RealClearPolicy Newsletters: Original Articles
Winter Is Coming
Dear Reader —
Winter has definitely arrived here inside the Beltway, with the season’s first snowfall this afternoon. For those anticipating a different outcome last November, the weather may feel tinged with metaphorical significance. Others are looking to 2017 with a mixture of relief and cautious optimism. Here at RealClearPolicy, we’re gearing up for a lively hundred days.
While the collective self-examination began a bit early this year — thanks to the unexpected success of a certain businessman from Queens — it doesn’t show signs of stopping. Thinkers on Left and Right continue to grapple with the revolt against the elites and debate the health of our body politic. Some have begun to push back against the common wisdom, questioning the victimhood of the white working class or even the soundness of this demographic category. One thing is certain: The wonks have their work cut out for them next year.
Meantime, take a right good-will draught for auld lang syne and enjoy these highlights from the past two weeks at RealClearPolicy.
— M. Anthony Mills, editor | RealClearPolicy
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Virtuous Reality. In The Baffler, Robert Westbrook makes the case for reviving a politics of virtue in our “post-liberal age.”
We Need New Trade Policies, But Not Trump's. In our own pages, Susan Helper and Todd Tucker urge the president-elect to make good on his tough trade talk with policies aimed at helping American workers, not multinational corporations.
How States Can Reduce Income Inequality. Also in our pages, Elizabeth McNichol spotlights data and considers what can be accomplished at the state level.
The Invention of the White Working Class. For AlterNet, Les Leopold flouts the common wisdom on the presidential election, arguing that the “white working class” is an artificial and racially fraught category.
Whites Weren't Left Behind by the Economic Recovery. Also in RealClearPolicy, David Brown highlights data that undercut a popular narrative.
The Working Class Has Duties Too. In The Washington Post, Michael R. Strain argues that those in the working class are not just “victims of economic change and inadequate public policy,” but also share “some of the responsibility.”
Make America 1953 Again? Also in The Washington Post, George F. Will argues that protectionist policies intended to save jobs wind up hurting the economy.
Reforming the Regulatory State Under Trump. In RealClearPolicy, Ted Gayer and Philip Wallach consider opportunities ahead for the new administration and Congress.
Prospects for Constitutionalism. For the Library of Law and Liberty, Mark Pulliam explains why he is “very optimistic” that President-elect Trump can “restore constitutionalism and revive the rule of law.”
Behind the Cabinet: Health and Human Services. For Part 2 of the RealClearPolitics video series, I interview the James C. Capretta of the American Enterprise Institute about expectations for Rep. Tom Price, the nominee for HHS secretary, and health policy under Trump.
