Matters of Policy & Politics

Trump’s Executive Orders

One hundred and fifty days into his presidency, Donald Trump is on pace to issue the most executive orders for a first-year president since Harry Truman in 1945. Hoover research fellow Adam White reviews the highs and lows of Trump’s signing flurry–and discusses the need for the Trump White House to pick up the pace for executive and judicial appointments.Like Area 45? Please rate, review, and subscribe now! (Playing time:(43:56)

America’s 241st Birthday

Summary As the nation prepares for its Fourth of July celebration, the question arises of where the Trump presidency fits in the mosaic of American leadership. David M. Kennedy, a Stanford University historian and Pulitzer Prize winner, discusses the current state of the Republic and whether Donald Trump is the second coming of Andrew Jackson, as Trump would have us believe, or similar to a more recent Oval Office occupant. (Playing time:38:11) Like Area 45? Please rate, review, and subscribe now!

President Trump's Report Card

As Donald Trump’s presidency passes the five-month mark, Hoover senior fellows Dave Brady and Doug Rivers share their polling on Trump’s support from Republicans and independents, plus his policy strengths and weaknesses. We also take a further look at the significance of the United Kingdom’s “snap” election, which Doug Rivers correctly forecasted (words not often said about pollsters these days!). New episodes of Area 45 are released each week. Please rate, review, and subscribe on iTunes, SoundCloud, or RSS on your favorite podcast platform. (Playing time: 38:43)

The State Of The United Kingdom

The drama in Washington? A pittance compared to the upheaval across the pond: British prime minister Theresa May’s disastrous snap election. Hoover Institution senior fellow Niall Ferguson, a native Scot, assesses May’s future and that of Brexit, plus where the Trump presidency stands as it approaches the five-month mark. New episodes of Area 45 are released each week. Please rate, review, and subscribe on iTunes, SoundCloud, or RSS on your favorite podcast platform. (Playing time: 35:19)

The Art of Presidential Wordsmithery Featuring Peter Robinson

Presidents are defined by rhetorical moments: Reagan and Kennedy at the Berlin Wall; George W. Bush rallying the nation after the 9/11 attacks. And Donald Trump? So far his presidency hasn’t been one of major addresses. Hoover fellow Peter Robinson, author of Reagan’s famous speech at the Brandenberg Gate, discusses the art of presidential wordsmithery in this age of shock tweets and nonstop news cycles. (Playing time: 55:32)

The Fate Of Obamacare

Recorded on May 25, 2017 As far as the fate of Obamacare goes, the ball’s in the Senate’s court: to alter the House’s plan or develop a prescription of its own. Dr. Scott Atlas, the Hoover Institution’s David and Joan Traitel Senior Fellow and a frequent author on Obamacare, discusses the most commonsense path for Congress to take, the chances of a repeal/replacement law emerging in the near future, and California’s ill-advised flirtation with adopting a single-payer universal health care system. (Playing time: 40:52)

President Trump, a Rugged Individualist?

The American dream rests on the notion on “rugged individualism”: freedom, liberty, and equality of opportunity and a tradition of conquering physical, economic, social, and political frontiers. David Davenport, coauthor of Rugged Individualism: Dead or Alive?, looks at President Trump’s political philosophy, his record to date and suggests ways the new administration can restore this flickering American tradition. If you like the show, please rate, review, and subscribe! (Playing time: 42:23)

Cyber Security

It’s a threat the likes of which America has never faced: the theft of intellectual property, lifestyle disruptions, and attacks tailored to degrade or destroy the nation’s military capabilities. Amy Zegart, the Hoover Institution’s Davies Family Senior Fellow and codirector and senior fellow at Stanford University’s Center for International Security and Cooperation, outlines a strategy for how the United States can gain the upper hand in the global cyber war. (Playing time: 42:49)

The French Elections

Hoover senior fellow Russell Berman, a specialist in the study of German literary and cultural politics, takes us through the aftershocks of the French presidential election. Is German chancellor Angela Merkel breathing a sigh of relief or, despite the nationalist setback in France, does her future and that of the European Union remain in doubt? (Playing time: 39:49)

Trump’s First Hundred Days (Plus Six)

Hoover political scientists David Brady and Doug Rivers diagnose the Trump presidency’s health based on polling data and the state of antiglobalization populism on the eve of France’s presidential vote. Will European Union resentment, like many a would-be invader, fail to make it across the English Channel? (Playing time: 49:30)