Created in 1887, the Interstate Commerce Commission was the first “independent agency” outside of the president’s control that had the combined powers of all three branches of government. Independent agencies proliferated during the New Deal era, the golden age for this so-called fourth branch of government.
The formation of independent agencies was based on an idealistic view of bureaucracy: shielded from shifting political winds, a small group of technically-skilled experts could address technical issues. Economic and engineering analyses would guide independent agency decisions. However, the 21st-century reality is that federal “independent agencies” are neither independent of the executive nor guided by economic and engineering principles. Instead, independent agencies have become useful appendages of the executive branch, and economic and engineering concepts are largely silenced.
On Wednesday, June 22, former FTC Commissioner Joshua Wright joined Hudson Institute’s Director of the Center for the Economics of the Internet, Harold Furchtgott-Roth, to discuss the institutional problems of the modern administrative state and solutions for promoting economic analysis in public policy.
Join Hudson Institute Senior Fellows Michael Doran and Ludovic Hood, Research Fellow Zineb Riboua, and Behnam Ben Taleblu, senior director of the Iran Program at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, for a timely discussion about the conflicts in the region and America’s strategic and diplomatic paths forward.
Join Senior Fellow Dr. Rebeccah Heinrichs and Senator Rick Scott (R-FL) for a fireside discussion on how Congress can guide American strategy, the need to modernize the defense industrial base, and the vital role of allies and partners in an unstable international environment.
Join Senior Fellow Michael Doran for a candid conversation with H.E. Narek Mkrtchyan, ambassador of the Republic of Armenia to the United States of America, as they discuss the developments, challenges, and opportunities defining the US-Armenia relationship.
Please join Hudson Institute’s China Center as Miles Yu hosts a panel with key members of Taiwan’s Legislative Yuan and the Democratic Progressive Party to examine Taiwan’s mobilization efforts against the CCP’s increasing threats.
