The Founder Who Built the Plumbing
John Adams was neither flashy nor rich, and posterity mostly left him out. The republic still runs on the parts he built.
Writing
History and Civic Life
When the Lame Duck Ran Three Months
The original congressional calendar built in a lame-duck session every two years. A 1922 power play led to the Twentieth Amendment, and the end-of-year deadlines still shape what gets done.
The One Lever That Still Needs Your Hand
Everything else in self-government can be delegated to professionals. Voting cannot.
The Shrug Is the Real Damage
Most public servants are honest. Restoring public trust takes proof, not faith.
Count the New Donors
Political scientists disagree about whether small donors drive polarization. On one number, both camps point the same way, and it applies to every stakeholder list.
Congress and Government
Two New Majorities, One Old Deadline
Democrats take the House and the Senate on January 3. Government funding runs out December 11, while Republicans still hold both gavels.
The Staff Who Know Your Issue May Not Be Back
At least seventy-one members of Congress had announced they would not return in January, and their staff leave with them. The work to prepare starts before the swearing-in.
In a Lame Duck, “Deferred” Means Next Congress
With government funding and several programs expiring December 11, the lame duck’s must-pass bill is the only vehicle. The language has to be ready before members return.
The Senate’s Scarcest Resource Is Floor Time
A bipartisan proposal to curb cloture shows where most bills really die, and what companies with business before Congress should prepare for.
Thirty Seconds, No Votes, and the Pocket Veto
Pro forma sessions keep the Senate technically in session, which decides whether an unsigned bill becomes law. For year-end bills, the enrollment calendar matters as much as the whip count.
A Short Law That Lets Congress See Hydropower Licensing
The Hydropower Licensing Transparency Act requires FERC to report every year on pending licensing proceedings. It passed the way good policy should.
Energy and Infrastructure
Heating Cities Is the Hard Problem
European towns are capturing heat from crematoriums. Macabre, but it points to a real challenge: heating cities through winter without fossil fuels.
The Data Center Fight Is Local
S&P Global Ratings tracked 146 delayed or canceled U.S. data center projects, and about three-quarters were tied to local pushback. The decisive vote is often in the county commission room.
Behavior Change Is a Hope. Storage Is a Plan.
Utility programs that depend on customers changing their habits rest on a heroic assumption. Long-duration storage does not.
The Best Virtual Synchronous Generator Is a Real One
New research shows how hard it is for battery inverters to imitate spinning generators. Pumped storage hydropower does not have to imitate anything.
A FERC Preliminary Permit Is Not Permission to Build
For a pumped storage project, a preliminary permit is an important first step. Here is what it does, what it does not do, and what comes next.
Business and Law
AI Is an Intern. Keep the Pen.
AI tools can do the donkey work of a policy shop. The lines on judgment, contact, confidentiality, and records have to be drawn before the tools draw them.
A 1936 Law Is Back in Use
The FTC settled its first Robinson-Patman Act case in a generation. Companies with volume-based pricing should know which old statutes are returning.