by Dan Mitchell | Jun 7, 2015 | Blogs, Economics, Taxation
Every so often, I’ll assert that some statists are so consumed by envy and spite that they favor high tax rates on the “rich” even if the net effect (because of diminished economic output) is less revenue for government. In other words, they deliberately and openly...
by Dan Mitchell | Jun 1, 2015 | Blogs, Economics, States, Taxation
Every so often, I get asked why I’m so rigidly opposed to tax hikes in general and so vociferously against the imposition of new taxes in particular. In part, my hostility is an ideological reflex. When pressed, though, I’ll confess that there are situations – in...
by Dan Mitchell | May 6, 2015 | Big Government, Blogs, Economics, Government Spending, Taxation
I’ve openly stated that there are tax-hiking budget deals that theoretically would be attractive. But notice that “theoretically” is part of that sentence. That’s because in the real world, tax hikes have a poisonous effect on fiscal policy. Instead of being the...
by Dan Mitchell | May 1, 2015 | Big Government, Blogs, Government Spending, Taxation
For the people of China, there’s good news and bad news. The good news, as illustrated by the chart, is that economic freedom has increased dramatically since 1980. This liberalization has lifted hundreds of millions from abject poverty. The bad news is that China...
by Dan Mitchell | Apr 26, 2015 | Blogs, Taxation
It must be fun to be a leftist. You get to spend other people’s money. But that’s just for starters. Using the power of majoritarianism, you also get to tell the rest of the country what to do, how to behave, and even what to eat. Best of all, you can be a complete...
