Families are in, free trade is out at the ISI conference
Cockburn last weekend headed over to the Intercollegiate Studies Institute’s American Economic Forum. The speakers were on fire with ISI's particular brand of pro-working-class zeal, and Cockburn was lit at the VIP reception bar. Since Johnny Burtka took the helm at ISI, the right-leaning think tank has acquired a more socially conservative, economically protectionist flair, in line with Pat Buchanan, the founder of the magazine where Burtka used to work, the American Conservative. After dodging the Vice News journalists begging for an interview, Cockburn made his way over to a speech by former Trump administration trade representative Ambassador Robert Lighthizer.
