Victor Davis Hanson: The Left Goes Neo-Confederate on Immigration

Oct 31, 2025

Victor Davis Hanson raises alarms about a possible neo-Confederate movement among liberal governors defying federal immigration laws. He draws parallels to historical events like Bleeding Kansas, warning of the dangers of nullifying federal authority. Hanson discusses recent violent confrontations involving ICE and critiques the glorification of political violence. He highlights the hypocrisy in leftist reactions to state noncompliance with federal laws, urging a reflection on the risks this poses to the republic.

Ask episode

AI Snips

Chapters

Transcript

Episode notes

INSIGHT

Nullification As Modern Political Threat

Victor Davis Hanson argues a contemporary “neo-Confederate nullification” is emerging among left-leaning governors and officials around immigration enforcement.
He warns this nullification revives historic patterns where rejecting federal authority escalates into political violence and instability.

ANECDOTE

Historical Parallels To State Defiance

Hanson cites historical episodes like Little Rock, George Wallace, and Bleeding Kansas to illustrate the danger when states defy federal law.
He connects those episodes to current state leaders who refuse to cooperate with federal immigration enforcement.

INSIGHT

Street Clashes Signal Federal Breakdown

Hanson contends current street violence and clashes around ICE enforcement mirror the breakdown of federal authority.
He sees local police and officials sometimes shielding protesters or obstructing federal agents, deepening the conflict.

Get the Snipd Podcast app to discover more snips from this episode

Get the app

America has seen this before—and it didn’t end well.

Liberal governors across the nation, from California to Illinois, are defying federal immigration law and challenging the very authority of the Constitution itself. Victor Davis Hanson sounds the alarm on a “neo-Confederate nullification movement” emerging among the Left with its approach to resisting the Trump administration’s deportation efforts on today’s episode of “Victor Davis Hanson: In a Few Words."

“This has a neo-Confederate pedigree. And we know where Bleeding Kansas led to. Once you nullify federal law and once you glorify violence—and by the way, the Left has glorified almost every major left-wing assassin, whether it was Mr. Hodgkinson that tried to take out the House leadership, or Tyler Robinson, who took out Charlie Kirk, or Luigi Mangione, who killed the CEO of UnitedHealth, or Mr. Crooks and Mr. Routh, who tried to kill Donald Trump on two occasions. When you have glorification of that type of violence and political assassination, we know where it's going to lead. It leads from Bleeding Kansas to Harpers Ferry to Fort Sumter. And they're playing with fire. And it's very dangerous for the republic. And it's time for the Left to stop.”

👉 This episode is sponsored by the Pepperdine School of Public Policy. Learn more: https://go.pepperdine.edu/dailysignal

👉Don’t miss out on Victor’s latest short videos by subscribing to The Daily Signal today. You’ll be notified every time a new piece of content drops: https://www.youtube.com/dailysignal?sub_confirmation=1

👉Want more VDH? Watch Victor’s weekly, hour-long podcast, “Victor Davis Hanson: In His Own Words,” now! Subscribe to his YouTube channel, and enable notifications: https://www.youtube.com/@victordavishanson7273?sub_confirmation=1

👉More exclusive content is available on Victor’s website: https://victorhanson.com

👉The Daily Signal cannot continue to tell stories, like this one, without the support of our viewers: https://secured.dailysignal.com/

00:00 Neo-Confederate Nullification

04:34 Double Standards

05:26 Escalation and Consequences

07:24 Conclusion

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices