A right-wing economist makes his case

The Gray Area with Sean Illing

Vox Media Podcast Network

Society & Culture, News, Politics, News Commentary, Philosophy

4.6 • 10.8K Ratings

🗓️ 9 June 2025

⏱️ 67 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

For decades, the American right has stayed on brand: the economy. Low taxes. Free markets. Deregulation. Those have been the buzzwords for more than half a century. But that doctrine is now being challenged by other conservatives who envision a future in which America’s trade deficit is lower, manufacturing returns to the US, and Americans buy more American-made products. Is this future even possible? Economist Oren Cass thinks it is. In today’s episode, the founder of the think tank America Compass speaks to Sean about right-wing economic populism. The two discuss a conservative, pro-worker approach to economic policy, Cass’s plan to bring manufacturing back to the US, and what types of behavior economic policy should incentivize. Host: Sean Illing (@SeanIlling)Guest: Oren Cass, chief economist and founder of American Compass. Editor of The New Conservatives: Restoring America's Commitment to Family, Community, and Industry. Listen to The Gray Area ad-free by becoming a Vox Member: vox.com/members Help us plan for the future of The Gray Area by filling out a brief survey: ⁠voxmedia.com/survey⁠. Thank you! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hi, this is Ava from Vanta.
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0:22.1	enterprise managing vendor risk, Banta makes it quick, easy, and scalable, and I'm not to say
0:27.2	that because I work here. Get started today at banta.com. Hey, before we get started, I wanted to ask a
0:33.0	small favor of you. Yes, you. We're planning for the future of the gray area and we want to hear from you.
0:38.9	I want to hear from you. Tell me what's working, what's not working, what you want to hear more of.
0:45.1	Your feedback helps me and the whole TGA team make a better show. So if you'd like to participate,
0:51.5	visit voxmedia.com slash survey. Thanks.
0:57.8	For decades, the American right has stayed on brand. The economy, low taxes, free markets,
1:06.0	deregulation, those have been the buzzwords for more than half a century.
1:16.1	But lately, that conservative doctrine has started to be challenged.
1:21.4	There's a new wave of thinkers who argue that Republicans have been wrong on the economy.
1:24.7	And those challengers are coming from the right.
1:32.9	This new economic thinking, it's not libertarian, it's obviously not progressive, but it is a break from what we've come to expect from the American right.
1:36.7	The question is, is it for real?
1:42.0	I'm Sean Elling, and this is the gray area.
1:50.0	Today's guest is Orrin Cass.
1:52.1	He's the founder of the Think Tank American Compass
	...

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