The attempted assassination of Donald Trump, a despicable and indefensible act that came within a whisker of success, should shock the conscience of a seething nation. It should prompt sober reflection, deep introspection, and prayer.
All by John Hood
John Hood: On Schools and Sports, Follow Evidence
RALEIGH — Having spent most of my career commissioning, editing, or writing about public policy research, I understand its inherent limitations. Still, I cling to a belief, however naïve it may be, that careful study of complex problems can produce at least some clear answers that most policymakers will accept.
John Hood: We Need More Hospital Competition
RALEIGH — North Carolina’s hospital sector has undergone lots of mergers and acquisitions over the past decade. Now the pace of change is, if anything, accelerating.
John Hood: Citizens Should Clarify Voting Rights
RALEIGH — North Carolina voters will be asked this fall to remove a troubling ambiguity in the state constitution. An overwhelming, bipartisan majority of state legislators — 40 of 50 senators, 104 of 120 representatives — voted to place the amendment on the ballot.
John Hood: Carolina Dispute Helped Provoke Revolution
RALEIGH — As we once again celebrate our country’s birthday, might I suggest we spare a moment to consider our state’s role in the dramatic story of American independence?
John Hood: Our Economy Is Always Churning
RALEIGH — North Carolina’s private sector lost an eye-popping 414,000 jobs in the most-recent quarter tracked by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Are we on the brink of economic cataclysm? Should you buy gold and head for the hills?
John Hood: Freedom has multiple definitions
What does it mean to be free? Many seemingly intractable disputes about specific issues — ranging from welfare spending and school choice to abortion and alcohol policy — originate from the fact that people don’t answer this question in the same way. It’s hard to have a useful political conversation without a common political language.
John Hood: GOP Still Ahead on Key Issues
RALEIGH — A little over a year ago, I penned a column using polling data to explore why North Carolinians appeared to favor Republicans over Democrats in generic-ballot tests.
“No, it isn’t just because of unfair redistricting,” I wrote. “Nor is it a lack of resources. North Carolina Democrats have raised and spent lots of money on races they still ended up losing. What I mean is that, on many of the public’s top concerns, Democrats lack credibility with the swing voters they need to prevail.”
John Hood: GOP still ahead on key issues
RALEIGH — A little over a year ago, I penned a column using polling data to explore why North Carolinians appeared to favor Republicans over Democrats in generic-ballot tests.
John Hood: Science of Reading Bears Fruit
Over the past two years, North Carolina had made critical investments in the future of our state.
John Hood: Don't be misled by averages
Mark Maye and I made an excellent team back in the day. That “day,” I should add, was actually a few weeks in 1977. I was eleven. Mark was a bit older. He and I played together on a basketball team in Charlotte. We won every game. To be more precise, we dominated every game. There’s a reason my dresser subsequently featured a shiny basketball trophy.
John Hood: Ticket-Splitters Could Prove Decisive
RALEIGH — Donald Trump will likely win North Carolina’s 16 electoral votes this year. Our state is a political battleground, no question about it, but in presidential races the Democratic Party always runs a bit uphill here.
John Hood: Let's talk taxes - the right way
State and local governments annually collect tens of billions of dollars in taxes from North Carolinians. The total bill comes to an average of $5,300 per person per year.
John Hood: Higher exports would aid Carolina economy
While some economic metrics continue to offer good news to North Carolinians, others point in a different direction. U.S. agricultural exports, for example, fell by $17 billion last year and appear to be on track for another decline of about $8 billion or so this year.
John Hood: Can Government Make You Happy?
RALEIGH — Is it the job of government to make you happy? While it may seem like a straightforward question, there are some important subtleties packed into those few words.
John Hood: Universities Should Cultivate Civic Leaders
Most students and their families invest time, effort, and resources into higher education for vocational reasons. They expect the knowledge, skills, and relationships acquired at a college or university will lead to good jobs — which will, in turn, generate income for graduates to support themselves and their families as well as the satisfaction and fulfillment that comes from productive employment or entrepreneurship.
John Hood: Fiction can be a teaching tool
That’s what a recent reviewer said about my novel Mountain Folk, which she called an “entertaining and instructive” blend of American history, folklore, and fantasy. “As a long-time teacher of middle school and high school students,” she wrote, “I think Mountain Folk would be a great addition to school reading lists.”
John Hood: On Charlotte Murders, Biden Blew It
RALEIGH — When officers from the U.S. Marshal Service, the N.C. Department of Adult Correction, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department, and other agencies approached a home in eastern Charlotte on April 29, their purpose was to serve warrants on a fugitive named Terry Clark Hughes Jr.
John Hood: UNC Protestors were treated properly
As you’ve no doubt heard by now, the interim chancellor at the University of the North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Lee Roberts, ordered the removal on April 30 of an “encampment” on a grassy area of campus called Polk Place. Later that day, protestors returned to Polk Place, took down its American flag, and raised a Palestinian flag in its place.
John Hood: Cut state tax on capital gains
RALEIGH — Over the past decade, the General Assembly has pursued a tax-reform strategy designed to foster growth and expand freedom in the Tar Heel State. North Carolina now has a flat-rate income tax. State taxes on both personal income and retail sales apply lower rates to broader bases. And lawmakers are in the process of phasing out state taxes on corporate income.