Robert VerBruggen
National Review
Herndon, VA, United States
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Past articles by Robert:
When Should Cops Be Allowed to Stop Gun-Carriers?
The gun-rights revolution raises some thorny constitutional questions. → Read More
“Getting Guns Off the Street”—When It’s Legal to Carry Guns on the Street
In 1968, the Supreme Court decided Terry v. Ohio, which became a landmark.[1] The case involved a police officer who had observed three men apparently “casing” a business, asked for their names, and—when the men only “mumbled something” in response—patted them down, finding two... → Read More
More Guns, Same Amount of Crime?
The past 40 years have seen nothing short of a revolution in Americans’ right to carry a concealed firearm in public. In 1980, the vast majority of states either did not grant concealed weapon permits or offered them only on a “may-issue” basis, meaning that authorities retained discretion... → Read More
Does Affirmative Action Lead to “Mismatch”?
Many selective American universities practice affirmative action: they admit African-American students and, to a lesser extent, Hispanic students who would not have made the cut if they had been white or Asian-American. This practice has long been legally and morally controversial, as it... → Read More
Breaking Down the 2020 Homicide Spike
In 2020, amid the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic and the protests and riots surrounding the death of George Floyd, America’s homicide rate increased by an astonishing 30%, even as many less serious types of crime held steady or even declined.[1]The purpose of this brief is to describe the... → Read More
Racial Preferences on Campus: Trends in Asian Enrollment at U.S. Colleges
The Supreme Court has agreed to hear challenges to the affirmative-action policies of Harvard and the University of North Carolina,[1] and it will likely take the opportunity to rethink the legal status of affirmative action on a fundamental level.But the Harvard lawsuit, especially, draws... → Read More
Fatal Police Shootings and Race: A Review of the Evidence and Suggestions for Future Research
Since the Ferguson unrest, a narrative has solidified around the idea that police use lethal force disproportionately and without justification against African-Americans. Some data show the strength of this perception, particularly among blacks and on the political left. In a survey conducted... → Read More
The Paradox of the 2020 Gun-Sales Spike
The states with the biggest gun-sales spikes weren’t the same as the states with the biggest homicide spikes. → Read More
Remote Learning Was a Disaster
There are no more excuses for remote instruction. → Read More
Rittenhouse’s Fate Goes to the Jury
His self-defense claims are strong, but acquittal is not certain. → Read More
The infrastructure bill won't eliminate lead pipes — which aren't the biggest problem
Old lead paint, which crumbles into toxic chips and dust, and soil contaminated by leaded gasoline are under-appreciated factors. → Read More
Lead and Crime: A Review of the Evidence and the Path Forward
Several careful, well-designed studies conclude that lead exposure affects crime rates, but there is also a continuing debate regarding exactly how strong the relationship is. → Read More
The Dubious Challenge to Antonin Scalia’s Heller Decision
Despite its superficial appeal, corpus analysis suffers from severe limitations that render it no more compelling than any other approach to constitutional interpretation. It must be treated skeptically, interpreted with care, and viewed as one small piece of the puzzle. → Read More
Oh No! A $6 Trillion Infrastructure Bill!
Democrats have only 50 votes in the Senate, not 70, and thus can't actually pass off-the-charts insane spending measures that alienate every Democrat with the slightest sense of fiscal restraint. → Read More
Farewell to the Dumb Obamacare Lawsuit
The worst thing about the decision is that two conservative justices, Samuel Alito and Neil Gorsuch, bought the lawsuit's preposterous theory. → Read More
More Biden Budget Analysis
The Tax Foundation predicts 165,000 fewer jobs and 1 percent lower GDP from Joe Biden's proposed taxing and spending. → Read More
Center-Left Think Tank: Biden Budget Would Hike Taxes on More Than Half of Filers
Joe Biden's promise not to raise taxes on "anyone" making less than $400,000 doesn't square with his actual plans. → Read More
Unintended Consequences of a Minimum-Wage Hike
A minimum-wage hike is a simple policy with extremely complicated consequences. → Read More
Biden Takes on Local Zoning Laws
Joe Biden is putting the old rules of local zoning into effect again, albeit with some tweaks and some new rules of his own. → Read More
Journalists Got Thousands of Americans’ Confidential IRS Data
The agency needs to get to the bottom of this and punish those responsible. → Read More