Study
Europe’s Fiscal Crisis Revealed: An In-Depth Analysis of Spending, Austerity, and Growth
Read the Full Study at Heritage.org Italy’s current economic problems are the result of a decades-old web of business-stifling regulation and a…
National Interest
Can Europe Move Past Its Economic Malaise?
Will incoming European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker’s cabinet assignments set the scene for an economic turnaround within the European Union? The answer to that question…
EU Observer
Italy’s ‘trust no one’ culture holding back growth
For visitors this spring, a trip to Bella Italia’s countryside and picturesque towns will feel like taking a trip back in time. Because it is.
EU Observer
The Line To Get Into ‘Club Euro’ Is Growing
It’s 2014 and the euro is still in one piece. In fact, there’s a line outside to get into Club Euro. Latvia is the latest…
Blog
Selfishness Underlies the Shutdown, At Home and Abroad
Americans aren’t the only ones talking about government shutdown this week. Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi almost collapsed Italy’s government on Wednesday by threatening…
EU Observer
Government Shutdown, Italian Style
Misery loves company, goes the old saying. And in the face of government shutdown, America is not entirely alone. Head to Italy and the average…
EU Observer
Lessons from Italy: What happens when businesses are forced to move abroad
Co-written by Emilio Rocca THE 42 employees of Firem, an Italian heating systems maker, returned from their August holidays to find the plant where they…
EU Observer
Europe’s economy needs a real dose of pro-market reform
Recession has been eradicated in Europe. Hooray! Or at least, that’s what recent headlines and grandstanding from political leaders would have you believe. The…
Study
Praying for Growth at the GDP Altar
Blog
Europe’s Continued Stagnation Is Not Surprising, Given Lack of Reform
The Guardian reports that Italy’s record-long economic slump has continued for another quarter. This isn’t much of a surprise given Prime Minister Enrico Letta’s…
Blog
The HuffPo’s Sloppy Austerity Analysis
Mark Gongloff, a writer for the Huffington Post, claims to show “The Complete Failure of Austerity, In 1 Chart.” Wow! Either he has found…
Blog
Are Markets Rational When It Comes to Economic Fundamentals?
We hear frequently that financial markets thrive on irrational fears. That they are wrong to be wary of unreformed economies and that central banks are…
Blog
Austerity Means Cuts, Not More Spending
Despite its frequent use through the media and in political debate, few journalists and politicians actually use the term “austerity” correctly. But Cypriot Finance Minister…
EU Observer
Beware the Myth of European Austerity
Beware the Myth of European Austerity “France’s Austerity Drive Pushes Country into Recession.” “How Austerity Has Failed.” Thus proclaim two recent, typical…
EU Observer
Europe’s lessons on austerity success
With the U.S. national debt about to pass the $17 trillion mark – more than America’s total economic activity in 2012 – and federal interest…
Blog
New Study Dispels Myths of European Austerity
Cries throughout the media of “savage austerity” notwithstanding, only a handful of European countries have actually implemented austerity in the true sense of the term:…
EU Observer
Who Made Government Big? We Did
After U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke announced recently that the Fed would reduce its asset purchases through mid-2014, financial industry players and the journalists…
EU Observer
In Europe Cutting Taxes and Spending Leads to the Best Results
Matthew Melchiorre, the Competitive Enterprise Institute’s Warren Brookes Journalism Fellow, has written a report on so-called austerity in Europe showing that many…
Study
The True Story of European Austerity
European governments that have cut spending and taxes have higher rates of economic growth than their neighbors. Then why do we hear lamentations from the…
EU Observer
Coming Soon: A Dramatic Downshift In Company Size, Plus Hours Worked
A recent study on the impact on business growth of regulatory thresholds built into Italian labor laws is quite instructive of how this works. In…
Blog
France Needs a “Power-Up” When It Comes to Labor Reform
In its annual country report released on Monday, the IMF turned up the heat on France for labor reform. The Washington-based lender called for…
Blog
European Skepticism of Minimum Wage Falls on Deaf Ears in America
Spain’s central bank—operating within the European country with the highest rate of unemployment—just recommended to the government in Madrid a suspension of the minimum…
Blog
Does Austerity Really “Kill”?
