The Independent with Scott Atlas

Dr. Scott Atlas is a world-renowned expert in health care policy and frequent policy advisor to policymakers and government officials. He investigates the role of government and the private sector in health care quality and access, global trends in health care innovation, and the key economic and civil liberty issues related to health policy. Sponsored by the Independent Institute, the show features Dr. Atlas in conversation with high profile, news-making guests around public health policy, science, civil liberties, censorship and free speech, higher education, the media, and more.

Free Speech Today in Free Societies | Panel Discussion | Ep. 57 | Pt. 4/4

Part 4/4 of the Event "Free Speech Today in Free Societies," held September 5–6, 2025 at the Widder Hotel in Zurich, Switzerland. Sponsored by the Global Liberty Institute. Andrew Tettenborn is a Professor and Chair in Law, Swansea University, and writer, United Kingdom.John Yoo is an Emmanuel Heller Prof. of Law, Univ of California-Berkeley; Distinguished Visiting Prof, School of Civic Leadership, University of Texas-Austin, USA. Joachim Steinhoefel is an Attorney, civil rights and media law, and active litigator; Hamburg, Germany.

10-07
58:43

Europe and the Trump Economic Policies | Panel Discussion | Ep. 56 | Pt. 3/4

Part 3/4 of the Event "Europe and the Trump Economic Policies," held September 5–6, 2025 at the Widder Hotel in Zurich, Switzerland. Sponsored by the Global Liberty Institute. Barbara Kolm is the President, Hayek Institute, Vienna; Founding Director, Austrian Economics Center, and former Vice-President of the Österreichische Nationalbank (Austrian Central Bank). Reiner Eichenberger is the Professor for Economic and Financial Policy, University of Fribourg, Switzerland Thomas Mayer Founding Director, Flossbach von Storch Research Institute Germany; Former Chief Economist of Deutsche Bank Group and Head of Deutsche Bank Research Germany. Dr. Scott Atlas is a world-renowned expert in health care policy and frequent policy advisor to policymakers and government officials. He investigates the role of government and the private sector in health care quality and access, global trends in health care innovation, and the key economic and civil liberty issues related to health policy. The Independent features Dr. Atlas in conversation with high profile, news-making guests around public health policy, science, civil liberties, censorship and free speech, higher education, the media, and more.

10-03
01:04:13

Scott Atlas & Joshua Rauh | Trumponomics: The America First Economic Plan | Ep. 55 | Pt. 2/4

Part 2/4 of the Event "Alliances and Freedom in the Trump Era," held September 5–6, 2025 at the Widder Hotel in Zurich, Switzerland. Sponsored by the Global Liberty Institute. Joshua Rauh is a renowned economist, He is the Ormond Family Professor of Finance at Stanford’sGraduate School of Business and a senior fellow at Stanford’s Hoover Institution. He leads the Hoover Institution State and Local Government Initiative. He formerly served at the White House as principal chief economist on the President’s Council of Economic Advisers (2019-20). He has testified before House, Joint, and Joint Select Committees of the United States Congress, and he is a member of the Panel of Economic Advisers of the Congressional Budget Office. He has received several awards recognizing his scholarship including the Brattle Prize and the Smith Breeden Prize of the American Finance Association. Prior to his academic career, he was an associate economist at Goldman Sachs. He received a BA from Yale University and a PhD from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, both in economics.

10-01
54:53

Scott Atlas & Chad Wolf | Security, Immigration, and Peace | Ep. 54 | Pt. 1/4

Part 1/4 of the Event "Alliances and Freedom in the Trump Era," held September 5–6, 2025 at the Widder Hotel in Zurich, Switzerland. Sponsored by the Global Liberty Institute. Chad F. Wolf is America First Policy Institute’s Executive Vice President, Chief Strategy Officer & Chair of the Center for Homeland Security & Immigration. Previously, Wolf served as Acting Secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS). At DHS, he successfully navigated numerous global and domestic challenges to the nation’s security. He also serves as President and Founder of Wolf Global Advisors. Prior to his service at DHS, he spent over 10 years in the private sector helping clients manage risks and earlier in his career worked on Capitol Hill. He has received the U.S. Secretary of Transportation 9/11 Medal, the U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Distinguished Service Medal, and the National Intelligence Distinguished Service Medal.

09-29
01:17:47

Heather Mac Donald | Crime Stats Don’t Lie. Why Are We Ignoring Them? | Ep. 53

Scott welcomes Heather Mac Donald, one of the country's most important voices who exposes the truth and the data behind it. Heather is the Thomas W. Smith Fellow at the Manhattan Institute, and a contributing editor of City Journal. Her latest book is When Race Trumps Merit. In it she explains what she calls the foolish pursuit of undermining meritocracy in favor of equal outcome. They discuss critical social issues including crime, media bias, and cultural shifts, including the feminization of American society and an anti-male narrative that MacDonald sees as harmful to families and societal success.

