Matters of Policy & Politics

As a prolific columnist and observer of U.S. and world affairs, Niall Ferguson has plenty to be grateful for, beginning with an American president seemingly always in the news. Ferguson, the Milbank Family Senior Fellow at the Hoover Institution, explains the many reasons why Americans should be giving thanks this holiday season.

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A year ago, public protests in Iran put the future of that repressive regime in doubt. With new sanctions in place and protestors again taking to the street to demonstrate against economic conditions (and new US sanctions), will 2019 witness a sea change in the Persian Gulf? Abbas Milani, a Hoover research fellow and the Hamid & Christina Moghadam Director of Iranian Studies at Stanford University, offers his thoughts.

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The Trump Administration’s first post-midterm controversy: the constitutionality of the president’s choice for acting attorney general. John Yoo, a Hoover Institution visiting fellow and UC-Berkeley law professor, discusses the policy and political ramifications. And he breaks down the admissions lawsuit filed against his alma mater, Harvard, alleging discrimination against Asian applicants.

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What does America need to do to maintain and improve military air superiority around the world? Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson offers her thoughts on weapons procurement, recruitment and retainment, plus the changing role of pilots in 21^st Century warfare.

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A departure from the usual Area 45 podcast: instead of discussing the 45^th president, we take a closer look at the 31^st state in the union – California. Lee Ohanian, a Hoover Institution senior fellow and UCLA economist, discusses what motivated him to launch Hoover’s new “California On Your Mind” journal and what challenges confront the Golden State’s next governor.

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Next Tuesday’s midterm vote is both the first national referendum on the Trump presidency and a test of the zeal of Trump supporters and detractors. David Brady, Morris Fiorina and Doug Rivers – all Hoover Institution senior fellows and Stanford University political scientists – discuss the fractious political landscape and handicap the odds of Democrats taking the House and Republicans adding to their Senate majority.

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Prior to his appointment as the Hoover Institution’s Fouad and Michelle Ajami senior fellow, Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster served as the 26^th Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs. In the second installment of this Area 45 podcast, McMaster discusses why he joined the Trump White House, how he oversaw the National Security Council, and grades himself on his performance.

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For 34 years, Army Lt. Gen H.R. McMaster served his country in times of war and peace – scoring victories on the battlefield and figuring better ways to prepare for future conflicts. Now the Hoover Institution’s Fouad and Michelle Ajami senior fellow, McMaster recounts what attracted him to military service and lessons learned from a career as a pre-eminent “warrior thinker”.

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If Democrats regain the House, it’s not President Trump’s fault – or so the President tells the media. His son accuses the Republican establishment of a “losing” mentality. As this administration approaches its midpoint, is the Republican Party the “Party of Trump”, or more a temporary (and uneasy) alliance? Lanhee Chen, the David and Diane Steffy Research Fellow at the Hoover Institution, assesses the state of this political marriage.

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President Trump delivered a U.N. address calling for China to change its American trade practices, which was followed by the two nations escalating their tariff war. Michael Auslin, Hoover Institution’s inaugural Williams-Griffis Fellow in Contemporary Asia, estimates what a prolonged trade war would have on the Chinese economy, as well as other aspects of U.S.-Sino relations.

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