The federal government routinely classifies documents and other information whose disclosure would harm national security. Even so, classification can also be used to hide internal deliberations and policy failures. Classified documents typically get in the news when they are found in the possession of active or retired politicians and high-profile individuals. What are the procedures for classifying information, and how do people run afoul of these rules?

Students and their families incur substantial costs from attending college. In recent years, loans to students and their parents are being used to cover much of this cost, leaving substantial debts to be repaid on graduation. The magnitude of these costs has led to call for some of all of this debt to be forgiven by the federal government. What is the logic of debt forgiveness, and what are the specifics of forgiveness proposals?

America’s elections are administered locally by tens of thousands of government employees and citizen-volunteers. This decentralized process sometimes makes people worry about the possibility of fraud. If there is so much leeway for state and local election boards to select people, and administer rules and procedures, to what degree can Americans trust the process?