The international security climate may be volatile, but according to Research Fellow Kori Schake the most serious threat to the United States is domestic policy failure. Drawing on her work with Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis and former commander of the US Strategic Command James O. Ellis Jr. in the Blueprint for America project, Schake explains a number of key insights for strengthening the domestic institutions and policies underlying US national security strategy. After turning outward to...

Based on his new Hoover Institution Press book, Rugged Individualism: Dead or Alive? co-authored with his longtime Pepperdine colleague Gordon Lloyd, David Davenport discusses our unique brand of individualism that dates back to the American founding. Davenport begins with the articulation of American individualism in the Declaration of Independence, following it through its safeguarding in the US Constitution, its flourishing in westward expansion, and its declining in the face of...

Constitutional safeguards help protect the United States from bad governance, regardless of who holds office. Those safeguards are predicated, however, on civil, electoral, and educational institutions, all of which are eroding as the result of troubling domestic trends. Our constitutional system and overall political health depend on the reinvigoration of those institutions and restoring our nation’s commitment to classical liberal values.

The United States’ unique position in the international order is not preordained. Instead, according to Victor Davis Hanson, it is the result of unique demographic, economic, political, and educational characteristics. As these strengths diminish, so too does our status as a world power. To reverse this trend, we must restore our confidence in the exceptionalism of American institutions.

The rule of law is the legal cornerstone of the United States’ economic prosperity and political freedom. Yet the deviation of US law from transparency, equality, and impartiality threatens to unravel a fundamental institution that took centuries to build. Threats to the rule of law should be taken seriously, but potential intellectual and political reforms, and the American electorate’s visible determination to address our political and economic troubles, are cause for optimism.

The current international political order, maintained largely through the United States’ exertion of soft power on the world stage, doesn’t simply benefit our allies; it crucially supports our own interests. The alternative to US dominance is a framework of international rules and norms determined by other powerful states. Schake argues that we should strengthen, not abandon, the institutions and alliances that uphold the current international order and maintain the exemplary status of our...

Among presidential exponents of American exceptionalism, Presidents Herbert Hoover and Ronald Reagan are in a class by themselves. In his talk George H. Nash discusses the experiences underlying Herbert Hoover’s prescient conviction that the social, economic, and political institutions of the United States were superior to the collectivist systems that were then sweeping the globe. Annelise Anderson explains Ronald Reagan’s vision of the United States as a “city on a hill,” and how that...

Hoover Institution fellow John Cochrane discusses the “new normal” of 2 percent annual growth in GDP, which doesn’t sound far off from the 3.5 percent growth that characterized the US economy from 1950 to 2000. Compounded over decades, however, this seemingly small disparity represents huge amounts of forgone income—for both individuals and the nation. Politicians and media may focus on interest rates, pay equity, or union rights as economic remedies, yet, as John Cochrane shows, economic...

Hoover Institution fellow Thomas Henriksen discusses the North Korean regime’s aggressive activities, which continue to cause alarm in the international community—but do they truly threaten global security? Placing the regime’s hostile behaviors in both a political and a historical context, Thomas Henriksen argues that North Korean threats are credible and several. The regime’s capabilities for a direct nuclear attack are developing, as evidenced by their increasingly successful nuclear...

President Obama often highlights his administration’s success in spurring a robust economic recovery; Lee Ohanian, however, is less optimistic about the state of the US economy under his leadership. Ohanian argues that Obama’s narrative rests on flawed economic logic and blames the lackluster recovery on a departure of US economic policy from free market principles. With this sober assessment of the current US economy in mind, he explores the potential for improvement under each of the...

Cyber threats from rogue actors, and the need to secure critical digital infrastructure against attack, have earned a prominent role in the US national security strategy dialogue. Most often, the focus of the conversation is defensive. Herbert Lin, however, adds an interesting dimension to the discussion: the potential use of cyber attacks by US agencies to disrupt the operations of our adversaries. Lin explains a menu of options for offensive deployment of cyber tactics but also points out...

Donald Trump’s rise as a front-runner in the 2016 presidential primaries may be a surprising development, but according to Victor Davis Hanson, it isn’t without explanation. Hanson discusses why Trump’s radical proposals on immigration and trade are finding receptive audiences who are willing to tolerate his inflammatory rhetoric. Hanson closes with an assessment of what Trump’s candidacy will look like should he secure the Republican nomination, describing the 2016 election as a choice not...

Much has been said about the legacy of US Supreme Court justice Antonin “Nino” Scalia since he died in February 2016. Renowned legal theorist Richard Epstein—a longtime colleague and friend of Scalia’s—, however, brings something new to the discussion. Epstein frames Scalia’s jurisprudence in the context of western legal thought going back to the Roman Empire. He explains the influence of Roman legal concepts on the US founding, and their relevance to the modern struggle of constitutional...

