Cato Podcast

The Biden administration has ways to make good on pledges to treat young people crossing the border fairly. David Bier comments. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Rick Perlstein's Reaganland: America's Right Turn 1976-1980 details a downtrodden GOP approaching irrelevance ahead of the surprising resurgence of Ronald Reagan. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Stupid wars go back a long time, but the idea that war is stupid is relatively new. John Mueller explores the modern idea in The Stupidity of War. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When will President Biden withdraw all support for the Saudi-led war in Yemen? Does Joe Biden own the war in Afghanistan if he doesn’t stick to the current timeline for U.S. departure? Democratic Representative Ro Khanna of California discusses the Biden foreign policy so far. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Fifty years ago this month, a group of anti-war activists broke into the FBI and revealed terrible crimes committed by that agency under the secrecy of COINTELPRO. Patrick Eddington details the history. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Do judges feel undue influence from libertarian legal scholars? Sheldon Whitehouse may believe that's the case, and he'd like to change the way groups like the Cato Institute are allowed to engage with the judiciary. Ilya Shapiro comments. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A year after Louisville police killed Breonna Taylor, what's changed? Peter Kraska is a policing researcher at Eastern Kentucky University who worked on the Taylor case. He comments on police reform efforts now underway. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It's easy to want to throw the book at someone who's engaged in some egregious conduct, but it's harder to understand what even seemingly minor punishments entail. Author and criminal justice scholar John Pfaff discusses the incentives inherent in the way criminal justice is carried out in America. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Trump administration made extensive use of national security justifications for restricting trade. It's time for the law that allows it to go. Inu Manak and Scott Lincicome comment. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Should online platforms get blamed for criminal behavior that occurs online, even when police fail to act? Will Duffield comments. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How governments have opted to distribute COVID-19 vaccines leaves a lot to be desired. And precisely what does the end of this pandemic look like? Comedian Andrew Heaton guest hosts in a conversation with Jeff Singer. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The last days of the Trump Administration saw an attack on the Capitol and an historic second impeachment for a sitting President. For Republicans who voted to bring that President to trial, what now? Republican Representative Jaime Herrera Beutler offers her thoughts. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The domestic politics of global supply chains are full of unfortunate incentives even now, when the stakes are historically high. Scott Lincicome comments. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Texans are still dealing with the aftermath of that recent deep freeze. Peter Van Doren breaks down the relevant facts and provides some early economic analysis. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

America's longest war, Afghanistan, continues. Joe Biden has a unique opportunity to end it once and for all, thanks in part to Trump Administration efforts to shorten U.S. involvement. Doug Bandow and Will Ruger comment.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

An amalgam of proposals from Democrats would strictly regulate online speech, and make more costly other forms of public communication on policy issues. Will Duffield comments on the proposal. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Supreme Court created and has long supported a tortured reading of federal law that helps public officials escape accountability for violating your rights. That may be changing in a small way. Still, Clark Neily and Jay Schweikert argue that qualified immunity will continue to protect malicious public officials until lawmakers step in to fix it. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Some in the conservative legal movement view Trump's (and Mitch McConnell's) success at confirming judges as simply not worth the rest of the Trump presidency. Billy Easley, a senior policy advisor at Americans for Prosperity, is one of them. His new Libertarianism.org essay is entitled, “The Myth of Trump’s Judicial Success." Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Statistics are typically meant to influence, and influence can be achieved with bad statistics. Tim Harford tries to help you discern truth from fiction in The Data Detective: Ten Easy Rules to Make Sense of Statistics. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Why do so few defendants get their day in court? Kevin Ring of FAMM discusses The Vanishing Trial. You may also host a screening of the film. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

State budgets didn't suffer the fate that was so widely predicted as COVID-19 began spreading throughout the U.S. Why? Logan Kolas of the Buckeye Institute and Chris Edwards comment. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

State budgets didn't suffer the fate that was so widely predicted as COVID-19 began spreading throughout the U.S. Why? Logan Kolas of the Buckeye Institute and Chris Edwards comment. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When species recover, the feds should remove them from the Endangered Species List. But that's not how it often works. Jonathan Wood of the Property and Environment Research Center comments. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Despite a Supreme Court ruling nudging states in the other direction, Indiana is continuing its fight to lay excessive fines over small-time drug crimes. Sam Gedge with the Institute for Justice is representing Tyson Timbs against Indiana. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The minimum wage debate is rekindled as the Biden Administration plans its push for $15 an hour. Chris Edwards and Ryan Bourne discuss the side-effects and drawbacks. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Tom Firey and Will Yeatman offer the soberest of sober assessments of the Trump regulatory record and a few thoughts on what's in store from Team Biden. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The second impeachment trial for Donald Trump ended up considerably more bipartisan than the last one, but “Citizen Trump" was nonetheless acquitted. So, have Republicans helped set a kind-of precedent by not issuing a conviction? Gene Healy dissects the trial. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ben Cohen and Jerry Greenfield are the icons better known for Ben and Jerry's ice cream. Now they're focusing their notoriety on ending qualified immunity. Ben, Jerry, and Cato's Jay Schweikert comment on the campaign to end the powerful, court-invented doctrine that shields public officials from accountability. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

