Monday February 13, 2012

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SPOTLIGHT: Retirement


Reuters/Rebecca Cook - General Motors auto worker retiree.

Save to My Portfolio New Regulations Enhance Savers’ Retirement Security

William G. Gale and David C. John, February 08, 2012

William Gale and David John write that Americans who use defined contribution retirement savings plans, such as 401(k) or 403(b) plans, or Individual Retirement Accounts will see their retirement security enhanced by two new regulatory initiatives. Gale and John argue that they will give Americans more flexibility in structuring retirement incomes, while making it easier to avoid some fees. Read More

Retirement, Saving, U.S. Economy

SPOTLIGHT: Health Care


Larry Downing / Reuters- U.S. President Barack Obama talks next to Secretary of HHS Kathleen Sebelius about contraceptive care funding, February 10, 2012

Save to My Portfolio President Obama's Birth Control Solution Balances Religious Freedom and Women’s Health

Melissa Rogers, February 10, 2012

Melissa Rogers writes that President Obama deserves credit for implementing a solution to the controversial contraceptive mandate which honors the rights of religious organizations and women health issues. The revised rule will also help strengthen families and reduce the number of abortions, Rogers argues. Read More

Health Care, U.S. Politics, Social Issues, Public Health, The Presidency

SPOTLIGHT: Manufacturing


Reuters / John Gress - A woman packages socks at a factory in Sheboygan, Wisconsin

Save to My Portfolio The Outsized Benefits of U.S. Manufacturing

Howard Wial and Jonathan Rothwell, February 06, 2012

Howard Wial and Jonathan Rothwell respond to a New York Times opinion piece that questions whether the country’s manufacturing sector needs government support. Wial and Rothwell outline the case for reviving the sector, showing how it disproportionately abets innovation and regional economic clusters. Read More

Manufacturing, U.S. Economic Growth, Competitiveness, Innovation, Job Creation

SPOTLIGHT: Political Campaigns


Larry Downing / Reuters - U.S. President Barack Obama returns from a campaign trip to battleground states to the Oval Office of the White House.

Save to My Portfolio Obama and Super PACs in the 2012 Election

Thomas E. Mann, February 07, 2012

President Obama’s reelection committee announced that the president would no longer discourage supporters from contributing to independent spending only political action committees (super PACs). Thomas Mann examines the reversal, arguing that this change was inevitable due to the current state of politics and the upcoming presidential campaign. Read More

Political Campaigns, Campaign Finance, Elections, U.S. Politics

RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY

Save to My PortfolioHow We’re Doing Amid Policy Gridlock

Karen Dynan, Ted Gayer and Darrell M. West, February 12, 2012, The Brookings Institution and The Washington Post

Ben BernankeIn the 11th "How We're Doing Index," Karen Dynan, Ted Gayer and Darrell West use data from the past five quarters to chart recent economic improvements and discuss the likelihood of policy responses ahead of the election. Due to the current political gridlock in Washington, they argue, non-political actors—particularly the Federal Reserve—will be the primary sources of changes in economic policy. Read More

RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY

Save to My PortfolioGay Marriage Ruling in California is Politically Shrewd

Jonathan Rauch, February 10, 2012, New York Daily News

Gay Marriage Ruling in California is Politically Shrewd

On February 7, the Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals affirmed Federal District Judge Vaughn Walker’s 2010 ruling declaring Proposition 8 – California’s ban on same-sex marriage – unconstitutional.  Jonathan Rauch writes that a closer look at the court’s decision reveals a shrewdly modest approach that should protect the ruling from conservative backlash in an election year.

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RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY

Save to My PortfolioPresident Obama's Birth Control Solution Balances Religious Freedom and Women’s Health

Melissa Rogers, February 10, 2012, The Brookings Institution

President Obama's Birth Control Solution Balances Religious Freedom and Women’s HealthMelissa Rogers writes that President Obama deserves credit for implementing a solution to the controversial contraceptive mandate which honors the rights of religious organizations and women health issues. The revised rule will also help strengthen families and reduce the number of abortions, Rogers argues. Read More

RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY

Save to My PortfolioLow U.S. Saving Rate Coming Home to Roost

Barry P. Bosworth, February 09, 2012

For decades, the low rate of saving has had surprisingly benign effects on both American consumers and the U.S. government, but that all may be in the process of changing, and quickly, according to Barry Bosworth.

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Get immediate updates on the presidential campaign and the big issues facing the next president from Campaign 2012 at Brookings.

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John L. Thornton China CenterPolicy CenterJohn L. Thornton China Center

The John L. Thornton China Center develops analysis and policy recommendations to help address key long-term challenges, both in terms of U.S.-China relations and China's internal development.

Vanda Felbab-BrownExpertVanda Felbab-Brown

Vanda Felbab-Brown focuses on the national security implications of illicit economies and strategies for managing them. She is the author of Shooting Up: Counterinsurgency and the War on Drugs (Brookings Institution Press, 2009).

