Unintended Consequences

On April 2, 2025, President Trump announced the largest tariffs in more than a century, sparking a stockmarket crash and heightening fears of a potential recession. It shouldn’t be a surprise for our listeners; one of our episodes last year covered the sweeping tariffs then being proposed by candidate Trump. But now that the tariffs are actually here, tune in as Paul and Peter discuss the likely negative effects for the US economy and American consumers. Then stick around for the second half of the episode for an update on the status of the TikTok ban. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

New York City’s congestion pricing policy is meant to reduce traffic in Manhattan and to raise money for public transit. But it’s attracted the ire of many, including President Donald Trump. Join Paul Matzko and Peter Van Doren as they discuss what congestion pricing is, why it’s so controversial, and why it’s generally a good idea to more accurately price the use of roads. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Should your home have a sprinkler system installed? Well, the organization likely responsible for your local building code thinks so. But mandating sprinklers in every single family home would be expensive, and this wouldn’t be the first time that regulators failed to sufficiently account for costs and tradeoffs. Join Paul Matzko and Peter Van Doren for a closer look at an organization you’ve never heard of, the International Code Council, which has significant influence on what gets built in America today. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Obituaries for the late President Jimmy Carter have been filled with profuse praise for his post-presidential philanthropic work. But Carter wasn't just good once he left office; he was one of the most underrated presidents in US history. As Paul and Peter discuss, his administration enacted policies that deregulated a swath of industries from trucking to broadcasting, ultimately laying the foundation for the next several decades of American prosperity. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

There is substantial overlap between the Biden and Trump administrations on economic policy. Both presidents have favored protectionist industrial policy and higher import tariffs. Yet these policies would not only fail to return America to the economy of the early 20th century; they would harm most ordinary American workers and consumers in the attempt. In this episode, Peter and Paul discuss the incredible cost of Trump’s proposed tariff increases, the retrograde nature of Biden’s approach to the steel industry, and a surprising result from the research on universal basic income. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Theory is elegant, but even the most well-designed and well-intentioned theory of regulation may not survive the acid test of reality. First, Paul and Peter discuss the dilemma faced by federal regulators trying to address Boeing’s safety record and the risk that (in)action might push more passengers to drive instead. Then Peter offers a counterintuitive take on the Supreme Court ending Chevron deference, deflating some of the hot air from the decision’s most ardent supporters and critics. Finally, they are joined by Professor Thomas Hazlett to dig deeper into the surprising outcomes from the T-Mobile – Sprint megamerger in 2020. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ike Brannon, Senior Fellow at the Jack Kemp Foundation, discusses the right to repair movement for John Deere tractors. The podcast also covers government restrictions on manufactured homes and efforts to override local opposition to upzoning. Plus, a surprising study on how unions lower wages.

The podcast discusses the unintended consequences of government regulations on housing, electric vehicles, and poverty. They explore how Dodd-Frank impacted small dollar mortgages, systemic racism in housing, and the complexities of electric vehicle cost-benefit analysis. The discussion also delves into tax policies, welfare programs, and challenges misconceptions on poverty and welfare systems in the US and Europe.

Special guests Macy Scheck and Daniel Smith discuss adulterated whiskey, Texan electricity, and Brandeisian antitrust. Topics include concerns around adulteration in the whiskey market, electricity generation systems in Northeast and Texas, the impact of Amazon's acquisition of Whole Foods, productive efficiencies in different sectors, patents and antitrust regulations.

Exploring challenges in water management, disaster response, and economic policy. Discussing struggles in enforcing regulations, transitioning to privatized water systems, and maintaining neutrality in government agencies. Delving into public health experts' shifting mask-wearing recommendations and navigating the complexity of cost-benefit analyses in policy decisions.