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The Sentence That Used to Protect American Statistics
"Protection from inappropriate influence is a hallmark of scientific integrity." That line governed the Census Bureau and then the White House quietly…
 • Justin Wolfers
A Deal With the United States Used to Be a Deal
The tariffs Ottawa and Washington traded today are small change. What we're actually spending is Canada's belief that we're a country worth building a…
 • Justin Wolfers
The Day An Economist Became a Poetry Critic
I tell my students not to lose their minds by asking what value is. And I don’t teach them poetry. Maybe I should.
 • Justin Wolfers
Why Don’t We Put a Tariff on Ohio?
Nobody in America is mad at Canada. So how did we end up in a trade war with them — and why can’t Mark Carney end it?
 • Justin Wolfers
We Don’t Know That Tariffs Don’t Work
We just know that incompetence fails.
 • Justin Wolfers
Where Are the Hard Hats in This Jobs Report?
This administration promised a manufacturing revival. What we got is an aging country hiring nurses and aides—and outside of health care, the economy…
 • Justin Wolfers
Three Borrowers Walk Into The Bond Market
The AI build-out, the U.S. government, and our unpredictable financial future.
 • Justin Wolfers
Did Trump’s Tariffs Achieve Trump’s Goals?
I didn’t grade the trade war against an economist’s ideal. I graded it against Trump’s own promises.
 • Justin Wolfers
The Dollar Is Just a Social Convention
And we spend it every time we use it as a weapon
 • Justin Wolfers

August 2026

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