Overview
- Thomas, who spoke Wednesday at the University of Texas at Austin in a speech carried live on C‑SPAN, marked the Declaration of Independence’s 250th anniversary with a critique of progressivism.
- He called progressivism “retrogressive” and said it endangers the nation’s founding principles.
- He argued it seeks to replace the Declaration’s premise of inherent rights with rights granted by government.
- He traced its roots to early 20th‑century ideas linked to President Woodrow Wilson that favor centralized administrative power.
- He cited past abuses such as segregation and eugenics to warn against abandoning natural rights, then urged Americans to show courage and accept sacrifices to defend those principles.