Niskanen Center

The Niskanen Center aims to promote an open society by actively participating in the exchange of ideas, getting involved in the policymaking process, and using the courts for support through amicus briefs and pro bono legal assistance. We create policy suggestions, rally other organizations to back these proposals, and advocate for our ideas with lawmakers and executives. We work to build both short-term and long-term partnerships for collaborative efforts, foster solid relationships with supportive legislative and executive members, and present the strongest arguments and data to back our initiatives.

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Exploring the secrets of political charisma, with Molly Worthen

1 week ago | niskanencenter.org | Geoff Kabaservice

We all have an opinion about charismatic leaders — but do we really know what “charisma” means? Molly Worthen, in her new book Spellbound: How Charisma Shaped American History from the Puritans to Donald Trump, points out that charismatic leaders historically haven’t always been distinguished for their charm or compelling oratory.
The backstory for presidential power grabs

1 week ago | niskanencenter.org | Matt Grossmann

President Trump is claiming power over independent agencies and trying to redirect the administrative state, saying he is its unitary executive. But this is not the first time presidents have invoked broad authority. John Dearborn finds that President Reagan sought to gain power over civil rights agencies, saying they had gone too far in promoting affirmative action, restricting their activity and disciplining their leadership.
Can liberals stop Trump in the courts?

3 weeks ago | niskanencenter.org | Matt Grossmann

Donald Trump’s expansive executive action has been met with a flurry of court action, as Democratic officials and liberal interest groups challenge each action—with a lot of early success. Can liberals succeed in limiting Trump through the courts or are American courts an inevitably conservative institution? Paul Nolette finds that Democratic Attorneys General have banded together to fight Trump, building on successful action last time.
How the 1st term trade war hurt Trump

1 month ago | niskanencenter.org | Matt Grossmann

Donald Trump has now unilaterally imposed huge global tariffs, upending the world economy. But we did get a preview of Trump’s trade approach in his first term, allowing researchers to analyze the political consequences. Thiemo Fetzer finds that China, the EU, Canada, and Mexico reacted to the first term tariffs strategically, trying to hurt Trump’s constituents.
Chaos, confusion, and uncertainty: Legal immigration under the Trump administration - Niskanen Center

1 month ago | niskanencenter.org | Cecilia Esterline

Trump campaigned on promises to stop illegal immigration and deport millions of undocumented immigrants. But within just three months, his administration has also introduced sweeping changes that disrupt the legal immigration system.
The old, weird history of libertarianism, with Matt Zwolinski

1 month ago | niskanencenter.org | Geoff Kabaservice

When U.S. President Donald Trump announced the imposition of his “Liberation Day” tariffs against most of America’s global trading partners in April 2025, he seemed to harken back to a centuries-old form of economic nationalism known as mercantilism, which sought prosperity through restrictive trade practices. Opponents of mercantilism from the eighteenth century onward, such as Adam Smith and John-Baptiste Say, became known as classical liberals.
Is Trump redirecting or deconstructing the administrative state?

1 month ago | niskanencenter.org | Matt Grossmann

The 2nd Trump administration has begun tearing down the administrative state, firing thousands, cancelling contracts, and shuttering agencies. But they have also used the power of the state to ramp up summary deportations, crack down on universities, and threaten prosecutions of their political opponents. So is this the culmination of Republican efforts to scale back government or a sign that they just want to redirect its goals?
Risks from a wounded president

1 month ago | niskanencenter.org | Damon Linker

This commentary originally appeared in “Notes from the Middleground” Every week since January 20, 2025 has felt like it’s been jam-packed with news, as Donald Trump and his team have acted on multiple fronts to seize unprecedented powers, attack the president’s myriad enemies, fundamentally shift the country’s geopolitical orientation, and establish a much harsher and more personalistic form of rule. But with the “Liberation Day” announcement on last Wednesday afternoon, something shifted.
Understanding the diploma divide, with Matt Grossmann and Dave Hopkins

2 months ago | niskanencenter.org | Geoff Kabaservice

The most important U.S. political trend of the 21st century, according to most observers, is the increasing tendency of college-educated voters to support the Democratic Party and for non-college-educated voters to support the Republican Party. In many ways, the two parties have swapped their historic bases. When John F. Kennedy won the presidency in 1960, Democrats still considered themselves to be a working-class party.
Are the parties too focused on policy programs?

2 months ago | niskanencenter.org | Matt Grossmann

We have the parties that we said we wanted: they compete over extensive policy programs, with voters making decisions among clear issue position alternatives. But how did they get here and have they now gone too far? Katherine Krimmel finds that the American parties became extensively programmatic as they lost vestiges of clientelism and became national parties after federal growth and civil rights. But Trump may be changing the nature of the party system.