Economics

Center on Wealth & Poverty

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Michele Steeb Talks HUD’s Treatment First Toolkit on NTD Newsroom

Senior Fellow Michele Steeb appeared on NTD Newsroom to discuss the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s new Treatment First Toolkit. On August 12, HUD released “Best Practices Toolkit: Addressing Homelessness and Addiction through ‘Treatment First.’” The Toolkit addresses the insufficiencies of Housing First to address the problems faced by a large population of the homeless who suffer from Read More ›

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Stop Treating Homeless People Like Outlaws. It’s Killing Them

Maria DeSersa was 34 years old when she was found dead of a fentanyl overdose in an apartment laundry facility in Federal Way, Washington. She had been a defendant in 24 cases over the span of seven years. Research Fellow and Program Coordinator Marsha Michaelis explores Maria’s tragic story to expose the failures of a lenient criminal justice system and Read More ›

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Kevin Dahlgren Discusses Skid Row on Newsmax

Kevin Dahlgren appeared on Newsmax on July 22, 2026, alongside Harrison Baum to discuss the suffering and exploitation of the homeless in Skid Row. Dahlgren described Skid Row as one of the worst and most corrupt places he has ever been. It’s “the embodiment of radicalized policies run amok,” he explained.

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Andrea Suarez Advocates for Treatment First in KOMO News Town Hall on Homelessness

KOMO News hosted a Town Hall on Western Washington’s homelessness crisis on July 13. The Town Hall panel included Daniel Malone, Executive Director of the Downtown Emergency Service Center (DESC); Andrea Suarez, Founder and Executive Director of We Heart Seattle; Jon Scholes, President and CEO of the Downtown Seattle Association; and Dominique Alex, CEO of Mary’s Place. Among the topics Read More ›

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Ken Peterson Discusses “What Does It Cost?” on The John Curley Show

Filmmaker and businessman Ken Peterson appeared on The John Curley Show on Monday, May 4, to discuss the findings of his 2025 documentary, “What Does It Cost?” Peterson explained that the net-zero plans in Washington State and Oregon would cost $1 trillion and that the results on global temperature would be “imperceptible and unmeasurable.” “Nowadays, everybody and their brother is Read More ›

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Mamdani Ignores New York City Homelessness

Despite his campaign promise to end homeless encampment sweeps, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani has reinstated them. Filmmaker SIX SEVEN KEVIN takes to the streets of New York City, asking business owners, residents, and homeless individuals themselves about how the mayor has been handling the homelessness crisis.

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Skid Row’s Cash-for-Ballots Scheme

Discovery Institute has joined up with Frontlines Turning Point USA, O’Keefe Media Group, and other independent journalists in a multi-part investigation into a cash-for-ballots scheme in Los Angeles’ Skid Row. Jonathan Choe and Kevin Dahlgren help expose the exploitation of the homeless, the theft of the identities of innocent Americans, and the violation of state law in some of America’s Read More ›

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The Tragic Tale of the Las Vegas “Mole People”

Jonathan Choe and Kevin Dahlgren explore the underground tunnels of Las Vegas, where the homeless have set up camp despite the very real danger of flash floods. There, they find despair and peril experienced by the tunnel residents and the hypocrisy of a city that would rather ignore the unseen plight of its underground residents.

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HB 2266: Call Your Legislator Today

More than 20,000 people are living on the streets in Washington state, most of them suffering from an untreated mental illness and/or drug addiction. HB 2266 is currently moving through the Washington State legislature to make it easier to develop subsidized housing and emergency shelters in the style of the failed Housing First policy. This bill would override local ordinances Read More ›

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Why Utilities Cost More: Oregon’s Net Zero

Discovery Institute recently partnered with Angela Todd of PDXReal in Portland, Oregon, to examine the catastrophic impacts of Net Zero policies bearing down on Washington and Oregon. See her latest report. For more information on net zero policies in the Pacific Northwest, and their harmful consequences, please see: