Arthur C. Brooks was a Seattle-born liberal, but today he is president of the American Enterprise Institute, a center-right economic think tank in Washington, D.C.

Brooks sees two competing visions for America’s future. To him, our excessive government spending and regulations have pushed us near a tipping point, putting the nation’s economy at risk. Brooks sees us on Friedrich Hayek’s “road to serfdom,” risking our liberties, prosperity and human dignity.

His latest of ten books, "The Road to Freedom: How to Win the Fight for Free Enterprise,” makes the moral case for free enterprise as fairer, more just and more helpful than a big centralized government that picks winners and losers.

Watch for Washington to relitigate, with rhetorical flourish, the arguments for and against expansive government as the House of Representatives takes up a $300 billion spending bill proposed by Wisconsin Republican Rep. Paul Ryan. The bill is scheduled for a vote this week.

If Brooks had his way, conservatives would use fewer dry numerical arguments and instead argue a passionate moral case for a system that rewards human dignity and provides the opportunity for earned success.

The Daily Caller’s Ginni Thomas interviewed Brooks in his AEI offices. Click on the links below to fast-forward to each question.

What do you say to President Obama’s depiction of our private sector as being unfair and inhumane?

Lay out the moral case for capitalism

Many capitalists make it hard to defend capitalism, don’t they?

What would be the consequence of failing to win the war being waged against capitalism?

What is the most important battle in the fight for economic revitalization?

Tell us your political journey from a Seattle-born liberal to a defender of capitalism and now AEI president

How is capitalism connected with cultural and social issues?

You are asking Washington to deny itself power and give more away to invisible markets. Are you kidding?

Talk about the difference between liberals and conservatives when it comes to charitable giving

What gives you hope?

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