Blog
Blog
How 2020 Was Good and Bad for California Governor Gavin Newsom
In the wild year that was 2020, many political stars rose and fell. None may have gone on quite the roller coaster ride than California Governor Newsom. Since each month of last year felt like a lifetime, I thought I’d review some of the good and bad moments from Newsom’s ...
Blog
At The Intersection Of Lockdown Business Destruction And A Minimum-Wage Hike
Way back in August, in what seems like an entirely different historical era, when California was open relative to the restrictions we’re under today, 44% of small business owners said they were at risk of permanent closure in the next six months, unless they received additional stimulus funding. Six percent ...
Blog
Get Ready for Redistricting Dominoes to Fall
With the beginning of the new year, work now begins on the drawing of California’s new legislative and congressional lines. Several years back, voters enacted a ballot measure to give the power to draw district lines to an independent citizen’s commission. They will produce final maps by fall 2021, which ...
Blog
New Year, New Laws
It’s been a tough year, and we hope that Californians can get back on their feet in 2021. Unfortunately, many of the new laws that took effect on January 1 won’t be helping. To borrow from Kermit the frog — it’s not easy being Blue. I’ve picked out a few ...
Blog
2020’s Winners and Losers
Recently, the PRI All Stars (Rowena Itchon, Ben Smithwick, Lance Izumi, Evan Harris and Tim Anaya) got together to hand out their annual 2020 year end awards on PRI’s “Next Round” podcast. Below are their choices for the biggest winners and losers of 2020. To hear their other award winners, ...
Blog
The NCAA Goes to Washington
In mid-December, the U.S. Supreme Court signaled their intent to wade into the student athlete compensation debate. The Supreme Court combined two cases, National Collegiate Athletic Association v. Alston and American Athletic Conference v. Alston, and plans to hear oral arguments this spring. The NCAA, Congress and state legislatures have ...
Blog
What’s Up with the New “California Driver Benefits Fee”?
Uber customers might have noticed a new fee that’s appearing on their charges. Now, who do we have to thank for that? Oh, yes, the lawmakers who tried to destroy the gig economy and its millions of jobs. Uber added a “California Driver Benefits Fee” to its charges on Dec. ...
Blog
PRI Advances Free Market Policy Victories in Challenging, Turbulent Year
This year has been a challenging one for our nation – and a particularly turbulent time in PRI’s home state of California. 2020 ushered in weeks of rioting and protesting, devastating wildfires, pandemic restrictions and draconian lockdowns, a worsening homelessness crisis, and unaccountable social services. We saw a continued exodus ...
Blog
We Need More Educational Choice Options for Special Needs Children
With the education world in flux because of the COVID pandemic, it is time to push for the broadest range of education options possible for all children, including those with special needs. My new book A Kite in a Hurricane No More, which I co-authored with Mia Giordano, tells the ...
Blog
Populist Politicians Meet Antitrust Cancel Culture
The ill-winds of populism are again blowing across the American political landscape. This thin veneer of ideology only seeks to divide people, diving a wedge between “the people,” presented as the forces of good, against “the elite,” portrayed as evil. The most recent iteration of this divisive approach to politics ...
How 2020 Was Good and Bad for California Governor Gavin Newsom
In the wild year that was 2020, many political stars rose and fell. None may have gone on quite the roller coaster ride than California Governor Newsom. Since each month of last year felt like a lifetime, I thought I’d review some of the good and bad moments from Newsom’s ...
At The Intersection Of Lockdown Business Destruction And A Minimum-Wage Hike
Way back in August, in what seems like an entirely different historical era, when California was open relative to the restrictions we’re under today, 44% of small business owners said they were at risk of permanent closure in the next six months, unless they received additional stimulus funding. Six percent ...
Get Ready for Redistricting Dominoes to Fall
With the beginning of the new year, work now begins on the drawing of California’s new legislative and congressional lines. Several years back, voters enacted a ballot measure to give the power to draw district lines to an independent citizen’s commission. They will produce final maps by fall 2021, which ...
New Year, New Laws
It’s been a tough year, and we hope that Californians can get back on their feet in 2021. Unfortunately, many of the new laws that took effect on January 1 won’t be helping. To borrow from Kermit the frog — it’s not easy being Blue. I’ve picked out a few ...
2020’s Winners and Losers
Recently, the PRI All Stars (Rowena Itchon, Ben Smithwick, Lance Izumi, Evan Harris and Tim Anaya) got together to hand out their annual 2020 year end awards on PRI’s “Next Round” podcast. Below are their choices for the biggest winners and losers of 2020. To hear their other award winners, ...
The NCAA Goes to Washington
In mid-December, the U.S. Supreme Court signaled their intent to wade into the student athlete compensation debate. The Supreme Court combined two cases, National Collegiate Athletic Association v. Alston and American Athletic Conference v. Alston, and plans to hear oral arguments this spring. The NCAA, Congress and state legislatures have ...
What’s Up with the New “California Driver Benefits Fee”?
Uber customers might have noticed a new fee that’s appearing on their charges. Now, who do we have to thank for that? Oh, yes, the lawmakers who tried to destroy the gig economy and its millions of jobs. Uber added a “California Driver Benefits Fee” to its charges on Dec. ...
PRI Advances Free Market Policy Victories in Challenging, Turbulent Year
This year has been a challenging one for our nation – and a particularly turbulent time in PRI’s home state of California. 2020 ushered in weeks of rioting and protesting, devastating wildfires, pandemic restrictions and draconian lockdowns, a worsening homelessness crisis, and unaccountable social services. We saw a continued exodus ...
We Need More Educational Choice Options for Special Needs Children
With the education world in flux because of the COVID pandemic, it is time to push for the broadest range of education options possible for all children, including those with special needs. My new book A Kite in a Hurricane No More, which I co-authored with Mia Giordano, tells the ...
Populist Politicians Meet Antitrust Cancel Culture
The ill-winds of populism are again blowing across the American political landscape. This thin veneer of ideology only seeks to divide people, diving a wedge between “the people,” presented as the forces of good, against “the elite,” portrayed as evil. The most recent iteration of this divisive approach to politics ...
