by Dan Mitchell | Sep 11, 2015 | Big Government, Blogs, Government Spending
A new fiscal year starts October 1, and this is terrifying news for Republicans in Washington. They’re scared that if they don’t give Obama everything he wants, they’ll get “blamed” when the President vetoes annual spending bills and shuts down the government. If this...
by Dan Mitchell | Sep 10, 2015 | Blogs, Education, Taxation
In my 2012 primer on fundamental tax reform, I highlighted the three biggest warts in the current system. 1. High tax rates that penalize productive behavior such as work and entrepreneurship. 2. Pervasive double taxation that undermines saving and investment. 3....
by Dan Mitchell | Sep 9, 2015 | Blogs, Energy, Taxation
When the International Monetary Fund endorsed a giant energy tax on the American economy, I was not happy. And not just because the tax hike would have been more than $5,000 for an average family of four. I also was agitated by the hypocrisy. …these bureaucrats...
by Dan Mitchell | Sep 8, 2015 | Big Government, Blogs, Europe, Government Spending, Welfare and Entitlements
Back in 2013, my colleagues at the Cato Institute, Michael Tanner and Charles Hughes, released a study looking at the value of welfare programs in various states. The most shocking finding was that the overall package of welfare benefits was greater than the median...
by Dan Mitchell | Sep 7, 2015 | Blogs, Economics, States, Tax Competition, Taxation
Here’s a quiz for readers. When politicians increase taxes, the result is: a) More spending? b) More red ink? c) Fewer jobs? d) Out-migration of productive taxpayers? e) Reduced competitiveness? f) Less investment? g) A bigger underground economy? h) More corruption?...
