Issue #19, Winter 2011
First Principles: The Role of Government
Government, its scope and role, was at the center of the recent election campaign, and voters unequivocally said “enough.” But progressives aren’t going to give up on government because of one election. A strong role for the federal government as incubator, nurturer, and watchdog is central to the progressive vision of society.
- Rick Perlstein: Enemies of State
- Alan Wolfe: Why Conservatives Won’t Govern
- Eric Liu and Nick Hanauer: The “More What, Less How” Government
America 2021: Jobs & the Economy
In 2021, we will still bear scars from the Great Recession. But will America be a mighty economy again? What key investments are needed to ensure our growth and prosperity? Five experts take the long view.
The 10 Percent Solution
How progressives can stop worrying and love a value-added tax.
The Science Wars Redux
Fifteen years after the Sokal Hoax, attacks on “objective knowledge” that were once the province of the left have been taken up by the right.
Utopia Lost
Human rights as utopian politics may have failed us, but human rights as catastrophe prevention is the least we must insist on.
After Hegemony
America is no longer the world’s only pivotal power. Americans are adjusting—but can their leaders?
The Philosopher President
Two years into Barack Obama’s presidency, we can’t doubt his intelligence, but we can wonder whether there are more important qualities.
Apocalypse Then, and Now
Two historians trace our economic mess and growing inequality to that dismal decade—the 1970s
God and Country
Despite increasing religious polarization, there is surprisingly little religious hostility in America. So why doesn’t it feel that way?
Editor’s Note
Michael Tomasky introduces Issue #19.
Amend and Improve, 2016
The key to improving health-care reform lies outside Washington. A response to Jacob S. Hacker.
Letters to the Editor
Letters from our readers
Moral Witness Through Comedy
Imagining the hastening of the day when Arab Americans are just another unsuspected and unsurprising part of American culture.