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There are occasional incentives in business that make it very profitable to do bad things; maybe cheat at the game and steal other people's ideas, or cut some corners on safety. In theory, the government as referee steps in to make the rules and enforce them, and manage competition in a way that hopefully makes things better for us all.
But you have to ask... When is the government protecting you and when is it protecting the already rich and powerful?
We'll meet a man trying to corner the market for frozen meat, with the help of patents. And then we'll head to the salon, and ask — Should the government really require dozens of hours of training for a license to braid hair?
Get tickets to our August 18th live show and graduation ceremony at The Bell House, in Brooklyn. (Planet Money+ supporters get a 10 percent discount off their tickets. Listen to the July 8th bonus episode to get the code!)
The series is hosted by Robert Smith and produced by Eric Mennel. Our project manager is Devin Mellor. This episode was edited by Planet Money Executive Producer Alex Goldmark and fact-checked by Sofia Shchukina.
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Although it seems like the government can spend an endless amount of money, it cannot actually do all the things it wants to do. So the big question in this week's lesson is: How do we decide? Why does the government spend so much money on some things and not on others? And honestly, is there any limit?Get tickets to our August 18th live show and graduation ceremony at The Bell House, in Brooklyn. (Planet Money+ supporters get a 10 percent discount off their tickets. Listen to the July 8th bonus episode to get the discount code!)The series is hosted by Robert Smith and produced by Eric Mennel. Our project manager is Devin Mellor. This episode was edited by Planet Money Executive Producer Alex Goldmark and fact-checked by Emily Crawford.Help support Planet Money and hear our bonus episodes by subscribing to Planet Money+ in Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org/planetmoney.Always free at these links: Apple Podcasts, Spotify, the NPR app or anywhere you get podcasts.Find more Planet Money: Facebook / Instagram / TikTok / Our weekly Newsletter.
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It seems like politicians cannot agree on a lot. But many seem to agree on... manufacturing. Leaders of both political parties have been working to try and make the U.S. a manufacturing powerhouse again.
On today's show, what is so special about manufacturing? Is it particularly important for the economy? And if manufacturing jobs are so great, then why have companies been struggling to fill the manufacturing jobs we already have?
For more on manufacturing in the U.S:
- Made in America, an episode about what manufacturing work in the U.S. can be like for garment workers and how much they're paid to make each piece of clothing "made in the U.S."
- Why aren't Americans filling the manufacturing jobs we already have?
- What makes manufacturing jobs special? The answer could help rebuild the middle class
- Can bringing back manufacturing help the heartland catch up with 'superstar' cities?
- And, for more, check out the Planet Money newsletter's manufacturing series at npr.org/manufacturing
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We all know the government uses taxes to pay for things. But what about using taxes to control behavior? This week on Summer School, Professor Darrick Hamilton of The New School, helps us explore the true power of the tax code. Can taxes help lift people out of poverty? What about saving the planet?
Get tickets to our August 18th live show and graduation ceremony at The Bell House, in Brooklyn. (Planet Money+ supporters get a 10 percent discount off their tickets. Listen to the July 8th bonus episode to get the discount code!)
The series is hosted by Robert Smith and produced by Eric Mennel. Our project manager is Devin Mellor. This episode was edited by Planet Money Executive Producer Alex Goldmark and fact-checked by Emily Crawford and Sierra Juarez. Engineering by Robert Rodriguez.
Always free at these links: Apple Podcasts, Spotify, the NPR app or anywhere you get podcasts.
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What people might picture when they think of "Made in America" ... might not look like the "Made in America" we have today.
The U.S. does have a domestic manufacturing industry, including a garment manufacturing industry.
In today's episode: We buy a garment made by factory workers in the U.S. – a basic purple sports bra – and learn how many people it took to make it, how much workers got paid to work on it ... and whether garment manufacturing is a job Americans want, or even know how, to do.
Plus: why domestic garment manufacturing exists at all in the U.S., and whether the industry can grow.
Other episodes:
- What "Made in China" actually means
This episode was reported and hosted by Sarah Gonzalez. It was produced by Willa Rubin with production help from Emma Peaslee. It was edited by Marianne McCune, and it was fact-checked by Sierra Juarez who also helped with research. It was engineered by Robert Rodriguez. Alex Goldmark is our executive producer.
Support Planet Money, get bonus episodes and sponsor-free listening and now Summer School episodes one week early by subscribing to Planet Money+ in Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org/planetmoney.
Find more Planet Money: Facebook / Instagram / TikTok / Our weekly Newsletter.
Listen free at these links: Apple Podcasts, Spotify, the NPR app or anywhere you get podcasts.
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Government. The Big G. We like to imagine the free market and the invisible hand as being independent from political influence. But Nobel laureate, Simon Johnson, says that influence has been there since the birth of economics. Call it political economy. Call it government and business. Call it our big topic each Wednesday through Labor Day.
We're kicking off another semester of Planet Money Summer School asking the biggest question: Why are some nations rich and others poor? With stories from India, New York City and Peru, we look at the ways in which government bureaucracy can help make or break an economy.
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Planet Money+ supporters get early access to new episodes of Summer School this season! You also get sponsor-free listening, regular bonus episodes, and you'll help support the work of Planet Money.
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If we think about the economic effects of President Donald Trumps big taxing and spending and domestic policy bill, we can roughly sum it up in one line. It goes something like this:
We will make many big tax cuts permanent and pay for those tax cuts by cutting Medicaid and a few other things and also...by borrowing money.
A lot of money.
Even more than we've already been borrowing over the past twenty years. (And that was already a lot, too!)
Today: simple arithmetic with profound ramifications. Tax cuts, spending cuts, and whether they balance out. (Spoiler: no.)
We look under the hood to see how all this is calculated. And we ask: how will a bigger deficit play out for all of us, in our normal, regular lives?
We've covered a bunch more having to do with the big taxing and spending bill and the federal debt recently on Planet Money and our short daily show The Indicator:
- So, how's this No Tax On Tips thing gonna go?
- A thought experiment on how to fix the national debt problem
- The paperwork trap: A sneaky way to cut Medicaid in the 'One Big Beautiful Bill'?
- The debt limit, the origins of the X Date, and why it all matters
- What's a revenge tax?
- Is the federal debt REALLY that bad?
Support Planet Money, get bonus episodes and sponsor-free listening and now Summer School episodes one week early by subscribing to Planet Money+ in Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org/planetmoney.
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There's an economic fantasy you sometimes hear in D.C. It often gets trotted out when politicians are trying to add billions or trillions to the national debt. They claim that all the new spending will be worth it in the end because we will supercharge economic growth.
This fantasy recurs again and again, because economic growth is a potent force. Over the next few decades, tiny changes in how fast our economy grows could decide the fate of the federal government — whether we can bring the massive national debt under control or whether we spiral into a fiscal crisis.
Today on the show, we talk to three economists who have been sifting through the latest evidence. They're trying to figure out what the government could actually do to make the economy grow faster. Could we even grow fast enough to outrun our national debt?
For a list of citations, check out our episode page.
This episode of Planet Money was produced by Emma Peaslee with help from Sam Yellowhorse Kesler. It was edited by Jess Jiang. It was fact-checked by Sierra Juarez and engineered by Ko Takasugi-Czernowin. Alex Goldmark is Planet Money's executive producer.
Find more Planet Money: Facebook / Instagram / TikTok / Our weekly Newsletter.
Listen free at these links: Apple Podcasts, Spotify, the NPR app or anywhere you get podcasts.
Help support Planet Money and hear our bonus episodes by subscribing to Planet Money+ in Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org/planetmoney.
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