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Cato Podcast
The Eternal Quest for More Tariffs
Ep. 115
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Earlier this year the Supreme Court ruled that the president could not use the "International Emergency Economic Powers Act" (IEEPA) to impose tariffs and the administration immediately turned to other legal mechanisms to assert that power.
Laura Bondank-Harmon interviews Clark Neily and Ilya Somin to unpack the legal battles over Trump’s tariffs, the statutes the administration is now invoking, and the constitutional limits on the president’s power to tax.
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114. Wealth Taxes Failed Abroad. Why Try Them Here?
38:30||Ep. 114Most rich countries that tried annual wealth taxes eventually scrapped them, but now California and Elizabeth Warren want to run the experiment in the United States. Ryan Bourne talks with Adam Michel about how a “modest” 3 percent levy can swallow 60 percent of an asset’s 5 percent return—and leave workers footing much of the bill.
113. Iran: Schrodinger's War
26:26||Ep. 113The conflict with Iran is simultaneously ending and escalating, and Justin Logan says that's no accident. He tells the Cato Institute's Laura Bondank-Harmon why the strategic case never existed, even as the death toll, price tag, and oil prices keep climbing.
112. AI: Must We Act Now?
41:08||Ep. 112Artificial intelligence could transform productivity, employment, and living standards. But does that mean governments should “act now” to “steer” the technology? Economist John Cochrane joins Cato’s Ryan Bourne to explain why he thinks a prominent economists’ letter gets the problem wrong, whether fears of mass job loss are justified, and how speculation about AI’s potential is already shaping public policy.
111. Happy 60th Birthday, Now Pay the Bill
26:19||Ep. 111Medicare spent $1.2 trillion in 2025 and still can't show it's saving lives. The Cato Institute's Laura Bondank-Harmon is joined by Michael Cannon and David Hyman to mark the program's 60th anniversary, explaining how it broke health care pricing and why "Medicare for All" would only make it worse.
110. The Wisdom of Crowds: An Intro to Prediction Markets
42:21||Ep. 110Prediction-market pioneer Robin Hanson joins Cato's Ryan Bourne to explain this new industry's promise, how betting can improve decision-making, and whether we should worry about insider trading, manipulation, and sabotage as these markets proliferate.
109. The Fight Against Financial Surveillance
29:28||Ep. 109Financial surveillance in America is expanding. In this episode, host Nicholas Anthony sits down with Representative Warren Davidson to discuss the growing reach of the Bank Secrecy Act, and why it’s time to scale back the surveillance of law-abiding Americans.
108. Why Is Childcare So Expensive?
40:28||Ep. 108Parents in many parts of the country face eye-watering childcare bills, yet providers often operate on thin margins and workers remain modestly paid. Cato's Chelsea Follett joins Ryan Bourne to discuss the economics behind America’s childcare crunch, the regressive regulations that make care scarcer, and the supply-side reforms that could give families more affordable options.
107. The Amendment That Wouldn't Bend
30:31||Ep. 107Trump's executive order tested the limits of the 14th Amendment and lost, 6-3. Cato's Laura Bondank-Harmon is joined by David Bier and Tommy Berry to understand why, and how the ruling fits into an immigration agenda that's closing legal pathways even as it loses in court.