Does austerity kill? In a recent New York Times op-ed, David Stuckler and Sanjay Basu claim that fiscal austerity leads to a worsening of health…
Blog
The Doctor Is In, America: Get With the Estonian Program
Don’t let the optimism surrounding last month’s job numbers fool you. The unemployment rate’s decline from 7.6 percent in March to 7.5 percent in…
Study
Separating European Austerity Fact and Fiction
Full Document available in PDF Rarely a week goes by without mention in the media of European governments’ failure to restore economic…
The American Spectator
Republicans Dishonor Thatcher
Margaret Thatcher’s passing led many around the world to reflect on her legacy. In the United Kingdom, reactions ranged from fond remembrances by supporters to…
The American Spectator
U.S. Should Copy Estonia, Which Made Austerity Work
Another month of disappointing job numbers is a painful reminder that the U.S. economy is struggling after almost five years of fiscal and monetary stimulus.
The American Spectator
The curse of bipartisanship: Why the grand coalition’s return won’t save Italy
THE re-election of Giorgio Napolitano as President of the Italian Republic this weekend – supported by the centre-left, centre-right, and the centre – is as…
Blog
Bitcoin: An Escape From Currency Debasement?
Although gold traditionally has been the alternative asset for those wary of fiat currency debasement, there is an emerging newcomer: virtual currency. Bitcoin, created in…
Blog
Cyprus Is A Lesson For U.S. Policy Makers: Too Big To Fail Is Not Inevitable
American financial regulators could take a lesson from their European counterparts. The recent EU bail-in/bailout of Cyprus, despite its dangers, shows that reducing moral hazard…
The American Spectator
Cypriot deal is welcome change to EU approach
BRUSSELS – In the wake of the bailout/half bail-in that is the Cyprus rescue package, Eurogroup chairman Jeroen Dijsselbloem said last week the EU is…
The American Spectator
With Cyprus, The EU Needs To Urgently Erase Europe’s ‘Nobody Loses’ Mentality
“Horrifying.” “Dangerous.” “Shocking.” And yes, it is coming to a theater near you. Or so went the general reaction among the media and political punditry…
Blog
A Quick Investigation Of Central Bank Redistribution
Blog
Austerity Is Worth The Cost
In a January National Review article, I explained how Baltic countries such as Estonia that had undertaken short-lived but severe cuts to government spending…
The American Spectator
The return of the euro crisis
Without stronger economic growth, Italy can’t generate jobs and the tax revenues to shave the debt. Even before the financial crisis, growth was dismal, averaging…
Blog
Europe’s Latest Wake-Up Call: Italian Elections
Europe, which has been enjoying a recent respite from financial chaos, is about to get a rude awakening: Italian elections. Voters will go to the…
The American Spectator
Greek tragedy? Papandreou to lecture Ivy Leaguers on leading in crisis
“It’s good that students get to know firsthand knowledge of someone who was in the situation,” said Matthew Melchiorre, an expert on European economic affairs…
Blog
Baltic Success Reveals The Folly Of Obama’s Doublespeak
This week’s State of the Union address was full of plans for government action and spending to combat U.S. economic malaise. At the same…
The American Spectator
Why a ‘small’ bailout for little Cyprus is a big deal
The bailout of Cyprus is garnering much less attention than did the help provided to other struggling euro zone members. Cyprus is tiny, and rescue…
The American Spectator
France’s disappointing labor reforms
Businesses in France have long faced a hostile environment at home, with the country’s rigid labor laws among their chief complaints. This matters, as France…
Blog
Magician Economists Like Bernanke Can’t Pull Prosperity Out Of A Hat
The American Spectator
Value Destroyers Like Bernanke Fancy Themselves Magician Economists
Economics is not magic. Yet today, many prominent economists insist on pulling off an economic rabbit hat trick when they propose getting something for nothing.
Blog
More Evidence For Austerity’s Success
Third-quarter unemployment data from Eurostat, Europe’s statistical agency, provides still more proof actual cuts in teh size of government — what I call “real austerity”…
The American Spectator
Not All Austerity Is Equal
Prominent economists, politicians, and pundits throw around the term “austerity” as if policies by…
Blog
Europe’s Green Building Boondoggle: Benefits By 2064
A report released yesterday by the European Court of Auditors exposed the European Union’s €5 billion boondoggle into increasing “energy efficiency” in public buildings.
