Government

President Emeritus L. Rafael Reif joins Bloomberg’s Wall Street Week to highlight the importance of university research for the U.S. economy. “The federal government funds research at universities,” begins Reif. “Scientific research advances knowledge. And we do it here. And at the same time we educate the leaders of the future, who bring that advanced knowledge into the marketplace. That has been at the heart of the terrific ecosystem of innovation in this country.” He adds: “We have benefitted in the past 80 years from this terrific system, and not having access to that is going to basically kill the source of ideas that will power our economy for the next 80 years.” 

Prof. Jonathan Gruber speaks with Newsweek reporter Jasmine Laws about the impact of rising health insurance costs in California. "This is disastrous for both economic security and health,” says Gruber. “Studies have shown that losing insurance is associated with enormous economic risk and worse health, including death."

Prof. Daron Acemoglu speaks with WBUR’s Here & Now co-host Scott Tong about the role of institutions in the overall prosperity of nations and some of the current challenges facing the US. “It’s a very important part of rebuilding democracy that we have to make experts trusted again. And that has to start with us,” says Acemoglu. “We have to be much more down to Earth. We have to be honest about when we are certain of something and when we are uncertain. And, I think we have to make certain that it’s not our political views that drive our advice or our analysis.” 

Writing for Financial Times, Prof. Kristin Forbes explains how to approach to tariff trade-offs. “If even a fraction of the tariffs that have recently been announced are implemented, inflation will pick up and domestic activity will slow — at least over the next year or so,” explains Forbes. “The Fed will need to trade off mitigating the impact of another round of inflation with supporting employment.” 

Prof. David Autor speaks with CNBC about how Chinese industrial policies could impact the United States. “The U.S. needs to recognize that it would be much more effective if it worked with its allies,” says Autor. 

Writing for The New York Times, Prof. David Autor and Prof. Gordon Hanson of Harvard explore how China is “aggressively contesting the innovative sectors where the United States has long been the unquestioned leader." To avoid a second China Shock, they emphasize that the United States “must nourish industries that have high potential for innovation, funded by joint investments by the private and public sectors.” 

In an opinion piece for Bloomberg, Gautam Mukunda PhD '10 highlights the importance of federally funded scientific research. “Today, the federal government’s best investment is scientific research,” writes Mukunda. “The Federal Reserve estimates that support for science has a 150% to 300% return. Few investors have a track record as good.” 

Prof. Simon Johnson speaks with Planet Money host Robert Smith about the role institutions play in prosperity gaps in different countries. “I think democracy is absolutely essential for shared prosperity, because if power isn't widely shared across society, in any kind of authoritarian system, you're going to have a situation where, you might have a good ruler or a pro-growth ruler for a while,” says Johnson. “But then they're going to get cranky. They're going to die and pass it on to somebody else who's really not good for growth. So authoritarian rulers are highly unreliable in terms of sustained prosperity." 

A new book edited by Prof. Gary Gensler and Prof. Simon Johnson examines the current administration’s impact on the global economy and how new policies could lead to “a profound weakening of both US economic dynamism and the global system it once led,” reports Sam Sutton for Politico.

Prof. Jonathan Gruber speaks with Newsweek reporter Jasmine Laws about the increase in cigarette taxes in various states across the United States. “There is a large body of economic evidence that shows that higher taxes will reduce smoking – particularly among the young and the poor,” says Gruber. “The downside is that the poor will pay more for cigarettes, stretching their budgets, but that is largely offset by the fact that they will smoke less. If the revenues are used to fund smoking cessation efforts among the poor, which have shown to be effective, this is a great policy opportunity." 

Prof. Gary Gensler speaks with Bloomberg Surveillance about his new book examining the potential economic impacts of current policies in Washington. “I don’t think the tariffs are going to help,” says Gensler. “I think they’re going to hurt and interestingly they’re going to particularly hurt also in rural communities because rural communities have to sell their farm goods and they’re agricultural products overseas.” 

Writing for The Boston Herald, President Emeritus L. Rafael Reif and Alan M. Leventhal, founder of Beacon Capital Partners, underscore the importance of protecting Massachusetts’ research infrastructure, noting that the state’s life sciences sector alone supports 143,000 jobs. “It is imperative that we act now to preserve the research infrastructure that Massachusetts has built so carefully over the last decades. This is the time for the Commonwealth’s leadership in government, academia, business, and philanthropy to join forces and take bold action,” they write. “Decisive action will enable us to preserve our world-leading research infrastructure and protect the economic health of our Commonwealth for the benefit of all our citizens.” 

MIT’s Security Studies Program Senior Research Associate Jim Walsh speaks with WBUR Here & Now reporter Asma Khalid about the current conflict between Iran and Israel. “There is no negotiation without leverage,” explains Walsh. “You’re trying to put the heat on the other party so they’ll cut a deal.” 

In a letter to the editor of  The Wall Street Journal, Prof. Yossi Sheffi shares his perspective on the role of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) and voices support for the appointment of his colleague Prof. Retsef Levi to the committee. Sheffi notes that ACIP is “charged with assessing [vaccine] safety and efficacy. That is done through statistics and data science, areas in which Mr. Levi excels.” 

Jim Walsh, a senior research associate with MIT’s Security Studies Program, speaks with Fox News about international security risks amidst the current tensions in the Middle East.