By focusing their criticism on the federal government, argues Jonathan Chait, Republicans fail to address the real problem: over-regulation on the state and local level.

Cities, and urban policy in general, have long been the site of criticism from the right. "The specifics of the critique run the gamut from the rational and technocratic to amorphous racialized suburban terror, and they invoke a reactionary distrust of cities that runs deep in conservative thought,"writes Jonathan Chait.
Jonathan Chait argues that while Republicans associate urban failure with leftist politics, that belief is not borne out in their recent policy choices. By sticking to broad rhetoric against the Obama administration, Republicans refuse to push for the changes that might actually benefit cities. Chait writes, "Rather than reorient their platform to attack big government where big government is most deserving of attack, [Republicans] are instead using those forms of government as rhetorical cover for a traditional agenda."
Chait's conclusion: "A world where the Republican Party focused its attacks on government on the state and local government level is a world where the party would be playing a constructive role in the domestic-policy debate."
FULL STORY: Why Are Republicans Suddenly Fixated With Urban Failure?

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

Chicago’s Ghost Rails
Just beneath the surface of the modern city lie the remnants of its expansive early 20th-century streetcar system.

Study: Anti-Homelessness Laws Don’t Work
Research shows that punitive measures that criminalized unhoused people don’t help reduce homelessness.

The French Solution to Congested Tunnels: Make Them Car-Free
Bay Area transportation officials keep expanding car capacity. Lyon’s Croix Rousse Tunnel offers a different way.

Missouri Governor Reverses Anti-Discrimination Housing Policies
A new state law bars cities from prohibiting source-of-income discrimination against tenants using Section 8 housing vouchers.

USDOT Launches Unfunded 'SAFE ROADS' Program
The program targets “distractions” and “political messages or artwork,” and paves the way for autonomous vehicles.
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