Commentary

  • Trump’s Intel Stake Isn’t Socialism; It’s Common Sense

    Trump’s Intel Stake Isn’t Socialism; It’s Common Sense

    President Trump’s decision to seek government equity and revenue sharing in major chip companies, including a 9.9 percent non-voting stake in Intel and proposed deals with Nvidia and AMD, has sparked rare, intense bipartisan backlash; a sign of deep controversy surrounding direct government involvement in the tech sector. Sen. Rand…

  • How the Supreme Court’s decision on Skrmetti may impact Bostock and the overall future of trans rights in America.

    How the Supreme Court’s decision on Skrmetti may impact Bostock and the overall future of trans rights in America.

    In June 2025, the Supreme Court quietly let a dangerous precedent take hold. By allowing Tennessee to enforce Senate Bill 1 (SB1), later referred to as Skrmetti, a law banning doctors from providing puberty blockers and hormone replacement therapy to transgender minors, the court did more than greenlight discrimination. It…

  • The Democratic Party Has a Working Class Problem

    The Democratic Party Has a Working Class Problem

    The Democratic Party brand is in crisis. A recent NBC poll reports the party’s favorability rating at a record low of 27 percent, marking a nadir that dates back to 1990. This polling follows the Democratic coalition fraying in November’s election as many working-class nonwhite voters defected from their ranks…

  • Court-ing Growth in India: Cut Red Tape, Create Jobs

    Court-ing Growth in India: Cut Red Tape, Create Jobs

    India’s economy must create 1.1 billion well-paying jobs by 2050 before its “demographic dividend” window closes. However, neither the government’s current job-creation strategy nor a service-led approach addresses the magnitude of this problem. The fundamental solution lies in removing regulatory bottlenecks in Indian states and decongesting courts, thus creating conditions…

  • Rwanda’s Clean Cooking Challenge: Can Community Action Make the Difference?

    Rwanda’s Clean Cooking Challenge: Can Community Action Make the Difference?

    Asteria’s hands tremble as she strikes a match, the small flame flickering before catching onto the lump of charcoal. Her youngest daughter, Keza, stands nearby, rubbing her eyes and coughing as the smoke curls toward the low roof of their kitchen. Asteria has been cooking this way for as long…

  • State Suicide: A Weapon for Progressive Politics

    State Suicide: A Weapon for Progressive Politics

    It’s 2025, and healthcare for women and transgender Americans is under threat, thanks to our far-right government. Democrats are far from helpless, though: given how narrow the Republican victory was, broad support for legal abortion, and President Trump’s middling approval ratings, it is likely that the Democrats will regain Congressional…

  • Yes, it’s political: Dance & Disparities during a Trump term

    Yes, it’s political: Dance & Disparities during a Trump term

    The first sentence of the 2024 Republican Party Platform is its dedication: “To the forgotten men and women of America.” This powerful message can and should be expanded upon as the toll of inequality continues to rip through America. From attacks on LGBTQ+ rights to stark racial disparities in mortality…

  • In Pursuit of the Limping Truth

    In Pursuit of the Limping Truth

    “Falsehood flies, and the truth comes limping after it,” Jonathan Swift remarked over three centuries ago. Today, in an era of instant communication, this observation is more relevant than ever. Social media platforms have revolutionized access to information but have also become vectors for misinformation and disinformation, allowing falsehoods to…

  • The National Flood Insurance Program is Unsustainable and Regressive

    The National Flood Insurance Program is Unsustainable and Regressive

    In the ten days between September and October 2024, two catastrophic hurricanes, Helene and Milton, battered the southeastern United States.  Insurance claim payouts related to Hurricane Helene are projected to total between six and seven billion dollars. Claims stemming from Hurricane Milton are estimated to increase by 30–50%. As of…

  • Citizens’ Assemblies: A Path Towards A More Perfectly Representative Union

    Citizens’ Assemblies: A Path Towards A More Perfectly Representative Union

    Around the world, people seem dissatisfied with their leaders. This is particularly visible in the current era of anti-incumbency, which has taken hold in places as far-flung and different from one another as the United Kingdom to Botswana, India to South Korea, or Poland to Argentina. Incumbents are losing, or…

  • The Inequality of Recession

    The Inequality of Recession

    The public perceives recessions simply as a sign that the economy is “bad.” However, many policymakers continue to define recessions as “two-quarters of negative gross domestic product.” This outdated definition implies that policy responses could take more than six months to even begin addressing a downturn. The National Bureau of…