By Peter Goettler, Cato Institute Yesterday, Congress was violently disrupted as it performed its constitutional duty. This was a direct attack on the Constitution of the United States, the rule of law, and our constitutional republic. For more than two months President Trump has claimed, without plausible evidence and through multiple recounts and court […]
Tag: politics
Is Trump too good at hypnosis for his own good?
You’ve probably heard of Donald Trump and have likely read analyses, whether rueful or celebratory, of his uncanny persuasive powers. However, somewhat less discussed are his bonafide hypnotic abilities, which have been pointed out by a few commentators (including Dilbert cartoonist and Trump fellow traveler Scott Adams, who may have studied with the same […]
What Life Would Be Like on Planet Bernie
Tom Schatz, President, Citizens Against Government Waste In a galaxy not too far away and a little too close to Earth lies Planet Bernie. Everything is free from birth to death. There is a government program for education, medical care, housing, and retirement, all 100 percent guaranteed and paid for. No one […]
UK taxpayers subsidizing lobbying industry, political campaigns
“Almost £40 million of taxpayers’ money paid for lobbying and political campaigning” Courtesy Taxpayers’ Alliance New analysis from the TaxPayers’ Alliance reveals how ministers, officials and quangocrats are wasting taxpayers’ cash funding organisations that lobby the government. From 2017-19, organisations that lobby for changes in public policy received at least £39,584,172. Taxpayer money […]
Don’t buy the Treasury’s Chinese currency hype – then or now
“US Treasury’s Currency Report on China is a Case Study in Political Manipulation” By Daniel Griswold, courtesy of Mercatus Center The US Treasury’s semi-annual report issued this week on the exchange rate policies of China and other major trading partners is an exercise in intellectual gymnastics. The report reiterates that China was indeed a currency […]
Socialism remains powerful force in UK
“SAS: End of retro-socialism?” Courtesy of the Taxpayers’ Alliance Jeremy Corbyn’s retro-socialist Labour party have been defeated in a general election. Not merely bested, but genuinely beaten. Their hare-brained prospectus for government was unpopular enough that the party is the first opposition in British history to have substantially fewer seats after nine straight […]
Breaking the “black zero”: Germany has room to spend more
“How much space for fiscal expansion? Germany falls victim to ‘output gap nonsense’” By Philipp Heimberger, courtesy of WIIW The German economy is in a downturn. The growth rate is currently among the lowest in the euro area, and numerous economic research institutes have revised their forecasts downwards. German industry is already in recession. In […]
Labour manifesto is a “step back into the dark ages”
“IEA responds to Labour Party’s manifesto” Courtesy of the IEA Commenting on the Labour manifesto, Director General at the Institute of Economic Affairs Mark Littlewood said: “With today’s tax burden now at a 50-year high, the Labour Party’s plan to hike taxes and borrow hundreds of billions of pounds cannot end well for […]
Advancing Free Markets in Populist Times
By Iain Murray and Johan Norberg “National conservatism” is the flavor of the month, it seems. Recent European elections have seen parties that espouse big government and nationalism gain ground in both Poland and Germany – and the Polish government has duly announced a bigger role for the state in the economy. In the […]
Why a wealth tax would fall flat in the U.S., as elsewhere
“Wealth Tax Revenues” By Chris Edwards, courtesy of the Cato Institute Presidential candidates Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren have each proposed an annual wealth tax on the richest Americans. There are so many flaws with such a tax that it probably would not pass Congress. If it did pass, it would likely be […]