The American Spectator
Italy’s Zombie Politicians Have Crossed The Atlantic
Zombies have overrun Rome—and they’re spreading to Washington. Politics on both sides of the Atlantic is stuck in limbo between life and death as politicians…
Blog
Europe 2013: A Primer
As the New Year approaches, many challenges loom for Europe. Here’s a quick list of the toughest hurdles for 2013: 1. Implementing the Single…
Blog
France’s Anti-Business Orthodoxy
In France, running a productive business is not important. Simply creating jobs -- not wealth or innovation -- is the sole purpose of enterprise. At…
Blog
Stuck in Time: Italy’s Politics
Things have a way of repeating themselves. This is especially true in Italy, where politics have been stuck in a time loop for the…
The American Spectator
Italian politics: 1970s stuck on repeat
BRUSSELS – The inevitable loop of Italian politics repeated again this month when former prime minister Silvio Berlusconi – fresh from a tax fraud conviction…
Blog
Obama’s Dangerous Italian Labor Rhetoric
[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="260"] President Obama spoke in Detroit on Monday[/caption] President Obama condemned yesterday Michigan’s forthcoming transition to a right-to-work state. He claimed,…
Blog
American Capitalism Is More Compassionate Than European Socialism
America has not yet become Europe. And that’s a good thing. In Investor’s Business Daily, I empirically show that the American model of greater…
Blog
The Bank Of England Breaks With Tradition, Only To Continue It
U.K. Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne’s selection for the new governor of the Bank of England (BOE) is a strong break with tradition.
The American Spectator
Opportunity And Wealth Remain In America, Not Europe
The presidential election proved Americans have embraced European-style social democracy and that ObamaCare is but the first chapter in a new era of big government.
Blog
The Estonian Solution To America’s Fiscal Cliff: Cut Spending
Real austerity brings real growth. That’s the story of Estonia, which broke the common European mold of tax increase-based economic retrenchment by taking an axe…
The American Spectator
America must avoid Europe’s toxic tax remedy
With America threatening to run off the “fiscal cliff” of tax increases and spending cuts on Jan. 1, it risks repeating the mistakes of Europe.
Blog
Italy Shoots The Messenger… And Its Legal System In The Foot
Italy’s legal system, already deeply unfriendly to business, has sunk to a new low this week. In the town of Trani, prosecutors requested to charge five…
Blog
Austerity For Europeans, But Not For Europe
Some economists and political leaders demonize European austerity as “savage.” They say it will only deepen and prolong recession. They are right, but for the…
Blog
“Status-Quo-ism” Of Italian Politicians Is Economically Perilous
Italian media report all sides of Italy’s political spectrum are calling for early elections. Unfortunately, that means a return of the unreformed Italian political class…
Blog
On Halloween, Euro Politics Fit Right In
All the usual characters are present this Halloween night across the Atlantic. But European leaders doing the trick-or-treating aren’t getting the sweet sugar fix they…
The American Spectator
European Politics Increasingly Resemble Halloween
Politics in Europe is beginning to resemble Halloween. Trick-or-treaters like Greece and Spain come to the doorstep of Germany and the European Union for bailout…
Blog
Italy’s Greatest Economic Threat: Italian Politicians
Italian ex-Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi told news sources last week that his party -- Popolo della Libertà -- would soon decide whether or not to…
Blog
Southern European Bailouts Must Focus On Reform
As European leaders meet in Brussels this week for a summit on the future of European integration, bailouts for the south will be heavy on…
The American Spectator
Greece must stop hitting snooze and wake up to economic reform
WHEN the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and European finance ministers meet today at the European Union (EU) summit, they are bound to butt heads over…
Blog
Jobless Youth: Southern Europe’s Ticking Time Bomb
Forget austerity and bailouts. Southern Europe has an even bigger problem: a glut of unemployed young people. If this trend continues, workforces will regress in…
Blog
Printing Money Is Not A Main Street Policy
The American Spectator
Letter to the Editor: The Fed Helps Wall Street at the Expense of Main Street
Mr. Bernanke’s description of QE3 as a “‘Main Street’ policy” is incorrect. The Fed distributes its newly created money by…
The American Spectator
Jobless youth – southern Europe’s ticking time bomb
BRUSSELS – As Europe hangs on every public statement about the possibility of more bailouts from the European Central Bank or German Chancellor Angela Merkel,…
Blog
The Real Spanish Bank Bailout Cost: 113 Billion Euro
Don’t be fooled by the optimism overflowing from the stress test of Spain’s banking system released on Friday. American Consultancy Oliver Wyman, which performed the…
Blog
State Capitalism Or Corporatism? Italy’s Carmaker Conundrum
Italy’s iconic car manufacturer, Fiat, announced Saturday its plans to keep its production base in Italy after months of threatening to leave for more…
