by Dan Mitchell | Nov 6, 2025 | Big Government, Blogs, Taxation, VAT
The case against the value-added tax (VAT) is not complicated. Simply stated, this hidden type of national sales tax was a key precursor for the expansion of the European welfare state. As you can see in the chart, the burden of government spending...
by Dan Mitchell | Apr 16, 2024 | Blogs, Taxation, VAT
While in Sweden last week, I wrote several columns (here, here, and here) about that nation’s fiscal policy. But I also had a discussion about American fiscal policy with one of the tax experts at the Confederation of Swedish Enterprise. That included a...
by Dan Mitchell | Jan 30, 2024 | Blogs, Taxation, VAT
I wrote 10 days ago about why a value-added tax would be a mistake for the United States. To help reinforce that argument, here’s a new map from the Tax Foundation showing VAT rates on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean. With a few exceptions...
by Dan Mitchell | Jan 20, 2024 | Blogs, Taxation, VAT
I wrote yesterday to criticize Andrew Biggs of the American Enterprise Institute and Alicia Munnell of Boston College for suggesting a $3 trillion 10-year tax increase on IRAs and 401(k)s. My column explained that more double taxation was a bad idea, and I...
by Dan Mitchell | Oct 7, 2023 | Big Government, Blogs, Government Spending, Taxation
I’ve been warning for many years (including less than two weeks ago) that it would be a big mistake to have a “grand bargain” budget deal that includes tax increases. This is not because of math. It is possible, of course, to have an acceptable...
