May 3
Featuring Ron Johnson (R-WI), United States Senator; Ken Buck (R-CO-4) United States Congressman; David Bier, Immigration Policy Analyst, Cato Institute; Alex Nowrasteh, Immigration Policy Analyst, Center for Global Liberty and Prosperity, Cato Institute; moderated by Peter Russo, Director of Congressional Affairs, Cato Institute.
The idea of regional or state-based visas is not a new one. Indeed, Canada and Australia have each implemented successful variations that provide some valuable lessons and hint at the major economic benefits possible for us in the United States. Adoption of a state-based visa program in America would permit our 50-state governments to craft rules for work visa programs that are more adaptable to local economic conditions than the present one-size-fits-all system run from Washington, D.C. While state governors and state and federal lawmakers are warming to the idea, all that stands in the way here is congressional approval.
Join us as we discuss the merits of such a plan, the implications for federalism, immigration, and labor markets, and the possibility of it gaining traction in this Congress.
May 16
Featuring Ambassador Wendy Sherman, Senior Counselor, Albright Stonebridge Group; Laura Rozen, Diplomatic Correspondent, Al-Monitor; Ariane Tabatabai, Visiting Assistant Professor of Security Studies at the Georgetown University Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service; Emma Ashford, Research Fellow, Cato Institute; moderated by Benjamin H. Friedman, Research Fellow, Cato Institute.
The Iran deal may not survive the Trump administration. The 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action requires Iran to limit its nuclear program and allow International Atomic Energy Agency inspections in exchange for sanctions relief from the United States, the European Union, and the UN Security Council. As a candidate, Trump said he would dismantle the deal. He now claims that Iran violated the deal’s “spirit” and has initiated a White House review of it. Trump’s skepticism matches that of several U.S. allies in the region and the mood of Republican majorities in Congress. Meanwhile, ahead of their coming election, Iranian hardliners criticize President Hassan Rouhani for not getting better terms.
Advocates of the deal point out that it’s working. Even the Trump administration has formally recognized Iran’s compliance. Freezing Iran’s program, some argue, upsets hawks on both sides precisely because it limits tensions and lowers the odds of war.
To discuss the deal and its prospects, Cato is hosting Ambassador Wendy Sherman, who led the U.S. negotiating team for the Obama administration. She’ll be interviewed by Laura Rozen, Al-Monitor’s diplomatic correspondent.
April 26
Opening remarks by Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY); featuring Vicki E. Alger, Research Fellow, Independent Institute and Author, Failure: The Federal Misedukation of America’s Children; Catherine Brown, Vice President, Education Policy, Center for American Progress; Neal McCluskey, Director, Center for Educational Freedom, Cato Institute; moderated by Lauren Camera, Education Reporter, U.S. News & World Report.
Is it time to end the U.S. Department of Education? With bipartisan support, the Every Student Succeeds Act curbed much of the federal control that reached its apogee with the No Child Left Behind Act, Race to the Top, and NCLB waivers. Now, with the Trump administration considering federal influence to spread school choice, even many of the biggest advocates of a robust federal role may be rethinking federal power. Join us as we debate whether it is time, politically and educationally, to eliminate the Department of Education, and if so, what should happen to its programs and functions.