09-04
01:12:34

Larry Arnn | Saving American Education: Lessons from Hillsdale College | Ep. 52

Scott welcomes Larry Arnn, the 12th president of Hillsdale College, where he's also a professor of politics and history. He received his undergraduate education at Arkansas State University and then graduated with an MA and a PhD in government from the Claremont Graduate School. He also studied at Oxford University in the UK where he served as director of research for Sir Martin Gilbert, the official biographer of Winston Churchill. He was then president of the Claremont Institute for the Study of Statesmanship and Political Philosophy. He's the author of several books, including Liberty and Learning: The Evolution of American Education. They have a conversation about several of today's most controversial issues involving college campuses, including free speech and its limits, the impact of government funding, and admissions of foreign students into US universities.

07-23
48:19

Robert Robbins | Censorship, Threats, and Chaos on America's Campuses | Ep. 51

Scott welcomes Robert (Bobby) Robbins, President Emeritus of the University of Arizona where he served as president from 2017 to 2024. Prior to University of Arizona, he served as the president and CEO of the Texas Medical Center after being chair of the Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery at Stanford University. They discuss many of the issues facing college campuses today, including free speech and its limits, the impact of government and taxpayer funding, merit-based admissions, and the friction between young students from other countries and the United States.

07-01
59:38

Michael McConnell | Government Overreach Exposed: From Student Loans to Obamacare | Ep. 50 | Part 2/2

In the second part of this two part episode, Scott welcomes Professor Michael McConnell, Director of the Constitutional Law Center at Stanford Law School and senior fellow at the Hoover Institution. From 2002 to 2009 he served as circuit judge on the US Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit. He teaches courses on constitutional law the first amendment and interpretive theory. He has published widely in constitutional law, especially church and state, equal protection, and separation of powers. He's written several books including “The President Who Would Not Be King: Executive Power Under the Constitution.” He has argued 16 cases in front of the US Supreme Court he earned his JD from University of Chicago and served as a law clerk to Supreme Court Justice William J Brennan. They discuss some of today's most controversial issues involving the Constitution and law in the context of presidential power and the separation of powers including immigration, censorship and free speech on campus protests.

06-10
55:51

Michael McConnell | The Courts vs. the Presidency: America's Separation of Powers Crisis | Ep. 49 | Part 1/2

In this episode, Scott welcomes Professor Michael McConnell, Director of the Constitutional Law Center at Stanford Law School and senior fellow at the Hoover Institution. From 2002 to 2009 he served as circuit judge on the US Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit. He teaches courses on constitutional law the first amendment and interpretive theory. He has published widely in constitutional law, especially church and state, equal protection, and separation of powers. He's written several books including “The President Who Would Not Be King: Executive Power Under the Constitution.” He has argued 16 cases in front of the US Supreme Court he earned his JD from University of Chicago and served as a law clerk to Supreme Court Justice William J Brennan. They discuss some of today's most controversial issues involving the Constitution and law in the context of presidential power and the separation of powers including immigration, censorship and free speech on campus protests.

05-28
33:37

Gad Saad: How Irrational Empathy Fuels Cultural Chaos | Ep. 48

In this episode Scott welcomes Gad Saad, professor of marketing at Concordia University in Montreal and visiting professor at Northwood University. Professor Saad has pioneered the use of evolutionary psychology in marketing and consumer behavior. His works include several books and published papers, many at the intersection of psychology, advertising, medicine, and economics. He's also working on a new book “Suicidal Empathy” which follows the 2020 release of his previous bestseller “The Parasitic Mind: How Infectious Ideas Are Killing Common Sense.” They discuss the psychology behind irrational behavior of the public, especially young adults, and what might come next in the interplay between the media, universities, politics, and public behavior.

04-29
01:03:05

John Cochrane: Economic Pitfalls and Opportunities in Trump's Second Term | Ep. 47

In this episode Scott welcomes economist John Cochrane who specializes in financial economics and macroeconomics. He's the Rosemary and Jack Anderson senior fellow at Stanford's Hoover Institution. Previously he was a professor of finance at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, and before that at the University of Chicago Department of Economics. He also writes the very popular Grumpy Economist blog. His most recent book is The Fiscal Theory of the Price Level, arguing that inflation is due to government debt and higher interest rates. They discuss several of today's key and most controversial issues in economic policy which are front and center in the Trump era.

04-17
01:08:20

Chanel Rion: Breaking the Media Monopoly at the White House and Beyond | Ep. 46

In this episode, Scott welcomes Chanel Rion, former White House Chief Correspondent for One America News Network (OAN). She now hosts her own show on OAN called "Fine Point with Chanel Rion." Chanel earned her degree in international relations from Harvard, and since then she has been at the center of exposing some of the most impactful stories in recent politics and has special insight into the transformation of America's media and the news that’s emanating from the White House. They have a great conversation about where we are with America's news and journalism, censorship, and her views on how to restore the media' most crucial role: holding the powerful accountable.

