Historical Review and Future Challenges: Insights from the New California State Convention

On January 24, 2026, the New California State Convention in Redding drew a large crowd of attendees from across California. Organized by the New California movement—which seeks to create a new state from rural counties under Article IV, Section 3 of the U.S. Constitution—the gathering focused on frustrations with one-party rule, high taxes, overregulation, election concerns, and rising living costs that have driven many residents to leave the state.

Following earlier speeches by Lara Logan and Joe Hoft, Donald E. Wilson and Kathleen Goble addressed the audience with perspectives on history, governance, and emerging technological challenges.

Don Wilson

Donald E. Wilson, author of the 2013 book St. Andrew's American Revolution: The Story of Scotland and Her Sons and the Genius of American Government, emphasized the profound influence of Scottish Whig philosophy and the Scottish Enlightenment on the U.S. Constitution and the Founding Fathers.

Wilson described modern conflicts as driven by financial power and psychological operations, warning that "the enemy is here." He argued that language is being manipulated—similar to themes in George Orwell's 1984—to obscure certain agendas. He cited examples, such as renaming "illegal immigrants" as "refugees" and using "Muslims" instead of the older term "Mohammedans." He urged unity against "globalists," whom he described as seeking worldwide control, noting that ideologies like communism are periodically rebranded.

Wilson highlighted how President Trump's 2016 victory disrupted establishment expectations, mobilizing previously disengaged voters. Drawing from the Scottish philosophy of 1690, he stressed the obligation to resist tyranny. He connected the Mayflower Compact—signed by early settlers fleeing religious persecution—to foundational American principles like separation of church and state.

He praised James Madison, a key protégé of Princeton's John Witherspoon, for his role in crafting the Ninth Amendment, which reserves unenumerated rights to the people and limits federal power. Wilson applied this to contemporary issues, calling federal vaccine mandates a violation of the Ninth Amendment. He contrasted republics (where rights are protected) with pure democracies (where majorities can override minorities), referencing a well-known quote often attributed to Benjamin Franklin about wolves and a sheep voting on what's for lunch. Wilson closed by cautioning against mainstream media narratives and invoking Jesus' words: "They will hate you because they hated me first."

Kathleen Goble (Portrait on her X-Account)

Kathleen Goble, co-author with Booker Scott (with introduction by Jason Ho) of the 2025 book, The Fight for the Future of Humanity: Making the Case for a 28th Amendment, spoke next. With her background in communications and consulting for Fortune 100 companies, Goble focuses on technology, ethics, and human-centered policy.

Goble distinguished current artificial intelligence (AI) from future artificial general intelligence (AGI), which could self-teach and surpass human capabilities in many domains. She noted AI's pervasive role in daily life and projections that it could add $16–20 trillion to the U.S. economy. She referenced President Trump's AI Action Plan on ai.gov, which outlines a strategy to achieve global dominance in AI through three pillars: accelerating innovation, building infrastructure, and leading in international diplomacy and security.

Goble raised concerns about biases in AI training data from sources like Reddit, Wikipedia, and YouTube. She noted that David Sacks was appointed as the White House AI and Crypto Czar. He has advocated for deregulation to help the U.S. compete, particularly against China.

Additional warnings included "cognitive offloading," where reliance on AI reduces memory retention and original thinking. These brain health risks were highlighted by experts such as Dr. Daniel Amen.  Another concern is the massive resource demands of AI. In 2024, U.S. data centers consumed electricity at levels comparable to those of entire nations like Germany or France, with projections of sharp increases by 2030, potentially raising consumer rates.

Goble cited Elon Musk's xAI Colossus supercomputer cluster, with expansions requiring significant power, with levels around 1.1 gigawatts being discussed for major phases. She expressed concerns about growing surveillance through facial recognition and companies like Palantir securing government contracts for data collection. Referencing historian Victor Davis Hanson, she noted his view that rising secularism poses a greater long-term threat than AI itself.

Goble concluded with a call to humility and prayer, quoting 2 Chronicles 7:14: "If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land."

The convention highlighted a blend of historical reflection and forward-looking concerns, energizing attendees in the ongoing push for statehood reform.