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Podcast: Another Fed Interest Rate Hike: What It Means To You
Senior Fellow Ryan Young joined American Viewpoints to discuss how the Federal Researve’s decision to raise the interest rate again affects many Americans’ budgets.
Blog
The Jones Act vs. Puerto Rico, Again
Puerto Rico is almost entirely without power after Hurricane Fiona. Right now, there is a ship just offshore, ready to help. It…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
The Federal Reserve raised the federal funds rate by 75 basis points, with more increases likely to come. Meanwhile, agencies issued new regulations…
Blog
Fed Raises Federal Funds Rate
As expected, the Federal Reserve raised the federal funds rate by 75 basis points as part of its inflation-fighting efforts. Its target range…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
CEI hosted its annual Julian Simon dinner on Thursday. The Consumer Price Index gave a mixed picture of inflation. A railroad strike…
Blog
FTC Hearing on Vaping Case Shows Antitrust at its Worst
Earlier this week, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) held a public hearing about a seemingly resolved antitrust case about the vaping market. In…
Blog
Virtual Reality and the Relevant Market Fallacy
The relevant market fallacy is one of the most common analytical mistakes in antitrust policy. One of the first legal questions in an…
National Review
Virtual Reality and the Relevant-Market Fallacy
Facebook’s parent company, Meta, is at a crossroads. Its main social-media platform is declining under heavy competition and faces twin federal and …
Blog
Mixed News on CPI: Headline Rate Improves, Core Rate Accelerates
The Consumer Price Index (CPI) for August is out. It increased 8.3 percent over the last year, down from 8.5 percent in July.
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
Queen Elizabeth II passed away at age 96. Meanwhile, in a four-day week, agencies issued new regulations ranging from St. Louis bridges to Atlantic…
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Fed Chairman Powell’s Remarks at Cato Monetary Conference
Every year, our friends at the Cato Institute hold a monetary policy conference. This year’s conference opened with Cato President Peter Goettler interviewing…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
The labor market continues to look strong, and the Federal Trade Commission lost its attempt to keep an early cancer-detection test off…
News Release
CEI Experts React to August Jobs Numbers
The Labor Department’s Bureau of Labor Statistics reported 315,000 new jobs in the month of August, slightly below market expectations. The unemployment rate rose…
News Release
Judge Rules Illumina-Grail Merger is Legal Despite FTC Antitrust Accusations
In a decision reached today, an administrative judge ruled that a proposed merger between Illumnia and Grail can proceed after ruling against a…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
President Biden announced partial student loan forgiveness for people earning up to $125,000. The number of new final regulations this year topped 2,000. Meanwhile,…
Blog
The Fed’s Preferred Inflation Measure Improves, Mixed Picture on Consumer Spending
Two new economic indicators published Friday morning give reason for cautious optimism. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) is the inflation measure that gets…
Blog
Student Loan Forgiveness Is Regressive, Will Increase Tuition
When the Inflation Reduction Act passed, I pointed out that its $300 billion in tax increases and spending cuts would not begin to…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
The 2022 Federal Register surpassed 50,000 pages last week. Meanwhile, agencies issued new regulations ranging from hearing aids to vessel repair duties. On…
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CDC Restructuring Shows that Institutions Matter
One of my policy mantras is that institutions matter. That’s why the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) restructuring announcement is…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
The FBI raided former President Trump’s Mar-a-Lago residence in Florida. Meanwhile, agencies issued new regulations ranging from street markings to salmonella prevention. On…
Blog
CPI Gives Reason for Cautious Optimism on Inflation
Inflation may finally be coming down. July’s month-to-month Consumer Price Index (CPI) increase dropped to zero last month, down from 1.3 percent in June.