Blog
The European Central Bank’s Losing Game Of Chicken
European Central Bank (ECB) President Mario Draghi is losing a game of chicken with the Euro Area’s distressed peripheral countries. Earlier this month, Draghi announced…
The American Spectator
Angela Merkel’s Bismarckian Euro Diplomacy
German Chancellor Angela Merkel seems to be channeling her 19th century predecessor, Otto von Bismarck, in a striking way; engineering a diplomatic balancing act…
Blog
Europe’s Central Bankers Are Running Out Of Road
Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke said yesterday in his testimony to the House Financial Services Committee that Europe is a long way off from having a…
Blog
Italy Kicks the Can on Labor Reform
Italy continues to put off addressing its most fundamental economic problem: impossibly rigid labor regulation. In this letter to The Wall Street Journal, I explain why…
Blog
Bailouts Won’t Save Europe, Only Reform Will
As European leaders panic over bailouts for Southern Europe, they miss an important reality. Comprehensive structural reform is the only long-term solution for recovery. Perversely, bailouts…
The American Spectator
Reform, Not a Bailout, Will Save Italy
WITH Greece on life support from the European Union and Spain squirming in the financial vice grip of its insolvent banks, talk of an Italian…
Blog
Central Bankers are Playing a Losing Game
The supposed economic “recovery” is faltering. The sugar high of freshly printed money from the world’s central banks is beginning to wear off. In…
The American Spectator
The European Central Bank vs. Reality
The four-year charade of central bank bailouts is starting to come undone. Reacting to rising European bond yields in a Saturday meeting with world leaders,…
Blog
Super Mario Hasn’t Saved Italy’s Entrepreneurs
Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti is full of optimism these days. He has claimed to achieve “historic” reform in Italy’s labor market and to beat…
The American Spectator
Super Mario Talks a Good Game But Italy’s Entrepreneurs Have Lost Out
ITALIAN Prime Minister Mario Monti recently proclaimed “historic” labour reform and even declared the “financial aspect” of the crisis to be over. But don’t pop…
Blog
School Choice Can Temper Climate Curriculum Dogma
John Stuart Mill once wrote, “There is the greatest difference between presuming an opinion to be true, because, with every opportunity for contesting it, it…
The American Spectator
Rome vs. the Unions
Relative to Italy’s debt problems, the country’s biggest impediment to growth gets relatively little international press. Burdensome labor regulations are nothing new to Italians. But…
Blog
More Phony Comparisons by American Europhiles
American Europhiles love to make comparisons between the entire United States and the rich Nordic countries in order to advocate America's "Europeanization." But comparing these…
Blog
Fed’s Plan to De-Mystify Interest Rate Intentions Won’t Induce Recovery
Blog
Boom and Bust Madness: An Empirical Look at the Fed’s Dollar Binge
Blog
Bernanke’s Dollar Swap Euro “Stimulus”
Here’s a letter I sent to The Wall Street Journal: In “Central Banks Take Coordinated Action” (Nov. 30), Mr. Sparshott and Mr. Hilsenrath rightly…
Blog
Ben Bernanke: Most Powerful Man in America?
Don’t let his short stature and friendly grandpa beard fool you. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke has the power to control the money in your…
Blog
What the Super Committee Could Have Learned From Italy
Entitlement reform. Those words alone make politicians’ ears bleed. Or in the case of Italy, it makes their fists literally fly at one another. I…
The American Spectator
What the Super Committee Could Have Learned From Italy
One of Thomas Jefferson’s rules for living was, “Never put off until tomorrow what you can do today.” As an American and as a “cittadino”…
Blog
Bombs Don’t Build Economies
Blog
Regulation is this Halloween’s Goblin
Uncle Sam may be the biggest spook to business this Halloween. A new Gallup poll of small business owners shows that “complying with government regulations”…
Daily Caller
Regulation Is This Halloween’s Goblin
American entrepreneurs and small business owners have good reason to be scared this Halloween. According to a new Gallup poll, small business owners consider…
Blog
Tax-and-Spend is Not a “Jobs” Plan
Daily Caller
Environmental School Curriculum Labeled as One-Sided
Blog
Green Zealots Target Maryland Students
The Maryland State Board of Education passed a new curriculum requirement on June 21, 2011. Instead of gaining competence in math or science, students…
Daily Caller
Propaganda Posing as Environmental Literacy
Kids aren’t the only ones going back to school this week. Powerful environmental advocacy groups are joining them in the classroom. On June 21, the…
Blog
Keynesian Policy Does Not Create Growth
Blog
“Rules are Rules,” When it Comes to Yard Sales
The City of Salem, Oregon, is cracking down on yard sales — even if they are a citizen’s last option to pay for expensive…
Blog
Growth Won’t Come From More Government Spending
Blog
Obama Ignores even Internal Dissent on Environmentalist Agenda
President Obama will stop at nothing to pursue his war on coal. He won’t even listen to those within his own administration. His…