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Connecting today’s news with the research & opinion you need.

The Best of Policy Orientation 2020

What to Know: Daron Babcock is showing how communities can be redeemed, one soul at a time—and it doesn’t involve government handouts.

The TPPF Take: Changing lives takes individual effort, though public policy plays a role.

“There’s a huge misperception that people born into places like Bonton [a neighborhood in south Dallas] don’t want to work, and it’s just not true,” says Babcock. “They want to work so bad they’ll hide disadvantages they have so that they might have that opportunity when it comes their way. We’ve learned that jobs and health and wellness go hand-in-hand.”

No Flipping Way

What to Know: Democrats are working hard to flip Texas “blue.”

The TPPF Take: Don’t count on Texas turning liberal due to new residents from California and other blue states.

“People seeking better opportunities for themselves and their families, having considered their prospects in high-tax, heavily regulated states such as California, make the logical decision to improve their chances by moving to Texas,” says TPPF’s Chuck DeVore. “These people, by their nature, are more likely to appreciate Texas’ hard-working culture and love of freedom—and vote conservative.”

Western Civilization

What to Know: Academics are attacking the very idea of Western Civilization—and robbing students of the true foundations of freedom.

The TPPF Take: We cannot forget our history and principles.

“If we abandon the tenets of Western Civilization, how can we expect our misinformed citizens to possess the confidence in their own principles that is required to defend individual liberty and limited government?” asks TPPF’s Tom Lindsay. “How can we expect them not to embrace the false, fatal promises of utopian regimes?”