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
The Inflation Reduction Act, which would not reduce inflation, is now expected to pass after Sen. Kyrsten Sinema agreed to sign on. Meanwhile, agencies…
News Release
U.S. Economy Adds 528k Jobs In July Amid Inflation and Shrinking GDP, but Congress isn’t Helping: CEI Analysis
The U.S. economy added 528,000 in July, and the unemployment rate edged down to 3.5 percent, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
GDP shrank, the Federal Reserve increased the federal funds rate, the Senate passed the CHIPS+ Act to subsidize chipmakers, and the…
News Release
GDP Woes Worsened by Lawmakers’ ‘Ready, Fire!, Aim” Spending Spree
Gross domestic product fell by 0.2 percent in the second quarter, according to the U.S. Commerce Department. Already there was a 0.4 percent decline…
News Release
Manchin/Schumer Deal on Health Care, Energy Spending is Bad News for Inflation, Taxpayers
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Senator Joe Manchin reportedly announced a surprise deal on July 27 that resuscitates Democrats’ big government spending ambitions…
News Release
Statement by CEI Senior Fellow Ryan Young on the Fed’s Interest Rate Hike
The Federal Reserve today announced a 0.75 percentage point increase in the federal funds rate. It is the fourth such increase this year, and…
News Release
Senate-Passed Corporate Welfare “CHIPS” Bill Won’t Help U.S. Companies Out-Compete China
The Senate today passed the CHIPS+ Act, a bill that would hand over tens of billions of tax dollars to domestic production of semiconductors.
Blog
The Facebook Antitrust Case Is Aging Poorly
Antitrust cases often take years to litigate. While wasteful, this isn’t always a bad thing. The politics surrounding a case might stay the same,…
Blog
Getting Inflation Wrong and Making It Right
Everyone makes mistakes. Owning up to them is an underrated life skill that is almost non-existent among political pundits. Doubling down when threatened is…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
President Biden signed the FORMULA Act, which will temporarily suspend baby formula tariffs and other regulatory measures that made the formula shortage worse. Footage…
Blog
Former Trade Official Opposes Minor Tariff Relief
Now that former President Trump’s China tariffs are four years old, a mandatory review process is underway. President Biden has indicated he might…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
The James Webb Space Telescope sent back its first images, and they are amazing. The Consumer Price Index increased 9.1 percent over the…
Blog
Certification Program Goes Bananas
Private regulation is an excellent alternative to government regulation, if done right. One form it can take is independent certification. For decades, groups like…
Blog
Inflation Sped Up in June: What’s Going On?
Last month, it had looked like inflation may have peaked. That celebration was likely premature. According to numbers released this morning, the…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was assassinated while giving a speech. Boris Johnson resigned as UK Prime Minister. Jobs numbers remained strong in…
News Release
U.S. Economy Adds 372,000 Jobs in June – Good News for Recession Worries
The U.S. economy added 372,000 jobs in June 2022, according to a new tally released today by the government. Meanwhile, the unemployment rate held…
Blog
China Tariffs: Will Inertia Win?
Former President Trump’s China tariffs came with a safeguard: They expire after four years unless an internal review finds them worth keeping. On trade…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
Happy Independence Day, everyone. The Supreme Court issued a major ruling on the separation of powers in the case West Virginia v. EPA.
National Review
Regulators’ Misguided Crackdown on Nicotine Products and Their Makers
Federal agencies must really love black markets. Last week, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced a plan to limit nicotine in…
Blog
The FTC vs. the Right to a Fair Trial
The Food and Drug Administration recently proposed capping the nicotine in cigarettes, which will encourage many smokers to smoke more to get the same…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
The January 6 hearings continued and the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. Agencies issued new regulations ranging from nuclear fees to pelagic resources.
Blog
Crisis Abuse in History
Last week, CEI released Wayne Crews’s paper proposing an Abuse of Crisis Prevention Act. (If you prefer the short version, see Wayne’s and…
Blog
Yellen Proposes Capping Oil Prices? Not Quite
Cable news and Twitter are aflame with outrage today that Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen proposed price caps for oil. Fortunately, the rumors are…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
Happy Juneteenth, everyone. The January 6 hearings continued. The Federal Reserve raised the federal funds rate by 0.75 percentage points. Agencies issued new regulations…
Blog
New CEI Paper: Abuse of Crisis Prevention Act
Government always grows during a crisis. And it rarely gives up all of its emergency powers when the crisis passes. This has already happened…
National Review
The Case for Letting Crises Go to Waste
If there is an iron law in politics, it’s that when crisis hits, government grows. Rahm Emanuel, President Obama’s chief of staff, advised that politicians…
Richmond City Daily Journal
Baby formula shortage should spur new thinking about regulations
But I’ve also observed enough government regulation to know that the rules might be unnecessary. State authorities expressed their willingness…
Blog
This Week in Ridiculous Regulations
The Hill
An independent commission can bypass congressional dysfunction and help solve the worker shortage
Job openings have been at record highs for a while now, but companies can’t find the workers to fill them. How can Congress help?…