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Civitas Outlook

Civitas Outlook, the online journal of the Civitas Institute, publishes original writing about the ideas that create flourishing societies.

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Waging Municipal Lawfare

Waging Municipal Lawfare

The limited authority of local governments to initiate public interest litigation is a matter of law, not politics.

Doug Peterson, Michael Toth
Constitutionalism
Oct 23, 2025

What Game Are We Playing?

What Game Are We Playing?

If you decide to play Calvinball, you have become a partisan of Calvinball.

John Grove
Constitutionalism
Oct 23, 2025

Trump's Industrial Policies Will Strangle Growth

Trump's Industrial Policies Will Strangle Growth

The public should doubt that the feds can run the nation’s businesses. 

Richard Epstein
Economic Dynamism
Oct 22, 2025

All topics

Civitas Outlook seeks understanding from a variety of authors, ideas, and disciplines. Choose a specific topic above or explore our full library.

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Waging Municipal Lawfare
Doug Peterson, Michael Toth
Constitutionalism
Oct 23, 2025
What Game Are We Playing?
John Grove
Constitutionalism
Oct 23, 2025
Trump's Industrial Policies Will Strangle Growth
Richard Epstein
Economic Dynamism
Oct 22, 2025
Does Federal Law Extend to Portlandia?
John Yoo
Constitutionalism
Oct 22, 2025
Bodies, Selves, and the Quest for Identity
Rachel Lu
Pursuit of Happiness
Oct 21, 2025
Creed, Culture, and American Memory
Wilfred McClay
Constitutionalism
Oct 21, 2025

Economic Dynamism

We consider the principles, policies, and culture that supports free market capitalism

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The Man Who Knew Too Little: Donald Trump on Tariffs
Richard Epstein
Economic Dynamism
Aug 20, 2025
Trump’s Tariff Triangulation
G. Dirk Mateer
Economic Dynamism
Aug 20, 2025
The New Planners
Dominic Pino
Economic Dynamism
Aug 20, 2025
Tariffs, Trade Wars, and the Coming Storm 
Veronique de Rugy
Economic Dynamism
Aug 20, 2025
Don’t Californicate, Floridize, or Kentuckify My AI ‍
Kevin Frazier
Economic Dynamism
Aug 19, 2025
Slowly Strangling the Pharmaceutical Industry
Richard Epstein
Economic Dynamism
Aug 13, 2025

Politics

We investigate what it means to be a constitutional people who remain tethered to the rule of law.

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New Paths for Legal Education Should Be Considered
Derek T. Muller
Politics
Jun 10, 2025
The Conserving Force of Lawyers in American Democracy
John Yoo
Politics
Jun 10, 2025
Ending the ABA’s Role in Accreditation Will Benefit Texas
Andrew P. Morriss
Politics
Jun 10, 2025
The ABA Deserves to Lose Its Accreditation Monopoly
Ilya Shapiro
Politics
Jun 10, 2025
Accrediting for Tomorrow: Law School Metrics and Interstate Compacts
Seth J. Chandler
Politics
Jun 10, 2025
The Supreme Court of Texas Must Put Texas First, and Liberate Law Students from the ABA‍
Josh Blackman
Politics
Jun 10, 2025

Constitutionalism

We discuss the political thought that undergirds a society of freedom and virtue.

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Waging Municipal Lawfare
Doug Peterson, Michael Toth
Constitutionalism
Oct 23, 2025
What Game Are We Playing?
John Grove
Constitutionalism
Oct 23, 2025
Does Federal Law Extend to Portlandia?
John Yoo
Constitutionalism
Oct 22, 2025
Creed, Culture, and American Memory
Wilfred McClay
Constitutionalism
Oct 21, 2025
The Constitution and the National Guard
Robert G. Natelson
Constitutionalism
Oct 20, 2025
Have We All Misunderstood Enumerated Powers?
Johnathan O'Neill
Constitutionalism
Oct 9, 2025

Pursuit of Happiness

We explore how citizens, neighbors, workers, families, and communities shape the future of American society.

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Chernow Speaks of Twain But Doesn’t Know His Words
Lee Oser
Pursuit of Happiness
Sep 12, 2025
Adam Smith in the Shadow of Thucydides
Graham McAleer
Pursuit of Happiness
Sep 5, 2025
Urban Designing for Dignity
Samuel J. Abrams
Pursuit of Happiness
Sep 3, 2025
What Evil Can and Cannot Teach Us
Nathaniel Peters
Pursuit of Happiness
Aug 29, 2025
The French Origins of Urban Renewal
Tyler Turman
Pursuit of Happiness
Aug 22, 2025
Diversity, Real and Imposed
Gregory M. Collins
Pursuit of Happiness
Aug 21, 2025

Technology & Innovation

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More from the

Civitas Institute

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Truth Matters: A Book Talk with Robert George and Cornel West

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Who we are

We are a community of scholars exploring the ideas and institutions that create flourishing societies.

The Civitas Institute is part of the School of Civic Leadership at the University of Texas at Austin.

Independent thought, civil discourse, reasoned deliberation and intellectual curiosity are central to our ethos.

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