Research Library

On Feb. 24, 2015, public finance fellow John Diamond testified on tax reform before U.S. Senate Finance Committee.

This report suggests the contours of a more comprehensive policy for the United States in the broader Middle East, one that pursues not only important tactical approaches to counter Islamic extremism and terrorism, but also shapes the larger strategic landscape to secure and promote U.S. interests. After defining the challenge for the United States and the international community, the report provides a brief narrative on the rise of ISIS before presenting key policy recommendations for a more strategic approach.

Will Prime Minister Netanyahu’s speech before Congress lead to a diplomatic showdown on Iran?

After more than half a century of a highly restrictive policy toward Cuba that ranged from an economic embargo to prohibiting most travel by U.S. citizens to the island, President Obama announced on Dec. 17, 2014, that Washington and Havana hope to restore diplomatic relations in the near future. While President Obama's new Cuba policy falls short of lifting the embargo, which can only be done through congressional action, it nonetheless represents a historic shift in U.S. relations and leadership in Latin America.

The United States and Cuba, it seems, are poised to resume diplomatic relations severed in 1961. Fellow Joe Barnes explains why normalization of relations between the two countries is simple "good sense." Read "Normalizing U.S.-Cuban relations: Long overdue" in the Dec. 18, 2014, Baker Institute Blog.

This study highlights areas where the U.S.-Mexico higher education mobility framework is strong and others where there is much to improve. Government, industry and other private partners must work together with higher education institutions to reverse the region’s downward trend of academic mobility. Collectively, leadership from within the higher education community along with partners in industry, government and the philanthropic community must create a framework for higher education mobility that is voluntary and flexible over time and that incentivizes investments that support long-term bilateral engagement.

In this study, Al Troner reviews, analyzes, and tracks the changes that have emerged in US oil and gas over recent years, and surveys the implications of modification, or full abolition, of the decades-long US crude oil export ban.

The Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement offers an opportunity to deepen U.S.-Mexico economic ties without reopening the still contentious North American Free Trade Agreement for negotiation. It may also serve as a vehicle for advancing the current Mexican government’s economic reform agenda. The leaders of the U.S. and Mexico believe that the TPP will bolster domestic economic growth.

Thursday's Baker Institute Blog carries a commentary from fellow Joe Barnes on President Obama’s Sept. 10, 2014, speech on ISIS and Iraq.

Academic mobility is critical for robust collaborations in education, research and innovation between the U.S. and Mexico. Governments in both countries, in cooperation with nongovernmental actors, should provide a framework to develop mechanisms that generate and sustain a meaningful exchange of students, faculty, and staff from educational institutions at all levels of post-secondary education.