Despite the democracy-enhancing intentions of most donors, foreign aid can often offer opportunities for governments to politically repress their populations. This chapter argues and presents evidence that aid from the world's largest bilateral donor - the United States - harms political rights...

Autocrats experiencing a windfall in unearned income may find it optimal to donate to other countries some of the windfall in order to make the state a less attractive prize to potential insurgents. We put forward a model that makes that prediction, as well as the additional predictions that the...

"Attracting financial capital is essential for economic growth in developing countries, but can often tragically foster nondemocratic politics. Consider, for example, the impact of foreign aid. Since 2008 Ethiopia has been one of the largest recipients of U.S. aid in Africa, averaging around $80...