Cato Video

In his final year in office, the president should make it a goal to commute the sentences of those nonviolent prisoners serving life without parole, provided that they have continued to live a nonviolent life in prison.

"What the President Should Do" is a new series by the Cato Institute discussing what President Obama can do using executive authority his final year in office to make the U.S. a freer and happier place.

More from Trevor Burrus:

https://www.cato.org/people/trevor-burrus

Produced by Caleb O. Brown, Cory Cooper, and Tess Terrible.

Part of the reason the federal government is so big and wasteful is that there is no consistent account of how it's organized. There is no authoritative source of information about what all the agencies, bureaus, programs, and projects in the federal government are. But the third National Action Plan for open government, released in October 2015, promises something very special: a machine-readable government organization chart. If it does so consistent with the government organization chart the Obama Administration has promised, that will create a lasting transparency legacy and bring future administrations under stronger oversight so that the size and scope of government can be what the people demand.

"What the President Should Do" is a new series by the Cato Institute discussing what President Obama can do using executive authority his final year in office to make the U.S. a freer and happier place.

More from Jim Harper on transparent government:

https://www.cato.org/people/jim-harper

https://object.cato.org/sites/cato.org/files/articles/Federal-Spending-Transparency-Unlocking-the-Power-of-Abstraction.pdf

https://object.cato.org/sites/cato.org/files/articles/Federal-Spending-Transparency-Unlocking-the-Power-of-Abstraction.pdf

Produced by Caleb O. Brown, Cory Cooper, and Tess Terrible.

"What the President Should Do" is a new series by the Cato Institute discussing what President Obama can do using executive authority his final year in office to make the U.S. a freer and happier place.

More from Patrick Eddington on the topic of Government Surveillance:

Produced by Caleb O. Brown, Cory Cooper, and Tess Terrible.

Reclassifying marijuana as a Schedule III substance or lower would have a significant benefits to the budding marijuana industry and individual users. Marijuana deregulation sits squarely within the control of the executive. The president should use his executive powers to allow for intelligent enforcement for drug policy without eroding the rule of law.

"What the President Should Do" is a new series by the Cato Institute discussing what President Obama can do using executive authority his final year in office to make the U.S. a freer and happier place.

More from Ilya Shapiro on the topic of declassifying Marijuana:

https://www.cato.org/multimedia/daily-podcast/presidential-power-reschedule-marijuana

https://www.cato.org/research/drug-war

https://www.cato.org/people/ilya-shapiro

Produced by Caleb O. Brown, Cory Cooper, and Tess Terrible.

In his final year in office, President Obama could make the world a better place simply by exercising his executive authority and ending U.S. support for the disastrous Saudi-led War in Yemen. The United States is not actively involved in the conflict, but we're supporting the campaign by providing services like midair refueling for coalition planes, intelligence and targeting support, by authorizing $8.4 billion in arms sales to the GCC, and even assisting in the naval blockade of Yemen. But in doing so, we are enabling a humanitarian disaster: over 5000 Yemenis have died since March, and over 20 million are in dire need of humanitarian assistance.

"What the President Should Do" is a new series by the Cato Institute discussing what President Obama can do using executive authority his final year in office to make the U.S. a freer and happier place.

More from Emma Ashford on the topic of U.S Support in Yemen: https://www.cato.org/blog/president-obama-can-end-war-yemen

Produced by Caleb O. Brown, Cory Cooper, and Tess Terrible.

Civil asset forfeiture creates an inappropriate profit motive for predatory policing, it distorts the priorities of law enforcement, and it tramples our constitutional principles. President Obama should take the time to end these practices before he leaves office.

"What the President Should Do” is a new series by the Cato Institute discussing what President Obama can do using executive authority his final year in office to make the U.S. a freer and happier place.

More from Adam Bates on the topic of Civil Asset Forfeiture:

https://www.cato.org/people/adam-bates

Produced by Caleb O. Brown, Cory Cooper, and Tess Terrible.

International trade is an important driver of human flourishing. Free trade agreements can facilitate more of this kind of trade while knocking down protectionist barriers. But trade agreements can also enshrine cronyism and rent-seeking, harming consumers across the globe.

Take copyright. The Trans-Pacific Partnership will require governments to protect copyrights for 70 years after an author's death, so that generations from now people in some of the poorest places on earth won't be able to watch very old movies unless they pay royalties to the creator's grandchildren's grandchildren!

Ridiculously long copyright terms are among the excesses of U.S. copyright law that big media companies want to continue to see included in future trade agreements.

So much of what we do online every day—posting a meme, reviewing a book, or even just using a search engine—relies on an exception to copyright protection known as fair use. If trade agreements will continue to be used to spread U.S. copyright law, they should balance the rights of creators and users, which fair use attempts to do.

Trade agreements, while exporting copyright restrictions, haven't recognized fair use. The TPP is the first trade agreement that includes a provision calling on members to balance copyright protection with exception like fair use. This would bring the TPP's copyright rules more in line with U.S. law, it would also help those rules align better with the goals of free trade by promoting open commerce in a digital world.

Trade agreements can bring enormous benefits to the poorest people on earth, like cheaper food, clothing and energy.

Achieving those goals is simply more important than trying to reassure big media companies that children in Maylasia won't watch Snow White without paying for it.

More commentary by Bill Watson: https://www.cato.org/publications/commentary/strong-fair-use-provision-could-help-balance-tpps-copyright-rules

https://www.cato.org/events/will-transatlantic-trade-investment-partnership-live-its-promise

Produced by Caleb O. Brown, Cory Cooper, and Tess Terrible

Cato Institute scholars Emma Ashford‎, Trevor Burrus‎, Benjamin Friedman‎, Dan Ikenson,‎ Neal McCluskey‎, Pat Michaels‎, Aaron Powell‎, and Julian Sanchez‎ respond to President Obama’s final State of the Union Address.

Video produced by Caleb O. Brown, Tess Terrible and Cory Cooper.

Liberal democracy improves foreign policy. That, at least, is the view of most political scientists and the idea behind the U.S. Constitution's assignment of war powers to both executive and legislative branches. The need for public consent, the theory goes, prevents leaders from launching reckless wars. Divided power and a free press generate debate that exposes bad ideas. U.S. politics inhibits foolish wars.

In a new book, Deceit on the Road to War: Presidents, Politics, and American Democracy, John Schuessler darkens that story. The need for broad support in democracies, he argues, also encourages leaders to deceive the public. Examining the U.S. debate about entry into World War II, the Vietnam War, and the recent Iraq War, Schuessler finds that presidents used information advantages over the public to manipulate it into war. The result was good in World War II, but this history suggests that democracies, at least this one, might not be so wise about starting wars.

View the full event here: https://www.cato.org/events/deceit-road-war-presidents-politics-american-democracy.

American policing is changing. Emerging technologies provide new methods both for police accountability and surveillance capabilities. Law enforcement scholars and practitioners continue to develop innovative strategies to address crime and disorder. In many cities, police agencies are wrestling with how to increase public safety while respecting the dignity of individuals, particularly in minority communities.

An array of law enforcement experts explore these issues and more at the Cato Institute's conference "Policing in America."

View the full event here: https://www.cato.org/events/policing-america.