Wall Street Executive Reveals How a Market Crashes episode artwork

EPISODE · Apr 2, 2026 · 1H 51M

Wall Street Executive Reveals How a Market Crashes

from Dad Saves America · host John Papola and David Bahnsen

I sat down with investor and economist David Bahnsen to unpack what really happened in the 2008 financial crisis. Socialists blame capitalism and Wall Street, while libertarians blame the government, especially the Federal Reserve, but David argues that all of the popular narratives are missing a key piece. He places a significant amount of the blame on what he calls the “Crisis of Responsibility,” also the title of his book on the subject.Bankruptcy and foreclosure were once seen as shameful events, not standard parts of the American dream of homeownership. By the time of the financial crisis, signing up for a mortgage you obviously couldn’t afford had been normalized on all sides: lenders, investors, and even “average Americans” themselves.We dig into how easy money, government backstops, and cultural decay fueled a nationwide housing bubble and, in the end, turned both the left and right against free markets and toward populism._____________________________________Follow David Bahnsen on X (formerly Twitter): https://x.com/DavidBahnsen?s=20Preorder a copy of “Crisis of Responsibility”: https://a.co/d/04GlVHsW_____________________________________Outline:[0:00] The financial crisis broke the American economy[10:12] What is “neoliberalism”?[15:20] Was Ron Paul right about the financial crisis?[20:21] The moral failing of the financial crisis[29:07] Low interest rates and government-backed mortgages[37:40] Wall Street really believed their own lies[41:20] The crisis of responsibility and the cult of housing[47:25] How can we make housing more affordable?[55:42] The generational shift in home ownership[1:06:09] Populism, elitism, and luxury beliefs[1:18:15] Is government too big to fix?[1:27:18] The death of policy debate in America[1:33:15] Can liberalism survive without Christianity?[1:45:08] Freedom and virtue have to go together_____________________________________Purchase a T-shirt, hoodie, and more over on our merch store: https://shop.dadsavesamerica.com/Watch the video version on YouTube: https://youtu.be/esf-68sJZlsMake a tax-deductible donation to Dad Saves America: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://secure.anedot.com/emergent-order-foundation/dad-website?⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Visit our website: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.dadsavesamerica.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Get full access to Dad Saves America at www.dadsavesamerica.com/subscribe

Episode metadata supplied by the publisher feed · Published Apr 2, 2026

Embed this episode

NOW PLAYING

Wall Street Executive Reveals How a Market Crashes

0:00 1:51:31

No transcript for this episode yet

We transcribe on demand. Request one and we'll notify you when it's ready — usually under 10 minutes.

No similar episodes found.

No similar podcasts found.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long is this episode of Dad Saves America?

This episode is 1 hour and 51 minutes long.

When was this Dad Saves America episode published?

This episode was published on April 2, 2026.

Can I download this Dad Saves America episode?

Yes. Use the download control on the episode player to save the publisher-provided media file.
URL copied to clipboard!