Episode · a16z Podcast · 2025-08-20
Books mentioned on Oren Cass & Noah Smith Debate the True Impact of Tariffs
Do tariffs help rebuild American manufacturing or hold it back? In this episode, American Compass founder and chief economist Oren Cass sits down with commentator and author Noah Smith and a16z General Partner Erik Torenberg for a lively debate on the future of U.
Oren Cass discussed The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith and Economics by Paul A. Samuelson and others.
Books mentioned, in the order they came up
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The Wealth of Nations
The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith is a foundational text in classical economics that explores the nature and causes of national wealth through the division of labor, productivity, and free markets.
Discussed“this goes all the way back to Adam Smith and the wealth of nations and the invisible hand where his argument about the invisible hand is not that this kind of somehow automatically works by magic.”
Where to get it
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Economics
Economics by Paul A.
Discussed“I think if you look at at somebody like Paul Samuelson's work I I often point out that in his seinal textbook economics he kind of goes through the arguments for and against tariffs and basically at the end of the day acknowledges that any country could pursue a beggar thy neighbor their thy neighbor strategy.”
Where to get it
