Political criticism erodes free trade support

Months of withering political rhetoric in the presidential campaign has eroded American support for free trade but not for immigration. The CNBC All-America Economic Survey, conducted March 21-23, finds that just 27 percent of the public agree that free trade “has helped the U.S.,” compared with 43 percent who say […] Read more »

The Power of C.E.O. Activism

… There is a long history of corporations’ wielding influence on public policy through lobbying, but C.E.O. activism is newer and less understood. Because there has been little, if any, research on it, we recently conducted an experiment about its impact. Our findings, reported in a working paper released last […] Read more »

Stands on social issues tear at the two main conservative bases

The ideological rifts breaking apart the Republican Party have moved into the states, where business leaders and evangelicals who have long coexisted in the GOP are suddenly at war over social issues such as gay rights and religious freedom. … Rather than unifying around a message and strategy to win […] Read more »

Americans support Apple over Feds in privacy debate

Apple is gaining ground in winning the hearts and minds of the American public in the battle with the federal government over encryption. A CNBC survey conducted before the Justice Department dropped its court order bid against the tech giant to unlock a terrorist’s iPhone found that 57 percent of […] Read more »