Campaigning in Wisconsin, Vice President Biden met his match in a local small business owner. It doesn’t have quite the snappy ring of “Joe the Plumber,” but it will do. Earlier today Joe Biden was in Wisconsin, trying to help Russ Feingold salvage…
Daily Analysis
Canadian Boondoggles and Russia Is More Capitalist than the U.S. (Again)
The G-20 gab-fest is in Canada this weekend, but Canadian taxpayers are definitely not winners. In a display of waste that might even embarrass a French politician, the Canadian government somehow is going to squander $1 billion hosting the event. I can’t even…
The Tax Man Wants His Cut
As if the residents of the Gulf Coast haven’t had it hard enough, the IRS is moving in to make sure they get their cut of any payouts from BP. These government bureaucrats even have the chutzpah to pretend that their actions are benevolent and beneficial on the…
The G-20 Fiscal Fight: A Pox on Both Their Houses
Barack Obama and Angela Merkel are the two main characters in what is being portrayed as a fight between American “stimulus” and European “austerity” at the G-20 summit meeting in Canada. My immediate instinct is to cheer for the Europeans. After all, “austerity”…
European Central Bank President Wants to Exacerbate Continent’s Fiscal Crisis
It’s been amusing, in an I-told-you-so fashion, to follow the fiscal crises in Greece, Spain, and other European welfare states. And I feel like a voyeuristic ghoul as I observe the incredibly misguided bailout policies being adopted by the political elites (who are…
The U.K. Version of Meet the New Boss, Same as the Old Boss
As the chart below indicates, the United Kingdom has a large budget deficit solely because government spending has increased to record levels (OECD data). Unfortunately, the new Tory-Liberal coalition government has decided that taxpayers should be punished for all…
Top House Democrat Calls for Middle-Class Tax Hikes
I’ve frequently argued that the main purpose of “taxing the rich” is not to collect more revenue. Smart leftists, after all, understand that there are very strong Laffer Curve effects at the top of the income scale since investors and entrepreneurs have considerable…
Senator DeMint Fights Against Tax Increase on Capital Gains and Dividends
In today’s political climate of big government, big spending and big taxes, it’s important to recognize when someone in Congress stands up and gets it right. Senator Jim DeMint did just that recently when he proposed an amendment, to the current tax…
A Totalitarian Future for Europe?
I don’t often agree with the statist president of the European Commission, but Mr. Barroso may be right when he warns that some nations are at risk of descending back into dictatorship. But while he may be correct in his diagnosis, his proposed solution is more…
British Prepare for Impending Capital Gains Increase
UK Chancellor George Osborne is expected to include a sharp increase in Britain’s capital gains tax when he unveils the emergency budget on Tuesday. Preparing for this, British citizens are acting to take advantage of the lower rates while they still can: A…