Welcome back to Episode 46 of the Rational Policy Podcast! In this installment, your intrepid hosts Mike Coté and Art Vandelay break down the most recent week of current events, running the gamut from politics to war. We start with some truly sad news: the sudden passing of South Carolina senator Lindsey Graham, a stalwart conservative and a true titan of the institution. We lament his death as heralding the end of an era of serious statesmen and public servants in Congress, while also detailing how his lifelong support for liberty and America’s global role in defending it is unfortunately becoming less popular every day. We then shift gears to talk about the return of outright hostilities in the US-Iran conflict, debating whether it is a good or bad thing and what might come next. We discuss how the US can deal with the Strait of Hormuz, what sort of outcome we should be looking for here, and how weakening our various enemies around the globe will help us in our grander rivalry with the Chinese. Finally, we touch on the terrible ICE-involved shootings in Texas and Maine, explaining how the administration has snatched defeat from the jaws of victory with its reckless and hamfisted approach to immigration enforcement, as well as how this faulty approach is entirely due to the extreme and myopic focus on base voters – a much broader problem in our politics today.
Check it out, follow us on Twitter/X (Mike / Art), and share the podcast with anyone you think might appreciate it. Thanks for listening. We’ll be back next week with another show. Until then, be sure to tune into the World Cup final this Sunday; it’ll be an absolute banger.