U.S. Marshals sometimes act like local police, but with more violence and less accountability. That's according to a new investigation led by the Marshall Project. Reining it in is no easy task, according to co-author Simone Weichselbaum. And the Marshals, like other federal cops, regularly deputize local cops. That makes accountability for misconduct even more difficult, according to Patrick Jaicomo, an attorney at the Institute for Justice. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

"Fusionism," something of an ideological nonaggression pact between libertarians and conservatives, has fallen on hard times. Can it be reborn? Stephanie Slade of Reason discusses her new article on the subject. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The President's second impeachment trial begins with most Republicans agreeing that the whole proceeding is a "sham" and is unconstitutional. Gene Healy describes the arguments. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The fight over leadership at Bogazici University in Turkey again shows how fragile academic freedom can be. Mustafa Akyol comments. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The conflation of human trafficking and sex work is both destructive and counterproductive, and the Super Bowl offers another opportunity to end myths surrounding sex work. Sex worker advocate Kaytlin Bailey comments. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Stuart Ritchie is author of Science Fictions: How Fraud, Bias, Negligence, and Hype Undermine the Search for Truth. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Trump Administration rushed more than a dozen federal executions in its final months, but the death penalty itself is now historically unpopular even among conservatives. Hannah Cox with Conservatives Concerned about the Death Penalty discusses the broad trend away from support for one form of state-sanctioned killing. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How free should law enforcement feel to make use of new investigative technology without permission from political authorities? Matthew Feeney and Patrick Eddington discuss facial recognition tech in the wake of last month's Capitol attack. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How will regulating stock trades change following last week's big short squeeze executed by retail traders? Jennifer Schulp and Matthew Feeney comment. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

There are plenty of fingers pointing after a wild week on Wall Street that left hedge funds bloodied, traders exuberant, members of Congress signaling support for whoever the good guys might be, and trading platforms in a well-earned PR bind. Jennifer Schulp comments. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What's the best path forward to end cannabis prohibition without loading it up with needless federal regulation? Jim Higdon is the cofounder of Cornbread Hemp and an advocate for an end to cannabis prohibition. He says the Farm Bill is the key. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The refrain is "Bring back the Fairness Doctrine!" Paul Matzko, author of The Radio Right, explains where reviving and expanding government control of broadcast and cable (and streaming) content will inevitably lead. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Now that the loudly protectionist Trump team has departed the White House, should we expect anything better from Joe Biden? Scott Lincicome comments. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The attack on the Capitol has renewed calls to more closely monitor and punish extremism in the United States. In some sense, the United States has been here before. Patrick Eddington and Julian Sanchez weigh in. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Trump State Department accused China of Genocide with respect to Uyghur Muslims there. That designation is likely to stick. Eric Gomez and Mustafa Akyol offer their thoughts. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The U.S. Senate is awaiting an article of impeachment from the House regarding Donald Trump's activities leading up to a deadly attack on the U.S. Capitol. Why should the Senate proceed with a trial for a President who has already left office? Gene Healy offers his thoughts. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The U.S. Senate is awaiting an article of impeachment from the House regarding Donald Trump's activities leading up to a deadly attack on the U.S. Capitol. Why should the Senate proceed with a trial for a President who has already left office? Gene Healy offers his thoughts. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The "gamification" of stock trading has raised the hackles of state-level financial regulators. So what's the big deal if Robinhood throws up confetti when you make a trade? Jennifer Schulp evaluates the claims. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Team Biden won't deliver restraint, but it may deliver a basic regard for diplomacy across the globe. Eric Gomez and John Glaser comment. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Among other reforms, the incoming Biden Administration would legalize many millions of immigrants now in the United States illegally. Alex Nowrasteh describes what we know now about the soon-to-be-released plan. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Placing people on federal no-fly lists without charging them with any crime poses significant due process issues. Patrick Eddington details the case of Capitol rallygoers who probably weren't rioters, but ended up unable to fly. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The pardon power is broad, and many pardons that Presidents grant are questionable. In the case of pardons for security personnel working for Blackwater in Iraq, they might make relations for the U.S. and Iraq worse. Sahar Khan comments. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.