James Strock

IVN contributing editor. Independent reformer who served as founding secretary of the California EPA, chief law enforcement officer of the US EPA, and special counsel to the Senate Environment Committee. Council on Foreign Relations member.

Trump Budget is Surrender to Special Interest State

Is the Trump administration a decisive break from the Clinton-Bush-Obama status quo—or an extension of it? This fundamental question has hovered over Washington since the shock result

By James Strock

March 29, 2018

From Old Glory to Old Gory: Massacres Need Independent Engagement

Is there any more grotesque example of American “exceptionalism” than our longstanding failure to respond to recurring, murderous violence in our schools? Is the nation that led mankind to the

By James Strock

February 21, 2018

Studies: Segregation by Political Opinion is Real

Moviegoers 50 years ago were captivated and challenged by a provocative, topical film: Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner? The storyline was tailor-made for the moment. Spencer Tracy and

By James Strock

December 15, 2017

Disrupt Politics: The Partisan Duopoly is Protecting Putin -- And Endangering Us

Shortly after the Second World War, a Republican legislator sought to temper criticism of a Democratic president. Senate Foreign Relations Committee chairman Arthur Vandenberg declared that we should stop “partisan

By James Strock

November 3, 2017

Forget Trump, The Real Question for Voters Is: Who Governs?

The electoral earthquake that resulted in the election of President Trump is not limited to the United States. And it’s far from running its course. The Brexit referendum of

By James Strock

October 20, 2017

2020 Vision: A Clear Path to Breaking the Two-Party Machine

These are the best of times—and the worst of times—for independents striving to disrupt and transform our broken politics. The Best of Times Though it can be obscured

By James Strock

September 20, 2017

The Disruptive Question Clinton and Trump Should Answer Now

There is one question that could redefine the final weeks of the 2016 presidential campaign. An affirmative answer by Hillary Clinton or Donald Trump could disrupt American politics: As president,

By James Strock

October 18, 2016

We Need Independents -- Not Moderates or Centrists

Among many good-government types, there’s a reliable refrain: We need more moderates in Washington! Such sentiments are no doubt well intended. It’s easy to see where they

By James Strock

August 18, 2016

Send 'Em All Home: How to Disrupt the Status Quo without Changing the Constitution

In the aftermath of the Brexit, there’s a rising sense of imminent political change in the United States. The spectacular, disruptive insurgencies of Bernie Sanders and Donald Trump illuminated

By James Strock

August 1, 2016