Month: October 2017

This week, Mike and Jay start by talking about President Trump’s declaration of the opioid crisis as a public health emergency. Mike wonders about the timing of the announcement, which came out a week before the president’s opioid commission is scheduled to release its final report, and hopes that significant federal funding will soon follow. Jay thinks federal action may help at the margin, but is concerned about throwing money at the problem.

Then, Mike gets to talk about his favorite regulatory agency – the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) though this week he’s dismayed at the agency’s arbitration rule being overturned by Congress. Jay believes it was a wise move by Congress and the Guys get into a somewhat heated discussion over the merits of class action lawsuits vs arbitration.

After that, it’s a discussion of what Arizona Senator Jeff Flake’s decision to not seek election might mean for the Republican party. Flake’s announcement comes in the wake of another Senate Republican, Tennessee’s Bob Corker making a similar decision.

Finally, Mike and Jay discuss the state of tax reform. Mike’s inner idealist comes out and he makes an impassioned plea for some good faith attempts at working across the aisle. Jay argues that Republicans have to be more realistic.

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This week, Mike and Jay start by looking at the bipartisan Senate proposal to stabilize Obamacare markets in the wake of President Trump halting cost-sharing subsidies to insurers, as well as the clever way state insurance regulators are dealing with this major change to the Affordable Care Act.

After that, it’s a primer on budget resolutions: when they started, what they were intended for, and why they’re not almost meaningless … with one major exception. Mike argues that legislating through budget resolutions is a Very Bad Idea, and says that it would be better if the Senate dropped this facade along with the filibuster. Jay agrees, and also feels that the Senate tradition of Blue Slips – where home state Senators have an effective veto over federal judicial nominations in the state – also no longer makes sense, a position Mike holds as well.

Then it’s a look at the latest Trump travel ban, which has been blocked by two federal judges. Both Mike and Jay believe that while the travel ban is bad policy, it’s not unconstitutional and expect the Supreme Court to eventually uphold it.

Finally, the Guys look at the ‘Honest Ads Act’ a bipartisan (just barely) Senate proposal intended to make it much harder for foreign governments to use social media ads to influence U.S. elections.

Mike’s Recommended Reading:
– The Drug Industry’s Triumph Over The DEA
– American Rust. Philipp Meyer

Jay’s Recommended Reading:
– The White-Minstrel Show. Kevin Williamson

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To begin the show Trey asks about new information from the presidential election. Specifically, Facebook offered to work with both presidential campaigns but only the Trump campaign agreed to it. Then Trey and Jay respond to listener questions. The first question is about the likelihood of a new WW3 or Civil War. Both agree the likelihood is low, but discuss why it might seem more likely than it is. Then they ask a question about gun policy and why the U.S. seems so fatalistic when it comes to gun legislation. Finally, Jay responds to an extended series of questions from a listener asking for clarification on his Healthcare positions.

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Trey and Jay start this week’s show by discussing Trump’s unilateral action to change the Affordable Health Care Act’s cost-sharing provisions. They talk about the actual changes and the policy implications of the action. This leads to a discussion of the demands Trump sent Congress if they want a deal on Dreamers.

After that it’s a look at Harvey Weinstein’s sexual abuse allegations and the implications for politics. They get into a broader discussion on the implications for politicians on the source of donations. Such a question is particular relevant for Democrats right now, but was the same issue facing Republicans with Trump.

Next up is the Boy Scouts seemingly surprising decision to open their doors completely to girls. Jay is enthusiastically supportive. Trey sees the business value but ponders the general trend in society to not have more narrow groups.

Finally Trey and Jay discuss how former President Obama’s library will not actually house any documents. Instead, it will be a completely digital repository. They also discuss archiving documents that were originally digital and the challenges for future presidential libraries. ‘

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This week, Mike and Jay respond to lister questions and comments: if the Ninth Circuit is really the most overturned appellate court (it depends on how you measure), whether we think market-based reforms can lower health care costs (sometimes), if there’s ever a case to be made for affirmative action and political correctness (Mike is much more emphatically ‘yes’ on this than Jay is, as you might expect), whether or not Mike and Jay are wrong for not calling Donald Trump and Jeff Sessions racist (we don’t think so), and why ‘politicization’ is such a dirty word when it comes to weather (Mike says it’s not – or at least it shouldn’t be, while Jay disagrees).

In this episode, Jay recommends SCOTUSBlog, which Mike also likes and has used for many years. Empirical SCOTUS is another great site Jay recommends for data on the Supreme Court.

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Mike and Jay start this week’s show by discussing the state of gun policy in the United States in the wake of the tragic mass shooting in Las Vegas. They get into how the United States is different from other rich countries on the issue, whether liberals are being honest in their arguments, the motives of the NRA, what legislative proposals might be effective, if the left really wants to take away people’s guns, and lots more.

After that it’s a look at partisan gerrymandering, an issue that reach the Supreme Court this week. Mike believes that the Court should – and will – overturn the extreme partisan districts in Wisconsin because political scientists have developed a reasonable standard for determining whether or not a legislative district is unconstitutionally partisan. Jay disagrees, and believes that the Court will ultimately let Wisconsin’s redistricting stand.

Mike’s Recommend Reading & Listening
– Budget Reconciliation Explained
– Vox’s The Weeds on Budget Reconciliation

Jay’s Recommended Reading
– Conscience of a Conservative. Senator Jeff Flake

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