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Everything Policy analysts are exploring what the Founding Fathers might say about the evolution of our political system. In this brief, we consider modern political parties from the viewpoint of George Washington, leader of America’s armed forces during the Revolutionary War, presiding officer at the Constitutional Convention, and the first President of the United States.

A common complaint about America’s elected officials is that they fail to implement easy, practical solutions to public policy problems. These concerns are part of the explanation for the continued decline in trust in government. In this brief, we explore the logic behind these complaints using a perennial public policy problem: federal budget deficits. Are elected officials ignoring the obvious, or is the situation more complex than it appears?

Each year, thousands of Americans are diagnosed with life-threatening illnesses and run out of approved treatment options. Some of these patients turn to experimental drugs, treatments that have passed early safety testing but have not completed testing for effectiveness. A new federal law, the Right to Try, gives some of these patients access to unapproved treatments.