President Obama promised he would unite the world…and he’s right. Representatives from dozens of nations have bitterly complained about an awful piece of legislation, called the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), that was enacted back in 2010. They despise…
Daily Analysis
More Double Taxation of Dividends and Capital Gains Would Turn Tax Reform into Tax Deform
Even though I’m a big fan of tax reform, I explained back in June that I’m not very comfortable with the “blank slate” tax reform plan put forth by Senators Max Baucus (D-MT) and Orrin Hatch (R-UT). My main gripe is that they start with the assumption that there…
Left-Wing Nursery Rhymes
I’ve already shared the statist version of the fairy tale about The Little Red Hen. And I’ve also shared the Obama version of the fable about The Ant and the Grasshopper. So how about the left-wing version of The Little Engine that Could. Or, in this case, couldn’t. I…
Deconstructing Barack Obama, Part III
Two days ago, I shared an insightful article from Kevin Williamson as we contemplated the President’s ideology. Yesterday, we reviewed an article by Richard Epstein in hopes of deciphering Obama’s approach to economic policy. Let’s conclude our series by looking at…
Deconstructing Barack Obama, Part II
Yesterday, Part I of this series looked at what motivates Barack Obama. We reviewed a Kevin Williamson column that made a strong case that Obama is an ends-justifies-the-means statist. Today, we’re going to look at the President’s approach to economic policy and we’ll…
Deconstructing Barack Obama, Part I
I’ve argued that Obama’s not a socialist. I wasn’t trying to defend him. I was simply making the point that it’s technically more accurate to refer to him as a statist or a corporatist. But he may be even worse than that, at least according to a must-read Kevin…
Why Do Bureaucrats Hate Bambi?
The bad news is that governments do a lot of things they shouldn’t do. The good news is that I never run out of material. I’ve even created some sub-categories, such as my U.S. vs U.K. government stupidity contest and my great-moments-in-local-government series. But I…
America Is a Tax Haven…and That’s a Very Good Thing
I like tax havens for the simple reason that we need some ways of restraining the greed of the political class. Simply stated, if profligate politicians think that we are “captive customers,” they are much more likely to impose (even) higher tax rates (as we’ve seen…
Americans Are Far More Compassionate than “Socially Conscious” Europeans
When I’m in Europe giving speeches and participating in conferences, it’s quite common that folks on the left will attempt to discredit my views by asserting that Americans are selfish and greedy. Since I’m generally sympathetic to Ayn Rand’s writings, I don’t see…
Four Charts Showing How Obama’s Statist Agenda Is Hurting Jobs and Growth
President Obama made a much-hyped pivot-to-the-economy speech yesterday in Chattanooga, Tennessee. I already explained, immediately following the speech, why his “grand bargain” on corporate taxes was not a good deal because of all the hidden taxes on new investment…