Publications

The USMCA is the operating system for North American production, investment, talent, and digital commerce. Canada, Mexico, and the United States should renew the agreement and explore ways to update it to preserve certainty, deepen regional supply chains and innovation capabilities, and strengthen the continent’s ability to compete with China.

The digital economy includes firms and individuals that sell digital services or products, operate physical infrastructure foundational to the digital economy, or manufacture hardware or software that supports digital infrastructure. It was valued at $4.9 trillion in 2024, and it supported 28.4 million jobs.

New U.S. foreign direct investment rose nearly 50 percent in 2025 after three years of decline. Policymakers should build on this momentum by prioritizing policies that attract more greenfield investment and strengthen American competitiveness.

Labor unions have claimed that General Motors laid off more than 1,000 workers at its Factory Zero EV facility because it installed 50 AI-integrated manufacturing robots, but the layoffs were far more likely driven by weaker-than-expected EV demand and shifting production priorities. Policymakers should focus on helping workers adapt to automation through retraining rather than resisting productivity-enhancing technologies.

Whether Washington sustains a policy response equal to the challenge China poses or takes a timeout while Xi runs up the score remains an open question.

The U.S. government does not need to create a Board to manage trade with China—it needs to use all its available tools to urge China to conduct economic relations in accordance with established trade rules, commitments which China has already clearly and unequivocally made to the United States and to other global trade partners.

The UK is considering new requirements for nudity-scanning software on children's devices that would further expand its controversial online safety regime. While intended to protect children, the proposal would undermine privacy, anonymity, and free speech, and the UK should instead pursue more targeted, privacy-preserving measures.

The Commission should thoughtfully consider AT&T’s petition because it could catalyze the retirement of outdated copper networks, accelerate network modernization, and advance the transition to a modern, all-IP communications ecosystem.

If the China challenge is real, the West needs to get serious about its techno-industrial policy. This means a more active state in tech, trade, and industry, a prospect certain to rile free-market advocates who imagine that “even if the US is a hollowed-out economy, at least we will be free.”

Brazil has become a hotbed for Chinese investment, with more than $6 billion in incoming Chinese foreign direct investment (FDI) in 2025, accounting for over 10 percent of China’s total FDI that year.