Moynihan: "State capacity” is hard to define and measure, and is perhaps seen as boring, but capacity is the hidden glue that holds public policy together, or, when debased, causes public policy to fall apart. If you care about the quality of...
Dean Watkins-Hayes, at the Congressional Breakfast in DC, with Michigan in Washington undergraduates Ajay Morelli, Malinda Brunk, Rachel Ellisen, and Isaac Davis, and Riecker Fellow Hope Wang (MPP...
Christina Weiland, co-director of the Education Policy Initiative and professor at the Ford School, delivered her inaugural lecture as the Karl and Martha Kohn Professor of Social Policy. Weiland, who is also a professor at the Marsal Family School...
"Whether by purchasing equipment, hiring contractors or training early career researchers, universities are a source of everyday economic and social benefits to communities in every congressional district in the country," said Jason Owen-Smith, from...
Through an executive order, President Trump intends to reclassify hundreds of thousands of federal civil servants' job titles as "schedule policy/career" positions. Don Moynihan from the Ford School told Reuters,"By deeming anyone involved in...
As low-cost sources of renewable energy transform the U.S. electricity grid, the transmission grid is increasingly strained. New solar and wind generation resources are not built in areas of high demand. Better geographic integration would result in...
Seeking insight on climate and energy policy, Thumbwind interviewed Dr. Jennifer Haverkamp, from the Ford School, to ask about recent support for clean energy initiatives. “This isn’t just about climate anymore,” said Dr. Haverkamp. She added that...
“I genuinely have never been this concerned about the ability of that agency [Social Security Administration] to function,” said Pamela Herd, professor at the Ford School, in an interview cited by FactCheck.org. “Yes, I think people are right to be...
Ford School professor Justin Wolfers explained to the New York Times why the bon market sell-off is so problematic, he said, “People feel nervous about lending us money,” and more than that, “They are saying, ‘We’ve lost our faith in America and the...
Ford School professor Pamela Herd explained how Trump's agenda of using AI and making cuts to federal staff will damage Social Security. She said, “We’re talking about an agency that manages one-fifth of the federal budget—AI alone won’t cut it.” By...
Jason Owen-Smith, Ford School professor (by courtesy) and director of Institute for Research on Innovation and Science, in a piece for The Chronicle of Higher Education, explained the illogic of cutting indirect-cost (IDC) rates. Owen-Smith wrote,...
Don Moynihan, Ford School professor, said “Money is a an aggressive growing tumor at the heart of American democracy. The 2023 Wisconsin state supreme court race cost $56 million, a national record at the time. The 2025 version blasted that out of...
Empowered bureaucrats can make decisions that will lead to better and more efficient service for citizens, according to Dan Honig, author of “Mission Driven Bureaucrats: Empowering People To Help Government Do Better.” In a Policy Talk at the Ford...
“Executive orders can't overrule statutes, so that’s a mystery legally,” according to Michigan Law Professor Margo Schlanger. She was addressing the legal and rhetorical attacks the Trump administration has made against birthright citizenship....
Javed Ali, Ford School professor, discussed with USA Today the signal groupchat that was publicly released. He said, "you certainly don't want those details being revealed in any kind of public form because you are putting the force at risk." More...
States have varying approaches to boosting government efficiency. Route 50 turned to the Ford School's Don Moynihan to analyze Pennsylvania's method of increasing efficiency after they recognized their state's processing systems fell behind other...
In a recent article from TIME Magazine, the Ford School's Pamela Herd was quoted as an expert on public policy as the network searched for an explanation on delayed Social Security benefits. Herd stated, "People are waiting for hours to get through...
The Trump administration appears particularly focused on “the president having absolute power and control over where money goes regardless of laws on impoundment or statutes on agencies... It’s a consolidation of power in the name of efficiency,"...
“Civility is the bedrock of our free and democratic society,” Tonya Schuitmaker, a former Republican member of the Michigan Senate, told the recent panel on Promoting Civic Discourse - Democratic and Republican politicians on bridging the political...
Current government operations under the Trump administration are pointing to signs of democratic backsliding. The Ford School's Don Moynihan has stated that Americans have put too much faith in the law. Quoted in an article from the Financial Times,...
"The air is thick with recession talk, and stocks are cratering. But it just may be a mirage, a refraction of partisan distortions" wrote Ford School professor, Justin Wolfers, in a recent guest essay for The New York Times."It started with a...
The Ford School's Jeff Morenoff advocated for legislation that would reduce long sentences for incarcerated people in Michigan. In an opinion piece published in the Detroit Free Press, Morenoff explained that Michigan's average prison sentence...
The Ford School's Don Moynihan spoke with The Daily Beast and commented on the removal of government history from various agency websites, specifically targeting topics involving DEI or POC and members of the LGBTQIA+ community. "It's this sort of...
Following the recent executive order designed to dismantle the Department of Education, the Ford School's Kevin Stange spoke with Bridge Michigan about what this means for education research. Strange shared that his biggest concern is the fate of...
"We are living through a massive assault on basic premises of our constitutional system" said Ford School Professor Samuel Bagenstos, in a question-and-answer article for The New Yorker magazine. He said, "I really hate the significance that’s being...
The Baltimore Banner spoke to the Ford School's Catherine Hausman asking for her predictions on the future of nuclear energy. The article noted that a recent study concluded the U.S. would have to increase nuclear output by nearly five-fold to meet...
Pam Herd, Ford School professor, talked about the Trump administration's strategies to cut the government work force, saying "It's the move fast and break things approach, without really thinking through the implications of a range of different...
Technology writer and podcaster Kara Swisher will join the Ford School for the Fall 2025 semester as a Harry A. and Margaret D. Towsley Foundation Policymaker in...
Shobita Parthasarathy, Ford School professor, says "These workers have real expertise and a nuanced understanding of the issues, which AI does not. AI does not, in fact, ‘understand’ anything." So, she says, “It’s a very bad idea" to use AI to run...
