How do public policy decisions actually get made?

We see candidates make promises, legislators debate bills, courts issue rulings, and elections change who holds power. But before a policy becomes law, an idea must first become politically possible.

The Overton Window, developed at the Mackinac Center by the late Joseph Overton, describes the range of policies politicians believe they can support without paying an unacceptable political price. Shift what the public considers possible or acceptable, and the choices available to policymakers shift too.

In The Political Vise, John Tillman approaches the question differently, examining competing pressures from the media, public, and elite institutions—and how those forces shape politicians’ choices.

Where do these theories overlap? Where do they differ? And what can they teach us about turning ideas into lasting policy change?

Join John Tillman, author of The Political Vise, and Mackinac Center President Joe Lehman to explore the underlying influence of "politically possible" and how advocates for liberty can move good ideas from public debate to public policy.