Voting Rules Don’t Matter as Much as You Think

By Julia Baumel — January 20, 2022

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Policy Papers

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Governance

Make Election Day a National Holiday

January 10, 2022

Over a year has passed since the contentious 2020 election, and America is no closer to ending its endless war over voting. Nineteen Republican states have plowed ahead with partisan changes to their own voting and election procedures, while Democrats in Congress continue to push for expansive federal legislation to curb the Republicans’ moves and to advance Democratic voting and election...

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Social Policy

Biden Makes the Right Call on Student Loan Relief

December 22, 2021

In recent days, President Biden has drawn ire from progressive activists for his cautious approach to student loan forgiveness and his plan to end the two-year pause on student loan repayments. Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley went so far as accusing Biden of “policy violence” during a slew of tweets demanding total student debt cancelation. The administration has now extended the repayment...

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National Security

Will Biden mount a SWIFT response to Russian aggression in Ukraine?

December 13, 2021

If President Biden wanted to swing a big stick at President Vladimir Putin to deter him from invading Ukraine, which stick could he use? National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan offered a clue when discussing the recent call between President Biden and his Russian counterpart. Fielding a question about what type of response the Kremlin should expect, Sullivan had this to say: “President Biden...

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National Security

The Situation In Ukraine

December 7, 2021

The U.S. is increasingly concerned about Russia’s buildup of 175,000 troops and military hardware on the Ukrainian border, which the Pentagon calls “unusual in size and scope.” The Russia-Ukraine conflict has been simmering for eight years and with the situation getting hotter, it’s worth taking a deeper dive at the tensions in the region. This excerpt from our January 2021 foreign...

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Governance

Why Biden’s Build Back Better Plan Falls Short

November 18, 2021

Is the reconciliation bill, which can be found here, really a chance for America to Build Back Better, or is it a massive income transfer program to favored Democratic constituency groups? Unfortunately, it appears to be the latter. Since our inception, The New Center has offered several ambitious policy solutions to reckon with climate change, healthcare, education, and other priorities...

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Social Policy

What Do Americans Really Think of Critical Race Theory?

October 26, 2021

Next week Virginia will host a gubernatorial election that many see as a bellwether for the 2022 midterm elections. And of late, Virginia has become ground zero for an emerging national debate over critical race theory (CRT) and the composition of public school curriculums. Previously, The New Center produced a primer explaining CRT in the words of its chief proponents, including the scholar...

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The Big Issues

Climate and Energy

The fight against climate change is a multi-decade challenge, and must be sustained across many presidencies and sessions of Congress. For any solution to stand a chance, it must be forged in the center.

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