AEI's weekly digest of top commentary and scholarship on the issues that matter most ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­

AEI This Week

AEI's weekly digest of top commentary and scholarship on the issues that matter most

STRATEGIC FAILURE

Asia After America

February 21, 2026

Since Barack Obama announced the “pivot to Asia” in 2011, the United States has repeatedly failed to match its rhetorical commitment to standing against Chinese influence with action. With trust from Asian nations at a low, Zack Cooper assesses ([link removed] ) the United States’ remaining strategic options to credibly constrain China’s expansion.

america-china-asia ([link removed] )

The Trump administration is taking some important steps to redress the dangerous erosion of US military capabilities. Todd Harrison and John G. Ferrari analyze ([link removed] ) an important organizational shake-up at the Air Force that could address long-standing bureaucratic dysfunction.

In January, the US economy added 130,000 net new jobs, and unemployment fell 10 basis points, confounding many leading economists’ low expectations. Writing in Financial Times, AEI Economic Policy Studies Director Michael R. Strain marshals ([link removed] ) evidence that the US labor market is much stronger than conventional wisdom suggests.

The administration’s desire to run the economy hot with stronger growth and lower interest rates will have a particularly potent impact on the housing market, where AEI data project price increases of around 10 percent per year. AEI Housing Center Codirector Tobias Peter explains ([link removed] ) how this aggressive appreciation harms not just renters but also most homeowners.

Even as some moderate voters appear to be deserting the president and the GOP, Democrats have struggled to shed the left-wing image that doomed their party to defeat in 2024. AEI Domestic Policy Studies Director Matthew Continetti surveys ([link removed] ) the weak slate of candidates who are positioning themselves to lead the party in 2028.

How Minimum Wage Increases Affect Hours Worked

The effect of minimum wage changes on employment levels is well studied in economics, but there is comparatively little research on other dimensions where employers can respond to increased labor costs. In a new paper for Economics Letters, AEI Economic Policy Studies Director Michael R. Strain and Jeffrey Clemens study ([link removed] ) how minimum wage increases affect hours worked per week for low-skilled and young workers. Using Current Population Survey and American Community Survey data from 2011 to 2019, the authors find that large minimum wage increases decrease hours worked per week for these individuals by almost an hour per week, while smaller increases or inflation indexes have no statistically significant effect. These labor-elasticity findings are quite similar to elasticity findings from studies of employment levels—suggesting that the conclusions are robust and provide an important foundation for future research.

More from AEI

RESEARCH AND COMMENTARY

Can You Really Be Addicted to Social Media? ([link removed] )

Sally Satel | The Free Press

Judge Scalia, a Decade On ([link removed] )

John Yoo | Civitas Outlook

Making Sense of the EPA Endangerment Finding Rule ([link removed] )

Roger Pielke Jr. | The Honest Broker

Lies, Damn Lies, and Dating Statistics ([link removed] )

Daniel A. Cox | American Storylines

China’s Transition to Scalable Intelligence ([link removed] )

Ryan Fedasiuk | AEI Foreign and Defense Policy Working Paper Series

PODCASTS AND VIDEOS

Introduction to Not Dead Yet ([link removed] )

Ben Sasse and Chris Stirewalt | Not Dead Yet

Why Does a Chinese Billionaire Need 100 American Children? ([link removed] )

Danielle Pletka et al. | What the Hell Is Going On?

Why AI Can’t Replace Real Reporters ([link removed] )

Timothy P. Carney | Intercollegiate Studies Institute

“Aquavit,” “Zebroid,” and “Haole” ([link removed] )

Jonah Goldberg and Stefan Fatsis | The Remnant with Jonah Goldberg

The Future of Drones ([link removed] )

Shane Tews et al. | Explain to Shane

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

Unlimited graduate borrowing was never a sustainable policy. Ending it was an overdue consumer-protection reform for students and a necessary safeguard for taxpayers.

—Beth Akers ([link removed] )

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