Qualified Opinions

The attempt on Donald Trump's life has shocked the country—so much so that the Director of the Secret Service has resigned. The shock and fear are understandable, given this is the first major assassination attempt since Ronald Reagan. But how does the modern period compare to the rest of American history? What can we learn from assassination attempts in the past, and how do they differ from now? Tevi Troy joins Veronique de Rugy to discuss. Tevi Troy is a Senior Fellow at the Bipartisan Policy Center, a former Deputy Secretary of Health and Human Services and a best-selling presidential historian. Show Notes: Article: Another Chapter in a Grim History Book : Fight House: Rivalries in the White House from Truman to Trump

With protectionist policy on the rise both to the left and the right of American politics, we are left with a burning question: What happened to the free trade consensus? This week, Veronique de Rugy sits down with Scott Lincicome to discuss the modern state of trade policy and global economics. Scott Lincicome is the Cato Institute's Vice President of General Economics and the Herbert A. Stiefel Center for Trade Policy Studies.

Joining Qualified Opinions today is Nancy French, who discusses the changing political landscape, her career path, and being the writer behind the name. Nancy French is a best-selling ghostwriter and author of her memoir, Ghosted: An American Story.

Kevin Corinth, senior fellow at AEI, discusses the Child Tax Credit's evolution, work requirements, and poverty reduction. The debate on expanding the credit, implementing universal basic income for kids, and navigating trade-offs in income support programs are explored. Critiques on the credit expansion's impact on work incentives, parental behavior, and government support for families are also discussed.

Is inflation really the product of greed? Do greater economic means equal less incentive for competition? What is the right approach to antitrust policy? Veronique de Rugy sits down with Brian Albrecht to discuss. Brian Albrecht is Chief Economist of the International Center for Law & Economics (ICLE), which he joined in February 2022. In his role, he is responsible for the application and integration of theoretical and empirical economic methodologies into ICLE's research.

America's economic dynamism attracts immigrants from all over the world and has served as a beacon of hope for decades—however, today, Americans are more pessimistic about the future than ever. What can be done about it? Host Veronique de Rugy sits down with Jeremy Horpedahl to discuss. Dr. Horpedahl is the Director of ACRE and an associate professor of economics at the University of Central Arkansas. His research has been published in Econ Journal Watch, Constitutional Political Economy, the Atlantic Economic Journal, Public Choice, and Public Finance and Management.

The New Right and the Old Right are increasingly the major factions of conservatism today. Where do they diverge? And are there seldom spoken areas of convergence? Joining Veronique de Rugy is Charles Kesler, who will explore the landscape of American conservatism today. Charles Kesler is a Senior Fellow of the Claremont Institute, Editor of the Claremont Review of Books, host of Claremont's The American Mind video series, and the Dengler-Dykema Distinguished Professor of Government at Claremont McKenna College.

With Social Security and Medicare set to become insolvent in less than 10 years, the federal government is becoming increasingly desperate for new sources of revenue. The new big idea is to raise money by ending the tax treatment of 401k and other tax-deferred retirement plans. Veronique de Rugy sits down with Jason Fichtner to discuss the threat this poses to America's future retirement savings. Jason J. Fichtner is Chief Economist at the Bipartisan Policy Center and Executive Director of the Retirement Income Institute, Alliance for Lifetime Income.

How real is greedflation? Do women actually pay a pink tax? Do price controls actually help make things more affordable? These are the questions Ryan Bourne seeks to answer with Veronique de Rugy on this episode of Qualified Opinions. Ryan Bourne is the R. Evan Scharf Chair for the Public Understanding of Economics at Cato and is the author of several books, including Economics In One Virus and The War on Prices. He also writes in many notable publications on topics including fiscal policy, inequality, minimum wage, infrastructure spending, the cost of living, and rent control.

In a world increasingly tangled in regulatory red tape and bureaucratic inertia, many across the country have stood up to address the issue of housing shortages and affordability. The "Yes in My Back Yard" (YIMBY) movement is gaining momentum across the country, and Bryan Caplan's new book Build, Baby, Build captures its essence. Listen as Veronique de Rugy and Caplan discuss. Bryan Caplan is a senior research fellow at the Mercatus Center and a professor of economics at George Mason University. Caplan is also the author of The Myth of the Rational Voter: Why Democracies Choose Bad Policies, named "the best political book of the year" by the New York Times.