Cato Event Podcast

Earlier this year, Congress reauthorized Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act for two years. The final bill included provisions sought by civil liberties advocates, but some critical reforms didn’t make it into the final version. Moreover, that same bill also included a potentially radical expansion of the number of entities that could have their communications traffic swept up under 702. Additionally, Congress has thus far not legislatively addressed several other surveillance abuses and controversies, including those involving new or emerging technologies.What is the actual track record of the Section 702 program, both in terms of constitutional rights violations and successes in the foreign intelligence field? What other federal surveillance programs and authorities need revision or revocation? What role do technology companies play in facilitating government surveillance? What has been the impact on America’s Fourth Amendment and related constitutional rights of federal court decisions involving federal surveillance? The panel will cover all these developments.

Discussing presidential elections in a hyperpolarized environment can be challenging. Sphere is excited to support you in these conversations with your students by bringing civil discourse to your classroom. In this webinar, we will equip you with tools and resources that will help you effectively embed healthy conversation habits in your classes when discussing election topics. You will hear from Sphere’s content development team and content contributors Betty Nordengren and Kelly Young‐​Raymore about best practices and strategies so that you can bring these discussions to your classroom in a productive, meaningful manner. The webinar will be broken into two parts. The first part will provide context and guidance on thoughtfully discussing elections with your students; the second part will take a deeper dive into the practical application of these resources by facilitating breakout discussions for middle and high school educators. Attendees will leave with tangible, practical tools to apply in their classes and feel empowered to implement civil discourse in class discussions around the upcoming election.

Part memoir, part rumination on the declining moral compass of the American political class, The Unraveling is the first book to place restoring political ethics at the center of the renewal of American democracy. Politics is a brutal game, but Bauer asks: Where does the line fall between the “hardball” of politics and attacks on the very foundation of democracy? Looking back on 46 years in the political arena, Bauer examines what has gone wrong and what shaped his decisions and actions. He also recounts his heresies on campaign finance regulation and his efforts to work across the aisle on issues vital to democracy. He writes about the various personal experiences along the way—the highs, the lows, and the absurd. Bauer presents a smart and serious look at our political culture and the role he has played in shaping it. The Unraveling will be essential reading for anyone interested in American politics of the past 50 years—and the next.

The horrific terror attacks of October 7 and the catastrophic war in Gaza once again put the Israeli-Palestinian conflict on the global agenda. Some pessimists believe that peace is unattainable, as the conflict is not merely between two peoples claiming the same land but also between two civilizations with clashing values: the Judeo-Christian West versus the Muslim world.In his new book, Mustafa Akyol offers a remarkably different vision. By going through much-forgotten episodes in history, and by a careful study of theology, he reminds audiences of all religious persuasions that for over a millennium, there was a Judeo-Islamic tradition. He shows that Islam and Judaism are kindred religions whose adherents have often coexisted peacefully, supported each other, and even learned from each other. He also argues that Jews and Muslims can still be partners for peace in the Middle East and stand together for freedom everywhere.Join Akyol for a discussion of the key ideas in The Islamic Moses, followed by commentary by Ari Gordon on the past and the future of the Judeo-Islamic tradition.

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.

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.

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.

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.