Bonjour! Here’s your PolicySphere morning briefing! If you were forwarded this, here’s more about who we are and what we’re doing and, of course, don’t forget to sign up and tell your friends.
Lots of new content on PolicySphere these past few days: our analysis of the Antisemitism Awareness Act, which recently passed the House on a bipartisan basis, and is accused by some on the right of threatening speech (our answer: potentially yes); our interview with Jeremy Carl on his important new book The Unprotected Class; and most recently, our exclusive interview with Mark Krikorian of the Center for Immigration Studies, one of the most substantive interviews you’ll see on this crucial policy issue, as well as our interview with American Action Forum President Douglas Holtz-Eakin, on the budget, drug pricing, and more..
Now on to your policy links…
#Entitlements – The Social Security Trustees’ 2024 Report is out, and so is the CRFB’s analysis of that report. Short version: the situation is dire.
#FamilyPolicy – U.S. fertility rates have fallen to to 1.617 births per woman, the lowest level in a century, per CNN and the CDC.
#DEI – Boy Scouts of America has become “Scouting America” and has become gender-inclusive. This negates a good chunk of the value of having children engage in scouting, a great character-building tradition. Things like this don’t happen in a policy vacuum, they are encouraged by DEI laws.
#Chyna – Important report from CPA, a US-based manufacturers’ group, which “provides analytic evidence that BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager, and MSCI, the world’s foremost index provider, are investing in Chinese military companies and companies sanctioned by the U.S. government for their involvement in Beijing’s ongoing use of forced labor and genocide against the Uyghurs. CPA’s report shows that BlackRock’s offshore funds have about $130 million invested across 14 Chinese Military-Industrial Complex companies listed on the Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Shenzhen stock exchanges—equity positions that would be illegal if held in the United States.” Here’s the press release and here’s the report.
#Chyna #TikTok – TikTok predictably filed a lawsuit against the divestment law. Digital Progress Institute’s Joel Thayer has a good response on the merits.
#Immigration – Every single Democrat in the House voted against adding a citizenship question to the Census. (Link) The practical effect is that illegal immigrants will count in the Census for purposes of Congressional Districting. This will certainly allay “Great Replacement” theorizing…
Chart of the Day
Via CRFB: Social Security’s huge and growing shortfall.
Meme of the Day