03-18
58:30

Kim Strassel: When Free Speech Meets Government Pressure | Ep. 45 | Part 2/2

In the second part of this two part episode, Scott welcomes Kim Strassel, an award-winning journalist, editorial writer and author. Kim is a member of the editorial board for the Wall Street Journal and is a regular contributor to TV news and political shows including CBS's Face the Nation, Fox News Sunday, NBC's Meet the Press and the Journal Editorial Report. She is the author of “The Intimidation Game: How the Left is Silencing Free Speech,” which chronicles recent attacks on conservative nonprofits, businesses and donors. They have an insightful conversation about the role of America’s legacy and social media and its transformation over the past several years, especially relating to the Trump election. They also discuss censorship and what lies ahead politically and as American media evolves.

03-04
26:25

Kim Strassel: The Role of Social Media in Modern Politics | Ep. 44 | PART 1/2

In this episode Scott welcomes Kim Strassel, an award-winning journalist, editorial writer and author. Kim is a member of the editorial board for the Wall Street Journal and is a regular contributor to TV news and political shows including CBS's Face the Nation, Fox News Sunday, NBC's Meet the Press and the Journal Editorial Report. She is the author of “The Intimidation Game: How the Left is Silencing Free Speech,” which chronicles recent attacks on conservative nonprofits, businesses and donors. They have an insightful conversation about the role of America’s legacy and social media and its transformation over the past several years, especially relating to the Trump election. They also discuss censorship and what lies ahead politically and as American media evolves.

02-18
24:59

Suella Braverman: Immigration and the Conservative Collapse in the UK | Ep. 42

In this episode Scott welcomes Britain’s Right Honorable Suella Braverman, a conservative member of the UK Parliament elected first in 2015. She served in several high posts in the UK government, including on the education select committee, as a Brexit minister, as attorney general under Boris Johnson until 2022, and as Home Secretary. Her priorities include stopping small boat immigration across the English Channel, common sense policing and safety for the British people. Suella says “you can make your life and that of others better by taking a responsibility self-empowerment and service.”

01-21
28:28

Sweden’s Anders Tegnell: Lessons from the Pandemic | Ep. 41

In this episode Scott welcomes Sweden's Dr Anders Tegnell, physician and epidemiologist who was the state epidemiologist at the Public Health Agency of Sweden for a special conversation in front of a live audience in Zurich for the Global Liberty Institute's International Rising Leader Summit. They discuss Sweden's response during the COVID pandemic basing Sweden's strategy around maintaining an open society with voluntary guidelines instead of lockdowns, mandates, and school closures. Since then, the world's data proves that Sweden's response was correct with the smallest rise in excess mortality of all developed nations and avoiding severe harms particularly to children found especially in the United States.

01-07
50:38

Steve Hilton: Election Issues and Implications for California | Ep. 40 | PART 2/2

In the second part of this two part episode, Scott welcomes back Steve Hilton, author, news commentator, entrepreneur, and policy expert. He was born in London to Hungarian parents who escaped communism, graduated from Oxford University and served as the director of strategy and senior advisor to then-UK Prime Minister David Cameron. After coming to the US and writing for Fox News, he hosted his own popular show The Next Revolution until 2023 as a proponent of what he called "positive populism." Since then he's increased his focus on California, forming an organization called Golden Together and rumored to be seeking the governorship of California. They have a wide-ranging conversation about the role of the media in the wake of the election, censorship, and what happens next both politically and as American media evolves.

12-17
24:29

Steve Hilton: 2024 Election in Review | Ep. 39 | PART 1/2

In this episode Scott welcomes Steve Hilton, author, news commentator, entrepreneur, and policy expert. He was born in London to Hungarian parents who escaped communism, graduated from Oxford University and served as the director of strategy and senior advisor to then-UK Prime Minister David Cameron. After coming to rhe US and writing for Fox News, he hosted his own popular show The Next Revolution until 2023 as a proponent of what he called "positive populism." Since then he's increased his focus on California, forming an organization called Golden Together and rumored to be seeking the governorship of California. They have a wide-ranging conversation about the role of the media in the wake of the election, censorship, and what happens next both politically and as American media evolves.

12-03
39:39

Michael Shellenberger: Exposing the Deep State | Ep. 38 | PART 2/2

In the second part of this two part episode, Scott welcomes back Michael Shellenberger, bestselling author of "San Fransicko: Why Progressives Ruin Cities" and "Apocalypse Never: Why Environmental Alarmism Hurts Us All". As an award-winning investigative journalist, he has broken major stories in crime and drug policy, homelessness, climate change, and most recently exposing the role of government and intelligence agencies in collusion with Big Tech censorship or Americans.

11-19
25:19

Recommend Channels