FreedomTalks

In a recent commentary, William Beach of the Heritage Foundation offers a good critique of expansive legislation the Senate is trying to pass before Congress goes into recess. Dubbed the “losing trifecta,” H.R. 5970, the “Estate Tax and Extension of Tax Relief Act of 2006,” looks to increase the minimum wage, reduce the death tax, [...]

In a recent blog post, George Mason University professor Bryan Caplan offers some interesting analysis of the U.S. trade deficit. His comments stem from an article published by Harvard scholars Ricardo Hausmann and Frederico Sturzenegger, in which they argue that conventional trade deficit accounting methods misrepresent the actual state of the current account deficit:
The Bureau of [...]

The Indian government has launched a formal investigation into the price of China’s textile exports, accusing five Chinese firms of “dumping” textiles into India below “fair market value.” Until the investigation ends, India has introduced provisional tariffs on silk imports ranging from 57% to 116%.
This is yet another of the countless dumping allegations made against China each year. According to the WTO, most of [...]

With the Senate threatening to pass import tariff legislation if China does not allow the yuan to appreciate, the topic of the U.S.’s expanding current account deficit is hotter than ever. A recent article from American Enterprise Institute scholar John Makin, though, gives good analysis on why the current account deficit may not have the negative implications many politicians [...]

A new study from the Heritage Foundation finds that state-level regulation of health insurance is correlated with higher premiums. Specifically, regulations such as health plan liability laws and mandated benefit laws are associated with premium increases of up to $31.15 per month. This can price many Americans out of coverage and thus contribute to the high [...]

In a 35-14 vote, the Chicago City Council recently approved a measure that would force all “big box” retailers to pay a minimum wage of $10/hour by 2010. Stores with over $1 billion in annual sales and 90,000 square feet of store space would be required to comply with the ordinance if Mayor Richard Daley signs it into law. If approved, [...]

With Democrats and moderate Republicans continuing their push for an increase in the minimum wage, conservatives in the House have taken a stand against it. Yesterday, members of the Republican Study Committee circulated a letter on the Hill that outlines the negative effects of the minimum wage on employers and workers. It also calls on House [...]

The latest round of World Trade Organization talks has collapsed over disagreements between the EU and the US. Both have put the blame on each other for the failure of the so-called ”Doha round” of talks, which began in 2001. The US had called on the EU to drastically cut agricultural tariffs so as to allow US farmers access [...]

An ad taken out last month in Minnesota’s Star Tribune called for an increase in tax rates on all Minnesotans in order to provide more funding for education and healthcare. Interestingly enough, the ad was sponsored and signed by over 200 “wealthy Minnesotans” who want the marginal tax rates hiked across the board, but especially on high-income earners, for which [...]

Hundreds of Democrats gathered yesterday at a meeting organized by the centrist Democratic Leadership Council to discuss their agenda and garner support from voters. During the event, Sen. Hillary Clinton unveiled the “American Dream Initiative,” a set of economic proposals aimed at helping the middle and lower classes. Similar to the agenda John Kerry campaigned [...]