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Feb 13
2 min

New Research: White Evangelical Christians Have Widely Embraced Trump's Conspiracy Theories

No demographic group in America has aligned itself more closely to Donald Trump than white evangelical Christians, who make up about 20-25% of the electorate and a big chunk of the Republican "base." 75% of them supported Trump in November, down a bit from 2016, but not by much. We have joined many other commentators in noting that it's an odd relationship considering the former President's rather sorted history, but no revelations about his past marital indiscretions, proof

Feb 12
2 min

New Research; More Crimes Go Unreported in Cities that Cooperate With ICE

Police officials and researchers have known for some time that many individuals in the Hispanic community are reluctant to contact police about crimes they have witnessed or suffered if the city has a policy of cooperating with Immigration and Customs Enforcement [ICE]. That's why many city officials have elected to become "sanctuary cities" which don't automatically detain undocumented individuals so they can be turned over to ICE. They believe that a "sanctuary" policy incr

Feb 2
2 min

New Research Finds that Minimum Wage Hikes Don't Negatively Impact the Job Market

Conservative opposition to a minimum wage increase is based, they say, on its negative impact on the job market. They argue that companies will hire fewer workers if they have to pay them more. While there is some logic to that argument, economists understand that there is a countervailing effect which tends to increase employment. When workers are paid more they purchase more, creating greater demand for goods and services in the economy. Greater demand increases pressure on

Jan 29
1 min

Research: Prescription Drug Prices are 2.56 Times Higher in the United States

The prestigious Rand Corporation released a study this week comparing prescription drug prices in the United States to other nations. On average Americans pay more, lots more. They found that we pay 2.56 times more than patients in other nations. The gap was especially high for brand-name [non-generic] drugs. Rand: "Prices in the United States are higher than those in all comparison countries U.S. prices were 256 percent of those in the 32 comparison countries combined. In co

Jan 22
2 min

Research: The Covid Baby Bust Worsens Falling Fertility Rate in the United States

At the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, some researchers thought the lock-downs and perhaps general boredom might lead to a baby boom in the United States. Others believed that economic anxiety resulting from layoffs would result in fewer pregnancies. It turns out that the latter group was correct. America is experiencing a Covid baby bust, exacerbating America's already decreasing birth rate. It's still a bit early to tell how much the pandemic will depress births, but a

Jan 15
2 min

New Research on How Our Political Beliefs are Shaped by Party Leaders

Political scientists have long realized that there is a substantial "team effect" in politics, meaning that political party leaders have the power to shape the beliefs of their voters, even to dramatically alter their opinions. The theory is that many voters will change their views on specific issues to stay aligned with their party's message and remain part of the "team." For instance, in the United States many researchers have been surprised by how easily Donald Trump alter

Dec 22, 2020
1 min

New Study Shows that Better Prisons & Inmate Rehabilitation Reduces Recidivism Rate

Criminal justice experts have been debating the value of prison rehabilitation programs for decades. The debate centers on whether job training programs and education initiatives reduce recidivism rates and are worth the public expense. America largely abandoned rehabilitation in the 1980s because of the costs, but as a result we have one of the highest recidivism rates in he world. New research conducted by Santiago Tobon in Columbia and published this week in MIT's Review o

Dec 20, 2020
11 min

The History of Taxation & Tax Policy in America

Taxes have been around since the beginning of recorded history. The earliest known tax was implemented in the ancient city-state of Lagash in what is now Iraq about 6000 BC. In ancient Egypt residents paid their taxes with grain and livestock. Taxes are a natural consequence of complex social structures with the need for roads, bridges, water & sewage systems, police, social services, and a military to keep the people safe from neighboring communities. Taxation is the price w

Dec 18, 2020
2 min

New Study Shows that White Evangelicals are the Least Likely to Wear Masks in Public Places

A new Study by the Public Religion Research Institute shows that White Evangelical Protestants are much more likely than other religious groups to believe that shutdowns, mask mandates, and other steps taken by state and local governments during the pandemic are "unreasonable attempts to control people." Thankfully, it's not a majority, but about 40% of Evangelicals feel that way compared to about 19-25% within other religious groups and among religiously unaffiliated America

Dec 17, 2020
3 min

New Study: 50 Years of "Trickle Down" Tax Cuts Didn't Help Workers & Made Inequality Worse

"Trickle Down Economics" is the basis of modern conservative economic theory. Since the presidency of Ronald Reagan, adherents have argued that if you give tax breaks to businesses and the rich, the benefits will eventually trickle down to everyone else. It's been the underlying rationale for decades of tax cuts that have enriched America's wealthiest individuals. The problem is that it doesn't work; it's as effective as the latest diet regimen you saw on television. Trickle-

Dec 3, 2020
2 min

New Study; Gov. Statistics Show that "Sanctuary City" Policies Don't Increase Crime Rates

Despite the rhetoric of the Trump administration and right-wing news outlets, sanctuary cities don't have higher crime rates because of policies that limit cooperation with Immigration and Customs Enforcement [ICE]. A new study by David Hausman of Stanford University, based on data collected by ICE and the FBI, confirms many earlier studies that show no uptick in violent or property crimes in cities that have adopted sanctuary city policies. Moreover, such policies reduced de

Nov 30, 2020
2 min

New Study Finds that Political Partisanship Impacts Every Corner of Our Lives Including Thanksgiving

Researchers have determined that the Culture Wars are increasingly impacting our relationships with friends, family and co-workers. PLOS.org: The United States is in the midst of a Culture War. The majority of politically engaged citizens report that they feel afraid of and anger toward members of the other party. This interpartisan animosity appears to be a growing phenomenon; the percentage of partisans who reported “very unfavorable” views of the other side more than doubl

