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The Cato Weekly Podcast

Cato Institute
Cato Institute
Tariffs
Donald Trump
Trump Administration
China
Libertarianism
Artificial Intelligence
First Amendment
United States
Social Security
Venezuela
Fourth Amendment
Government Shutdown
Constitution
Iran
Supreme Court
Trade Policy
JD Vance
Obamacare
Qualified Immunity

Every Tuesday on The Cato Weekly Podcast, leading scholars and policy analysts from the Cato Institute delve into the big ideas shaping our world: individual liberty, limited government, free markets, and peace. Whether unpacking current events, debating civil liberties, exploring technological innovation, or tracing the history of classical liberal thought, we promise insightful analysis grounded... more

PublishesTwice weeklyEpisodes4857Founded20 years ago
Number of ListenersCategories
GovernmentNewsPolitics

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Latest Episodes

Free health care, housing, college, paid leave, and retirement benefits may sound appealing... but how would we pay for them?

Rikki Schlott sits down with Cato’s Adam Michel to unpack the Democratic Socialists of America’s ambitious agenda and the s... more

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Every Tuesday on The Cato Weekly Podcast, leading scholars and policymakers from the Cato Institute delve into the big ideas shaping our world: individual liberty, limited government, free markets, and peace. Whether unpacking current events, debatin... more

YouTube

A number that's precise, dramatic, and politically convenient should raise your suspicion, not lower it. Aaron Brown, author of Wrong Number:

How to Extract Truth from a Blizzard of Quantitative Disinformation, joins Cato's Ryan Bourne to break down ... more

The Supreme Court has agreed to hear Vermont versus Cook County, its biggest Second Amendment case since Heller. The Cato Institute's Clark Neily, who worked on the original Heller case, joins Rikki Schlott to explain what's at stake for the 20 to 25... more

Key Facts

Accepts Guests
Contact Information
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Number of Listeners
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Recent Guests

Aaron Brown
Author of Wrong Number, data analyst and statistician
Independent author and researcher
Episode: How to Spot a Wrong Number
Tom Suozzi
Representative, New York's third congressional district; Democrat
U.S. Congress
Episode: How Do You Solve A Problem Like Affordability?
Brian Fitzpatrick
Representative, Pennsylvania's first congressional district; Republican
U.S. Congress
Episode: How Do You Solve A Problem Like Affordability?
Don Boudreaux
Adjunct scholar at the Cato Institute and professor of economics at George Mason University
Cato Institute, George Mason University
Episode: Can Government Run a Grocery Store?
Howard Husock
Senior Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and housing policy scholar
American Enterprise Institute
Episode: Bad Ways To Improve Housing Affordability
Clark Neily
Senior Vice President of Legal Studies at the Cato Institute
Cato Institute
Episode: The Eternal Quest for More Tariffs
Ilya Somin
Co-counsel in tariff cases
George Mason University (Scalia Law), Cato Institute
Episode: The Eternal Quest for More Tariffs
Justin Logan
Director of Defense and Foreign Policy Studies at the Cato Institute
Cato Institute
Episode: Iran: Schrodinger's War
John Cochrane
Economist, Rosemarie and Jack Anderson Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution; Grumpy Economists blogger
Hoover Institution, Cato Institute
Episode: AI: Must We Act Now?

Hosts

Laura Bondank-Harmon
Host of the show, guiding discussions with policy experts
Ryan Bourne
Host of the show, guiding discussions with policy experts

Reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars from 1.3k ratings
  • David Bier

    Is a must-follow on Twitter

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    Portland Antifasist
    United States6 months ago
  • Protest, Carry, Die episode is poor.

    Protest, carry, die episode is the Mainstream media version only. This is not the normal CATO quality I expect.

    Apple Podcasts
    2
    DF987@
    United States7 months ago
  • Sometimes misleading.

    While usually balanced, I do find that some of the journalists are misleading in their representation of the facts.

    Apple Podcasts
    4
    H82W8
    United States7 months ago
  • Once Great. Now Poor.

    Since the departure of Caleb Brown, this podcast has been in a death spiral. Caleb brought clarity, coherence, and a disciplined commitment to intellectual honesty. His absence exposes how much of the podcast’s credibility rested on his stewardship.

    Discussions that once challenged assumptions with sharp inquiry now drift through MAGA talking points with little depth.

