Podcast Summary: Nicholas Buccola on "One Man’s Freedom: Goldwater, King, and the Struggle Over an American Ideal"

Podcast: New Books Network
Host: Caleb Zakrin
Guest: Nicholas Buccola, Professor of Humanism and Ethics, Claremont McKenna College
Book: One Man’s Freedom: Goldwater, King, and the Struggle Over an American Ideal (Princeton UP, 2025)
Date: November 19, 2025

Overview

This episode features a deep dive into Nicholas Buccola’s latest book, One Man’s Freedom, which explores the parallel careers and starkly contrasting philosophies of Barry Goldwater and Martin Luther King Jr.—two titanic figures in postwar American history. Despite never meeting, King and Goldwater engaged in a powerful, ongoing debate over the meaning of "freedom" and its place in the American ethos. Buccola and Zakrin discuss how this debate shaped the trajectory of civil rights and conservatism and continues to influence American political discourse today.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

Buccola’s Background and Approach to Political Theory

• [02:06] Buccola is trained as a political theorist and aims to write “political theory by way of compelling narratives,” weaving together historical research and engaging storytelling.
• His previous book, The Fire is Upon Us, examined the debate between James Baldwin and William F. Buckley Jr., which inspired him to explore the broader civil rights and conservative movements.
• Buccola teaches a class called “What is Freedom?” which informs his interest in how different American traditions define freedom.

Freedom as a Contested Concept

• [04:12–08:35] Buccola and Zakrin discuss how both American political parties, as well as the figures of King and Goldwater, invoke “freedom”—but mean vastly different things by it.
• Quote: “Freedom is…one of those words, certainly in American political culture…that is central. And yet…essentially contested. Like, different people mean different things by it.” — Nicholas Buccola [05:01]
• In his teaching, Buccola encourages students to consider not just rational definitions of freedom but also what freedom “feels like”—an insight that influenced his writing style and thematic approach in the book.

Setting the Scene: 1955 and Their “Public Arrival”

• [08:35–14:04] The book begins in 1955, with Goldwater entering the national stage as a senator and antagonist of “big labor," and King being thrust into leadership during the Montgomery Bus Boycott.
• Goldwater’s politics are shaped by skepticism toward the New Deal and big government; King’s by a commitment to radical democracy rooted in his theology.
• Buccola tries to capture what it felt like for each man at that pivotal moment.

Competing Ideas of Freedom: Federal Power and States’ Rights

• [14:04–20:52] The philosophical battleground between King and Goldwater centered on the role of the federal government in civil rights and labor.
• Goldwater: Embodies “frontier individualism”—viewing the federal government as the greatest threat to freedom, emphasizing negative liberty.
• King: Argues that federal intervention is necessary when states’ rights are used to deny basic human rights, especially in the face of segregation.
• Quote: “King is there to say…why is it this concept of states’ rights should trump human rights?” — Nicholas Buccola [17:26]

Eisenhower’s Role and GOP Realignment

• [20:52–27:55] Eisenhower is neither a hero to King nor Goldwater; he’s seen as lukewarm on civil rights and not ideologically inspiring for conservatives.
• Goldwater anticipated a realignment in American politics—pitting “New Dealers and Fair Dealers of both parties” against “Midwestern and Western conservatives and Southern segregationists”—planting seeds for the later southern Republican shift.
• Goldwater’s 1958 critique of Eisenhower’s budget marks his break from the GOP establishment.

"The Conscience of a Conservative" — Goldwater’s Blueprint

• [27:55–34:02] Goldwater’s 1960 Conscience of a Conservative becomes a defining text for the conservative movement, shaping discourse through its concise arguments for limited government, states’ rights, and anti-communism.
• Quote: “It’s meant to capture Goldwater’s views of various issues…as a kind of book that a lot of young conservatives…would get their hands on.” — Nicholas Buccola [31:15]

Navigating the Extremes: Goldwater, Race, and the Far Right

• [34:02–41:58] Goldwater’s record on race is complex: progressive as an Arizonan businessman, but silent or obstructive on civil rights in the Senate.
• He strategically avoided civil rights issues in speeches and cultivated alliances with Southern segregationists as part of a political calculus: “We need to go hunting where the ducks are.”
• Goldwater tried to distance himself from the John Birch Society’s extremism—without fully alienating their rank-and-file.

