In this conversation, Arthur Brooks, president of the American Enterprise Institute, offers an inside account of the work of AEI and reflects on the changing role of think tanks today. He also recounts his own intellectual path which took him from a career as a professional French horn player to the academy and now to the presidency of AEI. Finally, Kristol and Brooks discuss how to challenge the intellectual complacency on college campuses and consider the state of conservative ideas and politics in America today.