Cato Event Podcast

Cato's annual Constitution Day symposium marks the day in 1787 that the Constitutional Convention finished drafting the U.S. Constitution. We celebrate that event each year with the release of the new issue of the Cato Supreme Court Review and with a day-long symposium featuring noted scholars discussing the recently concluded Supreme Court term and the important cases coming up. Past speakers have included Judges Alex Kozinski, Diane Sykes, and Douglas Ginsburg, Professors Richard Epstein, Michael McConnell, and Nadine Strossen, and Supreme Court litigators Paul Clement, Neal Katyal, and Walter Dellinger. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Sweden is a remarkably successful country. A poor peasant nation in the 1850s, it became one of the world’s richest countries a century later. It ranks among the world’s freest developed nations. Should the United States be more like Sweden? The documentary Sweden: Lessons for America? delves into aspects of Swedish politics and society that may surprise many Americans. Join us to see a segment of the documentary from the Free to Choose Network. Swedish film host and scholar Johan Norberg will describe how his country has changed over time, highlight policy successes, and explain why Sweden’s economic policies are often misunderstood by outsiders. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

P. J. O’Rourke, America’s leading political satirist and Cato H. L. Mencken Research Fellow, has been dubbed “the funniest writer in America” by the Wall Street Journal. In his new book, None of My Business: P. J. Explains Money, Banking, Debt, Equity, Assets, Liabilities, and Why He’s Not Rich and Neither Are You, the best-selling author delves into the world of business, offering his humorous, incisive musings on everything from banking and investments to China and the future of Bitcoin—and, of course, how the “crazy things” that government does to money manage to make the financial world even more mind-boggling.Whether explaining what cleaning his chicken coop taught him about investing, how covering war zones for Rolling Stone taught him economics, or what his teenage daughter revealed to him about the digital economy, O’Rourke is always sure to deliver pithy insights with a healthy dose of humor. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

A key question in debates over Obamacare is whether its community rating provisions are necessary to provide complete risk protection to consumers. A new study of one insurer by Anthony LoSasso and colleagues finds that the insurer did increase premiums for small employers whose expected claims were above average, but the increase in premiums only ranged from 5 percent to 43 percent of the increase in expected costs. These findings suggest that even before Obamacare, the market for small-employer coverage did a lot to protect high-cost employees from having to pay premiums that reflect their higher health risk. Come hear leading scholars on the economics of health insurance, Mark Pauly and Anthony LoSasso, discuss these findings and their implications. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The financial services industry is undergoing a transformation: technology is enabling financial institutions and startups to reach underserved communities, lower the cost of banking and investing, and increase access to capital. As fintech fosters financial inclusion and access, how can regulation accommodate innovation while protecting consumers? Cato’s Fourth Annual Summit on Financial Regulation will bring together leading practitioners, policy experts, and regulators to grapple with key policy questions at the intersection of technology and financial services—and to discuss the positive role that policy change can play in reaping the benefits from the ongoing revolution in banking, capital markets, and the emerging crypto economy.From: Fintech Unbound: The Cato Summit on Financial Regulation See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The financial services industry is undergoing a transformation: technology is enabling financial institutions and startups to reach underserved communities, lower the cost of banking and investing, and increase access to capital. As fintech fosters financial inclusion and access, how can regulation accommodate innovation while protecting consumers? Cato’s Fourth Annual Summit on Financial Regulation will bring together leading practitioners, policy experts, and regulators to grapple with key policy questions at the intersection of technology and financial services—and to discuss the positive role that policy change can play in reaping the benefits from the ongoing revolution in banking, capital markets, and the emerging crypto economy.From: Fintech Unbound: The Cato Summit on Financial Regulation See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The financial services industry is undergoing a transformation: technology is enabling financial institutions and startups to reach underserved communities, lower the cost of banking and investing, and increase access to capital. As fintech fosters financial inclusion and access, how can regulation accommodate innovation while protecting consumers? Cato’s Fourth Annual Summit on Financial Regulation will bring together leading practitioners, policy experts, and regulators to grapple with key policy questions at the intersection of technology and financial services—and to discuss the positive role that policy change can play in reaping the benefits from the ongoing revolution in banking, capital markets, and the emerging crypto economy.From: Fintech Unbound: The Cato Summit on Financial Regulation See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The financial services industry is undergoing a transformation: technology is enabling financial institutions and startups to reach underserved communities, lower the cost of banking and investing, and increase access to capital. As fintech fosters financial inclusion and access, how can regulation accommodate innovation while protecting consumers? Cato’s Fourth Annual Summit on Financial Regulation will bring together leading practitioners, policy experts, and regulators to grapple with key policy questions at the intersection of technology and financial services—and to discuss the positive role that policy change can play in reaping the benefits from the ongoing revolution in banking, capital markets, and the emerging crypto economy.From: Fintech Unbound: The Cato Summit on Financial Regulation See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The financial services industry is undergoing a transformation: technology is enabling financial institutions and startups to reach underserved communities, lower the cost of banking and investing, and increase access to capital. As fintech fosters financial inclusion and access, how can regulation accommodate innovation while protecting consumers? Cato’s Fourth Annual Summit on Financial Regulation will bring together leading practitioners, policy experts, and regulators to grapple with key policy questions at the intersection of technology and financial services—and to discuss the positive role that policy change can play in reaping the benefits from the ongoing revolution in banking, capital markets, and the emerging crypto economy.From: Fintech Unbound: The Cato Summit on Financial Regulation See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

