Mark Schmitt

If you follow politics, you’re probably familiar with the idea that reform sometimes backfires. You’ve probably heard the McCain-Feingold campaign finance reform cited as an example of such unintended consequences. Critics say McCain-Feingold eliminated the one form of political money on which Democrats had an advantage, while increasing the kind of money — contributions from […]

Now that millions of words have been devoted to assessing the mixed legacy of Ronald Reagan’s presidency, let’s take a few hundred to recall one of the attempts by liberals to respond and counter Reagan and his strategies. Since his anti-government philosophy is as alive as Reagan is dead, these responses are also still very […]

Like the dream of immortality, the vision of political power that outlasts the eight years of a single presidency can be an irresistible lure to politicians. One version of the dream involves electoral power. For example, Karl Rove is said to have a plan for the Republican Party to dominate for 30 or 40 years, […]

American liberals suffer from a well-earned inferiority complex. How often do we hear phrases like, “We need a Heritage Foundation for our side,” or, “We need ideas and a framework, like the right has”? Robert B. Reich has put forth the most comprehensive such argument in the May issue of the English magazine Prospect: “The […]