UATX students founded the Austin Union to promote respectful debate and rigorous thinking.
Bryan Caplan is a Visiting Professor at UATX. He is a professor of economics and senior research fellow at the Mercatus Center, George Mason University. Caplan is also the bestselling author of Open Borders and The Myth of the Rational Voter.
Garett Jones is a professor of Economics and BB&T Professor for the Study of Capitalism at the Mercatus Center, George Mason University. He has written two books published by Stanford University Press: Hive Mind: How Your Nation’s IQ Matters So Much More Than Your Own, and 10% Less Democracy: Why You Should Trust Elites a Little More and the Masses a Little Less.
Coleman Hughes is a Visiting Professor at UATX. He is the host of the Conversations with Coleman podcast at The Free Press, and the author of the book, The End of Race Politics: Arguments for a Colorblind America.
This was recorded on May 29, 2026 at UATX.
00:00 — Intro by Yale Abernathy, president of the Austin Union
00:56 — Bryan Caplan advocates for mass immigration
08:54 — Garett Jones responds
20:38 — Coleman Hughes: Does culture matter?
23:32 — Should America boost immigration to offset low birth rates?
26:46 — Closed borders vs. low-skill mass immigration
28:26 — Would Bryan Caplan ever advocate for closed borders?
31:29 — Q&A: How to assimilate the best culture
34:36 — Q&A: Demographic collapse
35:44 — Q&A: "Your neighbors shape your productivity”
39:32 — Q&A: Global connectivity
43:29 — Q&A: Against mass immigration
48:17 — Q&A: Is GDP per capita the right metric for immigration policy?
51:28 — Q&A: Gulf monarchies
55:28 — Q&A: Past immigration policies
56:51 — Garett Jones: Simple models are a poor guide
59:29 — Bryan Caplan: We don't need saving
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