Policy Stories

Civics

Economics

The Policy Stories series features Hoover Institution scholars in 4-5 minute "mini-documentaries" discussing the real-life implications of public policy throughout the world. These segments offer insights into why these policies are relevant and important for today's public policy discussion.

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Boomer Bust?

This November, Baby Boomer presidents will extend their unprecedent reign in the Oval Office into a fourth decade. America must confront the impending policy failures of the Boomer generation and prioritize the idea of generational accountability. – At what point has one generation governed past its prime?

Artificial Intelligence: Real Promise and Real Peril

The rapid rise of Artificial Intelligence presents humanity with exciting, life-changing possibilities, but has the potential for catastrophic, world-ending risks. How should we move forward to take advantage all the benefits AI has to offer while averting an AI apocalypse.

Free Speech, Hate Speech, and Censorship Envy

With the rise of censorship on college campuses, freedom of speech – including hate speech – has never been more vital to challenge beliefs, develop critical thinking skills, and advance truth.

The Civic Bargain: How Democracy Survives

The United States faces no shortage of challenges from political polarization, institutional distrust, to economic uncertainty. But through devoted efforts towards civic engagement, civic education, and civic bargaining, American citizens can ensure American democracy survives and thrives.

Documenting Communism

Charles Palm and the Hoover Institution's project to copy and publish newly opened Soviet archives, following the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, exposed the brutal reality of communism, providing invaluable documentation to educate younger generations about the inherently tyrannical and ruinous nature of this ideology.

A Nation at Risk +40

Forty years after "A Nation at Risk," an extensive analysis exposes the limitations of disjointed education reforms, underscoring the urgent need for policymakers to pursue reforms that are coherent, sustainable, and measurable across greater spans of time to provide all students with a quality education.

The Work-From-Home Divide

The rise of remote work in recent years has created a stark divide, with more experienced, more educated, and higher-paid workers enjoying the benefits of working from home, while lower-paid, less educated, and entry-level workers rarely have this option.

The Partisan Myth: How Voting Laws Actually Affect Election Results

Politicians and pundits on both the right and the left cry foul over election laws like voter identification and mail-in voting. Is it all political hype? Or do these laws actually have the power to impact races and swing elections?

The Trillion Dollar Pension Problem

Can alternatives to government pension plans provide states an off-ramp from the $6.5 trillion in unfunded liabilities they face, and thereby narrowly avoid impending economic and fiscal crises?

Hacking for Defense

For the United States to successfully defend itself and its allies, prevail in global competition, and remain a force for good around the world, it must unlock its full innovative potential by connecting national security demands with the pace of commercially-driven technological innovation.

China's Campaign to Control What You Think and How You Behave

Behind the scenes of its military buildup and economic competition China works tirelessly through television and social media to undermine the West, increase its own favorability through nonstop propaganda, and ultimately to manipulate our behavior here in the United States and across the globe.

Putting Patients First: The Case for Individual Health Accounts

Third party payers, such as employers and the government, negotiate healthcare costs behind the scenes, cutting out individual patients from the process and contributing to rising healthcare premiums. Individual Health Accounts would allow patients to take ownership of their healthcare, lower healthcare costs, and help millions of uninsured afford health coverage.

This Is Not Who We Are: America's Struggle Between Vice and Virtue

The Allied victory in World War II came at a moral cost, yet the majority of Americans and the majority of key officials, favored mercy and not revenge.

The Challenges and Realities of Climate Modeling

It’s uncommon for the popular media to discuss how problematic our climate models are. Those uncertainties should make us skeptical of their ability to predict human influences on climate change.

A Market Test to Avoid Another Government Bank Bailout

The federal government can prevent future bank bailouts by requiring risky financial institutions to raise capital through equity.

How to Challenge Teachers Unions’ Control Over Local Elections

Teachers' unions in the United States hold significant influence over local school board elections, but successful challenges in one state suggest a potential path forward for education reformers.

Shall We Play a Game? The Promise (and Pitfalls) of Wargames for Policy

Wargames have a long history of influencing policy and serve as valuable tools for understanding behavior and choices in both military and nonmilitary contexts.

What Does a Fair Tax Code Look Like?

The use of relative terms like “fairness” muddies the discourse on taxes, leading people to reject absolutely efficient gains that they perceive as unfair—even though they may make everyone better off.

Why America Must Lead the Fight for Freedom Throughout the World

The world is currently experiencing a democratic recession, with autocracies like China and Russia posing threats to democracies globally.

