The Export-Import bank is a favorite of big business. It’s also been defended by some misguided free market folk. But it’s bad for jobs and, as this video from the newly launched Daily Signal shows, an exercise in cronyism. CF&P is part of a large coalition calling on Congress to let the Export-Import bank expire. […]
read more...I haven’t spent much time writing about Thomas Piketty’s inequality book for the simple reason that my goal is economic liberty, not equality. That being said, I think that Piketty is fundamentally misguided even if the goal is helping the poor. Simply stated, long-run growth is the best way of reducing poverty and boosting living standards. […]
read more...I’ve never been susceptible to the claim that you solve problems with taxpayer money. Indeed, this amusing poster is a pretty good summary of my views on the effectiveness of government spending. But what about the horrific stories about veterans dying because of secret waiting lists and bureaucratic skullduggery at the Veterans Administration? I want to take […]
read more...I’m in Vancouver, Canada, for the biennial meeting of the World Taxpayers Associations. I gave a speech on why tax competition is a valuable force to constrain the greed of the political class, but warned the audience that high-tax governments and international bureaucracies are using financial protectionism to coerce low-tax jurisdictions into weakening their good policies. But regular […]
read more...On many occasions, I’ve explained that economic output is a function of how much labor and capital are productively utilized. This is why I relentlessly criticize policies that undermine GDP growth by hindering the use of these “factors of production.” That’s a bit of economic jargon, but it helps to explain why we shouldn’t be discriminating against capital […]
read more...I believe in free markets and small government, and I’m also against Washington corruption. Which is why I want to abolish the Department of Agriculture. And I suspect all sensible people will agree after reading excerpts from these three articles. We’ll start with Damon Cline, who produced a searing indictment of farm welfare for the Augusta Chronicle. Alexis de Tocqueville posited […]
read more...In hopes of warning people about the dangers of Obamacare, I’ve shared horror stories from the United Kingdom about patients languishing on waiting lists and being left to die. Now, thanks to whistleblowers, we have horror stories from America. The government-run system operated by the Veterans Administration has maintained secret waiting lists that have led to lots of delayed care […]
read more...Regular readers know that I like to mock big government and the hacks who are drawn to politics. This explains why I’ve always enjoyed cartoons that portray the state as a blundering, often-malicious, overweight nitwit. You can see some of my favorite examples here,here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and here. So in that tradition, let’s set aside serious issues today and enjoy […]
read more...I’m beginning to think that people from some nations are smarter and more rational than others. That may explain, for instance, why voters in Estonia support fiscal restraintwhile voters in France foolishly think the gravy train can continue forever. But I’m not making an argument about genetic ability. Instead, what I’m actually starting to wonder is whether […]
read more...What’s the worst economic development during Obama’s reign? Some would say it’s the higher tax burden. Some would say it’s the wasteful faux stimulus. Others would say it’s the fiscal nightmare of Obamacare. And others would say it’s the loss of millions of workers from the labor force. I suppose there’s no objective way to pick the most ill-conceived policy, […]
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