There’s been a bit of chatter in the blogosphere about a recent post on Ezra Klein’s blog featuring estimates from various economists about the revenue-maximizing tax rate. It won’t come as a surprise that people on the right tended to give lower estimates and folks…
Daily Analysis
Choosing the Flat Tax over the Fair Tax
After my recent post on “bashing the IRS,” I got several emails and comments asking whether a national sales tax might be a better idea than the flat tax. I’m a big fan of proposals such as the Fair Tax. I’ve debated in favor of the national sales tax, done media…
Bush was the Biggest Tax Collector in History, But an Even Bigger Spender
Bill Frezza of Adams Capital Management writes at RealClearMarkets to debunk claims that the current deficit is due to a lack of tax revenue, rather than excessive spending. Using IRS data, he shows how revenues from the rich – as well as the effective tax rate…
“Dump Fannie and Freddie in the Potomac”
I appeared on CNBC earlier today to explain why a stake should be driven through the heart of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. My debate opponents seems to be somewhat on the right side and admits that Fannie and Freddie are bad news, but inexplicably wants to keep them…
Letter from Cayman Finance Exposes Senator Levin’s Fallacies
Recently, I chastised Senator Levin for his assault on so-called “tax havens,” pointing out that Levin’s agenda would fail to benefit small businesses, but instead “place U.S. corporations at a competitive disadvantage in the international marketplace.” Since…
The Tea Party Manifesto
Former House Majority Leader Dick Armey and Matt Kibbe of FreedomWorks have a column in today’s Wall Street Journal that explains the spontaneous, grassroots phenomenon of tea parties. They have plenty of interesting political and social analysis, but the most…
Coalition for Tax Competition Responds to the FATCA Mess
Congress wants to reduce tax evasion, but politicians are unwilling to address the underlying problem of low tax rates, so they continuously give the IRS more power and make it more difficult for law-abiding people to engage in commerce. A good example is the FATCA…
Time for Some IRS Bashing
Being a lazy procrastinator, I filed an extension April 15 and then waited until this weekend to do my tax return. This experience has reinforced my hatred and disdain for our corrupt and punitive tax system. I don’t even have a remotely complicated tax return, just a…
Germany’s Wealthy Über Statists
It’s hard to believe that anybody would classify the Germans as a master race after reading this Spiegel article. Bill Gates and Warren Buffett have a nutty (but at least non-coercive) plan for rich people to give away a big share of their fortunes. The German…
The Private Sector Always Does a Better Job than Government
Using road management as an example, John Stossel explains that government does a worse job than the private sector, even at things that theoretically are a government responsibility. Part of this is because of the profit motive, to be sure, but a big reason is…