News Release
U.S. Economy Adds 678,000 Jobs in February, but Inflation, Russia, Government Mandates Remain a Problem
The U.S. economy added 678,000 jobs in February, according to newly released government figures. CEI economic and labor policy experts praised the good news…
Blog
What Do Workers Want?
Pundits and politicians are talking about how to get back to normal as COVID (hopefully) winds down into an endemic disease like the cold or…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
Congress avoided a government shutdown by passing a continuing resolution to fund the government through March 11. Meanwhile, agencies issued new regulations ranging from…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
Russia invaded Ukraine last week. Meanwhile, agencies issued new regulations ranging from headlights to glucose monitors. On to the data: Agencies issued 44 final regulations…
The Washington Times
Wholesale Prices Soared Again in January as Inflation Remains Near Record Highs
The Washington Times cites Senior Fellow Ryan Young on the Fed’s response to inflation: Ryan Young, a senior fellow at the libertarian…
NewsTalk STL
AUDIO: Ryan Young Joins NewsTalk STL to Discuss Inflation
Senior Fellow Ryan Young joins NewsTalk STL to discuss inflation rates: NewsTalk STL ·…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
Inflation reached an annualized rate of 7.5 percent, with prices going up 0.6 percent just in January. This is highest reading in 40 years.
Blog
New Export-Import Bank President Has Opportunities for Reform
Reta Jo Lewis is about to become the next president of the Export-Import Bank. The Senate confirmed her nomination yesterday. Called Ex-Im for short,…
News Release
Inflation Rise Should Trigger Response by Fed, Congress, President
Inflation is on the rise again, hitting the highest mark in 40 years, according to government figures. CEI Senior Fellow Ryan Young says the Fed,…
Blog
Steel Tariffs against Japan Lifted, Kind of
President Biden is taking a small step toward tariff relief. Japan’s first 1.25 million metric tons per year of steel exports to the U.S.
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
The U.S. government’s debt reached $30 trillion last week. Antitrust target Facebook lost users last quarter for the first time in its history,…
Blog
Good News for Facebook Competitors, Bad News for the FTC’s Antitrust Case
Thursday brought some interesting news, none of which were kind to the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) antitrust case against Facebook. First, Facebook’s number of…
News Release
U.S. Economy Added 467,000 Jobs in January 2022, Signaling No Need for Govt Meddling
The good news jobs gain in January gives President Biden and Congress ample reason to step back and let businesses and workers chart a…
News Release
House Democrats’ China Bill Would Make the U.S Less Competitive and Harm Consumers
The House of Representatives is considering the America COMPETES Act this week, a bill described by sponsors as a “China competition bill.” The wide-ranging legislation…
Blog
The COMPETES Act Is a Bad Idea. Here’s What Congress Should Do Instead
The 2,912-page America COMPETES Act (H.R. 4521; the backronym is for ‘‘America Creating Opportunities for Manufacturing, Pre-Eminence in Technology, and Economic Strength’’) is the…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
GDP grew 5.7 percent during 2021, giving further evidence of a strong economic rebound from the COVID-19 pandemic. Even so, Congress is now considering…
Voice of America
US Congress Considers Bills to Boost Competition with China
Voice of America cites Senior Fellow Ryan Young on how Congress is addressing China: Ryan Young, a senior fellow with the Competitive…
News Release
Federal Reserve Signals Interest Rate Hike to Fight Inflation: CEI Statement
The Federal Reserve today signaled an interest rate hike is coming in March to combat inflation. CEI Senior Fellow Ryan Young believes the Fed…
The Tribune-Democrat
There are Better Ways than Raising the Federal Minimum Wage to Boost Workers’ Pay
Twenty-five states raised their minimum wages this year, but the federal minimum wage has been stuck at $7.25 per hour since 2009. Is it time…
Blog
Better Ways to Fight Poverty than the Minimum Wage
Every January, states and cities across the country raise their minimum wages. There are also calls to raise the federal minimum wage, which has stayed…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
A major antitrust bill from Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) is poised to hit the Senate floor without a proper hearing. Considering its contents, one…
News Release
Senate Antitrust Bill Would Deny Consumers Popular Services from Large Tech Platforms
WASHINGTON – The Senate Judiciary Committee is scheduled to mark up The American Innovation and Choice Online Act (S. 2992) today, a bill…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
Happy Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, everyone. Inflation hit a 40-year high last week. Meanwhile, agencies issued new rules ranging from French dressing freedom to…
News Release
Inflation Hits 40 Year High, but Policymakers Can Fix It
Inflation is up, again, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports today. The Federal Reserve has a clear job to do, but Congress and President…
News Release
Revived FTC Antitrust Suit Against Facebook Could Put Chill on Innovative Acquisitions in Tech Industry
WASHINGTON – A federal judge today reversed an earlier decision and permitted a case filed against Facebook by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
