Tag Archives : government spending
The $822,000-per-Year Bureaucrat and the Death of California
Hopefully we’re all disgusted when insiders rig the system to rip off taxpayers. And I suspect you’re not surprised to know that the worst examples come from California, which is in a race with Illinois to see which state can become the Greece of America. Well, the Golden State has a new über-bureaucrat. Here are […]
read more...For Both Policy Reasons and Political Reasons, the Fiscal Cliff is Better Than Surrender
It’s never a good idea to display weakness during negotiations. Your opponent will sense your fear and up his demands. That’s certainly what we’re seeing in Washington. The cartoon at this link captures the GOP’s wobbly attitude on taxes, and this interview is about the ever-increasing demands of the Obama Administration. It’s rather galling, by […]
read more...Exposing Washington’s Dishonest Budget Math
I’ve repeatedly tried to expose pervasive fiscal dishonesty in Washington. In these John Stossel and Judge Napolitano interviews, for instance, I explain that the crooks in DC have created a system that allows them to claim they’re cutting the budget when the burden of government spending actually is rising. This sleazy system is designed in […]
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Obama’s Fiscal Plan: Real Tax Hikes and Fake Spending Cuts
If done well, an image can say a thousand words. The Heritage Foundation shows us what Obama has in mind when he talks about a “balanced” plan. This chart, while horrifying and visually powerful, actually understates the case against Obama. The President is not proposing to cut spending by $400 billion. He’s only proposing to […]
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Why Are Republicans Willing to Help Obama Make America More Like Europe When the Welfare State Is Collapsing?
Washington frustrates me. The entire town is based on legalized corruption as an unworthy elite figure out new ways of accumulating unearned wealth by skimming money from the nation’s producers. But one thing that especially irks me is the way people focus on the trees and forget about the forest. Politicians and journalists are now […]
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Europe’s Slow-Motion Fiscal Suicide
I shared an astounding chart last month showing that tax increases account for 90 percent of the so-called “austerity” in Europe. The author of the chart, Veronique de Rugy of the Mercatus Center, calls this “private sector austerity” and she correctly argues that her home continent is in desperate need of some austerity on the […]
read more...We Should Worry about the Long-Run Burden of Government, not the Fiscal Cliff
I appeared on CNBC yesterday to talk about the “fiscal cliff” and the potential impact on economic performance. You won’t be surprised to learn that I’m mostly concerned with how the issue gets resolved. Yes, there is some temporary uncertainty that is probably making markets skittish, but I’m much more worried about Obama bullying the […]
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Higher Taxes Mean Bigger Government, not Lower Deficits
President Obama and other statists in Washington want a big class-warfare tax hike. They claim the additional revenue is necessary to reduce red ink. But their ideological crusade is based on some blatant distortions. They tell us that tax increases are necessary, but even CBO data shows that the budget can be balanced in just […]
read more...Now that the Election Is Over, the Washington Post Admits that the Obama Recovery Has Been Terrible
I agree that Obama inherited a crappy economy, and I think it is silly to assert that he bears any responsibility for the severity of the 2007-2009 recession. But it is very fair to hold him responsible for what’s happened since the recession ended. I’ve cited data from the Minneapolis Federal Reserve on both employment […]
read more...In a Debate for U.S. News & World Report, I Argue Obama’s Plan Is Worse than the Fiscal Cliff
I took part today in a nine-person debate on the fiscal cliff for U.S. News & World Report. We were all asked, “Is Going Over the ‘Fiscal Cliff’ Necessarily the Worst Outcome?” I said “no” because there are worse options, and I specifically explained that Obama’s class warfare agenda is even more destructive. Readers are […]
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