Wednesday - April 8, 2026
Think Tanks

Here's a look at documents from think tanks

Featured Stories

Manhattan Institute Issues Commentary to Bloomberg Opinion: New York City Can't Afford Both Big Pensions and Free Buses
NEW YORK, April 7 -- The Manhattan Institute issued the following excerpts of a commentary on April 6, 2026, by senior fellow Allison Schrager to Bloomberg Opinion:

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New York City Can't Afford Both Big Pensions and Free Buses

Cities such as New York and Chicago are in deep financial trouble. Broadly speaking, they have two options: Make the difficult but appropriate choice to raise taxes and reduce the scale of government, or continue to live in a state of denial, increasing their pension obligations while also promising their residents more services.

I am sad but not surprised to report ... Show Full Article

Jamestown Foundation Posts Commentary: Cossack Organizations Suppress Ukrainian Identity in Occupied Territories
WASHINGTON, April 7 -- The Jamestown Foundation posted the following commentary on April 6, 2026, by Muskingum University professor Richard Arnold in the foundation's Eurasia Daily Monitor:

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Cossack Organizations Suppress Ukrainian Identity in Occupied Territories

Executive Summary:

* Moscow is utilizing the Cossack image and organizations to suppress Ukrainian identity in the Russian-occupied Ukrainian territories of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson. Russian bodies like Russia's Federal Nationalities Ministry (FADN) portray Cossacks in the occupied territories as a loyal military-social ... Show Full Article

Empire Center Breaks Down Albany's Pork Barrel Spending
ALBANY, New York, April 7 -- Empire Center, a non-profit think tank, issued the following news release on April 6, 2026:

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Empire Center Breaks Down Albany's Pork Barrel Spending

Albany legislators steered over $83 million in grants to 293 local projects between April and December 2025 , according to data the Empire Center recently received under a Freedom of Information Law request.

The governor and state legislators hand-picked the grantees for more than $72 million, under a program that allows them to direct money borrowed by the state Dormitory Authority to capital projects. Authority ... Show Full Article

Center of the American Experiment Issues Commentary: How Minnesota's Property Taxes Make Life Less Affordable
GOLDEN VALLEY, Minnesota, April 7 -- The Center of the American Experiment, a civic and educational organization that says it creates and advocates policies, issued the following commentary on April 6, 2026, by economist John Phelan:

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How Minnesota's property taxes make life less affordable

How property tax hikes squeeze affordability

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Property taxes are a large and growing source of concern for many Minnesotans.

KSTP recently ran a story titled "Valuations up, sale prices down for some metro homeowners;" KAAL ran another titled "Minnesotans see significant increases in property value ... Show Full Article

American Action Forum Issues Commentary: Section 232 Pharmaceutical Tariffs Are Not a Health Policy Tool
WASHINGTON, April 7 -- The American Action Forum issued the following commentary on April 6, 2026, by Health Care Policy Director Michael Baker:

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Section 232 Pharmaceutical Tariffs Are Not a Health Policy Tool

Executive Summary

* The Trump Administration announced a new Section 232 tariff regime targeting patented pharmaceuticals and associated pharmaceutical ingredients, tying the policy to both manufacturing onshoring and most-favored-nation pricing metrics.

* The proclamation establishes a default 100 percent tariff on identified patented drugs and related inputs, a 20 percent tariff ... Show Full Article

American Action Forum Issues Commentary: Highlights of President Trump's FY 2027 Budget
WASHINGTON, April 7 -- The American Action Forum issued the following commentary on April 6, 2026, by Fiscal Policy Director Jordan Haring:

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Highlights of President Trump's FY 2027 Budget

Executive Summary

* The Trump Administration has released the president's budget for fiscal year (FY) 2027 budget, which details its proposals for defense and nondefense discretionary spending for FY 2027; the budget does not include any proposed changes to mandatory spending or revenue, nor does it include any estimates about how its proposals would affect federal deficits or debt over the next decade.

* ... Show Full Article

Manhattan Institute Issues Commentary to National Review: Sasse, Zinsmeister, and Republican Virtue
NEW YORK, April 7 -- The Manhattan Institute issued the following excerpts of a commentary on April 5, 2026, by senior fellow Andy Smarick to National Review:

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Sasse, Zinsmeister, and Republican Virtue

Two conservative public servants facing the fight of their lives have shown us the best of American leadership.

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Two remarkably talented, independent-minded, service-oriented conservatives are in knock-down, drag-out fights with cancer. They've been models of courage and good cheer in their battles, but they were also models of American republican virtue in their professional lives. Our ... Show Full Article