William Ruger is a research fellow in foreign policy studies at Cato Institute. He is also vice president for research and policy at the Charles Koch Institute and vice president for research at the Charles Koch Foundation. Ruger was previously an Associate Professor of Political Science at Texas State University and an adjunct assistant professor at the LBJ School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas‐​Austin.

His most recent scholarship appeared in International Studies Quarterly, Civil Wars, and Review of Political Economy. Ruger is the author of Milton Friedman, and co‐​author of two books on state politics including the new 4th edition of Freedom in the 50 States: An Index of Personal and Economic Freedom, published by Cato in August 2016. He is a frequent guest on television and radio, and his op‐​eds have appeared in several national publications, including Time, USA Today, Investor’s Business Daily, and the New York Daily News. He is on the Executive Council of the Inter‐​University Seminar on Armed Forces and Society.

Ruger is currently an officer in U.S. Navy (Reserve), and a veteran of the Afghanistan War. He earned his Ph.D. in Politics from Brandeis University and an A.B. from the College of William and Mary.