In an op-ed for the Ottawa Citizen, Rob Atkinson argues the Canadian government made the right decision in choosing to refocus its National Research Council on industrially-relevant research and the United States should follow the lead of our neighbor to the north

At least nine competitor nations—Australia, Canada, Chile, China, Germany, Ireland, Israel, Singapore, and the United Kingdom—have implemented innovative policies to attract foreign entrepreneurs and investors to their countries as part of a concerted effort to design their nations’ immigration strategies in ways that drive economic and employment growth. These countries “see immigration as an integral part of their national economic strategy—a factor in their prosperity as significant as education and infrastructure.” It’s time the United States does the same. A research investor’s visa would represent an innovative path to U.S. citizenship that at the same time boosts R&D investment and the competitiveness of the U.S. economy.

After already slashing R&D funding, the Sequester is about to deliver another kick in the teeth to American competitiveness: it’s going to sharply reduce our ability to measure it. This one comes courtesy of the Bureau of Labor Statistics, whichannounced last month that the sequestration has forced it to eliminate itsInternational Labor Comparisons (ILC) program, a neat little database that adjusts foreign data to a common framework, allowing you to compare the traded sector health and competiveness of the United States against that of other countries.

In a piece for USA Today, Rob Atkinson argues that unless more older Americans work, pay taxes and take fewer benefits, the only realistic way to address the budget deficit will be more cuts in investment and core government programs.