Textbooks tell us that a great gap separates classical from modern liberalism—James Madison from Franklin D. Roosevelt. Some conservatives say modern liberals betrayed the earlier tradition, and some progressives agree. But the continuities are funda
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Posted inEnergy and the Environment
Priming the Pump: Paying for Clean Water in the 1990s
Federal standards for clean water have been rising; federal money for clean water has slowed to a trickle. So, many communities are facing fiscal nightmares, and you may be facing astronomical rate increases.
Posted inBooks
From Crisis to Working Majority
Reports of the death of the Democrats are greatly exaggerated. Three new books, despite their author’s pessimism, suggest how to reconstruct the party’s middle-class foundations.
Posted inHealth and Social Policy
The Rehabilitation of the Asylum
The shift of mentally ill patients out of institutions has not worked out the way supporters of deinstitutionalization wanted. But is the remedy a return to the asylum? Some neoconservatives think so.
Posted inEconomic Policy
The Kindest Cut
Of three tax relief plans on the congressional table, only one significantly benefits middle-class families.
Posted inMoney, Politics, and Power
Liberalism After Socialism
Some have long wanted to blend socialism and liberalism in a “third way”; that idea is now in ruins. But the alternative to a socialist liberalism need not be conservative. There is a liberalism that is serious, realistic, and where necessary even ra
Posted inMoney, Politics, and Power
Electoral Detox: A Twelve-Step Cure for Donor Dependency
“Hi, I’m Congressman Bob, and I’ve got a problem. I’m hooked on campaign contributions.” That should be the first step.
Posted inWorking in America
The Myth of the Coming Labor Shortage
According to the Department of Labor, the demand for higher skills is rising rapidly, while the “quality” of America’s workforce is declining. Neither assertion is true, but the mythology is steering policymakers in the wrong direction, away from eff
Posted inLaw and Justice
The Flawed Vision: Deregulation and Public Choice
The theory of “public choice” tells us that the public cannot make intelligent choices about government. But deregulation is as much a choice as activism.
Posted inBooks, Arts and Culture
The Remedy is More Speech
Slurs against groups may be painful, but suppressing speech is not the answer.