Patrick M. Brenner is the Founder and President of the Southwest Public Policy Institute, a research institute dedicated to improving the quality of life in the American Southwest by formulating, promoting, and defending sound public policy solutions.
Before launching SPPI, Patrick worked in public relations and marketing, then took charge of the donor engagement and government transparency litigation programs at the Rio Grande Foundation as the Vice President of Development. Patrick’s experience, advocacy for transparency, and desperate longing for accountable government have primed him for leading the American Southwest’s state-of-the-art think tank, where he empowers liberty through a data- and technology-fueled grassroots movement.
Patrick is the author of numerous policy studies. He has appeared in newspapers and on radio and television throughout the nation, including MSN, Fox News, The Washington Times, The Hill, National Review, Yahoo, The Daily Caller, Newsmax, Albuquerque Journal, Deseret News, The Daily Signal, The Federalist, American Banker, Las Cruces Sun-News, The Center Square, Santa Fe New Mexican, Grand Junction Daily Sentinel, RealClear Policy, RealClear Markets, The Deming Headlight, and more. More information about Patrick is available on Wikipedia.
Patrick helps instill American principles in his generation through his activism, is a member of the Knights of Columbus, and is a sitting board member of the Wilberforce Institute, a public policy think tank dedicated to advancing the recognition of the inherent value and dignity of life, promoting a market free from corrupt, collusive, and coercive government intrusion, and advocating for policies that benefit both human and animal interests. Patrick lives in Rio Rancho, New Mexico, with his wife Molly and their children, Charlotte, Marie, and David. He is a pilot, avid cyclist, amateur historian, ballroom dancer, and former aquarist. The family enjoys frequent trips to historic sites across the American Southwest.

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The Latest from Patrick
- National Review: Share, Baby, Share; How a Permanent Oil and Gas Fund Dividend Could Empower New MexicansAnd benefit the nation, too.
- Backdoor Price Control: New Mexico’s HB476 Interchange Fee Cap SchemeNew Mexico’s HB 476 stealthily caps interchange fees by targeting sales tax, bypassing federal oversight while shifting costs to consumers and small businesses.
- Arizona End-Run: How HB 2629 Sneaks in a Credit Card Interchange Fee CapArizona’s HB 2629 stealthily caps interchange fees by targeting sales tax, bypassing federal oversight while shifting costs to consumers and small businesses.
- Albuquerque Journal: A state-run bank would put taxpayers on the hook for risky loansA state-run public bank is a dangerous experiment in government overreach that will burden taxpayers, distort credit markets, and fail where private financial institutions succeed.
- RealClearMarkets: The Real World Intrudes On Sanders and Hawley’s Rate CapA national credit card rate cap may seem consumer-friendly, but history and state-level experiments shows it shrinks credit access and pushes borrowers toward costlier alternatives.