Introducing the Rediscovering Government Initiative

RediscoveringGovt.jpg

FIND OUT MORE at  www.rediscoveringgovernment.org

The Roosevelt Institute is kicking off its newest flagship initiative, Rediscovering Government, with a day of lively discussions by foremost thinkers exploring key questions around the role and purpose of government, including keynote addresses by Nobel laureate and Roosevelt Institute Senior Fellow Joseph Stiglitz and New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman. Out-of-touch conservative dogma has been on full display during the Republican primary season, but now we're going to hear from leading progressive thinkers as they work through how to change the national conversation and develop a new narrative about the purpose and value of public action. Under the leadership of Roosevelt Institute Senior Fellow and Rediscovering Government Director Jeff Madrick, our goal is to counter the anti-government language, attitudes, and policies that have dominated American politics for a generation.

The launch conference will be held on March 28th, 2012 at the New School's Lang Community and Student Center at 55 West 13th Street in New York City. You can see the full agenda and livestream of the conference below. For more, check out the new special issue of The Nation guest-edited by Madrick, in which he poses the fundamental question of American politics: Can we trust government again?

Launch Conference Agenda

9:00 - 9:15 a.m. Welcoming comments: Felicia Wong, President & CEO, The Roosevelt Institute
Teresa Ghilarducci, Director, Schwartz Center for Economic Policy Analysis, The New School
Jeff Madrick, Director, Rediscovering Government Initiative

9:15 - 9:45 a.m. Keynote Address: Joseph Stiglitz, Roosevelt Institute Chief Economist; Columbia University
                          Introduced By Anna Eleanor Roosevelt, Chair, The Roosevelt Institute

9:45 - 11:15 a.m. Why America Turned Against Government
Moderated by Jeff Madrick, The Roosevelt Institute; SCEPA
Bob Herbert, Former columnist, New York Times; Demos
Kim Phillips-Fein, New York University
Rick Perlstein, author, Before the Storm and Nixonland
Joe Soss, University of Minnesota  

11:15 - 11:30 p.m.  Break

11:30 - 1:00 p.m. Historical Role of Government
Moderated by Gara LaMarche, member of the board, The Roosevelt Institute; New York University
Patty Limerick, University of Colorado at Boulder
Robert Hockett, Cornell University Law School
Robert Leighninger, Arizona State University
Sean Wilentz, Princeton University

1:00 - 1:45 p.m. Lunch

1:45 - 2:15 p.m. Keynote Address: New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman
                           Introduced by Katrina vanden Heuvel, member of the board, The Roosevelt Institute; The Nation

2:15 - 3:45 p.m. Do Big Government and Higher Taxes Impede Growth?
Moderated by Rob Johnson, The Roosevelt Institute
Peter Lindert, University of California, Davis
Jon Bakija, Williams College
Lant Pritchett, Harvard University

3:45 - 4:00 p.m. Break
 
4:00 - 5:30 p.m. Can we Have Equality and Social Justice Without Government?
Moderated by Ellen Chesler, The Roosevelt Institute
Teresa Ghilarducci, Schwartz Center for Economic Policy Analysis
Lane Kenworthy, University of Arizona
Dorian Warren, The Roosevelt Institute; Columbia University
 
Closing Remarks  Jeff Madrick 
 

Banner image courtesy Shutterstock.com