For much of the 21st century, those who identified themselves as left of center were the strongest proponents of freedom of speech. They believed in the principle, and they thought that free speech benefited civil rights and labor activists—not to mention radicals seeking fundamental change. Conservatives, they thought, would always oppose free speech because of its threat to the status quo. Beginning in the late 1960s, some spoke of free speech as “repressive tolerance” that precluded radical changes. Later, as courts connected free speech to campaign finance, some on the left argued that the First Amendment served corporate interests, not emancipation of the oppressed. Professor Michael Seidman has renewed this debate with a provocative paper denying that free speech in the American context can be progressive. Please join us for an intriguing debate about the future of free speech, a debate that matters for everyone at all points on the political spectrum. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out infor

ne of the nation’s leading experts on infrastructure policy, Robert Poole, will discuss his new book, Rethinking America’s Highways: A 21st-Century Vision for Better Infrastructure. The book examines our current structure of highway ownership and financing and describes why major reforms are needed. Poole argues for a new model that treats highways in a more commercial manner, akin to public utilities. Motorists, the economy, and the environment would all gain if highway investments were driven more by market signals than by politics, he finds.With increased highway congestion and large financing gaps on the horizon, Poole provides critical input to America’s debate over infrastructure. Poole is an MIT-trained engineer who has advised numerous administrations, the Federal Highway Administration, and various state highway agencies on infrastructure issues.Dr. Jonathan Gifford will provide comments on Poole’s book. Gifford has a PhD in civil engineering, specializing in transportation, and he is an expert

Which state is the freest, and what does it mean to be free? Which state has the most heavily taxed and regulated economy? Which state has the best protections for personal freedom? Where does your state rank? Is it among the freest or most coercive? Such questions have occurred to many people who care about limited government.The 2018 edition of Freedom in the 50 States presents an updated ranking of the American states based on how their policies promote fiscal, regulatory, and personal freedom. The authors have gathered data on more than 230 variables to measure freedom now and in the past. They go beyond describing policies and analyze why some states have smaller and better governments.Freedom in the 50 States is an essential work for anyone interested in state policies and in advancing a better understanding of a free society. Join us to meet the authors, learn about the development of this research, and hear an overview of the 2018 rankings. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out

Which state is the freest, and what does it mean to be free? Which state has the most heavily taxed and regulated economy? Which state has the best protections for personal freedom? Where does your state rank? Is it among the freest or most coercive?In this special Cato Connects, Freedom in the 50 States authors William P. Ruger and Jason Sorens discuss the data on more than 230 variables to measure freedom now and in the past. They go beyond describing policies and analyze why some states have smaller and better governments.The 2018 edition of Freedom in the 50 States presents an updated ranking of the American states based on how their policies promote fiscal, regulatory, and personal freedom. Freedom in the 50 States is an essential work for anyone interested in state policies and in advancing a better understanding of a free society. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The economic revolutions of the past have brought vast wealth to average people. So what does the "sharing economy" have to offer? Michael Munger argues in his new book, Tomorrow 3.0, that when we understand how transaction costs function, the implications of the sharing economy become more clear. Join us for a discussion of the implications of this economic shift and how it will change how we work, what we own, and the wealth we can access. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

The Trump administration has reversed an Obama-era rule that exposed consumers with short-term health insurance plans to medical underwriting after they got sick. The Trump rule restores consumer protections in short-term plans, which are exempt from ObamaCare’s costly benefit mandates and hidden taxes. Does the new short-term plans rule create a “freedom option” for those who have had enough of Obamacare? Does if free religious conservatives from having to purchase coverage they find morally objectionable? Will it usher in a new era of innovation that will make access to care more secure for the sick? Does the new rule sabotage or threaten the stability of Obamacare? Come listen to one of the nation’s leading scholars discuss short-term health plans and the potential of innovation to revolutionize health insurance. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

From Cato University: College of History and PhilosophyHistory is indispensable to understanding and defending liberty under our constitutionally limited, representative government. And at the core of that history are the philosophical beliefs and values on which the American republic was founded. Cato University's College of History and Philosophy brings these two powerful subjects together to explore the foundations of liberty and justice, of wealth and poverty, of individual rights and the rule of law. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

From Cato University: College of History and PhilosophyHistory is indispensable to understanding and defending liberty under our constitutionally limited, representative government. And at the core of that history are the philosophical beliefs and values on which the American republic was founded. Cato University's College of History and Philosophy brings these two powerful subjects together to explore the foundations of liberty and justice, of wealth and poverty, of individual rights and the rule of law. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

From Cato University: College of History and PhilosophyHistory is indispensable to understanding and defending liberty under our constitutionally limited, representative government. And at the core of that history are the philosophical beliefs and values on which the American republic was founded. Cato University's College of History and Philosophy brings these two powerful subjects together to explore the foundations of liberty and justice, of wealth and poverty, of individual rights and the rule of law. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

From Cato University: College of History and PhilosophyHistory is indispensable to understanding and defending liberty under our constitutionally limited, representative government. And at the core of that history are the philosophical beliefs and values on which the American republic was founded. Cato University's College of History and Philosophy brings these two powerful subjects together to explore the foundations of liberty and justice, of wealth and poverty, of individual rights and the rule of law. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Cryptocurrencies are now a $270 billion market, and initial coin offerings (ICOs) raised more than $8 billion in the first five months of 2018. What is the appropriate regulatory framework for this emerging financial technology? In this Capitol Hill briefing, Cato’s Diego Zuluaga and Mercatus’ Brian Knight will address whether and how cryptocurrencies might be determined to be securities, the role of cryptocurrencies in value creation, and the use of ICOs as fundraising vehicles. Zuluaga will outline a regulatory framework for securing innovation while ensuring protection against fraud and crime. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.