    The shift in tone is disappointing. This show increasingly sounds apologetic toward the current administration, softening criti... more

    Apple Podcasts
    1
    Eat Drink Fun
    United States9 months ago
  • Expected better

    I gave this a try expecting thoughtful, libertarian discussion—but it came across as oddly partisan and more conservative than I anticipated. Hard to tell if this was just a bad sample or if the tone has shifted overall, but it wasn’t what I expected from Cato.

    Apple Podcasts
    2
    CitiCustomer
    United Statesa year ago

Listeners Say

Key themes from listener reviews, highlighting what works and what could be improved about the show.

Informative, accessible debates on complex topics.
Great breadth of topics and expert guests for libertarian-driven policy discussion.
High-quality policy critique, though some listeners feel tone can drift partisan.
Thoughtful, concise libertarian analysis with strong guest lineup.

Chart Rankings

How this podcast ranks in the Apple Podcasts, Spotify and YouTube charts.

Apple Podcasts
#40
United States/Government
Apple Podcasts
#25
Australia/Government
Apple Podcasts
#130
Italy/Government
Apple Podcasts
#214
France/Government
Apple Podcasts
#18
Russia/Government
Apple Podcasts
#41
South Africa/Government

Talking Points

Recent interactions between the hosts and their guests.

Heller's Sequel Has a New Weapon
Q: How does the Bruin framework affect how courts evaluate regulations versus historical analogues?
Bruin rejects rigid tiered scrutiny and requires a text-history-tradition analysis, where a regulation must be anchored to a sufficiently analogous historical constraint to be upheld, otherwise it may be struck down.
Heller's Sequel Has a New Weapon
Q: What exactly is at stake in the Viramantes case and what would a ruling imply for assault weapon bans?
The case tests whether a class of weapons labeled as assault weapons by certain jurisdictions is protected by the Second Amendment, and the ruling could either narrow or broaden what is considered protected arms, with broader implications for bans across multiple states.
Bad Ways To Improve Housing Affordability
Q: What did you think the bipartisan housing bill got right and what did it get wrong about housing?
The bill was small in scope, easing certain federal requirements on manufactured housing and preserving some reformers on margins, but it did not constitute a breakthrough in supply or affordability; it largely tinkered around the edges and retained policies that have historically failed to boost supply.
Iran: Schrodinger's War
Q: Has there been any lesson from past U.S. interventions that should apply to the Iran situation?
The guest emphasizes the Powell/Weinberger doctrine as a benchmark—clear objectives, overwhelming force, public support, and a defined end—arguing that such a framework has been ignored, leading to protracted and costly engagements.
Iran: Schrodinger's War
Q: What do you think is really going on here?
The guest argues the conflict reflects a mix of misperception, political opportunism, and strategic overreach, with goals influenced by external actors and internal shifts, rather than a coherent, publicly defendable strategy.

Audience Metrics

Listeners, social reach, demographics and more for this podcast.

Listeners per Episode
Gender Skew
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Frequently Asked Questions About The Cato Weekly Podcast

What is The Cato Weekly Podcast about and what kind of topics does it cover?

Across episodes, the show frequently analyses public policy through a libertarian lens, with a strong emphasis on markets, limited government, and civil liberties. Topics commonly span tax and finance policy, regulatory reform, energy and technology policy, national security, and constitutional governance, often featuring sharp debates between libertarian scholars and policymakers. Notable strengths include concise, evidence-based takes from Cato Institute experts, critical examinations of government programs (e.g., Medicare, wealth taxes, surveillance regimes), and accessible explanations of complex legal or economic frameworks. The format tends to pair policy critique with practical reform ideas, highlighting real-world impacts on prices,... more

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These podcasts share a similar audience with The Cato Weekly Podcast:

1. The Reason Roundtable
2. The Reason Interview With Nick Gillespie
3. The Libertarian
4. EconTalk
5. Law Talk With Epstein, Yoo & Cooke

How many episodes of The Cato Weekly Podcast are there?

The Cato Weekly Podcast launched 20 years ago and published 4857 episodes to date. You can find more information about this podcast including rankings, audience demographics and engagement in our podcast database.

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What guests have appeared on The Cato Weekly Podcast?

Recent guests on The Cato Weekly Podcast include:

1. Aaron Brown
2. Tom Suozzi
3. Brian Fitzpatrick
4. Don Boudreaux
5. Howard Husock
6. Clark Neily
7. Ilya Somin
8. Justin Logan

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