Print edition: 
Robert Lawson is all about economic freedom.
He's based his academic career on studying it and will speak about it at a forum sponsored by the Fred C. and Mary R. Koch Foundation on Feb. 25 at the Hyatt Regency Wichita.
Lawson, a professor at Auburn University, is co-author of the annual Economic Freedom of the World report, which has just been released.
He lists his interests as ultra-marathons, hiking, cycling, mountaineering, vintage "base ball," cooking and travel, along with publishing an extraordinary number of articles and books.
Lawson, 42, is married and has one child.
How worried are you about America's long-term future?
"Today, I'm reasonably optimistic about the American economy. I study the whole world and what conditions are needed for people to grow and prosper: moderate — not zero — taxation, property rights, the rule of law, monetary stability and access to trade. It's not a garden spot. It's not perfect. But the U.S. looks pretty darn good."
But what about moves over the last couple years in Washington?
"There is some pessimism on the fringes, and I worry that this recession is being used as an excuse to jeopardize some of the things in the economy.... (But) I think we have resisted a lot of it. Some of the taxing and spending in the short term — health care — it looks as if we've probably dodged it."
Was the bailout necessary?
"If we had let some of the large financial institutions fail we might have been better off. It would have been a huge shock to the system, but it would be cleansing. It's impossible to say for sure, of course, and you can't try it over. They made the claim that if we don't do this, the world's going to fall apart. I don't buy that. I don't think we'd be much worse off than we are today."
So this isn't all President Obama's responsibility?
"This is not an Obama thing — essentially this is something Bush started — but it has pretty much stayed the same. I do think that it was a mistake to do this, although it remains to be seen whether this is a permanent mistake or a temporary one. Politicians in the middle of a recession are going to want to do something. They are making a mistake, but it doesn't really bother me because that's what they do."
So, how economically free is the U.S.?
"In 2009, the U.S. was sixth. There is always ups and downs. We've clearly slipped. We were as high as 2 in 2000.... In the U.S. case, a lot of it has to do with property rights and rule of law measures. There was a sense of unease about property rights and rule of law. This was before the Obama administration. It's a little hard to say exactly what drove it, but my guess is that it has to do with the war on terror. Maybe all that stuff is needed, but there was a sense among American citizens that with wiretapping, and one thing after another that some of that had suffered a bit."
