Jerry Irvine: All Publications, Events and Press

Spellings Suspends Future Nelnet Payments

Education Policy — Fri, 19 Jan 2007 19:06:00 -0500

The U.S. Department of Education announced today a settlement with student loan giant Nelnet regarding what the agency’s Inspector General has said are some $1.2 billion in improper taxpayer subsidy claims for a special class of student loans that the company claims are entitled to a government-guaranteed 9.5% annual rate of return. The Department will let Nelnet keep approximately $278 million (23.9%) in previously provided subsidy payments and “suspend or cease” approximately $882 million (76.1%) in future payments for the loans at issue. more

Governor Schwarzenegger Signs Bill That Encourages Saving

Communications — Wed, 26 Jul 2006 18:49:00 -0400

(Sacramento, CA)— Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has signed legislation to improve the state’s anemic savings rate by giving Californians new opportunities to make the best use of their tax refunds. The bill, inspired by research from the New America Foundation and the Asset Policy Initiative of California, allows Californians to split their refunds into separate accounts (checking and savings, for example), takes effect in the 2007 tax period. The New America Foundation and the Asset Policy Initiative of California played a lead role in working with both the governor and key legislators to develop and promote this innovative approach to increase… more

Middle Eastern Expert Flynt Leverett Joins New America

Communications — Tue, 20 Jun 2006 17:49:00 -0400

WASHINGTON, DC (June 20, 2006) -- The New America Foundation is pleased to announce the addition of Flynt Leverett as a Senior Fellow and Director of the Geopolitics and Geoeconomics of Energy Security Project in New America's American Strategy Program. Dr. Leverett will continue his renowned research and writing on Middle Eastern affairs and will develop a comprehensive, solutions-based strategy to address the rapidly changing nature of the international energy industry.

"As America and the world grapple with an unprecedented level of turmoil in the Middle East where further missteps could unhinge the entire geopolitical order, Flynt Leverett provides clear-headed,… more

Winning the Un-War

Communications — Wed, 14 Jun 2006 15:15:00 -0400

A New America Event
06/14/2006 - 12:15pm

In his first book, Charles Pena, Senior Fellow at the Coalition for a Realistic Foreign Policy and Terrorism Analyst for MSNBC, re-examines the U.S. national security strategy, tackling key questions such as: What is the best way to restructure homeland security to prevent future attacks? How should the U.S. dismantle the al Qaeda terrorist network? Should this be a top priority? And how can we construct a foreign policy that will tamper down, rather than assist recruitment for, al Qaeda and other terrorist groups?

Pena, former Director of Defense Policy Studies at Cato Institute, argues that the so-called “global war on terrorism“ has been steered off course by falsely defining our enemy as a global, amorphous group of terrorists or a contrived "axis of evil," thus obscuring the very real and very specific threat posed by, for example, Al-Qaeda. He offers concrete solutions that would improve our national security strategy, including restructuring U.S. forces and ending Cold War–era commitments that distract from the current, pressing threat. He discusses how to ameliorate the negative consequences of an interventionist U.S. foreign policy, which Pena believes only breeds further resentments that assist in terrorist network recruitment.

Please join us as Pena discusses his conclusions and terrorism expert Peter Bergen and international relations luminary Chris Preble provide comments and response.

New America Launches Early Education Reform Initiative

Communications — Mon, 17 Apr 2006 11:36:31 -0400

WASHINGTON, DC (December 13, 2005) – The New America Foundation launched an Early Childhood Initiative today, and released a policy paper calling for fundamental changes in U.S. early education, specifically aimed at expanding and improving services to children in pre-kindergarten through third grade (PK-3).

“As Congress begins to consider reauthorization of the No Child Left Behind Act and the education and training demands of the global economy, maximizing the effectiveness of our early childhood education system takes on greater significance,” stated Michael Dannenberg, Director of New America Foundation’s Education Policy Program.

Our nation’s education report card tells a tale of serious deficiencies.… more

Three Years Later: American Public Opinion of the Iraq War

Communications — Wed, 15 Mar 2006 09:00:00 -0500

A New America Event
03/15/2006 - 10:00am

On Wednesday March 15, 2006, the New America Foundation hosted a forum about where American and Iraqi public opinion on the war stands three years after hostilities began, and how it's changing. Co-chaired by Steven Kull, the principal investigator of a survey conducted by the Program on International Policy Attitudes (PIPA), and Anatol Lieven, Senior Research Fellow at the New America Foundation, and moderated by Jerry Irvine, New America's Director of Communications, the panel served to announce PIPA's findings and to discuss many of their wider implications.

Over 800 people participated in the 50 question survey, which demonstrated that, among other things, the American public is growing dissatisfied with the war, and that most don't believe it will end soon, even if the new Iraqi government requests our withdrawal. Lieven noted that this implied a growing distance between the establishment in Washington who, for instance, dismiss the thought of bringing the United Nations into the peacemaking effort, and the countryside, which overwhelmingly supports the idea.

Steven Kull presented findings of the in-depth study, addressing such issues as:

Does the American public see Iraq as a war of necessity or a war of choice?
Do Americans feel that the US plans to have permanent bases in Iraq?
What does the public now believe about matters that formed the rationale for the war?
What actions does the public want the Bush Administration to take?

American and Iraqi views were also compared on issues such as Iraqi support for attacks on US forces, and the impact of the potential withdrawal of US forces on security, through similar questions from a poll conducted in Iraq in January 2006 for www.WorldPublicOpinion.org.

New America Releases Tax Reform Plan

Communications — Mon, 05 Dec 2005 04:00:00 -0500

WASHINGTON, DC (December 5, 2005) -- A proposal released today by the New America Foundation calls for dramatic structural change of the U.S. tax system. The innovative plan creates a tax system that is fairer and more efficient than the current system, while also meeting the new challenges and opportunities of a global economy. The plan calls for replacing the payroll tax with a progressive consumption tax; integrating corporate and individual taxes, while taxing all forms of income the same; creating a more transparent approach to tax expenditures; and introducing a new energy tax.

"Our tax code has become exceedingly complex,… more