Some people have asked why I’m so agitated about the possibility that Republicans may acquiesce to tax increases as part of the Supercommittee negotiations. Rather than get into a lengthy discourse about the proper role of the federal government or an analysis of how the Bush-Obama spending binge worsened America’s fiscal situation, I think this […]

Yesterday, I unloaded on supposed conservatives who are toying with a tax increase to enable more government spending. Why would they take that route in the “Supercommittee” deliberations, I wondered, when they can deliver a guaranteed victory for taxpayers by holding firm and allowing a sequester to occur, which would automatically slow the growth of […]

What would you do if you saw somebody standing at the top of a skyscraper, about to jump? Would you avert your eyes in horror? Would you watch in dismay as they plummeted to the ground? These are similar to the thoughts that are going through my mind as I watch Republicans begin the process […]

I’ve written about the fiscal implosion in Europe and warned that America faces the same fate if we don’t reform poorly designed entitlement programs such as Medicare and Medicaid. But this new video from the Center for Freedom and Prosperity, narrated by an Italian student and former Cato Institute intern, may be the best explanation […]

Many European welfare states have been caught in a downward spiral of taxes, spending, and debt. This mini-documentary from the Center for Freedom and Prosperity identifies key lessons for policymakers seeking to avoid the inevitable fiscal crisis caused by the welfare state.

The latest “Economics 101” video released today by the Center for Freedom and Prosperity Foundation (CF&P), narrated by Silvia Morandotti, a student at The University of Milan, draws upon the European sovereign debt turmoil to provide timely lessons for US policymakers. Entitled, “The European Fiscal Crisis and Lessons for America,” the video puts a spotlight on the ongoing crack-up of the Eurozone, and explains how the United States can avoid a similar fate.

Alan Blinder has a distinguished resume. He’s a professor at Princeton and he served as Vice Chairman of the Federal Reserve. So I was interested to see he authored an attack on the flat tax – and I was happy after I read his column. Why? Well, because his arguments are rather weak. So anemic […]

I didn’t have the fun of dealing with the OccupyWashington protestors at the Americans for Prosperity conference, but I did speak to the audience about America’s looming fiscal nightmare. The video quality isn’t perfect, though it came out better than the recording of my speech a few years ago for the National Taxpayers Union about […]

I’m baffled by stupid Republicans (sorry to be redundant). Some GOPers have agreed to put taxes on the table. Not surprisingly, Democrats are praising them for this preemptive surrender, patting these Republicans on the head for being good little lapdogs. (The Democrats are also high-fiving each other since they openly admit that tricking Republicans into […]

I’ve dinged Mitt Romney for his less-than-stellar record on healthcare, his weakness on Social Security reform, and his reprehensible support for ethanol subsidies, but I haven’t bothered to address his budget plan – in part because it seemed rather underwhelming. Sounds like I haven’t missed much. Jacob Sullum has done the tedious work of reading […]