Factual Foundations of Policy

US Energy Security: How We Got Here and Where We Are Headed featuring Daniel Yergin

Daniel Yergin examines how American energy innovation reshaped global power dynamics while revealing the uncomfortable realities of an energy transition that pits wealthy nations' climate ambitions against developing countries' urgent need for economic growth.

RELATED SOURCES:

• Read US Energy Security by Daniel Yergin.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: 

• Prefer the podcast version? Subscribe here.

 

What We Know About Teachers and School Choice featuring Paul E. Peterson

Paul Peterson examines how outdated teacher pay systems reward credentials over classroom results, while exploring charter schools' emerging success in urban education. Peterson also analyzes fresh approaches to educator compensation and traces the expansion of school choice despite fierce debates about its impact.

Learn more about the Tennenbaum Program for Fact-Based Policy program. 

Watch Part 1: What We Know About Our Schools and Achievement featuring Paul E. Peterson

RELATED SOURCES:

• Read Introduction: What We Know About Our Schools by Michael J. Boskin.
• Read What We Know About Our Schools by Paul E. Peterson and Nora Gordon. 
• Read key points about teacher quality and compensation in K-12 education.
• Read key points about school choice in K-12 education.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: 

Watch previous episodes of Factual Foundations of Policy on YouTube.

Prefer the podcast version? Subscribe here.

What We Know About Our Schools and Achievement featuring Paul E. Peterson

Paul Peterson upends the narrative about failing American schools by revealing decades of surprising achievement gains. In this episode, he examines why these improvements get overlooked, analyzes how US students really perform globally, and explores what test scores tell us about our educational future.

Learn more about the Tennenbaum Program for Fact-Based Policy program. 

Watch Part 2: What We Know About Teachers and School Choice featuring Paul E. Peterson (available on Wednesday, February 5, 2025). 

RELATED SOURCES:

• Read Introduction: What We Know About Our Schools by Michael J. Boskin.
• Read What We Know About Our Schools by Paul E. Peterson and Nora Gordon. 
• Read key points about achievement in K-12 education.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: 

Watch previous episodes of Factual Foundations of Policy on YouTube.

Prefer the podcast version? Subscribe here.

How Much Do Election Law Changes Affect Voter Turnout? Featuring Justin Grimmer

Do voter ID laws affect turnout? Does no-excuse absentee voting change electoral results? How would you find out? Hoover senior fellow Justin Grimmer goes through the research literature to separate fact from fiction.

 

Read "Evidence vs. Hyperbole: The Relationship between Election Laws and the Health of Democracy” by Justin Grimmer and Eitan Hersh.

 

Read “How Election Rules Affect Who Wins” by Justin Grimmer and Eitan Hersh.

 

Cited Paper: “Do non-citizens vote in U.S. elections?” Richmond, Chattha, and Earnest. Electoral Studies, 2014.

 

Why Can't All States Call Their Results on Election Night? Featuring Ben Ginsberg

Ben Ginsberg provides an overview of how election rules differ state-by-state and discusses mail-in voting, ballot processing rules, and the impact of federalism on election administration.

Listen to Ben Ginsberg's podcast "Saints, Sinners, and Salvageables" here: https://www.hoover.org/saints-sinners-salvageables

Read "Restoring Confidence in American Elections" by Bruce E. Cain and Benjamin Ginsberg (PDF)

All National Conference of State Legislatures tables of election rules here: https://www.ncsl.org/elections-and-campaigns/voting-outside-the-polling-place

Polling on Policy: What do voters know? Want to know? Think others should know?

The Tennenbaum Program for Fact-Based Policy surveyed American voters about their knowledge of the federal budget and social safety net programs. MIchael Boskin discusses survey results from his paper "Policy Knowledge in the Public."