Ryan Streeter
I was recently reminded of an interview Fred Barnes did with Jeb Bush in the Weekly Standard last May in which Bush predicted the rise of the “policy activist” after the 2010 mid-terms. Bush said, “You’re going to see the emerging Cantor-Ryan wing of the Republican party—the policy activists—in their ascendency. They’ll be in the ascendency in the Senate as well. And you’ll have activist conservative governors.”
I take the term "policy activist" to mean those who use their political office primarily to push for policy innovation that the country needs, as opposed to using it mainly for political ends or in the service of outside interests or ideological groups.
The distinction is an important one. America faces uniquely complex challenges today, stemming from a fiscal crisis with far-reaching economic and security implications. Our country needs policy innovation among those in elected office. However, it seems that policy activists are in short supply. We know they are out there, but who are they?
So I asked a group of writers and thinkers I respect who their favorite policy activists are in Congress or in the nation’s statehouses are. Those I polled were:
- Fred Barnes of the Weekly Standard and Fox News
- Michael Barone of the Washington Examiner and American Enterprise Institute
- Yuval Levin of National Affairs
- Chris Papagianis of e21
- Reihan Salam of the National Review’s The Agenda and e21
- Pete Wehner of the Ethics and Public Policy Center
Below are the names I received in reply. The number in parentheses represents the number of times an individual was cited, if more than once, followed by any qualifying quotes I received in the responses.
I’ve chosen not to attribute specific answers to each person I polled, but if they want to pick up on this thread and add to it, they are more than welcome to!
- Wisconsin Congressman Paul Ryan (5)
- “In Washington, Paul Ryan is at the top. He has no peer at the moment.”
- “He is certainly at the top of my list.”
- Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels (3)
- “Among the governors, I’d list him first.”
- "Mitch, definitely."
- Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal (3)
- “Jindal comes to mind immediately.”
- Oklahoma Senator Tom Coburn (3)
- “He’s been active on defense spending.”
- “His vote on the commission counts.”
- Tennessee Senator Bob Corker (2)
- Texas Congressman Jeb Hensarling (2)
- Arizona Senator John Kyl (2)
- “He is a serious policy guy, but not necessarily an entrepreneur: he grapples with issues that arise (e.g. arms control treaties, the Native Hawaiian sovereignty legislation).”
- “John Kyl matters enormously and knows more about more issues than anyone in the Senate. He is to McConnell what Ryan is to John Boehner in the House.”
- California Congressman Devin Nunes (2)
- “He's sort of a policy twin of his next-door neighbor (CA 21, CA 22) political entrepreneur Kevin McCarthy.”
- “He’s been active on energy policy.”
- Ohio Senator Rob Portman (2)
- Virginia Congressman Eric Cantor
- New Jersey Governor Chris Christie
- Ohio Governor John Kasich
- Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell
And while I was mainly interested in current Republican governors and members of Congress, my thoughtful group of respondents also added a few others:
- Judd Gregg (2 mentions: “He would have been on the list if he were still in office.”)
- Newt Gingrich (“Someone once said he has ten of the five good new ideas”)
- Oregon Senator Ron Wyden (2 mentions)
- Outgoing Tennessee Governor Phil Bredesen
- Yuval Levin (no, Yuval did not nominate himself! But I will leave him guessing.)
If we were to start to create a profile of the “policy activist” from this list, a few things jump out immediately:
Hunting big game. Ryan is clearly on everyone’s minds for obvious reasons that are worth stating anyway: he has taken on the biggest issue, entitlements, with a grounded, well-articulated plan and a firm grasp of the details and arguments. He digs deep into the details himself, regarding that as a kind of solemn public duty, and is committed to facts and principles over ideology in a way that makes him trustworthy. Devin Nunes and Bobby Jindal have exhibited similar traits in their willingness to take on big, even controversial, issues in their books and work.
Independence driven less by ideological purity than a desire for policy innovation. The “maverick” is often that independent thinker who boldly acts for a principle or cause. The policy activist is no less principled (all of those on the list would clearly be described as such) but is focused enough on solutions to break with the purists. Ross Douthat recently described Tom Coburn as “braver than many of his colleagues” and both “more creative” and “intellectually honest” than his peers. This seems a trait that applies to others on the list, as well. They are principled solutions guys rather than mavericks.
OMB chic. Two former Office of Management and Budget directors, Daniels and Portman, are on the list. No job in the White House combines policy and budget detail like the OMB job. Your fingers are in everything, and the job is fundamentally one in which you are trying to put the breaks on spending-happy agencies, not to mention Congress. Bobby Jindal and Paul Ryan could easily slip into the job. As governor, Daniels has shown an acute ability to use budgets and policy to reinforce each other. Whereas most political leaders set policy goals and then try to get as much budget as they can to serve them, the OMB chic mentality looks to see how budget restraint can actually serve desirable policy outcomes and innovation.
I'm sure there are other elements of the "policy activist" profile that others can tease out. I welcome it.
Comments