To understand the sometimes glaring gaps between candidate Obama’s promises and President Obama’s policies, it is useful to appreciate an old tension in American progressivism. . . .

On July 29, 1981, barely six months into his presidency and in the face of an economic crisis of historic proportions, Ronald Reagan succeeded in persuading both houses of Congress to pass dramatic tax cuts that set the stage for nearly three decades of vigorous economic growth...

Defeated at nearly every level in the 2008 elections, Republicans were supposed to be using the current four-year stretch in purgatory to rethink the issues, redefine themselves as a party, and (most of all) select a charismatic leader to get them back in the game...

In today's Wall Street Journal, Hoover's Peter Robinson reports on an interview with Gary Becker. . . .

A bailout for newspapers? . . .

I disagree somewhat with my friend Peter Feaver about the president's plan for Afghanistan deserving the support of us loyal opposition. . . .

Professor David W. Brady discusses the role that gridlock plays in shaping national policy with Hoover fellow Peter Robinson. Together they look at key legislative issues, from the divided government under Reagan, through Clinton's Democratic government, to complete unified Republican control under George W. Bush, analyzing important cruxes in lawmaking: the swing votes, the veto, the filibuster, and the rise of tough budget politics.

Thomas Sowell offers examples of why intellectuals are so often wrong about economics. . . .

How well did our leaders handle the financial crisis? . . .