Qualified Opinions

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.

Being middle class in America used to mean something. It was something socially transformative and even revolutionary. What happened? These are the ideas Christine Rosen writes on in her recent article for Commentary, "The Elite War on the American Middle Class—and How to End It." Christine sits down with host Veronique de Rugy to discuss what has happened to America's middle class and how we can turn the tide. Christine Rosen is a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, where she focuses on American history, society and culture, technology, and feminism.

With the U.S. debt-to-GDP ratio approaching 180%, Americans are getting increasingly concerned about the future of our economy. Strangely, however, Japan's debt-to-GDP ratio is over 250%, and it has not seen any inflationary crisis so far. What does this mean, and what should the takeaway be for America? In part two of his interview with host Veronique de Rugy, David Bahnsen delves deeper into Japan's historical economic landscape and what we can learn from it. David Bahnsen is the founder and managing partner of The Bahnsen Group, a national private wealth management firm managing over $4 billion in client assets. Prior to launching The Bahnsen Group, he spent eight years as a Managing Director at Morgan Stanley and six years as a Vice President at UBS. Bahnsen is also a contributor to several prominent outlets and a best-selling author.

Newspapers have been reporting on demographic challenges and birth declines in nations across the world. How hard will these problems hit the United States, and what can be done to counter them? Host Veronique de Rugy sits down with social science trailblazer Dr. Catherine Pakaluk to discuss her research into the relationship between family structure and economic outcomes. Pakaluk is an Associate Professor at the Busch School of Business at the Catholic University of America, where she established the Social Research academic area. She is also the author of a forthcoming book, Hannah's Children: The Women Quietly Defying the Birth Dearth.

Work-life balance has been in the news a lot in recent years. Young people have been quiet quitting. Bernie Sanders wants Americans to work only 32 hours per week. Gen Zers have surpassed Baby Boomers in the workforce and are demanding employers establish a company's purpose in a way that contributes to a better society. Veronique de Rugy sits down for a discussion with David Bahnsen to discuss these trends and cuts through the noise to pinpoint the true meaning of work. David Bahnsen is the founder and managing partner of The Bahnsen Group, a national private wealth management firm managing over $4 billion in client assets. Prior to launching The Bahnsen Group, he spent eight years as a Managing Director at Morgan Stanley and six years as a Vice President at UBS. Bahnsen is also a contributor to several prominent outlets and a best-selling author. Stay tuned for part 2 of this interview.

Birth rates are falling. Parents and kids are stressed out. Mental health issues among kids are on the rise. What made raising kids much harder than it needs to be? Tim Carney joins host Veronique de Rugy to discuss the contemporary challenges facing parenting and what we can do about it. Timothy P. Carney is a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, where he works on civil society, family, localism, religion in America, economic competition, and electoral politics. He is concurrently a senior columnist at the Washington Examiner.

California's top income tax rate stands at 13.3%, whereas Arizona's sits at 2.5%. When are income taxes so high that they become counterproductive? At what point is a state income tax rate high enough to incentivize leaving the state? Host Veronique de Rugy sits down with economist Joshua Rauh to discuss these questions and more. Joshua Rauh is the Ormond Family Professor of Finance at Stanford's Graduate School of Business and a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution. He leads the Hoover Institution State and Local Government Initiative.

The Republican Chairman of the House Budget Committee made news recently when he announced that if Republicans are serious about fixing Washington D.C.'s finances, they'll have to talk about raising taxes. But with how fast deficit spending has accelerated, how much would tax rates have to increase to solve the problem? Which areas of federal spending need a second look? What is the trajectory of entitlement spending? Host Veronique de Rugy sits down with Adam Michel to discuss America's finances and the growing realities we will face in the coming years. Adam Michel is director of tax policy studies at the Cato Institute, where he focuses on analyzing the economic and budgetary effects of taxation in the United States. Adam has also served as deputy staff director at the U.S. Congress Joint Economic Committee, and as senior policy analyst at the Heritage Foundation.