the Movement for Black Resettlement (with Sebastian N. Page) and The Rules of the Game: How Government Works and Why it Sometimes Doesn’t (with Paul Weissburg), and Cracks in the Ivory Tower: The Moral Mess of Higher Education (with Jason Brennan).
Dr. Magness’s scholarly articles and reviews have appeared in The Independent Review, Journal of Markets and Morality, Journal of Private Enterprise, Journal of Supreme Court History, Journal of the History of Economic Thought, North Carolina Historical Review, Reviews in History, Journal of the Abraham Lincoln Association, Journal of Southern History, Journal of Business Ethics, Civil War History, Register of the Kentucky Historical Society, Virginia Magazine of History, Liberal Education, Slavery & Abolition, Journal of the Early Republic, and Constitutional Political Economy.
His popular articles have been published in Newsweek, Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Daily Caller, History News Network, and Civil War Monitor.
Brad DeVos is Chief Operating Officer of the Independent Institute. He formerly served as Director of Programs at the American Institute for Economic Research, and had also been the President and CEO of The Bastiat Society, an international non-profit dedicated to increasing economic literacy within the business community. He earned a B.S. in Economics and a B.A. in Urban Studies from the College of Charleston. DeVos is a member of the historic Mont Pelerin Society and a graduate of the Atlas Network Leadership Academy.
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Please join the Mont Hamilton Society in this 15th year since our founding, to hear and interact with Phil Magness and Brad DeVos on this important topic that concerns us all.
This meeting will be in-person for no more than 20 individuals only, including lunch. We think you will enjoy the intellectual stimulation, the edification, the camaraderie, and to meet new people.
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About the Mont Hamilton Society – In 1947 Friedrich Hayek, an economist and social philosopher who later won the Nobel Prize, organized a meeting at Mt. Pelerin, a resort in Switzerland. Hayek convened a modest sized group of (39) economists, historians, philosophers and journalists for the purpose of supporting research and discussion on the role of markets vs. government. The Mont Pelerin Society is now a large and prestigious international organization.
In 2009, a group of friends began to meet in San Jose for the purposes of improving their understanding of economic theory, applying it to current events and sharing their understanding with others as well as promoting a joyous sense of camaraderie. In recognition of the example set by the Mont Pelerin Society, they decided to name their group the Mont Hamilton Society. Members understand the realities of the business world, share an interest in economic thinking, and value civil discourse from a variety of perspectives. Faculty and students from the Department of Economics at San Jose State University are frequent guests at Society meetings. In June 2017 the Mont Hamilton Society became the San Jose/Silicon Valley affiliate chapter of the Bastiat Society, an AIER.org project. However, AIER is morphing the Bastiat Society into a new program they will call the Hargrove Salon on Jan. 1 2025. Mt. Hamilton Society will continue on it’s own from there.
There are no membership fees or organizational meetings at this time, but all interested are encouraged to join and participate.
If you would like to be on our invitations list, or know someone else who might like to receive notice of our 6 – 10 luncheons or other events per year, or if you have any questions, please send an email to:
You or your suggested contact(s) will receive an announcement/invitation and a reminder or two for each event as they are scheduled, or a prompt answer to your question/s.
These events are discussions, not standard lectures. To facilitate this, the in-person gatherings before Covid Lockdowns were kept “small,” typically 12 – 24 individuals only. Some presentations are video recorded, depending on demand. Constructive feedback on our events and interest in recordings is welcome, since we are continuing to evolve our meeting formats.
Thank you for your interest.
Phil Magness (Top) and Brad DeVos