The Role of the United States in Preventing a Conflict in Taiwan

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan in 2022 precipitated the largest set of Chinese military exercises in twenty years, raising the question: Why should America remain involved with Taiwan?

How to Reverse Pandemic-Related Learning Losses

The largest economic costs of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States will come from shortfalls in student learning, but effective teachers can help reverse those costs.

The New Power Struggle within Afghanistan

The return of Taliban control in Afghanistan could create the biggest opportunity for al-Qaeda to reconstitute and reorganize in more than a decade.

Can Deliberative Discussions Heal Political Divides?

The results from an experiment called America in One Room show that respectful deliberation of opposing views can move the beliefs of individuals to the center.

The History Behind Russia's Expansionary Foreign Policy

Is Russia inherently imperialist and expansionist? No. Russian aggression is not innate, it is a choice. And Russia’s rulers could make different choices.

The Dilemma of China’s Digital Currency

China’s central bank digital currency is part of a broader push by Beijing to establish global leadership in digital payments, assert independence from US power, and intensify control over Chinese society.

China's Expansion into the South China Sea with Michael Auslin

Since 2013, China has been creating artificial islands in the South China Sea and turning them into military bases in an attempt to expand its strategic sphere of influence.

Why We Should Study War

Military history teaches us about honor, sacrifice, and the inevitability of conflict.

Why Putin Invaded Ukraine

Putin invaded Ukraine because, like all dictators, he is threatened by the expansion of democratic governments.

Three Ways to Keep Businesses and People in California

California’s strict regulatory environment, punitive legal climate, and high tax rates are causing businesses and residents to leave the state at an unprecedented rate.

Preventing Conflicts in Space

The United States must reconsider how it approaches thinking about space in order to prevent potentially devastating conflicts.

Defending Against Information Warfare

The US Department of Defense should defend its service members and their families from cyber-enabled information warfare.

Overcoming Foreign Influence in Social Media

America can counter insidious efforts to inflame divisions in our society by discovering and calling out our adversaries when they use cyber-enabled deception operations.

Will a Minority-Majority Nation Shake Up American Politics?

Contrary to popular belief, the political future of America is not preordained by demographic change, and it never has been.

Setting the Record Straight on Wealth Inequality

Better economic policy predating the coronavirus led to a sharp decline in wealth inequality.

America’s Immigrant Warriors

The bravery and patriotism of immigrants have been—and will continue to be—a vital component of a strong and safe America.

Crony Capitalism: Lessons from the Great Recession

The Great Recession shows us how crony capitalism can cause financial policies to stray from clearly defined rules and put undue power in the hands of regulators and special interests.

The Road to Smart Power in the Middle East

Russell Berman offers insight into the role of the United States in the Middle East and steps we can take to promote freedom and defend American national interests.

America’s New Great-Power Competition with China

The response of the United States to China’s growing global power will profoundly affect the trajectory of the 21st century.

Overcoming Our Crisis of Confidence in Democracy

Western democracies overcame a crisis of confidence decades ago. Can they do it again?

Debt Relief and Economic Recovery

Targeted household debt relief can effectively support the economy and accelerate economic recovery.

Tax Flight: Behavioral Responses to State Income Taxation

Tax rate increases in California led many high earners to move, bringing in less revenue than expected.

Lessons of History for a Post-COVID America

Niall Ferguson puts the 2020 pandemic into perspective and explains why we are getting worse, not better, at handling disasters.

The Inequality We Should Worry About

There is an important distinction between good and bad income inequality.

Keeping Hong Kong Free

China is systematically destroying Hong Kong’s autonomy, democracy, and rule of law.

An Endless Summer: How COVID Has Reversed Academic Achievement

The coronavirus pandemic has accelerated the learning loss that typically occurs over summer vacation, and the impact has been more severe for disadvantaged children.

What History Tells Us About The Public Option

The history of federal health care programs tells us that the public option would quickly become a costly program.

Better Pay, Better Teachers

Improving public education requires significantly enhancing teacher salaries, but also tilting compensation toward the most effective teachers.

Reining in Federal Spending: Lessons from Social Security

Limiting the growth in federal spending is difficult, but history tells us it is not impossible.

California's High-Speed Dream Derailed

The failure of California’s high-speed rail project demonstrates that everyone loses when politicians make promises they can’t keep.

The Politics of Institutional Reform

In the New Orleans school system after Hurricane Katrina, we get the rare opportunity to observe what happens when vested interest power is removed from the equation, and decision makers are free to do whatever seems to work in seeking real reform.