If you have municipal bonds issued by the city of Los Angeles, you may want to dump them while there’s still time. The LA Times reports that one-third of the city’s budget in 2015 will get consumed by pensions and benefits for retired bureaucrats. The cost of…
Daily Analysis
Responding to Paul Krugman and Ezra Klein
I seem to have touched a raw nerve with my post earlier today comparing Reagan and Obama on how well the economy performed coming out of recession. Both Ezra Klein and Paul Krugman have denounced my analysis (actually, they denounced me approving of Richard Rahn’s…
Missouri Voters Send Obama a Big Message on Government-Run Healthcare
I believe in freedom and my opinions are never swayed by polling data and election results, but I’m not oblivious to the importance of public opinion. So I’m delighted that the voters of Missouri overwhelmingly approved a measure against a federal mandate to purchase…
A Slam-Dunk Comparison
Both Ronald Reagan and Barack Obama entered office during periods of economic misery. But they adopted dramatically different solutions. Reagan reduced the burden of government and Obama increased the burden of government. So which approach worked best? In his…
The First Lady’s Misguided Crusade
Michelle Obama has a column in the Washington Post about the supposed wonders of giving schools a bigger role in the feeding of children. My first reaction is to roll my eyes. I understand that every First Lady picks a pet cause. I just wish they found causes that…
Mitchell’s Law Strikes Again
David Ignatius has a thoroughly boring and utterly predictable establishment left-wing column in the Washington post, but it is a perfect illustration of my maxim that “Bad government policy begets bad government policy.” In this case, Ignatius wants to expand gun…
Great Moments in Government-Run Healthcare
Somebody sent me this story from the Drudge Report and can’t resist the temptation to share. What really astounds me is not that a Swedish man sewed up his own leg after waiting for a long time in a hospital. Heck, I wouldn’t be surprised if things like that happened…
Obamacare Humor
While the cartoon is amusing, I’m sure I don’t need to remind this audience that this isn’t really a joke. The IRS now has immense additional powers to micro-manage our lives.
Yet Another Reason Soaking-the-Rich Doesn't Work
Statists view “the rich” as nothing more than ATM machines for funding big-government welfare states. They think they can take as much as they like – they’re rich, after all! – without consequences. Once they empty the machine, the bank…
Pontificating about Class Warfare Taxation in the New York Post
I have a column in today’s New York Post about Obama’s plan for higher taxes next year. My main point is that higher tax rates on the so-called rich have a very negative impact on the rest of us because even small reductions in economic growth have a big impact over…