There’s a tendency in public life to exaggerate the positive or negative implications of any particular policy. This is why I try to be careful not to overstate the potential benefits of reforms I like, such as the flat tax. Yes, we would get better growth and there…
Daily Analysis
Wise Words on Fiscal Sovereignty and Corporate Taxation (sort of) from Bill Clinton
I’ve always had a soft spot in my heart for Bill Clinton. In part, that’s because economic freedom increased and the burden of government spending was reduced during his time in office. Partisans can argue whether Clinton actually deserves the credit for these good…
If You Want Jobs and Growth, Keep in Mind that Obamanomics also Doesn’t Work on the State Level
The Tax Foundation in Washington does some great work on fiscal issues, but I also admire their use of maps when they want to show how various states perform on key indicators. They’re best known for “Tax Freedom Day,” which measures how long people have to work each…
FATCA’s Self-Inflicted Wounds
The destruction caused by the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) has been well covered by CF&P and others. Among other things, the law is scaring foreign investment out of the economy, turning US citizens abroad into toxic assets, and redirecting…
Bono Defends Tax Competition
Bono recently made waves for defending capitalism and its role in alleviating poverty. Rock stars aren’t supposed to express appreciation for the same free markets that have made them wealthy. But not only has he witnessed first hand how markets work to bring…
End the Federal Subsidy for Big State Governments
The relationship between federal and state governments – the division of power between the two levels being known as federalism – is an integral part of the American constitutional system. Federalism uses separate and competing spheres of sovereignty to…
Tax Havens and Tax Competition Are Crucial if We Want to Restrain Predatory Government
I’m very worried about America’s fiscal future. Simply stated, data from several sources (BIS, OECD, and IMF) indicates that we face a future Greek-style fiscal crisis unless policy makers implement genuine entitlement reform. Unfortunately, politicians have little…
Turning New York City into Detroit?
I recently speculated whether Detroit’s fiscal problems should be a warning sign for the crowd in Washington. The answer, of course, is yes, though it’s not a perfect analogy. The federal government is in deep trouble because of unsustainable entitlement programs…
Why Tax Migration and Federalism Mean Doom for Left-Wing States such as New York, California, and Illinois
Maybe this means I’m not a nice person (notwithstanding my high score for tenderness in a recent test), but I can’t help but be happy when I read bad news about fiscal policy in high-tax welfare states. And because I’m a huge fan of tax competition, I get even happier…
More Compelling Evidence that America’s Corporate Tax System Is Pointlessly Destructive
It’s probably not an exaggeration to say that the United States has the world’s worst corporate tax system. We definitely have the highest corporate tax rate in the developed world, and we may have the highest corporate tax rate in the entire world depending on how…