This talk, which comes on the heels of Atlas’s latest book, Restoring Quality Health Care, brings clarity to the increasingly complex topic of US health-care policy in the wake of the Affordable Care Act. Atlas cuts through spurious metrics to reveal the pre-Obamacare US health-care system as a world leader in delivering quality care. He goes on to explain what the fiscal and regulatory impacts of Obamcare mean for patients and doctors and how the reforms proposed in his book can reduce...

According to Abbas Milani, crafting cohesive policy to deal with instability and threats in the Middle East requires understanding the ideological, social, and regime-based catalysts of unrest. He explains the return of puritanical Islamist ideology as a reaction to the stagnation of Islamic societies relative to their western counterparts. This trend is not new, but such factors as oil wealth, social media, and communications technology have given it unprecedented strength. Milani stresses...

In this talk, General Mattis applies his extensive national security and policy experience to current US-Iranian diplomacy. He centers his remarks on the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, commonly known as the Iran nuclear agreement, which he views as a serious misstep in US policy. He explains the political and historical context of the deal, analyzes how the Iranian regime is modifying its behavior in response, and how US policy makers can correct course. Although Mattis is measured in...

Yuri Yarim-Agaev offers a methodical approach to the topic, explaining key general characteristics common to authoritarian regimes, including intrinsic opposition to US interests. As a result, according to Yarim-Agaev, regime change is the only viable solution to security threats from rogue actors. He argues that Ronald Reagan’s strategy for fostering peaceful change from within was proven effective during the Cold War and is an equally viable strategy for dealing with contemporary...

Secretary Shultz’s work alongside Ronald Reagan in crafting Cold War strategy and negotiating with Soviet leaders adds a valuable firsthand dimension to the discussion. Shultz outlines President Reagan’s diplomatic “playbook”: execute against your word, be realistic, lay a strong hand, and know your agenda, illustrated with personal stories from his experience in executive office. He also applies these lessons to current US relations with Iran and China, demonstrating a troubling deviation...

Wolf’s remarks center on fostering reform in China, offering a counterpoint to Yarim-Agaev’s focus on regime change and support for internal dissidents. According to Wolf, several avenues for further democratic evolution, political reform, and marketization exist within the People’s Republic of China’s existing institutional framework. He suggests that stimulating further interaction between professional organizations in the United States and their bureaucratic equivalents in the Chinese...

Schake introduces economics to the discussion, describing effectively targeted sanctions as one of the most powerful diplomatic tools available to policy makers. She attributes the Reagan administration’s success in Cold War negotiations to pragmatism, including open lines of communication, recognizing opportunities for advancing the US agenda, building partnerships in the international community, and supporting ideological allies within rogue states. She also emphasizes the United States’...

According to McFaul, some—but not all—of the lessons from Reagan’s Cold War diplomacy are applicable today, although, even under identical circumstances, the same strategy may not produce the same results. Applying this equivocal perspective to current issues in international relations, McFaul’s remarks give an informative overview of the challenging landscape faced by diplomats and strategists.

Sofaer argues that Reagan’s Cold War strategy offers important lessons for contemporary US policy toward Iran, despite Reagan’s failure to apply those lessons in his own negotiations with the Iranian regime. Recounting five principles from Reagan and Shultz’s diplomatic work with the Soviet Union, Sofaer shows how parties opposite the table can be effectively engaged without losing focus on the US agenda.

Milani focuses on Iran but paints a more complex picture of a state divided, with movements toward reform and international engagement clashing against authoritarian elements within the government. Stressing understanding a regime as a crucial prerequisite to effective strategy, Milani calls for targeted US policy toward Iran that bolsters movements for change and undermines support for the status quo.

Deterrence is a clear display of overwhelming military strength, and the real probability of being willing to use it, so it reminds would-be aggressors not to start stupid conflicts — given that the possibility of winning something through war is overshadowed by the risk of losing far more. A world where everyone knows the unspoken rules as well as the moral and material relative strength and weakness of the various nations is a safer place for all involved. To restore the Western-inspired...

Hoover Institution fellow Bill Whalen discusses Iowa Caucus Night and that Iowa kept to form on the Republican side: the “one of us” candidate prevailed. It continues a trend among Iowa Republicans dating back to Bob Dole’s takedown of George H.W. Bush in 1988. Dole was an extension of Iowa – a son of Kansas and defender of ag interests. The last three Republican winners – George W. Bush, Mike Huckabee all made their personal faith a larger part of their campaign narratives – a huge plus in a...