The Man Who Would Be King of Saudi Arabia (with Karen Elliott House)
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Welcome to Econ Talk, Conversations for the Curious, part of the Library of Economics and Liberty. I'm your host, Russ Roberts of Shalem College in Jerusalem and Stanford University's Hoover Institution. Go to econtalk.org where you can subscribe, comment on this episode, and find links and other information related to today's conversation. You'll also find our archives with every episode we've done going back to 2006. Our email address is mail at econtalk.org.
We'd love to hear from you. Today is January 12th, 2026, and my guest is journalist and author Karen Elliott House. Her latest book is The Man Who Would Be King, Mohammed Ben Salman and the Transformation of Saudi Arabia, and that is the subject of today's conversation. Karen, welcome to Econ Talk. Thank you very much.
Your book is a portrait of Mohammed ben Salman, and I may be pronouncing his name uh incorrectly, you'll you'll tell me. He is the 39 year old Prince Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia. He is commonly known as MBS for his initials. He is the son of King Solomon, the crown prince, and indeed the man who would be king.
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