Cato Podcast

Outgoing Republican Representative Peter Meijer of Michigan would like to see Congress reassert powers over war from the executive branch and address its own dysfunction. We discussed what he’s learned in his term in Congress, if his party plans to engage in any form of introspection, and what’s next for him. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Todd Myers is author of Time to Think Small: How Nimble Environmental Technologies Can Solve the Planet's Biggest Problems . Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Productive employment is associated with avoiding entanglement in the criminal justice system, but for those already entangled that fact may be of little comfort. Scott Lincicome explains why criminal justice reform may also be pro-worker policy reform in his chapter of Empowering the New American Worker . Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Employment and health care are inextricably linked, and often that means limiting the choices of workers across the economy. Michael Cannon authored the health care chapter in Cato's new book, Empowering the New American Worker . Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The President hasn't done much with respect to immigration, but there are a few bright spots. David Bier discusses the Biden record on immigration so far and a new paper on guest workers. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It's a clear conflict of interest when industry insiders get to control who participates in that industry, but that's exactly how occupational licensing functions. And, as Steve Slivinski of the Pacific Legal Foundation notes, it's worse than you might think. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Higher salaries are great, but the cost of living impacts quality of life every bit as much. In her chapter in Cato's new Empowering the New American Worker book, Gabriella Beaumont-Smith details the myriad ways basic goods cost more than they should. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mike Tanner's new paper on the path forward for housing affordability in North Carolina shows that some of the biggest impediments to new housing exist in more states than just New York and California. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Congress loves to avoid accountability. Our current and most recent former presidents have both presided over unprecedented spending. To make matters worse, the flashpoint of accountability elections provide is two years or more away. Jonathan Bydlak of the R Street Institute says this is the time when we should expect to see lawmakers at their least accountable as many (but not all) traditional o...

The cost of housing is at historic highs and largely without good reason. Vanessa Brown Calder discusses what needs to change to make housing more affordable for average Americans. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Cristal Starling of Rochester, New York just wants her money back. The government took it without even charging her with a crime. Lee McGrath of the Institute for Justice is representing her in court. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The temperance movement in the U.S. that culminated with Prohibition wasn't the only one, though the results were similar. Mark Lawrence Schrad is author of Smashing the Liquor Machine . Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What is the proper way for Christians to engage with the world around them? Many theologians believe Christians are called upon to be socialists. Deirdre McCloskey disagrees. Her forthcoming book is God in Commerce . Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The nonprofit world largely weathered the pandemic, but the longstanding threats remain to the ability of nonprofit donors to remain anonymous haven’t gone anywhere. Peter Lipsett of DonorsTrust comments. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

American workers need to get to work, and the systems that support our transportation infrastructure need reform. Colin Grabow authored the transportation chapter in Cato's Empowering the New American Worker book. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

North Korea’s missile tests are a regular source of anxiety, but it’s important not to let the country’s saber rattling turn into a high-stakes cycle of increasing belligerence. Cato’s Eric Gomez details the current state of play. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Protests in Iran continue to highlight the struggle against mandated religious practices by Iran’s government. Cato’s Mustafa Akyol comments. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Items on ballots this month included the typical crop of candidates, but voters also weighed in on ballot issues on how people vote, abortion, the separation of powers, involuntary servitude, and ending some drug prohibition. Cato’s Walter Olson discusses some of the more notable ballot measures voters faced this year. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

There are several paths forward for the American economy, but one path readily advanced by a movement on the right looks a lot like a loser’s playbook: protect industries and workers with the heavy hand of government and otherwise move toward more state interventions into economic affairs. Samuel Gregg is author of the new book, The Next American Economy . Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy fo...

There are ways to mitigate and prevent catastrophic wildfires if only the feds would allow them. Hannah Downey of the Property and Environment Research Center explains. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Biden White House continues to delay a return to normalcy in the Medicaid program, and that's putting states on the hook for more spending. Marc Joffe comments. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Independent contractors perform vital functions throughout the economy so why do many states and the federal government want to disempower that kind of work. Scott Lincicome is editor of the new Cato book, Empowering the New American Worker . Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How do states rank when it comes to protecting the right to speak publicly about politics? Scott Blackburn is author of The Free Speech Index at the Institute for Free Speech. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Public institutions dominate the education landscape, but those institutions do not serve the needs of workers particularly well. Neal McCluskey is author of two chapters dealing with education in the new Cato book, Empowering the New American Worker . Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Kendall Cotton of Montana’s Frontier Institute discusses how the state can make room for new Montanans and prevent long-term economic problems in the process. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.