So, Gene, I'm a rainbow. Adam's a rainbow. Show us that you're a rainbow too.

Why are there so many songs about rainbows?

Welcome to the Cato podcast. I'm Ryan Bourne, Cato's R. Evan Scharf chair for the public

understanding of economics, alongside my co-host and senior Cato VP for policy, Gene Healy.

Hi.

And today we're joined by two colleagues. Adam Michelle is to quote the Beatles, here to tell you how it will be, because he's Cato's taxman, or to put it more formally, our director of tax policy studies. Happy to be here. Alongside him, we have Brandon Buck, our research fellow in foreign Policy Studies, and a historian of domestic opposition

to U.S. foreign policy, including the original America First Movement, which he honors by having

the most quintessential American name imaginable. Welcome, Brandon.

Good morning.

War, what is it good for? Well, according to President Trump, the word at least is good

enough to justify

beginning the process of renaming the Department of Defense to the Department of War. Is that just

an honest description of what the department does? A good example of practical peace through strength

or a dark signal of what's to come. We'll later explore all these questions, examine the

direction of Republican foreign policy,

and look at what America first means today compared with past movements by that name.

But first, Congress returned last week and faces a short timeline to avoid a government shutdown.

Yet word through summer has been that Republican majority is looking ahead

and is keen to get the ball rolling on a second reconciliation package of tax and spending measures.

After the one big beautiful bill, legislation that did cut spending, but cut taxes more so worsening our debt trajectory,

House Speaker Mike Johnson talked up this second bite of the cherry, saying it will not be as big, I hope it's as beautiful.

Well, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, so why don't we start with these budget battles?

...