Nov 11, 2020
8 min

Why America Needs More Immigrants, Not Less

President-elect Joe Biden is going to have his hands full in convincing Congress to pass immigration reform legislation. Over the last decade Republicans developed an aversion to immigration, both legal and illegal. They defeated comprehensive immigration reform during both the Bush and Obama administrations and refuse to offer a pathway to citizenship for the 10.5 million or so undocumented immigrants living and working in the US, or the 700,000 individuals who were brought

Nov 11, 2020
7 min

The History of Immigration in America

There has always been something about the “otherness” of immigrants [their skin color, religion, language, culture or beliefs] that has sparked a backlash by some Americans. In 1751, Benjamin Franklin complained about the Germans in Pennsylvania and their reluctance to learn English. Even, the most famous immigrant of the 20th century, Albert Einstein, faced opposition when he sought entry with the anti-immigrant Woman Patriot Corporation arguing that he was “affiliated with

Oct 28, 2020
2 min

Another Study Finds that Undocumented Immigrants Commit Fewer Crimes & Make Communities Safer

Donald Trump kept up his unfortunate and deceitful attack on undocumented immigrants during last week's presidential debate, again implying that they are murderers and rapists rather than individuals and families seeking jobs and better lives. It's the President's signature issue, so don't expect him to change his tune despite a growing mountain of evidence to the contrary. Another study on immigrants and crime was released yesterday in the Journal of Crime and Justice, co-au

Oct 25, 2020
2 min

Changing Voter Demographics are Making Georgia, N. Carolina & Arizona Swing States

It wasn't long ago that Virginia was considered a swing state that often tilted Republican in national contests. George W. Bush won the state twice by fairly large margins even in very close elections. Today, neither Donald Trump nor Joe Biden is actively campaigning in the commonwealth and Biden holds a double digit lead in recent polling. What changed? It's all about voter demographics. Due to an increased number of Asians, Hispanics, and a growing college-educated white po

Oct 15, 2020
1 min

Study Finds that Immigrants are Twice as Likely to Start New Businesses

A new study published this week strengthens the body of research demonstrating the importance of immigration to the US economy. Professor Benjamin Jones of the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University and several colleagues designed a study to determine the contribution of Immigrants to economic growth and job creation. Their findings: Immigrants are quite entrepreneurial. Immigrants are almost twice as likely as native-born Americans to start a new business. B

Sep 16, 2020
2 min

New Study: Trump is Viewed as Both Untrustworthy & Incompetent By Our Allies

One of the few things that people around the world seem to agree on is that Donald Trump is both untrustworthy and incompetent. And, because of that, America's image abroad continues to decline, to the lowest levels ever measured by researchers. The Pew Research organization released a new study this week that found that people in 13 developed nations including Canada, Japan, Australia and the UK view America's coronavirus response as the worst in the world, worse even than C

Sep 3, 2020
1 min

Research: Trump is Wrong on Vote-by-Mail; It Increases Turn-out but Doesn't Favor Either Party

President Trump has suggested that vote-by-mail initiatives being implemented by many states to protect the health of voters will help Democrats more than Republicans and lead to widespread fraud. He and his campaign have sued to stop the practice and recently tried to undermine the US Postal Service to make it difficult for the states to implement such strategies. However, as we have documented before, there is no evidence to support the President's claims about voter fraud

Aug 30, 2020
2 min

Research: Oddly, Most Republicans Say Whites Face as Much Discrimination as Blacks & Hispanics

There are few issues that divide the political parties in America as much as race and new research provides some insight into that chasm. A recent survey conducted by the nonpartisan Public Religion Research Institute [PRRI] found that Republicans are three times as likely as Democrats [62% to 19%] to believe that discrimination against whites is as prevalent as discrimination against Blacks, Hispanics and other minorities. Among Trump supporters the total jumps to 69%. This

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New Research: White Evangelical Christians Have Widely Embraced Trump's Conspiracy Theories

New Research; More Crimes Go Unreported in Cities that Cooperate With ICE

New Research Finds that Minimum Wage Hikes Don't Negatively Impact the Job Market

Research: Prescription Drug Prices are 2.56 Times Higher in the United States

Research: The Covid Baby Bust Worsens Falling Fertility Rate in the United States

New Research on How Our Political Beliefs are Shaped by Party Leaders

New Study Shows that Better Prisons & Inmate Rehabilitation Reduces Recidivism Rate

The History of Taxation & Tax Policy in America

New Study Shows that White Evangelicals are the Least Likely to Wear Masks in Public Places

New Study: 50 Years of "Trickle Down" Tax Cuts Didn't Help Workers & Made Inequality Worse

New Study; Gov. Statistics Show that "Sanctuary City" Policies Don't Increase Crime Rates

New Study Finds that Political Partisanship Impacts Every Corner of Our Lives Including Thanksgiving

Why America Needs More Immigrants, Not Less

The History of Immigration in America

Another Study Finds that Undocumented Immigrants Commit Fewer Crimes & Make Communities Safer

Changing Voter Demographics are Making Georgia, N. Carolina & Arizona Swing States

Study Finds that Immigrants are Twice as Likely to Start New Businesses

New Study: Trump is Viewed as Both Untrustworthy & Incompetent By Our Allies

Research: Trump is Wrong on Vote-by-Mail; It Increases Turn-out but Doesn't Favor Either Party

Research: Oddly, Most Republicans Say Whites Face as Much Discrimination as Blacks & Hispanics

Images of the Week

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