King’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail” — A Doctrine of Freedom

• [41:58–50:27] King’s 1963 “Letter from Birmingham Jail” is analyzed as his most compelling philosophical statement:
  • Rebukes moderates for their calls to “wait.”
  • Makes a moral and natural law distinction between just and unjust laws.
  • Embraces “extremism for love,” arguing that creative, nonviolent extremism is superior to complacent moderation.
• Quote: “King says…I am an extremist—I’m an extremist for love.” — Nicholas Buccola [48:37]

The Civil Rights Act of 1964: Philosophical Schism in Action

• [50:27–57:38] The passage of the Civil Rights Act brings the King-Goldwater divide to a head.
• Goldwater votes against it, citing constitutional grounds (opposition to federal intervention in “private” spaces) but also arguing that “the law can’t make us love one another.”
• King sees denial of access to hotels, motels, and restaurants as a fundamental denial of freedom—a societal, not merely governmental, failure.
• Quote: “It’s an affront to freedom to force…[a proprietor] to allow people in regardless of their race.” — Nicholas Buccola, summarizing Goldwater’s argument [52:12]
• This vote cements Goldwater, in King’s eyes, as “the most dangerous man in America.”

1964 Presidential Election: Legacies Set

• [57:38–64:14] Goldwater’s campaign—defined by his acceptance speech line, “Extremism in defense of liberty is no vice. Moderation in pursuit of justice is no virtue.” [60:43]—ends in a landslide loss to Lyndon Johnson, but the ideological groundwork is laid for the modern GOP realignment and, eventually, Reagan’s rise.
• Goldwater’s appeal wins deeply in the South, a harbinger of broader partisan shifts.

Epilogue: The Ongoing Struggle over Freedom

• [64:14–73:00] Buccola concludes the book with the aftermath of 1964: King involved in labor struggles in Atlanta, emphasizing economic justice as integral to true freedom; Goldwater rebuilding his Senate career, sometimes acting as a maverick against his own party’s excesses.
• Both men labeled “the most dangerous” by their opponents: J. Edgar Hoover for King; King for Goldwater.
• Buccola reflects on their legacies—King’s expansion of civil rights to economic issues, Goldwater’s conflicted place in conservative history—and their enduring influence on American political dialogue.
• Quote: “I hope [the book] will be a kind of mirror…that we can look into…and will help us…understand our own responsibility in the present.” — Nicholas Buccola [72:26]

Notable Quotes and Memorable Moments

• On Freedom as Contested:
  “Freedom is…one of those words, certainly in American political culture…that is central. And yet…essentially contested.” — Nicholas Buccola [05:01]

• On States’ Rights vs. Human Rights:
  “Why is it this concept of states’ rights should trump human rights?” — Nicholas Buccola [17:26]

• On King’s Extremism:
  “King says…I am an extremist—I’m an extremist for love.” — Nicholas Buccola [48:37]

• Goldwater’s Iconic Line (1964 Convention):
  “Extremism in defense of liberty is no vice. Moderation in pursuit of justice is no virtue.” — Barry Goldwater (quoted by Buccola) [60:43]

• On Goldwater’s Strategy:
  “We need to go hunting where the ducks are.” — Barry Goldwater (quoted by Buccola) [39:45]

• On the Book’s Aim:
  “I hope [the book] will be a kind of mirror…that we can look into…and will help us…understand our own responsibility in the present.” — Nicholas Buccola [72:26]

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [02:06] — Buccola’s academic approach; motiviation for the book
• [08:35] — 1955 as the starting point; King & Goldwater on the public stage
• [14:04–20:52] — Debates over the federal government, individual liberty, and civil rights
• [21:25] — Eisenhower, GOP realignment, and Goldwater’s early vision
• [27:55] — Conscience of a Conservative and Goldwater’s rise
• [34:02–41:58] — Goldwater’s racial politics, extremism, silence
• [41:58–50:27] — King’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail”; philosophy of law and extremism
• [50:27–57:38] — Civil Rights Act of 1964; Goldwater’s opposition; King’s activism
• [57:38–64:14] — 1964 election and its consequences; conservative realignment
• [64:14–73:00] — The legacy of Goldwater and King; King’s later focus; Goldwater’s maverick role

Conclusion

Buccola’s One Man’s Freedom uses the lives and ideas of King and Goldwater to illuminate America’s ongoing struggle over the meaning of freedom. Their distinct visions—King’s communal, justice-centered freedom and Goldwater’s rugged individualism and suspicion of federal power—still reverberate through contemporary debates. The book serves not just as a dual biography or political history, but also a lens for understanding our current divisions and responsibilities as citizens.

Stay tuned for Buccola’s next book, which may further explore the broader movements behind these iconic figures.