Next Round

The new Pacific Research Institute book A Kite in a Hurricane No More profiles the challenges and ultimate triumph of Mia Giordano, a young woman with serious learning disabilities. As we observe National School Choice Week 2021, this podcast features Mia along with Lance Izumi, senior director of PRI’s Center for Education; Mia’s mother, Christine Zanello; and Barbara Arrowsmith, founder of the Arrowsmith Program that helped Mia succeed. Learn what policy changes would ensure every American child has the same choices that Mia has had.

PRI former speechwriters offer their perspective on President Biden’s inaugural speech.  Lance Izumi was speechwriter to Attorney General Edwin Meese and Gov. Deukmejian and is now PRI’s senior director of education studies,  Tim Anaya was speechwriter to Gov. Schwarzenegger and other California lawmakers and now PRI senior director of communications, and Rowena Itchon was a speechwriter to Gov. Wilson and a research assistant in Pres. Reagan’s speechwriting office, and now senior vice president at PRI.

Michael Thom, professor at USC’s Sol Price School of Public Policy, discusses his new book Taxing Sin.  Prof. Thom reviews the history of sin taxes, which goes back for hundreds of years, and the traditional sin taxes, such as alcohol and tobacco taxes.  He also discusses new 21st century sin taxes – soda, plastic bags, and marijuana. Tim Anaya also provides highlights from Governor Newsom’s proposed 2021 budget.

Listen to PRI’s recent webinar featuring an all-star panel of experts representing legal, regulatory, and policy industries discussing state and federal changes to data privacy and cybersecurity during 2020 and what the future holds for tech, digital privacy, and cybersecurity in 2021.

Dr. Leslie Lenkowsky, an expert on philanthropy and public affairs, offers his insights into American civil society’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic and what increased restrictions on personal freedom mean for our democracy.  Dr. Lenkowsky is a professor at the Paul H. O’Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs at Indiana University and a member of the philanthropic studies faculty of the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy.

Steve Moore, a member of President Trump’s economic task force, discusses the domestic policy implications from the 2020 election with moderator PRI senior fellow Steve Hayward. Steve Moore offer his insights into what lies ahead for our nation amid the ongoing pandemic, civil unrest, and increasing political divide.

Lance Izumi, senior director of PRI’s Center for Education, joins us to discuss his new book, which profiles the journey of Mia Giordano, who overcame learning disabilities through science and school choice.  He discusses the promise show by advanced brain research in helping students with learning disabilities to overcome them, how Mia was able to undergo a “life-changing metamorphosis” thanks to school choice, and what policy reforms should be enacted to give every student the choices Mia had to enroll in alternative learning programs and secure a bright future.

Dr. Henry Miller, PRI senior fellow in health care studies and former founding director of the FDA’s Office of Biotechnology, joins us with an update on efforts to develop vaccines and therapeutics to fight Covid-19.  He discusses how a transition between two presidential administrations will affect the work of the federal government in fighting Covid-19, whether a national mask mandate is a good idea, whether Governors like Gavin Newsom should initiate state-level reviews of potential vaccines, and what can be done to respond to the recent surges in the coronavirus.

PRI Chairman of the Board Clark Judge returns to discuss the lessons learned from Election 2020.  He shares his thoughts on where the conservative movement stands today after four years of President Trump, offers advice to conservatives, President Trump and President-Elect Biden on the road ahead, and provides a behind-the-scenes look at what happens in Washington during a presidential transition.

This week, PRI’s Evan Harris interviews R Street Institute’s Steven Greenhut about his newly-published PRI book, Winning the Water Wars. In the book, Greenhut makes the case that California can end its decades-long water wars and meet the state’s water needs by promoting abundance rather than managing scarcity.