On this episode of Talkin’ (Policy) Shop, Oren and Chris are joined by American Compass policy advisor Gabriela Rodriguez to discuss how financialization has disconnected economic activity from productive activity in the real economy. To further amplify shareholder returns, firms are leveraging their balance sheets with tax-advantaged debt that discourages investment, reduces resilience, and shifts risk on to workers.One solution: Ban stock buybacks and repeal business interest deductibility.Further Reading:American Compass policy brief: Back to Basics for Corporate FinanceConfronting Coin-Flip Capitalism (Oren Cass, American Compass)The Rise of Wall Street and the Fall of American Investment (Oren Cass, American Compass)The Corporate Erosion of Capitalism (Oren Cass, American Compass)Profits Without Prosperity (William Lazonick, Harvard Business Review)

On this episode of Critics Corner, Oren Cass is joined by Phil Bell, director of external relations at FreedomWorks and veteran of the railroad industry, for a wide-ranging discussion of all things trains—and more specifically, the Railway Safety Act of 2023.Further ReadingRailway Safety Act of 2023Railway Safety Act Presents GOP Choice: Tired Dogma or the Common Good? (Chris Griswold, Newsweek)FreedomWorks Sends Letter to Members of Congress Urging Them To Oppose The Railway Safety Act

On this episode of Talkin’ (Policy) Shop, Oren and Chris discuss China’s “permanent normal trade relations” (PNTR) status and the case for revoking it.Granting PNTR to China as part of its ascension to the WTO was supposed to grant American firms and workers comparable benefits in the Chinese market. But the experts were wrong. The “China Shock” cost millions of American jobs, reduced domestic investment and innovative capacity, strained many communities’ social fabric, and contributed to a surge in “deaths of despair” concentrated among middle-aged Americans without college degrees.Further ReadingAmerican Compass policy brief: End “Permanent Normal Trade Relations” with ChinaSearching for Capitalism in the Wreckage of Globalization (Oren Cass, American Compass)“Where’s the Growth?” (American Compass)“The Balancing Act” (American Compass)“China Trade Relations Act of 2023," Senators Tom Cotton (R-AR), Rick Scott (R-FL), Ted Budd (R-NC), and J.D. Vance (R-OH)“Ending Normal Trade Relations with China Act,” Senator Josh Hawley (R-MO)

On this episode of Critics Corner, Oren Cass is joined by Angela Rachidi, senior fellow and Rowe scholar at the American Enterprise Institute, to discuss family affordability. Is there a cost of living crisis? How can we measure the economic pressures on American families? And how should public policy respond?Further Reading: The 2023 Cost-of-Thriving Index by Oren CassThe Evidence on Family Affordability by Angela RachidiAmerican Compass Family Affordability Survey

On this episode of Talkin’ (Policy) Shop, Oren and Chris discuss how to protect kids online. Children who use social media are more likely to suffer from anxiety, depression, and self-harm, are more vulnerable to exploitation, and are more at risk of exposure to dangerous or illicit material. Parents, meanwhile, are unable to adequately protect their children from these harms. That’s where policymakers can step in to protect children online the same way we do in the real world.Further Reading:American Compass policy brief: Making Social Media Safe for KidsProtecting Children from Social Media (Chris Griswold, National Affairs)Governing After a Revolution (Oren Cass, American Compass)The Dangerous Experiment on Teen Girls (Jonathan Haidt, The Atlantic)How Changing One Law Could Protect Kids from Social Media (Yuval Levin, The New York Times) An Online Age-Verification System (American Compass policy brief)Kids Online Safety Act (Senators Marsha Blackburn and Richard Blumenthal)Protecting Kids on Social Media Act (Senators Tom Cotton, Brian Schatz, Chris Murphy, and Katie Britt)