Alice M. RivlinExpertAlice M. Rivlin

In February 1975, the Congressional Budget Office was established with Alice Rivlin as its first director. Rivlin is an expert on urban issues as well as fiscal, monetary and social policy and directs the Greater Washington Research project at Brookings.

William G. GaleExpertWilliam G. Gale

Bill Gale, the Arjay and Frances Miller Chair in Federal Economic Policy in the Economic Studies Program at Brookings, is an expert on tax policy, fiscal issues, pensions, and saving behavior. He is also co-director of the Tax Policy Center and director of the Retirement Security Project.

Budgeting for National PrioritiesResearch ProjectBudgeting for National Priorities

The Budgeting for National Priorities project promotes greater fiscal responsibility by developing new ideas, educating the public and finding common ground among experts and policy-makers.

State of Metropolitan AmericaMetropolitan Policy ProgramState of Metropolitan America

Foreshadowing 2010 Census results, this new Brookings report and interactive map defines who Americans are—and who they are becoming—in the face of continued growth, population aging and diversification, uneven educational attainment and income polarization.

Darrell M. WestExpertDarrell M. West

Darrell M. West is vice president and director of Governance Studies and founding director of the Center for Technology Innovation at Brookings. His studies include technology policy, electronic government, and mass media.

Energy and ClimateTopicEnergy and Climate

What will it take to mitigate severe climate disruption? What should our priorities be in the relationship between fresh water and climate change? What will it take to help vulnerable countries and regions adapt to change already taking place?

Isabel V. SawhillExpertIsabel V. Sawhill

A nationally known budget expert, Isabel Sawhill focuses on domestic poverty and federal fiscal policy. She is also co-director of the Center on Children and Families and the Budgeting for National Priorities Project at Brookings.

Global ChangeTopicGlobal Change

How do we develop more realistic approaches and more effective means of ending intractable old conflicts and preventing new ones? How do we enhance measures to thwart nonstate actors—especially terrorists and illicit traffickers—and prevent the spread of nuclear weapons?

Growth through InnovationTopicGrowth through Innovation

What new practices and mechanisms will help prevent another economic downturn from turning into a financial panic that could become a truly global meltdown? What changes in the public and private sectors will build the workforce and infrastructure required for a global information-based economy?

Suzanne MaloneyExpertSuzanne Maloney

Suzanne Maloney studies Iran, the political economy of the Persian Gulf and Middle East energy policy. A former U.S. State Department policy advisor, she has also counseled private companies on Middle East issues.

Opportunity and Well-beingTopicOpportunity and Well-being

As they weather the current economic storm, will our governments and societies address the basic needs and aspirations of the least well-off? How can we better use education to raise individual aspirations? How should governments around the world accelerate preparations to provide social services for the billions moving from poverty into the middle class?

Center for Technology InnovationPolicy CenterCenter for Technology Innovation

The Center for Technology Innovation is at the forefront of shaping public debate on technology innovation and developing data-driven scholarship to enhance understanding of technology’s legal, economic, social, and governance ramifications.

Katherine SierraExpertKatherine Sierra

Katherine Sierra is a senior fellow in the Global Economy and Development program. A former vice president for sustainable development at the World Bank, she focuses on climate change and energy.

Robert KaganExpertRobert Kagan

Robert Kagan is an expert and frequent commentator on Egypt, the Middle East, U.S. national security, and U.S.-European relations. He writes a monthly column on world affairs for the Washington Post and is a contributing editor at the Weekly Standard and the New Republic.

Center on Children and FamiliesPolicy CenterCenter on Children and Families

The Center on Children and Families studies policies on the well-being of America's children and their parents and seeks a more effective means of addressing poverty, inequality and lack of opportunity in the United States.

Daniel KaufmannExpertDaniel Kaufmann

Daniel Kaufmann was previously the director at the World Bank Institute, leading the work on governance and anti-corruption. His areas of expertise are public sector and regulatory reform, development, governance and anti-corruption.

Mwangi S. KimenyiExpertMwangi S. Kimenyi

Mwangi S. Kimenyi is senior fellow and director of the Africa Growth Initiative. The founding executive director of the Kenya Institute for Public Policy Research and Analysis (1999-2005), he focuses on Africa's development including institutions for economic growth, political economy, and private sector development.

Africa Growth InitiativeResearch ProjectAfrica Growth Initiative

The Africa Growth Initiative conducts high-quality policy research and analysis focused on attaining sustainable economic development and prosperity in Africa, while amplifying the voice of African researchers in policy-making and planning.

Donald KohnExpertDonald Kohn

Donald Kohn is a 40-year veteran of the Federal Reserve System and served as vice chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve from 2006 to 2010. He was recently appointed by the government of the United Kingdom and the Bank of England to serve on its interim Financial Policy Committee. Kohn focuses on issues of monetary policy, financial regulation and macroeconomics.

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Shadi HamidExpertShadi Hamid

Shadi Hamid focuses on Islamist political parties and democratic reform in the Middle East. Prior to joining Brookings, he was Director of Research at the Project on Middle East Democracy (POMED) and a Hewlett Fellow at Stanford University’s Center on Democracy, Development, and the Rule of Law.