Teachers’ unions continued to make an eloquent case for school choice by shutting down schools in major cities like Chicago. The country also observed the…
News Release
December’s Disappointing Job Numbers Show Government Should Loosen Restrictions on Economy
On Friday, the Biden Administration released the jobs report for December 2021, showing the U.S. economy added 199,000 jobs. The number was far short of…
Blog
Retro Book Reviews: A Capitalism for the People: Recapturing the Lost Genius of American Prosperity by Luigi Zingales (Basic Books, 2012)
University of Chicago economist Luigi Zingales’s book A Capitalism for the People: Recapturing the Lost Genius of American Prosperity, which celebrates its 10th anniversary…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
The Federal Register took Christmas Eve off, and here’s hoping everyone had a happy holiday season. One more week to go in 2021. The Food…
News Release
Consumer Spending Growth Slows: COVID, Inflation, Supply Networks Are Factors: CEI Statement
On news today that inflation rose again in November, CEI Senior Fellow Ryan Young urged policymakers to do their part by spending less: “Consumer spending grew…
Blog
Best Books of 2021: Keith E. Stanovich, The Bias that Divides Us: The Science and Politics of Myside Thinking (MIT Press, 2021)
Today’s political polarization isn’t just annoying; it’s damaging important cultural and family institutions. And tensions won’t deescalate until people figure out the root of the…
Blog
Best Books of 2021: Ryan Bourne, Economics in One Virus (Cato Institute, 2021) and Caleb Fuller, There Is No Free Lunch (Freiling, 2021)
Economists are an unpopular bunch. One reason for this is that much of their job is putting parameters on people’s utopias. Spending more money…
Blog
What’s Ahead for Regulation in 2022?
There are two questions about the coming year in regulation. The first is what will happen. The second is what should happen. What will likely…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
Two big pieces of good news last week were the Senate’s decision to shelve the $1.7 trillion Build Back Better spending bill and the…
Blog
Have a Regulated Holiday Season!
The Code of Federal Regulations is 185,984 pages long, according to my colleague Wayne Crews’s Ten Thousand Commandmentsreport. It consists of 50 titles spread…
Blog
Senate Shelves Build Back Better Spending Bill, For Now
The Senate will not vote on the Build Back Better (BBB) spending bill this year, though they might take it up again next year.
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
The number of new regulations this year topped 3,000, ending the week at 3,068, and the 2021 Federal Register topped 70,000 pages. Inflation went up…
Blog
Inflation Increases to 6.8 percent, Misery Index Reaches 11
October’s inflation reading was the highest since the recession of 1991. November’s is the highest since the 1982 recession, at an annualized 6.8 percent.
Blog
Can Regional Trade Agreements Replace the WTO?
Trade policy is in a bad place right now, with two consecutive protectionist administrations in the U.S. and the World Trade Organization (WTO) possibly damaged…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
The number of new final regulations this year will pass 3,000 this week, with more than three weeks still to go. The Omicron variant gave…
News Release
Disappointing Job Gains for November 2021 Speak to Government Barriers to Economic Recovery
The U.S. economy added 210,000 jobs in November, far short of what economists expected. CEI experts say government mandates and restrictions remain a big part…
The Washington Times
Inflation, Supply Shortages Drive up Christmas Tree Prices
The Washington Times cites Senior Fellow Ryan Young on Christmas tree sales: Ryan Young, a senior fellow at the libertarian Competitive Enterprise…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
It was a short work week because of Thanksgiving. Meanwhile, agencies issued new rules ranging from blood lancets to crash test dummies. On to the…
News Release
Thankful for Good Economic News on Jobs, Consumer Spending: More to Do
During Thanksgiving week, jobless claims dipped to 199,000, their lowest level in 52 years, when the country’s population was less than two thirds of…
News Release
Fed Chairman Powell Should Prioritize Getting Inflation Under Control
President Biden has re-nominated Jerome Powell to head the Federal Reserve, and CEI Senior Fellow Ryan Young expressed hope that Powell will make the politically…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
The House passed a $1.85 trillion spending bill, which a 50-50 Senate will now consider. An Alzheimer’s vaccine began human trials. If it…
Blog
Court Strikes Down Trump Tariff: Precedent for Institution-Level Changes?
Pessimism reigns for trade liberalization in the short run, but there is fresh hope for the long run. A new court decision over solar panel…
Blog
Review of Michael Munger, The Sharing Economy: Its Pitfalls and Promises (Institute of Economic Affairs, 2021)
Transaction costs are one of the most overlooked ideas in economics. They are also one of the most important. The lowering of transaction costs is…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
News Release
Inflation Hits High Mark with Consumer Price Climb in October 2021, but Policymakers Can Take Steps to Help: CEI Statement
Bad news for consumers – prices rose 0.9 percent in October and to a 30-year high, according to data released today by the Labor…