In an election season, there are always personality issues, and everybody has personal favorites. But then there are policy issues—and there are a lot of big ones on the table for the 2024 election: economic populism, inflation, immigration, abortion, higher ed, and more. In this episode, we give you our rough survey—and short analysis—of the policy territory facing voters. Advance warning: policy wisdom does not line up neatly with one party or the other!

In the wake of hurricanes, we need to ask an uncomfortable question: has federal flood insurance policy made the damage more extensive? The East Coast port workers strike is temporarily settled, but the effort to kill port automation is still on the table; does automation kill jobs? California and Minnesota are outlawing political AI deepfakes. Is this a victory against hate and disinformation? And what about California’s new law banning legacy admission at even private colleges? We discuss these subjects and more on today's episode of Independent Outlook.

Since the passage of the Affordable Care Act, health care in America has not improved in the ways we were promised. In fact, inequalities in care have grown, and for many people health coverage is worse. But the errors can still be reversed. John C. Goodman's new book, Priceless: Curing the Health Care Crisis, maps out a better way, one that frees patients, doctors, and employers from the regulatory traps and perverse incentives that hold everybody back.

Both our presidential candidates, and their policy teams, seem to be suffering from a bad case of economic illiteracy, in somewhat different ways … or maybe not so different. With two aspiring leaders both saying they want to make things better for middle class and lower-income Americans, it’s pretty discouraging to see them advance economic policies that would actually make everybody worse off.

The Supreme Court has been busy! By the end of June 2024, the Court had issued a welter of decisions ranging from presidential immunity to guns to federal agency regulatory power. In this episode of Independent Outlook, a variety of Independent Institute experts will give you the scoop, and a quick assessment of the most pivotal recent Supreme Court cases. They’ll even argue with one another about them!

A copy of a secret memo on national security issues has recently come into our hands, and we thought we should bring it to your attention! It tells the national security elite how to keep the public from balking at endless wars, and at the endless costs of the military-industrial complex. Well, actually, we’re publishing it as a book, so it’s not so secret. And, oh, by the way, the book is actually a satire! Join us for this episode of Independent Conversations, where we talk with the authors of this satirical book—uh, that is, this secret memo.

Joe Biden says recent Supreme Court rulings on the Second Amendment are dangerous. Hunter Biden could rely on those rulings to appeal his gun conviction. What’s going on here? Also, will young voters love President Biden because he’s going after Ticketmaster while forgiving their student loans? And is it undemocratic for California voters to get to vote on the tax increases they’ll pay? Graham Walker, Phillip Magness, and Williamson Evers discuss all this and more on this episode of Independent Outlook.

Why are all the campus protests so ideologically one-sided? Was Claudine Gay the tip of the iceberg on plagiarism? Is scientific objectivity passé among the faculty? And will all this educational malpractice lead to financial problems that will put colleges out of business?