Cato Podcast

Treating guns like cars might not end up with the kind of regulation that gun prohibitionists want. But thinking about guns like we think about cars might get us to a more productive conversation. Trevor Burrus comments. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

European populism is on the march, but it's less clear how sustainable the various movements are. Alberto Mingardi of the Istituto Bruno Leoni provides some perspective. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Should commercial speech receive diminished First Amendment protection? Martin Redish of Northwestern Law School made his case at the Cato Institute's conference on the First Amendment. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What does Alexis de Tocqueville have to offer Americans today? James Poulos explains in his new book, The Art of Being Free: How Alexis de Tocqueville Can Save Us from Ourselves. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Zoning mostly done at the local level, but should states take charge of the process in the name of economic efficiency? Emily Hamilton of the Mercatus Center comments. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Do federal housing subsidies end up subsidizing restrictive zoning at the local level? And how does zoning drive housing costs? Vanessa Brown Calder examines the relationship in a new Cato Policy Analysis. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What are the areas of agreement across the ideological spectrum when it comes to freedom of speech? Robert Bauer, White House counsel under Barack Obama, makes his case. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In a world of endless distraction, it's easy to avoid conscious growth. And, in a world of endless distraction, it's more important than ever to control ourselves. At Cato’s 40th anniversary celebration, Charles Murray discussed the good life. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

2012 felt like a better year for individual rights on college campuses, according to Greg Lukianoff of the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education. Then things got much, much worse. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

States need a comprehensive way to judge which occupational licenses are justified and which aren't. Jarrett Skorup of the Mackinac Center comments. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Why is the FBI involved in investigating college sports recruiting scandals? Ilya Shapiro comments. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The last major tax reform was 30 years ago. How did it happen? Cato Institute Vice President John Samples comments. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Drawing a legal line around what might constitute "extremist" speech for the purpose of regulation or prohibition is virtually impossible. The same goes for "fake news." Flemming Rose comments. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Whatever you think of the Iran Nuclear Deal, the alternatives are worse. That’s according John Glaser and Emma Ashford, authors of the new Cato paper, "Unforced Error: The Risks of Confrontation with Iran." Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How free should unions be to take fees from workers? When do those fees violate the First Amendment? Attorney Jacob Huebert discusses Janus v. AFSCME, which will soon go before the U.S. Supreme Court. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Chris Edwards discusses the tax plan now circulating in Congress. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Colin Grabow is author of "Responsible Stakeholders: Why the United States Should Welcome China’s Economic Leadership." Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A new draft of Donald Trump's travel ban may be the most confusing yet. At the same time, the U.S. will take far fewer refugees than in years past. Alex Nowrasteh comments. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Where does the desired renegotiation of NAFTA now stand? Inu Manak discusses the costs and benefits of reopening the massive trade deal. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Oklahoma Attorney General Mike Hunter discusses the "unconstitutional structure" of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and possible litigation against Equifax. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What would it mean for the war in Afghanistan to show improvement? Without metrics, it's hard to say. Chris Preble discusses why the war sits in a holding pattern. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

When Customs and Border Patrol search your computer, what rights do you retain? Matthew Feeney comments. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Marian Tupy comments on this week's German elections. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

New research indicates that the role of mandatory minimums in reducing crime has been smaller than proponents would have you believe. Kevin Ring of Families Against Mandatory Minimums comments. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Does public radio have a diversity problem? Jon Caldara, president of Colorado's Independence Institute, believes it does. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What's the record for scholarship tax credits and other school choice programs so far? Jason Bedrick of EdChoice discusses the most recent changes. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How do the feds crowd out disaster relief from friends, neighbors, industry, and even other states? Chris Edwards comments. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Courts should defer to groups that want to use drugs in their religious practice. Eric Sterling of The Criminal Justice Policy Foundation provides a brief history of drug laws versus religious liberty. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Americans don't trust either financial firms associated with Wall Street or the regulators who are trying to control financial firms' activities. Thaya Brook Knight and Emily Ekins discuss the findings of a new Cato Institute survey. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It's not even clear that "Medicare for Some" is a good idea, let alone "Medicare for All.” Michael F. Cannon comments. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The cost to public safety of reducing spending on criminal justice programs can be effectively zero. That's according to Sal Nuzzo of the James Madison Institute. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

After 16 years of war, it's time to reckon with the less-appreciated anniversary of September 14, 2001, when Congress gave the President a relatively open-ended power to make war. Gene Healy explains why. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Is heavy-handed punishment a particularly good way to handle the opioid crisis? I spoke with Greg Newburn of Families Against Mandatory Minimums at the State Policy Network Annual Meeting in San Antonio. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The naming of national monuments creates a few underappreciated problems. Hannah Downey of the Property and Environment Research Center comments. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Utah has removed many of the pointless licensing requirements for businesses operated by minors. Connor Boyack of the Libertas Institute discusses the importance of giving kids a taste of truly free enterprise. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Why is there so little rent seeking? Is rent seeking itself still misunderstood? Matthew Mitchell of the Mercatus Center discussed the issue at FEECon in June. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley’s public pitch explaining the problems of the Iran nuclear deal spent precious little energy discussing what happens if the U.S. exits the deal. Emma Ashford evaluates the arguments. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The White House will end President Obama's Deferred Action on Childhood Arrivals (DACA), but Jeff Sessions' defense of ending DACA on policy grounds misunderstands immigration almost entirely. Alex Nowrasteh comments. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Choosing the size of the national debt is a fight worth having. So why doesn't anyone want to have it? Michael Tanner comments. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ilan Wurman is author of A Debt against the Living. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Supreme Court has an opportunity to change how governments may track Americans. Jim Harper comments. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Obama White House narrowed the scope of military gear that could be distributed to local police forces. The Trump White House has undone those small restrictions. Clark Neily and Adam Bates discuss the change. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What does the U.S. gain by risking war in the South China Sea? Not much, according to "A Balanced Threat Assessment of China’s South China Sea Policy," a new Cato Institute paper. John Glaser and Eric Gomez comment on the dispute. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Marijuana is legal to consume in a handful of states. So why is researching marijuana virtually impossible? Trevor Burrus discusses the federal role in prohibiting pot research. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How do we tolerate intolerance? Jason Kuznicki comments. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Should monuments to the Confederacy be removed or merely reframed? And where should that line of thinking stop? Walter Olson offers a few ideas. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Afghanistan strategy laid out by Donald Trump looks a lot like one that previous battlefield commanders have suggested is sorely wanting. Trevor Thrall and Erik Goepner comment. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The successes of protectionism are grossly exaggerated. Scott Lincicome discusses his new paper, "Doomed to Repeat It: The Long History of America’s Protectionist Failures." Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A full-throated rejection of Nazism in its various forms doesn't compel anyone to ally with the strongly anti-liberal elements of the Antifa movement. Daniel McCarthy of The American Conservative discusses the sad events in Charlottesville. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

China has presented to the U.S. and North Korea its perceived commitments if the two countries decide to tangle. Chris Preble comments. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.