The Cato Institute is a public policy research organization — a think tank — dedicated to the principles of individual liberty, limited government, free markets and peace. Its scholars and analysts conduct independent, nonpartisan research on a wide range of policy issues.

Founded in 1977, Cato owes its name to Cato’s Letters, a series of essays published in 18th- century England that presented a vision of society free from excessive government power. Those essays inspired the architects of the American Revolution. And the simple, timeless principles of that revolution — individual liberty, limited government, and free markets — turn out to be even more powerful in today’s world of global markets and unprecedented access to information than Jefferson or Madison could have imagined. Social and economic freedom is not just the best policy for a free people, it is the indispensable framework for the future.

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Events

November 2

Debate: Should Libertarians Vote?

Featuring Jim Harper, Senior Fellow, Cato Institute; Michael Cannon, Director of Health Policy Studies, Cato Institute; and Aaron Ross Powell, Research Fellow and Editor, Libertarianism.org, Cato Institute; Trevor Burrus, Research Fellow, Center for Constitutional Studies, Cato Institute; moderated by Jason Kuznicki, Research Fellow and Editor, Cato Unbound, Cato Institute.

5:00PM to 6:00PM
Hayek Auditorium, Cato Institute