Matters of Policy & Politics

Where There’s Smoke…

As a result of California’s “wildfire season” now a year-long occurrence there is widespread difficulty in finding insurance, unsustainable pressure on the state’s insurance market, and a need to better anticipate and contain fire damage. Donnie Hasseltine and David Winnacker, members of Hoover’s inaugural class of veteran fellows, discuss their three-part plan to balance California’s competing housing and fire insurance demands.

What “Is” Is: John Cochrane On Recessions, Inflation, The Fed, Debt and “Green Pork”

Are we in a recession, what are the roots of the present inflationary spiral, what’s valid criticism of Federal Reserve policy and federal spending choices? John Cochrane, the Hoover Institution’s Rose-Marie and Jack Anderson senior fellow and proprietor of the Grumpy Economist blog, walks us these and other economic questions.

The Return Of AB 5: Will California Keep On Truckin’?

Will a California state law that’s survived a legal challenge now force the state’s independent truckers to unionize? Hoover senior fellow Lee Ohanian and distinguished policy fellow Bill Whalen, both contributors to Hoover’s “California on Your Mind” web channel, join Hoover senior writer Jonathan Movroydis to discuss a possible supply chain crisis should truckers disobey the requirement, the feasibility of a new north-south water tunnel, a proposed bill that would allow some California cities to serve alcohol until 4 a.m., plus the peculiarity of governor Gavin Newsom raising his national profile while Golden State Democrats don’t seem much interested in a larger role in 2024’s presidential primaries.

All About The Benjamins

California governor Gavin Newsom vacations in Montana despite his public feuds with other such red states and a California law banning official travel by state employees. Hoover senior fellow Lee Ohanian and distinguished policy fellow Bill Whalen, both contributors to Hoover’s “California on Your Mind” web channel, join Hoover senior writer Jonathan Movroydis to discuss Newsom’s presidential prospects, the deflated state of San Francisco office space, plus UCLA and USC making a financial killing by relocating to the Big Ten Conference.

Post-Dobbs, Still A “Baked” Election?

The Supreme Court’s recent rulings on abortion, guns, and other contentious social issues further complicates an already opaque political landscape. David Brady and Douglas Rivers, Hoover Institution senior fellows and Stanford University political scientists, discuss what if any opinion shifts their polling data suggests and what other political variables (inflation, an unpopular president) might affect November’s outcome.

A Conservative Judicial Renaissance?

The Supreme Court offers landmark decisions concerning abortion, Second Amendment rights, and public prayer at school activities. John Yoo, a Hoover Institution visiting fellow and UC-Berkeley law professor, discusses whether this year’s caseload marks the beginning of a historic conservative run on the high court, plus the internal dynamics of six right-leaning justices who sometimes differ on contentious jurisprudence.

San Francisco, Homelessness Reform and Gasoline Rebates – All Running On Empty?

San Francisco’s economy is a shell of its former self. California throws money at its homeless problem with mixed results, and Gavin Newsom resides on Donald Trump’s social-media website. Hoover senior fellow Lee Ohanian and distinguished policy fellow Bill Whalen, both contributors to Hoover’s “California on Your Mind” web channel, join Hoover senior writer Jonathan Movroydis to discuss where the fabled “Babylon by the Bay” went wrong, the right remedies for homelessness, plus the political upside of a blue-state governor trashing America’s red states.

Kevin Hassett – An Economic Primer

Inflation continues to rage as a recession nears, a market downturn erodes investments and savings, and the Biden White House struggles to find impactful solutions to America’s struggling economy. Kevin Hassett, a Hoover Institution Distinguished Visiting Fellow and past chair of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, explains what put America in its current economic misery, the merits of Federal Reserve policy, the outlook for investors, plus his remedies for bringing inflation under control.

Slavery Reparations, Primary Repercussions

Primary night in California yielded damning results for San Francisco’s now-recalled district attorney and the question of whether a law-and-order “earthquake” is afoot in the Golden State. Hoover Institution senior fellow Lee Ohanian and distinguished policy fellow Bill Whalen, both contributors to Hoover’s “California on Your Mind” web channel, join Hoover senior writer Jonathan Movroydis to discuss their latest columns on emerging themes from Tuesday’s vote, plus what California may provide in the way of reparations for descendants of slavery.

Matters Of Policy & Politics: Screen Time, But No Time For Lincoln

Sacramento’s legislative deadline brings bad news for California’s affordable housing crunch (no new development on community-owned golf courses) and grim tidings for Big Tech (can parents sue for kids’ alleged screen “addiction”?) and Abraham Lincoln (will the state’s President’s Day holiday be supplanted?). Hoover senior fellow Lee Ohanian and distinguished policy fellow Bill Whalen, both contributors to Hoover’s “California on Your Mind” web channel, join Hoover senior writer Jonathan Movroydis to discuss the latest in the Golden State, including what an encounter with a parent at a sporting event says about the mood of California’s Latino population and a chance for Republican inroads.